The legendary former Windies fast bowler was this week appointed to travel with the 15-man squad which leaves next Tuesday for the three-Test tour of Australia.
Garner said he was hoping to make a difference on the tour so West Indies could begin their march back to the top of international cricket.
“There are some things that are non-negotiable, things like discipline, punctuality and I think that players know and understand that there are some things that are not negotiable, the way we approach our cricket, the way how we train, all of those things will come back into force,” Garner said here yesterday.
“The West Indies team that we had that was a good West Indies team of the 70s and 80s was not all talent. We were successful because we worked hard and we took the time out to do the things that were right and to bring the cricket up.”
He added: “I’m looking at bring back some of those values that made us great, back into the team. The first thing you have to do is start talking and let them understand what it takes to get to the top.
“You don’t just really want to make the squad, you want to make the team and you want to keep working, you want to keep performing.”
Chris Gayle has been reappointed to lead the team which will see the return of the players who were sidelined because of the bitter contracts dispute between the West Indies Players Association and the West Indies Cricket Board.
Garner, also a WICB director, said the time had come to leave the past behind and focus on getting West Indies cricket out of the doldrums.
“What is happening in world cricket … there are divisions where you have four or five world teams who are at the top and they want to go it alone and they want to play more cricket between themselves because they have the bargaining power,” said Garner who snatched 259 wickets in 58 Tests, in a career spanning 20 years.
“We have to understand we have to get from the position of number eight to be in those top four to be a force to be reckoned with in world cricket.
“The time to put aside all the nonsense [has come] and [we have] to look forward in a positive way. If you are only going to come to the party and not participate in the party then you’re in the wrong sport.”
The 56-year-old administrator, known for his frank, no nonsense approach, said his first test would be ensuring team unity, especially in the wake of the dispute.
Four players – Travis Dowlin, Darren Sammy, Kemar Roach and Gavin Tonge – all of whom played for the second string team during the strike, have been selected for the tour.
“We have a challenging period ahead with the merging of the fellows who played during the strike and those fellows who were on strike … it is going to be a challenge to sort of get everything working smoothly and get them to play competitive cricket while we are in Australia,” Garner admitted.
“That’s what is going to take most of the time and when we talk about the players who were playing and those who went on strike, this is where they need to understand they need to move on.
“We have to look at the future of West Indies cricket we have to look at what is happening in world cricket.”
