By Kingsley Emmanuel
A five-day Scotia bank kiddy Cricket camp ended last Friday in Vieux Fort with the aspiring cricketers awarded for outstanding performances in various aspects of the game.
Thirty boys and girls from Districts 5 to 8 took part in the camp which facilitated cricket development skills in batting, bowling and fielding for Grade 6 students. The camp which was held at the Phillip Marcellin Grounds was facilitated by cricket coaches Keith Charlery, Junior Derose and David Oliver.
In the bowling department the awards went to Josha Fletcher (Boys) and Alisha Herman ((Girls). In the batting department Jordon Aubert (Boys) and Asha Alexander (Girls) and in fielding, the awards went to Noah Piltie (Boys) and Asha Alexander (Girls). The award for the most disciplined player went to George Sharshim.
In addressing the young cricketers, Valange St. Ange of Scotiabank congratulated the students for showing dedication and commitment to the programme.
“The camp is a big opportunity which afforded the best cricketers across the Caribbean to become great cricketers and we at Scotiabank are glad to play our role in making this happen,” St. Ange said.
He said during the year, over 150,000 children from 726 primary schools around the Caribbean received regular after-school coaching from trained coaches.
“Over the past 16 years since Scotiabank has sponsored kiddy cricket, over 750,000 primary schools students have gone through the programme, learning the fundamentals of the game in a safe and fun environment. And because of this investment in West Indies cricket, we are starting to see rewards,” St. Ange said.
He said three key players of the West Indies under-19 cricket team which won our first ever Youth World Cup title earlier this year and two of the West Indies women’s team which also won our first ever Women’s T-20 title in April were also former kiddy cricketers. He identified the male cricketers as Sharmar Springer, Gidron Pope and Ryan John and the females as Hayley Matthews and ShaquanaQuintyne.
“This could be your future. One day we may be watching you lift a trophy as world cup winners,” St. Ange said.
He commended the coaches and the Technical Development Officer, Bryan Calixte for a job well done.
Andrew Piltie, the father of one of the boys who took part in the camp said he was impressed with its outcome.
After the brief ceremony, head coach, Keith Charlery, in an interview with The VOICE said: “The camp was an introduction to the hard ball cricket… Some of the students will be going to secondary schools next term and will be involved in under 15 cricket competition at the secondary level and may be the next crop of players who will represent St. Lucia.”
He commended the bank for sponsoring the camp, describing it as a very good initiative. He added that he hoped other corporate entities will come on board, not just for cricket, but for other sporting events around the island.
“The youth need a lot of avenues… apart from the academics they need something else. They can reach the top level in sports and do wonders for our country,” Charlery said.
According to Charlery, “there is a lot of talent and potential in our youth, but what is critical is what we do with such talent”.
He said what he saw at the camp was encouraging, adding that the future of cricket in St Lucia looks bright