Barbados Cricket Tells WI Strength

When Barbados cricket is strong, West Indies cricket is strong. Reverend Wes Hall, former West Indies fast bowler, made note of this age-old phrase when he delivered the feature address at the Barbados Cricket Association (BCA) forum for clubs and schools at Sherbourne Conference Centre yesterday.

Hall told the participants to note there was a trickledown effect going on in cricket in the region.

You need to decide where you want to go. If Barbados cricket is not good, West Indies cricket is not good. This is a fact; it has been so for a 100 years, he said, adding there was a need for some drastic changes.

Hall said with the advent of various youth teams, it was obvious that there was more defined coaching, but stressed quality was lacking.

I'm concerned not about making millions of dollars and things like that because you will make that if the product is good enough.

I'm concerned that our product is not good enough, that the facility is not there for us to deal properly with the product [cricketers],said the former tearaway bowler who took 192 wickets in 48 Tests.

He also called for the involvement of more women in the game, a return to throwing with both hands inside the circle, the playing of informal cricket again, players listening more and administrators to keep up-to-date with technology with the sole aim of elevating Barbados and ultimately West Indies cricket to the top.

Acting Minister of Sport Senator Tyrone Barker in his address told the participants they were still unaware of the impact that cricket had on the people of the region, since if they knew they would have long tried to solve their problems.

Barker commended the BCA for creating the forum and said his Government has already shown that cricket had a defining role to play in national development.

First vice-president of the BCA, Stephen Alleyne, in his remarks promised to review and restructure where necessary.

We recognise that we cannot regain our glory days overnight, but we are determined to start now to make our cricket strong again, he said, noting that the development of cricket in the modern day needed a number of parallel infrastructure, financial management, planning and marketing.