Written By Calvin Roberts
NOT SINCE 2010, when Demerara Cricket Club (DCC) defeated Guyana National Industrial Corporation (GNIC) in a rain ruined final at Queenstown, has the Roger Harper steward Georgetown Cricket Association (GCA) hosted a T20 competition at the first division level.Back then, DCC’s skipper and Guyana and West Indies T20 all rounder Christopher Barnwell, smashed the opposition bowling to all parts of the ground, in his score of 90 odd as DCC scored in excess of 100 from their seven overs, before limiting their opponents to below the 100 run mark.
Last Sunday the GCA, who joined forces with beverage distribution giants Ansa McAl to foster a relationship for a first division T20 competition under the Carib Beer brand, managed to get two first round games in, while the other two scheduled for the Everest Cricket Club ground were rained out.
One of the two rained out fixtures, featuring defending champions Demerara Cricket Club (DCC) and one of their nemesis in the Thomas Lands based Malteenoes Sports Club (MSC), will take place at the defending champions ground, called ‘Home of the Legends’, from 13:00hrs today.
In an invited comment with Barnwell, he acknowledged the fact that everyone will be looking to dethrone his side, one that is mixed with youth and experience in this format of the game.
“Certainly, I would like to continue the good work that had been taking place at the club of late, wherein we have been dominating cricket, especially at the Under-15 level, while the first division team was recently crowned champions of the GCA/Hadi’s Mall Inc. two day tournament.
With that in mind, we will be looking to execute in all departments, do the basics right, push the opposition onto the back foot as early as possible and look to come out victorious in all matches, retaining the T20 championship in the process,” said Barnwell.
To this effect, the right handed all-rounder, who led Guyana in the 2012 Caribbean T20 tournament with moderate success, will have in his corner players in the caliber of Trevon Griffith, Derwin Christian and Paul Wintz, who have all represented Guyana at this level.
There is also, Andre Stoll, the pugnacious Brian Sattaur and his national Under-19 teammate Dexter George, along with Totaram Bishun, a back of the arm spinner who has been creating problems for batsmen at the first division level over the past two years.
While it is yet to be confirmed, rumor has it that pugnacious right handed batsman Jonathan Foo, who created a storm on the Regional scene with his clean and powerful hitting during the 2010 Caribbean T20 tournament, may be donning the maroon and gold for DCC.
However, the MSC lineup is not one that is known to accept defeat without putting up a fight and the mere fact that they have called on the services of former Guyana T20 off-spinning all-rounder Lennox Cush for this tournament, speaks volume.
They are already weakened by the absence of Guyana and the Guyana Amazon Warriors off-spinner Steven Jacobs, hence Cush who took a hat-trick when Guyana lost to Jamaica in the 2008 Stanford T20 tournament, followed by another against Combined Campuses and Colleges two years later.
Former national opener Shemroy Barrington, who recently helped Bermine lift the Berbice Cricket Association/Universal DVD T20 title, Shaquille Williams, Kellon Carmichael, Steven Sankar and another former national off-spinner Dion Ferrier, will bolster the MSC lineup against DCC.