Dear Editor,
The Management of the Rose Hall Town Youth and Sports Club, would like to use the national media to urge the Guyana Cricket Board to review the way the Inter-League three-day, 50 overs and 20/20 tournaments are being organised.
The good thing is that we have learnt via the media that the 50 overs tournament has been postponed and as such the GCB should use the opportunity to correct the situation, especially the selection of team officials, who selects the Zone teams and the overall operations of the Zone teams.
The RHTY&SC, along with Albion are the powerhouse of Berbice cricket and produce the majority of players for the ancient county at all levels, but for some strange reason it has been kept in the dark about plans for the tournament. The RHTGG first division team currently holds all the titles in Berbice in the Upper Corentyne Zone; our players are far superior in terms of talent and performance, but the Management of the RHTY&SC knows nothing about the tournament. No one from the GCB or the person/s organising the Upper Corentyne Zone has contacted the club although one individual who is the President of another club has been disrespectfully contacting our players directly without permission of Management. This individual who has no proper cricketing background or any experience in cricket management, seems to be the boss of cricket in the Upper Corentyne Zone, and he is fully aware where our club office is, what the club’s telephone number is and our email address, yet we are being kept in the dark. We wish to inform him and others that our players must be contacted via the club office whose number is 337-4562. We clearly remember our colleagues at the Albion Cricket Club telling the Berbice Cricket Board not to contact players directly, but to do so via senior club officials. As Secretary/CEO of the RHTY&SC, I am often amazed that players have to update me on the status of the tournament including when trial matches are being held and which players are to turn up. The Management of the club is very upset about this state of affairs and would like to inform the general public of the following:
(1) The Guyana Club of the Year 2016 only has seven players called to trials while a club that has not won a first division title for over a decade has over twelve players at the trials. Outstanding youth players like Junior Sinclair, Brandon Prashad, Sylus Tyndall and Keith Simpson were left out.
(2) Shawn Perreira, one of the most successful first division captains in the history of Berbice, former national youth captain and Vice-Captain of the Berbice senior team was for reasons unknown overlooked to become captain. Shawn is not only a disciplined individual but a visionary leader who has successfully led the RHTGG first division team to numerous titles including all the titles currently. Shawn is always one of the top performers with both bat and ball in Berbice.
(3) Players like Kevlon Anderson, Keon Sinclair were only selected for the team after Management of the RHTY&SC spoke to Mr Colin Stuart of the GCB. Anderson at the age of sixteen proved his worth with the bat while Sinclair in the recent three-day tournament, finished as one of the best fast bowlers including a five wicket haul in his total.
(4) While outstanding players like Junior Sinclair and Sylus Tyndall were not even called to trial, yet a player who has never scored a half-century in his life was selected, played in a match and as expected failed to make respectable scores in his two innings.
To make matters even more laughable, this same player was unable to make his own club team in the recent Balram Shane Memorial Match. Imagine a player being unable to make one of the weakest teams in Berbice but playing in the GCB tournament at the Inter-Zone level. Poor Collis Butts had to be selected by West Berbice despite being one of the top off-spinners in the Upper Corentyne Zone.
(5) Delbert Hicks and Winston Smith, both qualified coaches are being reportedly replaced despite leading the Upper Corentyne to 3rd place in the GCB three days tournament.
Is it true that the proposed new coach does not have any coaching certificates? Were Hicks and Smith replaced based on the recommendation of an individual who could not get them to do things his way?
The RHTY&SC is fully committed to the development of cricket in Guyana and would work along with all to make a positive difference.
The officials of the GCB who are organising the tournaments are fully aware of the above mentioned issues and it is our sincere hope that the situation would be corrected as soon as possible. Personally, I have my hands full as Secretary/CEO of the RHTY&SC, and have no interest in being a part of the team, but there are many more qualified persons available to do the job. For the sake of our cricket, please act now GCB. Each Zone should have a management team consisting of the best available personnel along with a three-man selection committee headed by the coach. Awaiting the promised action.
Yours faithfully,
Hilbert Foster
Secretary/CEO