The principal of the Cave Hill Campus of the University of the West Indies, Sir Hilary Beckles, has a formula for cricket clubs which want to emulate the UWI’s success – talent plus discipline plus mentoring plus hard work equal excellence.
“That equation should be applied to every club thereby we can improve the performance of every club and adjust the standard of Barbados’ cricket,” he told a celebratory dinner to honour the outstanding achievements of the Sagicor UWI Elite team.
The function at the 3Ws Oval last Saturday night was enhanced by the presence of West Indies legends Sir Everton Weekes, Sir Wes Hall, Seymour Nurse and Joel Garner, the president of the Barbados Cricket Association.
Terming the evening one of perfection because of the presence of the sponsors, the supporters, the players, parents and the legends, Sir Hilary insisted that the role of the UWI was one of development to safeguard the future of the game in the region.
“West Indies cricket is our greatest investment as a people. Protecting and advancing on that investment starts at the club level, therefore, we want other clubs to find a strategy, find coaches and put in the time and discipline to develop Barbados’ and the West Indies’ cricket.
“In spite of the media criticism, the University cannot sit back and allow West Indies cricket to flounder. All of the solutions to West Indies cricket lie in our history since we have faced those challenges before and many of our past greats showed us how to overcome those challenges,” said Sir Hilary.
The Cave Hill principal also hinted that UWI will be providing “something meaningful” for coach/player Floyd Reifer in the next couple of weeks.
The university side have won four successive league crowns and a record three titles in 2012.
The players would have been smiling even broader at the end of the formalities as they were given their share of the winnings from the T20 and 50 overs competitions.
