Night cricket's back (27 May 1999)

27 May 1999

Night cricket's back

The Barbados Nation

Night cricket, a rare feature in Barbados during the last 15 years, seems to be undergoing a revival.

At the heart of the effort is the Spooners Hill community which has been recently involved in about 10 tapeball matches under lights at the Barbados Lumber Company's playing field, Waterford, St. Michael.

Since the first match on May 8, interest has grown rapidly, prompting organisers to consider staging a tournament to coincide with Crop-Over.

The idea is to get an ideal entertainment mixture, said co-ordinator of the annual Spooners Hill competition, Wayne Holder.

"We are looking at getting a serious competition going, but we also want to get a nice social flavour to it by having DJ music and setting up stalls," he told NATIONSPORT.

He added that judging from the interest shown, he was expecting an encouraging response.

"We have been getting positive feedback. Once we can make it a good attraction we can have a successful tournament."

Holder said the idea of playing under the lights was first proposed by a group of Indians in the community.

Since the first match, interest has increased and there have been sizable crowds watching the matches, which are normally played on Friday nights.

The lights, installed in November, were intended to cater to football.

They might not be entirely adequate for cricket, but the general feeling among the players is that visibility is of an acceptable standard when playing with a tapeball.

"We are looking at improving the lighting and getting it adjusted properly," Holder said. "We have been promised more poles by the authorities."

In the latest match under the lights, on Monday night, an Invitational XI, which included a few media personalities, defeated Spooners Hill by 80 runs.

Lifted by an entertaining unbeaten 55 from experienced pro Franklyn Stephenson, the Invitational XI made 156 for seven from their allotted 25 overs. StarCom's Peter Parris made 21, and the NATION's Haydn Gill 16.

Leg-spinner Michael Francis took three wickets for Spooners Hill who managed only 76 in their reply.

There were three wickets each to Stephenson, BET seamer Leibert Holder and John Wilson.

Source :: The Barbados Nation (https://www.nationnews.com/)