JERSEY’S men will bid to go one better than last year and grab a hat-trick of inter-insular basketball victories at Fort Regent tomorrow.

The women will be hoping more for respectability – last year they couldn’t raise a team, are in the process of re-building and face a Sarnian side which won gold at the Island Games in Shetland.

In Guernsey last year Jersey won the senior men’s trophy when man-of-the-match Duncan Prince snatched victory in the last second and also won the Under-17s but lost the Under-21 clash.

All the Island teams have a multi-national flavour with players from Poland, Austria, Greece and Ireland.

Senior team coach Rick Blakemore is optimistic, especially after his squad won three out of three warm-up games on a recent trip to Doncaster – including victory over lower National League side Lincoln.

‘We’ve got a better squad this year and the players are looking and feeling confident.

But obviously we can’t be complacent – they’ve lost two in a row now and they’ll be smarting after losing in their own backyard last year.’ But he found it difficult to see the ladies winning.

‘I think it will be extremely tough for them, it could be a steep learning curve,’ said Blakemore.

‘But on the positive side there’s been a big turnout at training, so things are definitely looking up.’ The games start with the Under-17 match at 10 am followed by the ladies at 12 noon, the Under-21 at 2 pm and the senior men at 4 pm.