ST JOHN’S, Antigua (CMC) — Five players with first class experience, including Jamaica’s Kirk McKenzie, were among a 15-man group announced Friday for the first intake at the Cricket West Indies (CWI) Emerging Players Academy.

McKenzie, Teddy Bishop, Keagan Simmons, Ackeem Auguste, and Ramon Simmonds have already turned out for their respective franchises in the CWI Four-Day Championship, and will be joined by the likes of left-arm spinners Joshua Bishop and Ashmead Nedd who have featured in the List A format.

Fast bowling all-rounder Nyeem Young, who has played a handful of matches in the Caribbean Premier League, is also on the intake list.

The academy, which also got underway Friday at Coolidge Cricket Ground, is expected to cover areas such as capacity-building, player development, and talent management, and CWI said it would serve as “a nexus between regional junior and senior teams while supporting the development of talented players between the ages of 19 and 25”.

Players will be together for a month in the first instance and will continue to be monitored when they return to their respective franchises.

“We want to offer a special welcome to the young men who have been selected to form the first cohort for the CWI Emerging Players programme,” said director of cricket Jimmy Adams.

“They are a talented group of players who we are sure will enjoy the benefits of their hard work. CWI has been looking at ways of bridging that critical gap between our junior and professional levels and this academy initiative provides us with a great start towards achieving this.

“This will also play an important role in building regional capacity within high-performance player support – technical, physical, mental, and personal development.”

The 15-man group was chosen by the selection panel in collaboration with the six territorial boards.

Young, 21, who featured two years ago at the ICC Under-19 World Cup, described his selection as a “massive opportunity”.

“I can’t wait to get to Antigua to get started and get involved. Being a player who has come through the West Indies Rising Stars U-19 system and being at the senior white-ball camp a few months back, this is a chance to further my skills,” he said.

“This will benefit all of us as we look to the future, and I believe the camp will also help to build camaraderie.”

Squad – Kevlon Anderson, Ackeem Auguste, Joshua Bishop, Teddy Bishop, McKenny Clarke, Joshua James, Leonardo Julien, Johann Layne, Kirk McKenzie, Ashmead Nedd, Kelvin Pitman, Keagan Simmons, Ramon Simmonds, Kevin Wickham, Nyeem Young.