Jack, Allen seeing eye to eye

04.JAN.08

Chairman of selectors of the Windwards Senior Cricket team Julian Jack and Coach Ian Allen both believe that despite the absence of three of the team’s key players, the young charges can step up to the plate, and provide strong opposition to those who face them.{{more}}

The Windwards goes into today’s first round match of the 2008 Carib Beer Series against Barbados here at the Arnos Vale Playing Field, minus long standing captain Rawle Lewis, opening batsman Devon Smith and all rounder Darren Sammy, who are on assignment with the West Indies team in South Africa.

Jack thought that because the players are young, they bring with them a “fearless approach to the game and will give you what they got”.

Even though the team is missing some of its key players in brothers, fast bowlers Fidel Edwards and Pedro Collins, and wicket keeper Patrick Browne, the Chairman is still optimistic.

“However, I expect them to give a fight to Barbados this weekend, as we have always done in the past,” Jack projected.

The chairman, who is also the President of the St. Vincent and the Grenadines Cricket Association, believed that the strength of the Windwards is in the bowling department.

“Our batsmen have to be more consistent, as we have suffered from those at the top getting out too early”, Jack observed.

“We have good batting down the lower order, but we need good starts up front”, the chairman said.

Joining Jack in that optimism was the man in charge of the team’s technical matters, former West Indies fast bowler Ian Allen, who said that the team, while it was a young bunch of players, “it is not short on talent”.

Allen, who also represented St. Vincent and the Grenadines and the Windwards, thought that the absence of the three seasoned players should serve good as the young players would want to impress to hold their places when they return.

With the absence of the three, left arm medium pacer Deighton Butler leads the four island grouping.

There are two newcomers in fast bowler Wendell Roberts of St. Lucia and Vincentian middle order batsman Donwell Hector. Both impressed in the Windwards tournament here in September and October last year, with Hector going on to the represent the Windwards in the KFC Cup in Guyana, also in October.

Vincentian Miles Bascombe and Grenadian Heron Campbell are set for the opening positions, with hard hitting Grenadian Andre Fletcher, Vincentian Hyron Shallow and Dominican Liam Sebastian propping up the middle order.

Lynden James of St. Vincent and the Grenadines occupies the wicket keeping spot, with Dennis George of Grenada and Dominican Shane Shillingford controlling the spin department.

The fast bowling is completed by the services of Dominican Mervin Matthews and the express pace of Grenadian Nelon Pascal.

Lockhart Sebastian is the team’s manager. Unlike the Windwards, Barbados will field four players with Test experience, in captain Corey Collymore, former captain Ryan Hinds, all rounder Dwayne Smith and fast bowler Tino Best.

Butler is the lone Windwards player with international experience, having played in five One Day Internationals for the West Indies.

The Windwards next fixture is against the Leeward Islands at the Grenada National Stadium, January 11-14, following which they would play the Combined Campuses and Colleges at the Beausejour Stadium in St. Lucia, February 29 to March 3.

The entire Carib Beer Series takes a break January 22 to February 28, to make way for the Stanford 20/20 Competition.