“WE have invested heavily in your preparation as we strongly believe that it is the only way to success. As you leave Berbice to represent the Ancient County, please remember at all times that you are the current stakeholders to the rich legacy of legends like John Trim, Rohan Kanhai, Basil Butcher, Joe Solomon, Roy Fredricks and Alvin Kallicharran.

Do not disappoint us and always, always strive for excellence in everything you do on and off the cricket field”. Those were the words of Berbice Cricket Board (BCB) president, Hilbert Foster, MS, as he addressed a special meeting for members of the Berbice Under-17 team and their parents at the St. Francis Community Developers Conference Hall.

The Berbice team under the leadership of Zeynul Ramsammy would be playing in the Guyana Cricket Board Under- 17 Cricket Tournament from Tuesday against Essequibo, Demerara and the Guyana Under-15 select team.

 Foster, at the meeting, spoke of the importance of discipline in the Berbice cricketing culture and warned the players that no form of indiscipline would be tolerated.

The BCB president called on the attentive parents to place more emphasis on the personal development of their children and to turn up at venues to support them. He stated that while he strongly believes that education is the key to success, sports is also a crucial aspect of a child’s development as it teaches them about discipline, dedication and working in a collective environment.

Foster pledged that as long as he remains head of the BCB, special emphasis would be placed on the development of youths while every youth would be given equal opportunity to fulfil his/her potential.

 Foster handed over Berbice caps to each of the players and also unveiled several incentives for the players including Man-of-the-Match prizes for each match and special gifts for the Most Valuable Player if Berbice wins. Each of the players received a youth information booklet on Berbice cricket.

The full Berbice squad reads: –

Zeynul Ramsammy –(Captain), Jonathan Rampersaud- (Vice-captain), Leon Cecil, Naresh Veersammy, Mahendra Gopilall, Jeremy Sandia, Hemendra Gurdyal, Mahendra Ramcharitar, Satya France, Tomani Caesar,

Savishkar Sobhai, Christopher Deroop, Isiah Thorne and Pavendra Ganesh. Surendra Kissoonlall is the Manager and former national player Delbert Hicks is the coach.