They have lost one title. They don’t intend to lose another without a fight.
That’s the mindset of regional Four-Day champions Barbados, who will resume battle from tomorrow in the West Indies inaugural Professional Cricket League (PCL) tournament.
After an up-and-down start to the inaugural tournament last year, the team will come in with an exceptionally high morale and promises of victorious cricket against the Leeward Islands, their confident manager has said.
Barbados, who are in the middle of the points table, will meet the Leewards at home as well as Trinidad and Tobago next week before heading off to Jamaica.
Manager Hartley Reid said that team morale was exceptionally high.
“The morale of this team is very high. We lost ground because of the elements and non-performance. The weather denied us in Trinidad and then we lost a full game in Barbados because of the weather.
“Once we were able to play the full days, we won in Guyana and the Windwards and I am confident that this team will be equally successful once we get in the full days at Kensington,” Reid said.
The no-nonsense manager said that the team fared poorly in the NAGICO Super-50 competition earlier this year, losing their limited-overs crown, but that was now in the past and the players were ready to resume their Four-Day fight.
Testimony to Reid’s suggestion was the keen training session held at Kensington Oval yesterday, with the selected 13 and other players, members of the Barbados Defence Force (BDF) Sports Programme and some of Barbados’ top junior cricketers joining in the extensive sessions under head coach Hendy Springer.
Reid explained that the enthusiasm was very high as many of the BDF players as well as juniors like Jerome Jones and Justin Greaves recognised that cricket was a game where being in the right place at the right time could catapult a new player into regional or international placement.
However, Reid declared that the primary focus of the Barbados team was to win to appease the demanding public and the members of the Barbados Cricket Association.
“My view is that you enter a competition first and foremost to win it. That is the goal.
“The objective of getting to that goal is to expose as many youngsters to the public and the selectors, and I believe that we have the make-up to do just that,” said Reid.
The former high-ranking police officer was full of praise for former captain Shamarh Brooks who has returned to the team this season.
“Some players show exceptional talent from early, as Brooks did from primary and secondary school, and when such players do not mature, the public becomes very disappointed.
“But I believe that Brooks’ maturity year was 2014 and on the back of exceptional performances for Spartan, Barbados’ trial and his last NAGICO innings in Trinidad, I am confident of Brooks continuing.
“With youngsters like Brooks and Shai Hope, who I would love to see batting together all season, Barbadians may get their wish of seeing a Barbadian or two back in the West Indies middle order shortly,” Reid promised.
The manager also gave a positive progress report on opener Omar Phillips, who was rushed back home after a blow to his head, with Reid indicating that Phillips has been given the clearance by the doctor to resume light training.
“We believe that Omar will return to the team to partner captain Kraigg Brathwaite by the time that Barbados play Jamaica,” concluded Reid.
