Guyana Jaguars Coach Esuan Crandon said he hopes training under more professional conditions this season will help his players to reach peak condition as they prepare for upcoming events as well as the 2016/17 West Indies Cricket Board (WICB)/ Professional Cricket League (PCL) four-day competition.
Following yesterday’s physical assessment session held at the Georgetown Cricket Club (GCC) Ground, Crandon told Stabroek Sport that he was pleased to see slight improvement in the current condition of his players who endured a long, tough season but nevertheless dominated the PCL 4-day tournament to successfully defend their title.
Conducted by Crandon, assistant Coach Rayon Griffith and with the aid of coaches Clive Grimmond and Michael Hyles, the Jaguars players including skipper Leon Johnson, Chris Barnwell, Raymon Reifer, Paul Wintz, Steven Jacobs, Rajendra Chandrika as well as the academy went numerous workouts such as the Yo-Yo Test, Vertical Jump and 40m acceleration which is used to test speed and agility.
Crandon during his interview said yesterday’s regimen was merely to assess the players’ current conditions following the wear and tear of a long season.
“We are coming out a tough season so today was just to get an idea of the fitness level of the senior and academy guys. What we did were basic West Indies requirements; the vertical jump, 40m acceleration and the Yo-Yo test.”
Yesterday marked the second time the players underwent the Yo-Yo Test, which is similar to that of the beep Test and where anything above 18 is considered excellent by West Indies requirements. “It’s the second time we ran the yo-yo test and when we compared the scores they were better. Five guys reached the 18 mark while some of the guys moved from 16 to 17 and some from 14 to 15.
“As we go along we will want more guys to reach the 18.5 mark which is required for the West Indies level. This year we want to do it in a more professional manner we take our training more serious because that is something that Cricket Guyana Inc. is in favor of.”
Crandon also said the recent coaching clinic, which was held sometime last week, helped coaches understand a bit of when it comes to proper training methods among other important factors which coincide with physical development. He said the coaches gained a lot of knowledge from a seminar which he said will help them to work better with players.
The players are required by contract to train and keep fit before, during and after the season ends and the former national all-rounder said that with the 2015/16 season over, it was important to put in as much work now, especially with the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) and West Indies home series approaching.
“I think during off-season we could put in most of the work to try and prepare individual players, those who will be playing in the CPL and those who could likely earn West Indies selections.”
Apart from the rigours of training, Crandon said it was important to understand the communication plays a critical role in the relationship between the coaches and players, something he said helps both parties to understand the holistic aim of the team when they take the field.
”After the season ended, we had a post-season discussion to get feedback as well as make plans going forward. We did some interaction regarding more technical stuff which will enable us to work specifically and individually with our players,” he said.
