By Roger Seymour
In this week’s edition of In Search of West Indies Cricket, Roger Seymour presents the second instalment of a day’s events during the 1997 Nortel West Indies Youth Cricket Tournament hosted by Guyana.
Sunday, 17th August, 1997 – As we leave Uitvlugt, West Coast Demerara, Denis turns on the car radio and we are just in time to get the score for the match between the Leeward and the Windward islands at the La Bonne Intention Community (LBI) Ground, East Coast Demerara. The Leewards won the toss and electing to bat are 64 for five, at lunch.
“And as the West Indies talent scouts depart Uitvlugt, lunch is served, courtesy of Diana,” Denis cheerfully announces. His sister had readily responded to our eleventh hour plea, and prepared chicken curry and roti, and sandwiches for us. As we accept the carefully wrapped packages and bottles of water, Andrew observes, “Gosh, there must be several upcoming cricket commentators. Two are providing summaries, and there must be at least three or four in the rotation for the ball-by-ball coverage at Everest for the Guyana game.”
“Actually, about two weeks ago, there was a two-day cricket commentators workshop conducted by none other than our very own Reds Pereira,” I reply. “I know a couple of chaps who were selected, and they said it was very informative. I think there were about 15 to 20 participants, so we should be hearing quite a few new voices on the air. Apparently, in addition to covering this tournament, they are projecting to provide more live coverage of local cricket on weekends, and it is the intention to develop a pool of local cricket commentators.”
The clock appears to be ticking faster than normal. I keep a moderate speed, the villages merge into each other: Groenveldt, Edinburgh, Anna Catherina.
“Slow down a bit, we approaching the haunted house at Hague,” Imtiaz appeals.
“Haunted house? Look driver, keep going. Slow down? For what? I like de Bajan man and electricity, I ain’t dealing with anything I can’t see. Baccoo, jumbie and ole higue not on my agenda. Look, coward man keep old bones. Keep driving, keep driving, young man,” Compton pleads, a tortured expression on his face. The crew is in peals of laughter.
Upon noticing the sign announcing La Jalousie, I slow down.
“Don’t panic Compton, we passed the haunted house, I looking for a little hamlet here on the right,” I said.
“Looking for Pakistan?” Imtiaz asks, with a loud chuckle.
“How do you know? Like you had some diplomatic relations there.”
“Not really, my non-residency application for visiting rights was politely refused.”
“You all serious? Pakistan?” Compton asks.
“Yes, that’s the name of the place, it is very small about two streets, I think,” Imtiaz indicates.
Unfortunately, there is no sign to indicate where Pakistan is located. At Vreed-en-Hoop we head south bound towards the bridge.
“Hosting a tournament of this nature, must cost quite a bit of coin. Accommodation, transportation, food, and miscellaneous expenses such as doctors’ fees, dental bills, hospital emergencies, etcetera, those numbers will add up quickly,”Andrew observes. “How long now Nortel bracing West Indies cricket with their sponsorship?”
“According to the souvenir programme since 1984,” Imitiaz confirms.
“I remember back in the day – in the ‘70s – Benson and Hedges was the sponsor [1971 -1979]. It was a big thing to get called to B and H trials,” Andrew says. “Before that British American Tobacco was the sponsor, and the competition was known as the BAT Youth Tournament [1968-1970]. Any idea who was the sponsor between the cigarette makers and the modern technologist? Which hotels these youngsters staying at?”
“It was the Milo Tournament in 1980, and Neal and Massy chipped in 1982 and ‘83. Not sure if the 1981 tournament was sponsored, I’ll have to look it up,” I reply. “The teams are being lodged at the Guyana School of Agriculture dormitories at Mon Repos.”
The road through Joe Vieira Park leading to the bridge comes into view. We join a line of about 15 cars, moving at a snail’s pace. Imitiaz reads the Sunday Stabroek front page headlines: “Guyana may receive $40 billion in debt relief, by Gitanjali Singh; Clear-felling not practised by DTL – company official, by Ronald Waddell. Who are these people with President Samuel Hinds? [There is a front page photo of a group smiling broadly]…”
Compton jerks up, “Forty billion? That’s with a B as in baker? Is how much money we really owe? Wait a second, slow down. Alfred! Alfred!Alfred!’’ Compton hails an older gentleman standing about ten yards from the bridge, who saunters over.
“Eh! Eh! Compton where you drop from boy? Donkey years ah ain’t see you. Ah going cross the bridge hey to my sister in Republic Park,” Alfred greets Compton.
“Come, come in, take a squeeze, is only cross the bridge,” Compton says. Denis and I nod to each other. “This is Alfred. We work together for years at Demba. Alfred used to work on the railway. Alfred these youngsters bring me out for the day to watch lil cricket.”
Compton is so busy chatting that he doesn’t realise we have crossed the bridge until I stop to drop off Alfred, who graciously extends his gratitude.
As we head to the city, after-lunch commentary resumes from the Everest Cricket Club, where Guyana is facing Barbados. Guyana’s Captain Ramnaresh Sarwan won the toss and invited the opposition to bat. At lunch, Barbados were on 59 for two.
The commentator says: “Here come the first cousins from Barbados, Shawn and Marlon Graham, to resume their innings. The Grahams are very experienced. This is Skipper Shawn’s fourth tournament, and Marlon’s third. In the opening round, Marlon scored 115 not out versus the Leewards, and in his only other innings, 54 versus the Windwards. A lot hinges on this partnership, and Guyana will be looking to separate the kinsmen before they get too settled.”
Traffic is relatively light and soon we are wending our way through the city: Broad, Lombard, Hadfield, and High streets; Avenue of the Republic, and Main Street and from the gist of the radio commentary, the Grahams are in full control.
“Compton, like we are going to need you to break this partnership,” Andrew suggests.
“Look, within fifteen minutes of our arrival, we’ll separate them, not to worry,”Compton says.
We find parking just past the old Legionnaire’s Club, a brisk three-minute walk from Everest.
The pavilion is bursting at the seams. The scoreboard on the southern side of the ground alerts us that the score has crept into the 90s.
“Come on Compton, let’s get this wicket,” Andrew exclaims, as the Barbados total nudges past the century mark. It is only then we discover that Compton is not with us.
“Perhaps, he is doing some scouting homework,” Imitiaz chuckles. “Seeking a better vantage point, to con
firm his selection of one of these Graham boys.”
Within two minutes Compton arrives in the company of four young women. “These ladies are from the typists’ pool at GUYNEC, where I was doing some consultancy work a few years ago, and they want to know who are the chaps who drag me here to cricket.”
Back on the field, Marlon plays a delivery short on the offside, and then sets off on a run, Shawn hesitates, screams no, as Marlon attempts to scramble back. A lightning return comes to young Azib Ali Haniff behind the stumps who whips the bails off. Explosive roars of “Howzat!” and “He’s out!” erupt. The umpire raises a finger. Marlon is run out for 35. We are all patting Compton on the back. Strangers are high-fiving, people are dancing, drinks are being poured, cups raised. Barbados – 109 for three wickets.
“Take it easy, I gon take the other cousin in a few minutes,” Compton confidently predicts.
One run later, Shawn smacks a delivery back to Shawn Grant, who, on his follow-through, gleefully accepts the catch. The Barbados skipper dismissed for 30. Compton shrugs. The spectators are celebrating wildly once again.
Over the next hour, Guyana tighten their grip on the Barbados innings. Antonio Mayers is smartly stumped by Haniff off Sarwan, 126 for five. Lalchand Persaud joins the list of wicket takers, deceiving Callitos Lopez with his off-spin; LBW for three. At tea time, Barbados are listing heavily to port on 143 for six.
It’s 2:50 pm when we reach the car, too late for the radio summaries from Uitvlugt and LBI. Denis retrieves the cooler from the trunk once again and passes around slices of sponge cake. Compton has the floor: “You fellas know that the National Park was a golf course before Independence? Slow down a bit by the old Cable and Wireless masts, right here, right here. Over there [he points south] was the Demerara Riding Academy and Stables, or some confusing fancy name like that. And finally, where the GDF compound is, used to be the old rifle ranges.”
“So, you are saying that those activities on the southern side of the road, back in time, were for the bourgeoisie class?” asks Imitiaz.
“More or less, let’s say the majority of the members were either the local elite or ex-pats working in the sugar or bauxite industries, or in the colonial office,” Compton replies.
The traffic is light, and on the short six-mile hop there are brief debates and light banter. Where does Clive Lloyd Drive become the Rupert Craig Highway? Spelling bees for Liliendaal, Goedverwagting Sparendaam and Le Ressouvenir.
At LBI, it is a stark contrast to Everest. There are about six or seven vehicles parked outside the ground, and only a sprinkling of spectators scattered in the pavilion; 40 at the most.
The ground is a sight to behold. It resembles a large outdoor billiard table, lush bright green grass covers the entire area, encompassing a solid-looking wicket in its centre.
The scoreboard reads 153 for nine as we plunk down in the shaded pavilion, just in time to witness the number 11 batsman for the Leewards, Jason Christopher making his way out to the middle to join the number eight, Bertil Baltimore, the wicketkeeper.
“All right, do something with that bat, it’s not an ornament,” shouts a spectator.
The last pair entertain with cheeky singles and smart running between the wickets. Much to the delight of their teammates Baltimore and Christopher are batting like a seasoned opening pair. The Windward Islanders are quickly frustrated, their fielding becomes sloppy and ragged. Wayne Phillip, the vice captain and wicketkeeper, can be seen urging his teammates to keep their chins up and focus on getting the final wicket.
Baltimore reaches 50 with another daring single, but shortly afterwards, trying to dispatch off-spinner Mezron Lawrence over the top, he holds out to Danny Harris at mid-wicket. The wagging tail has added 24 vital runs, as the Leewards innings closes at 177. Baltimore’s knock of 52, includes seven fours, came off 103 balls and lasted 121 minutes. Christopher was undefeated on ten. Zhuan Sweeney was the next highest scorer with 36.
Whilst the Windwards are preparing to begin their innings, Andrew points out the former West Indies middle order batsman Gus Logie sitting by himself on the opposite side of the pavilion. Later, we learn that Logie, who was constantly taking notes, is one of the selectors for the West Indies team for the youth world cup scheduled for South Africa in January 1998. Soon after, Andrew observes Joe Solomon, another former West Indies Test player speaking to the grounds staff on the boundary edge. Solomon is responsible for the preparation of all the grounds for the tournament.
Vernon Dumas and Nicholas Baptiste, are tasked with leading the Windwards reply. Marlon Martin opens the attack from the northern end, while Tyrone Greenaway lends support from the southern end. We are treated to 55 minutes of good cricket. The batsmen are solid in their approach on the firm wicket, which provides a bit of bounce for the speedsters, who are ably supported by excellent fielding from their teammates. After ten overs, Sylvester Joseph, the Leewards captain, opts for spin, in the form of St Clair Challenger and Runako Morton. At the close, after 12 overs, the Windwards are 29 without loss, with Dumas, 13, and Baptiste, 14.
On the way to the city, we listen to the end-of-play summaries. At Uitvlugt, Trinidad and Tobago are 181 for nine wickets. Top scorers were opener Avelino Thomas, 32, and Imran Jan, 31. The leading Jamaican bowlers were Ryan Cunningham with four for 45 from thirty overs, and the off-spinning duo of Ricardo Powell and Marlon Samuels, with two for 21 and two for 25, respectively. At Everest, Guyana dismissed Barbados for 184, with Ryan Hinds, who was not out at tea, getting 29. Sarwan, three for 39, and Persaud, three for 41, were the main wicket takers. In reply, Guyana were 46 without loss off 14 overs, with Azeemul Haniff, 18, and Andrew Gonsalves, 25.
As the sun dipped slowly, we passed the sentinels of the lower East Coast, the chimney at Chateau Margot, and the gigantic screen at the Starlite Drive-In cinema at Montrose, casting their shadows. It’s 5:40 pm when we arrive at Jerries for the wash-down and selection announcements.
“First of all, what are these bits of paper you and Denis give me this morning?” Andrew enquires.
“Denis and I had a friendly wager as to how many people Compton would have met today that he knows,” I reply. “Open the coupons.”
“Here’s the first entry, Roger – five; Denis – six,” Andrew reads. “All right, let’s count them. Scrutineer Imti, you ready? The policeman, Smithy, one, the man who left at the wedding over the river, two…”
“Alfred by the bridge, three,” Imitiaz chimes in, “and then the secretaries from GUYNEC, there were four of them, for a total of seven.”
“Hold on, hold on,” Compton intercedes. “You all missing one. When I went to the washroom in the pavilion at LBI, I recognise the barman, Harry on the way back to joining you all. We had a quick gyaff. I know Harry from the GDF Officers’ mess at Camp Ayanganna, that’s eight, and the night is young yet, ease up on the tabulation for the time being.”
“All right Uncle Compton,” Andrew surrenders, “Can we have another round here, for Guyana’s best known Ambassador of the People.”
“Thank you, gentlemen,” Compton nods, “As the one with the least knowledge of cricket I would like to nominate my find of today, first, if there is no objection.”
“The floor is all yours, Ambassador Compton,” Denis states.
“I think St Clair Challenger is the man most likely to play for the West Indies,” Compton says.
“St Clair who?” we shriek in unison.
“The chap bowl one over just before the end at LBI. Look, you all don’t understand. I work in Human Resources for 30-odd years, with a name like that, he bound to play. Not only play but he gon drive fear into opponents. Listen carefully to that powerful name: St Clair Challenger! It’s an intimidating name.”
Needless to say, Andrew, Denis, Imitiaz and I are howling with laughter.
“I select Tyrone Greenaway, the fast bowler from the Leewards, “Imitiaz declares. “I notice Gus Logie having a serious chat with him at the end of the day. I think he is on the selectors’ radar.”
The rest of us had missed that exchange.
“My pick is Sewnarine Chattergoon, the little Guyanese boy,” Andrew notes. “ He didn’t get pick today for Guyana, but I saw him opening batting with Azeemul Haniff last Wednesday at Everest against Jamaica. He is little on the small side, but as he develops physically I think he will do well. His technique is sound.”
“Dwight Mais, the Jamaican fast bowler, was the most impressive cricketer I saw today,” Denis says.
“Wayne Phillip, the wicket-keeper from the Windwards has the hallmarks of a West Indies Test player,” I opine. “I thought his keeping was excellent and his mature approach on the field was heartening.”
“In five years time, we’ll find out if any one of us has an eye for talent,” Andrew moots. “Cheers on that. Oh, one other thing, Compton, what is this ‘ice bridge’ story?”
“Fellas that was shaping up to be a big case. One of the expeditors at the bridge construction site was charged with fraud in the amount to $36,000 in relation to the purchase of ice. At that time $36,000 could have bought a house in Queenstown, or possibly two properties in Kitty. Anyway, I am almost certain, the defendant hired Rex McKay, one of the best trial lawyers we had at the time. On the first day of the trial, Mckay informed the magistrate that he didn’t see any evidence of $36,000 worth of ice in the courtroom, and it’s obvious that the evidence has melted and, as such there is no case against his client, and he moved for a dismissal. No ice. No evidence. Case dismissed.”
“I know that voice, it has to be Brother Compton…,” someone says behind us.
The night is young.
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Aftermath
Guyana defeated the Leeward Islands by ten wickets in the fifth round of the tournament to retain the Nortel title for the sixth consecutive time.
Of our selections, only Sewnarine Chattergoon wore the maroon colours playing four Tests between April and December 2008; two in the Caribbean, versus Sri Lanka and Australia, and two in New Zealand. His highest score was his debut innings of 46 against Sri Lanka in Trinidad.
