Berbice Cricket Board (BCB) etched its name into the history books Wednesday with the launch of the board’s first ever coaching manual.
The simple ceremony took place at the board’s head office in New Amsterdam.
The project is the brainchild of BCB President, Hilbert Foster who said, “We have achieved so much over the last three-and-a-half years. Our hard work has transformed Berbice cricket to its highest level and I would like to express thanks to all the cricket officials at both the club and board level for your hard work and dedication. Today would always be remembered as a Red-Letter Day in the history of our cricket as we become the only cricket board in the history of Guyana and perhaps the Caribbean to publish its own coaching manual. Each one of us in this room should be proud of the hard work we do but we must always strive to achieve even more as the future of Berbice cricket is in our hands.”
He added that when he was elected in February 2018, he inherited a broken system with no tournament, no finance, no developmental project and he committed to leading a cricket revolution to return Berbice cricket to its glory days.
With the BCB unable to host face-to-face coaching because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, it was decided to publish a coaching manual that would allow youths to work on their game in the comfort of their homes.
A special working committee, headed by Julian Moore and Winston Smith was established to work on the manual. Other coaches who worked on the document were Leslie Solomon, Balram Samaroo and Travis Hardcourt.
BCB Assistant Secretary, Ameer Rahaman served as the Editor along with Foster while Brandon Corlette provided the photos.
The manual focused on coaching for batting, fast bowling; spin bowling, wicket-keeping, ground fielding, catching, running between wickets and physical fitness among others.
It also includes fielding positions and umpiring signals.
Special articles are also in the manual on the attributes of a good batsman, the mental approach to batting, the mental approach to the game, the importance of discipline, the benefits of physical preparation and the importance of physical fitness.
Sponsorship for the historic manual was provided by long time BCB sponsors Dr. Tulsi Dyal Singh. Dr. Puran Singh and Brian Ramphal.
Julian Moore, who co-edited the manual, stated that he was very proud to be associated with the publication as it would play a major role in the development of new talent from the county.
Moore, Solomon and Smith all hailed the visionary leadership of Foster, who not only came up with the proposal, but worked hard to make it a reality.
Solomon noted that the BCB President was very vocal that the legacy of Berbice cricket must be protected at all costs and that new talent must be discovered to carry on the tradition.
Foster also unveiled several developmental programmes for Berbice cricket including a coaching video, cricket gear for youths, cricket academies and an indoor cricket facility which will be constructed with overseas assistance.
