Should Essequibo’s balance sheet be audited, it would be damning. There is the inheritance of a divided Board where insecurity was manifest affecting its ability to function efficiently and with a common goal. This is due to the unique structure of the Essequibo Cricket Board where there are four area committees situated across the Essequibo River, with the other four area committees being on the Essequibo Coast. The hub of activities is predominantly on the coast and therefore the isolation of the riverain faction has been a cause for concern. Other liabilities include a virtually non-existent club structure that has led to arrogance, ignorance and gross indiscipline on the part of both officials and players. The reserved attitude of elected officials has also led to several arms of the ECB regressing, including the marketing, disciplinary and the cricket development committees, which are the pillars of the ECB. The selection policy also leaves much to be desired because of the irrational preference for selecting from your territory. It must be noted as well that teams are now selected for four-day assignments based on 20/20 and 50 overs tournaments, since the longer version of the game is not promoted unless sponsored by the GCB. Sponsorship also is linked to transparency and prudent management, and unfortunately most of the area committees are finding it difficult to attract regular sponsors primarily because elected officials are interested at first then fade into obscurity before the end of the first quarter of their tenure. The difficult task then rests solely on the shoulders of the chairmen whose task is to make ends meet. The players are also bound to self-destruct since they do not commit themselves to training, neither do they practise consistently and diligently at improving and enhancing their skills, yet they seem to have arrived and want instant success. I must confess however that practising as a club is virtually a pastime unless the monetary rewards are attractive for a particular game. In fact sadly, in many clubs membership, upholding of the constitution, attendance at meetings and loyalty are now irrelevant in deciding the eligibility of an individual to play, thus creating a pattern where the team changes every week and the few loyalists are discarded if they are not good enough.
Put simply the atmosphere in which cricket is played in Essequibo does not inspire and motivate the players to see the game as a profession despite their obvious talent, and so their instant success is at the youth level where pure talent is enough for national selection. The transition phase from youth to senior seems a herculean task, and of course is aided by the inexcusable blunders of the senior national selection panel that has sent many of our promising players into early retirement or made them irrelevant.
I believe this is due to the failure of the team as a whole, hence individual achievements are nullified. It is obvious as well that early family life, work commitments, educational upliftment and a laissez-faire attitude have significantly contributed to the present state of Essequibo cricket as compared to the past. Our cricket is at the stage where we are compared to many churchgoers where only Sundays are sacred.
It is not business as usual and it will not be despite the commendable efforts of the present regime of the ECB, unless there is a strategic plan which encompasses all the area committees, which is workable and achievable, and which is financially and technically supported by the Guyana Cricket Board. There must also be a unified and professional partnership with the business community and even governmental institutions since the infrastructural capacity of the board is limited. I am convinced that Essequibo as a cricketing entity – being the largest of the three counties – will move towards competitiveness at all levels; will strive towards reversing the tag of being a Cinderella county; and more importantly, will have faithful, inspiring, industrious and visionary voluntary servants who will propel our organization to be respected by the GCB and the community at large, and our budding cricketers will benefit meaningfully from our guidance and stewardship.
I am convinced as well that our development has been stifled by the callous rebuke of our senior players who have not been rewarded nationally despite their successes, and therefore our aspiring cricketers do not have any role models and are not imbued with confidence so they are motivated to become professional cricketers.
A case in point is that for the past number of years a Guyana senior national team has been invited to participate in Independence celebrations in Canada to play a number of matches, and not even one Essequibian has been given the opportunity to gain international exposure. Where is the vision of our selectors, all of whom are either from Demerara or Berbice? We need a start and interestingly it may come in January 2011.
Imminent elections are scheduled for both the Essequibo and Guyana Cricket Boards, but the focus on Essequibo seldom prompts the question of why we are not doing well and what can be done. Instead the questions are obvious and the answers are predictable. It is my hope however that the aspiring office bearers will spare a thought and prayer for the rise from mediocrity of Essequibo’s cricket and the elevation of the general standard of cricket in Guyana.
Yours faithfully,
Elroy Stephney
