LOCAL CRICKET ROUND-UP
June 20th 2008

Rochard Road claims Penal Sports U-19 title

ROCHARD Road defied the odds against overwhelming favourites Unique Sunrise Sports, to cop the Penal Sports Under-19 cricket crown last weekend.

A good crowd was on hand at the Kennedy Park in Diamond Village, San Fernando to witness the match. In the end the players from Clarke Rochard were the ones spraying the champagne, as they defeated Sunrise by 32 runs.

Batting first on winning the toss, Clarke Rochard posted 138 for seven off their allotted 25 overs. Getting the topscore was Vashish Ramlakhan with 59. He clobbered five fours in his rapid innings. Lending good support was Nico Rampersad with 30. Shivan Ragoonanan bowled beautifully in claiming four wickets for 25 runs and Jerome Ramcharan took two wickets for 22 runs.

Sunrise in reply struggled throughout their innings and were unable to mount any meaningful partnerships. In the end they were restricted to 106 for seven off their 25 overs. C Sookoo remained unbeaten on 29, while Aleem Ramjohn got 28. Ramlakhan topped off a fine match by grabbing four wickets for 25 runs to lead the rout. Rampersad was also among the wickets for Rochard Road and finished with two for 18.

For their efforts Rochard Road would receive a trip to Tobago to play some friendly matches.

SCORES:
ROCHARD RD 138/9 (25overs)(Vashish Ramlakhan 59, Nico Rampersad 30, Shivan Ragoonanan 4/25, Jerome Ramcharan 2/22) v UNIQUE SUNRISE 106/7 (25 overs)(C Sookoo 29, Aleem Ramjohn 28, Vashish Ramlakhan 4/25, Nico Rampersad 2/18). Rochard Road won by 32 runs.

T&T U19s opens campaign against Jamaica

THE T&T Under-19 cricketers will start their campaign against Jamaica when the 2008 TCL Regional Youth Challenge bowls off on July 4 with three matches across Barbados. The local team will once again be skippered by outstanding T&T and West Indies youth opener Adrian Barath.

The 17-year-old Barath led the team in last year’s tournament in St Kitts and Nevis which gave a below par performance and the dapper right-handed batsman will be hoping for an improved showing this time around.

Twice double crowned champions, T&T are yet to win a regional title for the last two years.

Manager of the T&T team, William Wallace said preparation is going along nicely with the players participating in several warm-up matches.

“There are no worries at this stage of our preparation. In last weekend’s practice matches, Kjorn Ottley (55) and Evin Lewis (37) stayed for a while at the crease and both looked in good knick. Kareem Jumadeen (36) and Ako George (60) were also in good knick,” Wallace stated.

The newly appointed manager of the team and current executive member of the T&T Cricket Board, Wallace said that the bowlers also performed well with pacer Sheldon Dogan and left-arm spinner Javed Boodram being very impressive.

“ I am not worried at this stage. We have seen some improvement from the guys in terms of their fitness and that is an area we have been working on, “ Wallace added.

The T&T team will take on the National Under-17 side on Saturday and FCB Clarke Road United on Sunday at the National Cricket Centre in Balmain, Couva.

TCL REGIONAL YOUTH FIXTURES

Round One

Jul 4-6 - Barbados v Windwards; Guyana v Leewards; T&T v Jamaica.

Round Two

Jul 9-11 - Leewards v Jamaica; T&T v Barbados; Guyana v Windwards.

Round Three

Jul 14-16 - Jamaica v Windwards; T&T v Leewards; Guyana v Barbados.

Round Four

Jul 19-21 - Guyana v Jamaica; Barbados v Leewards; Windwards v T&T.

Round Five

Jul 24-26 - Jamaica v Barbados; T&T v Guyana; Windwards v Leewards.

One Day

• Jul 29 - Windwards v Barbados; Leewards v Guyana.
• Jul 30 - T&T v Leewards; Barbados v Jamaica.
• Aug 1- Windwards v Jamaica; Guyana v T&T.
• Aug 2- Final.

Mohess Road crowned Penal Sports champions

THEIR supporters numbering around 1000 packed the Kennedy Park in Diamond Village for the finals of the Penal Sports 30-overs championships and Mohess Road did not disappoint—taking the title with a 32-run win over neighbours Stars.

Batting first Mohess Road scored 171 for eight wickets off their allotted 30 overs. Leading the way was Danny Jadoonanan who scored an unbeaten 53. His epic innings included three fours and one six. Also among the runs were Dave Paroo 30, skipper Rodney Jaglal 27 and Winston Ganga 24.

The pick of the bowlers for Stars was Donald Peetam with three wickets for 34 runs. Skipper Tulsie Seeteram also bowled well and ended with two for 32.

Stars chasing 172 runs for victory at 5.70 were always under pressure and folded for 139 in the 30th over. Seeteram top scored with 29, while Ravi Bedessie got 25, Walker Seepersad 22 and Roger Williams 20. Paroo grabbed three for 19, while Jaglal took three for 20 and Randy Kanchan three for 29.

For their efforts, Mohess Road walked away with a $10,000 first prize.

Scores:
Mohess Road 171 for eight(30overs)(Danny Jadoonanan 53 not out, Dave Paroo 30, Rodney Jaglal 27, Winston Ganga 24, Donald Peetam 3/34, Tulsie Seetaram 2/32) v Stars 139 all out (30overs)(Tulie Seeteram 29, Ravi Bedassie 25, Walker Seepersad 22, Roger Williams 20, Dave Paroo 3/19, Rodney Jaglal 3/30, Randy Kanchan 3/29) - Mohess Road won by 32 runs. Man of the match - Danny Jadoonanan.

Five schools for Sir Garfield tournament in Barbados

PRESENTATION College, Chaguanas will field another strong team at this year’s Sir Garfield Sobers International Schools tournament, which bowls off on July 6 with a series of matches throughout Barbados.

‘Pres’ who has been participating in the tourney, which started 22 years ago has included several promising players in their 13-member-team, among them Qadir Shah, Sebastien Bhal, Chris Ramnarine ,Alex Aguillera and T&T Under-15 opening batsman Keiron Joseph.

The only time that ‘Pres’ tasted success in the competition, which has always attracted schools from North America, England, Wales, South Africa t India and the Caribbean was in 2000.

Under the guidance of discarded West Indies off-spinner Amit Jaggernauth, ‘Pres’ whipped Combermere High School of Barbados in a thrilling final at the Kensington Oval.

Five schools and coaching clinics have already accepted invitations from the Barbados Tourism Authority to participate in the competition, including defending champion team, T&T Under -17 who also defeated Combermere in the final last year.

Among the other teams from T&T listed to take part at St Mary’s College, Queen’s Park Cricket Club and the Harvard Coaching School who will be making their debut in the tournament.

A special honour will be bestowed on long-serving manager of ‘Pres’ Lalman Kowlessar who has been part of the competition since its inception.

Presentation College: Amir Ali, Arshad Ali, Chris Ramnarine, Ronald Ramcharan, Sebastien Bhal, Musa Mohammed, Videsh Sookhai, Alex Aguillera, Nazar Mohammed, Ryan Jaipaul, Qadir Shah, Aleem Khan and Keiron Joseph.
Manager/Coach - Lalman Kowlessar

Palo Seco cruise to Atlantic girls cricket title

Palo Seco Government Primary School cruised to an overwhelming ten-wicket victory over Talparo RC to capture the Inter-School Girls Division championship title of the 2008 Atlantic LNG National Primary Schools Cricket League at Guaracara Park on Friday.

After bowling Taparo for 115 for seven off their 20 overs, Palo Seco cantered to victory with opening pair, Alida Seales, 48, and Denecia Garrick, 33, scoring at will, as they reached their target of 116 with 8.4 overs to spare.

Seales, who had earlier taken two for 32, was chosen Player-of-the-Match.

The girls final was the first match of a double-header which saw St Pius Boys RC take the Super League championship crown with a nine-wicket victory over Rochard Douglas Presbyterian under lights.

Batting first, Talparo put up some useful partnerships, with only three players making double figures, Reniece Boyce, 17, Amanda Chung, 14 not out, and Adina Ali, 12. But they were helped to their total by a whopping 54 extras, made up of 52 wides and two no balls.

Apart from Seales, Karen Balfour (3 for 20) and Garrick (1 for 17), did the damage for Palo Seco.

Seales and Garrick, who ran splendidly between the wickets to turn singles into twos and twos into threes, were never in any trouble, playing the Taparo bowling with ease. Both players had scored heavily throughout the season and carried their good form into the final.

Coach/teacher of Palo Seco Government, Anand Ramnanansingh, said the team had put in a lot of practice during the competition, noting that the school enjoyed an excellent sporting record, not only in cricket but in other sports.

“They practised very hard and are very committed. This is the icing on the cake,” said Ramnanansingh.

Palo Seco’s Principal, Gangadaye Dowlath, said that a lot of emphasis was put on sports at her school to ensure the students received a holistic development in their formative years. She said the victory meant a lot to the school since it would spur others to perform at their best.

Talparo’s coach Ingrid Park said her team tried their best but were up against a very good Palo Seco squad. “We are proud of them for reaching so far in the competition,’ she added.

President of the National Primary Schools Cricket League, Anthony Ramjit, praised both teams for an entertaining match, noting that although Palo Seco won easily, the Talparo girls should be proud of themselves for reaching an important final.