It’s no exhibition, says ‘Brown Sugar’
IT will be the ultimate test for the Ghetto Boys when Charlestown/Albouystown face a superstar line-up as the Georgetown Amateur Basketball Association (GABA) brings the curtain down on the Mackeson National Super Ward Basketball Championship tonight at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall. Charlestown/Albouystown took the tournament’s half-a-million-dollar first prize in emphatic fashion, playing undefeated throughout and closed things off by getting the better of Central Mackenzie in the finals, played in a two-best-of-three format last weekend.
Tonight’s game will be by no means an exhibition, since Charlestown/Albouystown captain and star forward Dwayne ‘Brown Sugar’ Roberts believes that his side has everything to lose and the deserved respect to gain and he is cautioning the Super-Stars that they will be in for a long night.
“We played undefeated in the tournament, we beat the best of them so even with us playing against a combined team of very good players I believe that my team has what it takes to defeat them and furthermore, by the fourth quarter we will have a 20-point lead in the game and then it might look like an exhibition,” Roberts said with a chuckle but added that “people just have to come to see what will happen”.
The players selected for the Super-Stars team are all truly worthy of being part of the side based on their performance with their respective wards in the tournament.
Linden trio Nkossi Gurrick, Quincy ‘Prog-Z’ Jones and Steve Neils Jr will join forces with Georgetown’s Darcel Harris, Ryan Stephney, Ryan Gullen, Vivian Alder, Naylon Loncke, Royston Siland and Stephon Gillis along with Berbicians Randy Caesar and Randy Richardson to form the Super-Stars.
“Everyone can’t be a Super-Star,” said GABA secretary Robert ‘Bobby’ Cadogan when speaking with Chronicle Sport yesterday. Cadogan further mentioned that “It’s been very difficult for us to come up with this team because we wanted to make sure that the best players were selected and also a team that will give the Ghetto Boys a run for their money. They seem unstoppable at the moment but I’m sure this team will match them.”
But this is not the case, according to Roberts, who is almost certain that his side will prevail today and will do so in a demanding and embarrassing manner.
“I would even call my team a super-star because we have at least seven players who will make their team with ease.
“Another thing is our team keeps getting better with every game and the chemistry is there unlike them who never played as a team before. So we want to continue dominating this inter-ward, we don’t want to be like North last year, we want to go out with a bang and make a name for ourselves,” Roberts opined.
As it relates to support, for his side, Roberts noted: “Well, of course we know the entire Ghetto will be behind us just like they have been throughout this tournament and now with this game coming I’m sure we will have even more support from other people who like the way we play, so we (are) just staying focus and positive. Again this is no exhibition game we coming to play basketball because we have more to lose than they.”
Meanwhile, president of GABA, Trevor Rose, pointed out that today will be more than a basketball game since several novelty events are planned to get the crowd involved as much as possible and some entertainment.
“We have planned you know the half-court shot for the crowd and also it will be the finals of the dance competition and afterwards we will take to the tarmac of the sports hall. We have the after-party there with Stereo Sonics, Trend Setters and a host of top DJs passing through so we want people to come out because the game we all know will be very entertaining,” Rose said.
The Ghetto Celebrities (now called) team reads: Kevin Joseph, Dwayne Roberts, Akeem Kanhai, Travis Foster, Rodwel Fortune, Trevor McLeod, Alwin Bellamy, Niko Fraser, Hollingsworth Casey, Dale Ernestine and Collis Pluck.
Mackeson Inter-Ward Superstars – Nkossi Gurrick, Quincy ‘Prog-Z’ Jones, Steve Neils Jr, Darcel Harris, Ryan Stephney, Ryan Gullen, Vivian Alder, Naylon Loncke, Royston Siland, Stephon Gillis, Randy Caesar and Randy Richardson. Former senior national player Robert Byass was named coach of the team.