… Albion Open defeat Chesney by six wickets to lift Somwaru Tribute trophy

“SINCE I was elected president of the Berbice Cricket Board (BCB), I have worked very hard to heal wounds, to build bridges of friendship and to create an atmosphere of unity in Berbice cricket.

Every one of us must sing from the same Hymnal and there must be “us” no “them”. Mr. Somwaru has been an outstanding servant of Berbice cricket and today he has been honoured as such”. Those were the words of BCB president Hilbert Foster at a special presentation ceremony for his predecessor Mr. D. Somwaru at the Chesney Cricket Ground.

Foster defeated Somwaru on the 18^th February, 2018 by two votes at a High Court ordered Election to become president of the Board. Since then, Foster has reached out to the majority of those who had voted against him. Some of them are now actively involved in his administration while others are very cooperative in getting work of the Board done.

Foster had stated on numerous occasions that his Roman Catholic belief does not allow him to hold ill will against anyone and that he wanted to have all hands on deck to develop Berbice cricket.

He described the former BCB President as a close friend for close to three decades and despite a few moments of disagreements, that friendship is still strong today.

The BCB president organised a Four Team Tournament at Somwaru’s home ground, Chesney as part of the Board’s Tribute to Heroes Programme. In the first round of matches, Chesney Cricket Club defeated Toopoo Cricket Club while Albion Open Cricket Club got passed Jai Hind Cricket Club by 3 runs.

The Final was played on Sunday last with Albion Open Cricket Club defeating the favourites Chesney Cricket Club by six wickets to win their first ever BCB Tournament.

 Playing infront of a fair sizeed crowd, Chesney were restricted to 111 all out from their twenty overs with Safraz Khan top scoring with 27 not out. Z. Zakeer was the chief destroyer with 5 for 10.

 In reply, Albion Open reached 112 for 4 from 17.5 overs as Chesney Cricket Club bowled and fielded poorly. P. Baldeo stroked an aggressive 54, which included three sixes and four boundaries. Andy Naidu supported with 24 as the pair added a crucial 75 runs for the second wicket.

Baldeo was named Man of the Final and received a special gift and trophy. Albion Open Cricket Club carried home the Winners’ Trophy, a box of cricket balls while both teams received a large amount of educational materials to be distributed to students in their Villages.

Albion Open also benefitted from a donation of a five gallon water pitcher. The Berbice Cricket Board presented two special gifts to its former president along with a framed Certificate of Excellence. Foster called on Somwaru to share his vast experiences with the younger generation of cricket administrators and wished him good health in the future,

Somwaru in an invited comment expressed his appreciation to the BCB and Foster for the welcomed gesture. He wished the Board more successes in the future and joined Foster in urging all cricket leaders to work together as a collective unit.

 All of the trophies and prizes for the Tournament were sponsored by the Berbice Cricket Board and the Rose Hall Town Youth & Sports Club, MS.