THE Guyana Amazon Warriors women snagged their first championship in the Massy Women’s Caribbean Premier League this year.
A credit to the side that has been under construction for many years, is the consistency of their cricket according to assistant coach Julian Moore.
Moore, speaking a joint press conference in Georgetown yesterday believes that was the determining factor which allowed his side to pick up the trophy on the day.
“We played some pretty consistent cricket throughout the tournament, winning four of our five matches. I thought the girls showed good character and resilience after going down the first game against Jamaica to come back and win four in a row. I thought it was a pretty special achievement.
Individually, I thought the girls did well. We had the two leading run scorers in the competition in local girls, Shemaine Campbell and South African Tazmin Brits. We had four of the leading bowlers in the top ten in the tournament with fast bowlers, Shabnam Ismail, taking seven wickets to be on top,” Moore said.
A strong bowling performance led by Shabnam Ismail set up a 146-run chase against Trinbago Knight Riders in the final.
The second part of the game was not as straightforward for them, however, as they sank to 111 for 7, but Chedean Nation changed the script with an unbeaten 39 from 21 balls to win the day for her team with three balls in hand.
The chase was a stutter for the Amazon Warriors almost all the way through.
And even in the final, Moore admits that the side rallied around each other until the final over.
“I thought we had a special group of young ladies this year. Four South Africans, one Australian. I thought the experience and the pedigree of those players mixed with our local girls really created a special group that obviously went all the way and did something special. All in all, I thought it was a pretty successful campaign for us and one that we should be very proud about.”
When asked where the ladies executed better than their compatriots, Moore was not mincing words.
“I thought we were very meticulous this year, as I said, in planning and I thought we executed better than we did in the past. We had various players at different times, putting their hands up and getting the job done and I think that was the main difference, was that we could have gotten that collective effort from the group and really pushed on.”
Sheneta Grimmond, one of the young warriors on show during the season was grateful for the chance to show her skills.
“I want to say thanks to Guyana Amazon Warriors for having me with the 2026 girls. It was not easy being out there, but to go out there and have to mingle and gather with everybody, it was kind of difficult because we are not from the same area, different cultures coming together.
It was a bit rough, but all in all, it was good because we come together and made the impossible possible. So, I want to give thanks to the head coach, Shakira Selman, assistant coach, and all the players who were out there,” Grimmond said.
Looking ahead, coach Moore admitted that a lot lies on how the draft goes for the 2027 season but is confident that once the core remains, the Warriors stand the chance of being two-time champions.