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 The two Jamaica Observer headlines accompanying our report of the West Indies' humiliating defeat to South Africa in the third One-Day International (ODI) this week were most appropriate. 'Clueless', splashed across the back page with a photo and a caption, and 'Disgrace', which introduced the story on Page 38, perfectly reflect the state of West Indies cricket and current crop of jokers who make up the team.

Given the team's current form, as well as the controversy surrounding its abandoned tour of India late last year, we did not expect the West Indies to win this tour.

However, we would have been encouraged by a show of grit and determination.

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In reply to CaribbeanCricket.com


YOU CAN HAVE ALL THE PRIDE IN THE WORLD

BUT IF YOUR PLAYERS ARE PLAYING LESS

CRICKET IN THE LONGER VERSIONS OF

THE GAME ; THAN PLAYERS ON TEAMS RANKED

ABOVE YOUR TEAM ; YOUR ASS IS GOING TO

BE HANDED TO YOU MOST OF THE TIME .


So talking about Pride is a Super dose
of Stupidity . Look the fact is that if
Our Players play less matches than other
Players in the longer versions of the
game , ALL ASPECTS OF THEIR GAME WILL BE


INFERIOR TO PLAYERS WHO PLAY A LOT OF

MATCHES IN THE LONGER VERSIONS .


Stamina ; Concentration ; the ability to
Build Partnership ; & the Ability to
Pace an Innings ; are Key Components that are required to be fully competitive in the longer versions of the game .

I seriously doubt that anyone can successfully contradict this . So then
the question is this :

WHY THE HELL ARE OUR PLAYERS NOT PLAYING

MORE CRICKET AT THE REGIONAL LEVEL IN

THESE FORMATS OF THE GAME ???????????????

BTW SPARE ME THE B.S . ABOUT NOT HAVING

ANY MONEY . I AM NEVER GOING TO ACCEPT

THAT AS A FREAKING EXCUSE .

Who is this nincumpoop reffering to himself as `we`?

What is more hobbling you brainless discombobulated fragment of a journalist, lack of pride or the deep pocket slithering bottom crawling scum-buckets that manage West Indies cricket?

Pride is a lonely commodity and in modern time not a great motivator, did you not see the Pride Brigade sucking up to Adam Stanford for a little pittance to make ends meet? Is the like minded Indian Board suing for 42 million pounds of pride?

Why is the potentially decent cricketer Jason Holder Captain of the West Indies team before he can earn a place on merit? Why isn't a qualified member with talent to merit a place such as Samuels captain, since experience is not a prerequisite? Did you not see Samuels captain the Captain during his maiden Test Century in England?

If you want to call out a group of individuals, start at the top of the Shyte Pile, it only goes down hill from there, Idiot.

If the WICB had any freaking Pride , it
would have made our Players very competitive in all formats of the game years ago . However History informs US that the WICB HAS
NO PRIDE .

In reply to POINT

co signed Point...

dat is all.

In reply to POINT

Right on point!

In reply to POINT
Which comes first, the chicken or the egg? Is the West Indies team playing less cricket because of their perpetual pathetic performances or are their performances perpetually pathetic because they are playing less cricket?
Bear in mind, the better a team performs, the more spectators they will draw and every other team will want to invite them to play against them. On the other hand, a team that consistently performs poorly will not draw too many spectators, and will not have too many teams wanting to invite them to play against them. In other words the bottom line is money. And if you can't generate spectator interest which translates into money, you will always be left out in the cold. The solution then is for these prideless, arrogant, self absorbed mini-talented guys to step up their game and things will change.

When is the West Indian Pride Parade?

As George Bush Sr. would say, if talking about Windies cricket, the "pride thing" in Windies cricket died a long time ago, encouraged, primarily, by the insularity of its supporters; the emphasis on the part of most players on the primacy of "self", with the globalization of cricket's shortest format, at the expense of "nation"; administrators who seem more interested in what they can get out of what little there is in the coffers, given the amount of money they construe less than skilled talent are making, compared to most West Indians.

So what is pride in the context of Windies cricket, compared to other playing nations, when there is no sense of attachment to anything greater than self?

In reply to Cleg

Fire Cameron...

Fire Cameron

Prime Minister of St Vincent and the Grenadines Dr Ralph Gonsalves

Speaking to the SUNDAY SUN at the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus on Friday night, Gonsalves said the best thing for West Indies cricket going forward would be the immediate replacement of Cameron.

He described the Jamaican’s leadership of the WICB as “poor” and “embarrassing” and said this was shown up in his handling of the dispute which led to the abandonment of the West Indies tour of India in October.

The Vincentian leader and keen cricket enthusiast blamed Cameron’s “dismissive” attitude to the West Indies cricketers and also to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) as the main reason that West Indies cricket was in its current predicament.
- See more at:http://www.nationnews.com/nationnews/news/62595/cameron#sthash.vW4IUzxs.dpuf

reply edit

Nothing wrong with asking them to show some pride when they play. A little pride, and they will provide much greater resistance. Pride is the source of strength, it energies you to fight on. Many of us just want our team to show some will and determination; provide some resistance by valuing their wickets, by applying common sense/good judgement. If you have issues with the WICB, you should not humiliate yourself as a result; we are satisfied as long as you put up a good fight, which we know you can.

Our players should know that when they play as they have been recently, they become the laughing stock. When Chris Gayle put on that humiliating vooping display, the world was questioning his level of common sense, not Dave Cameron's; he was humiliating himself on the international stage. These players are prepared to prove to people like Point, that they have no ability to concentrate for long periods. Unlike people like Point, I believe that they are misled in how they go about fighting their battles with the WICB, but I will never believe that they can't concentrate for long periods.

I observed that when Chris Gayle lost the captaincy, he responded with a triple century in Sri Lanka to prove his point (pride); same thing after his debacle with Gibson and Hillaire etc., as well as his last send off to Bravo and Pollard in the T2o with South Africa But, once they prove their point and/or get back into the team, they return to their convenient mediocrity and complacency, until another episode.

I observed that Marlon was banned for two years, and he returned with a bang, and fooled everyone; that is until he quickly settled once more into his den of security and complacency. They dropped him, and even without playing in the "dung heap cricket", he returned with a bang in India and then in South Africa, until the very observant South African commentator had to conclude that the West Indies would have to keep triggering "Marlon Smauel's returns" to get the best out of him.

I have noticed that Chanderpaul continues to blossom despite the mediocrity around him. i recall, David Warner, in an article I read relating how inspired he was by Chanderpaul, who spent several hours at a time practicing on his own. warner asked him, "why do you do it?", his reply was "if you love it that much, then you have to work to master it" or words to that effect. You see, that is what is driven by pride; personal responsibility.

I have observed that Kraig Braithwaite plays in the same dung heap, but a different attitude is leading to good results. Of course, he has weaknesses, but even at his young age, we can see that he had already made much changes to what we have seen in the earlier version. He will succeed, because he has the right attitude; have no doubt.

I have noticed that many of the top players, once they feel secure, they very seldom take any part in the few games that our short season affords, as Point likes to lament about. Even when they are in the region, they find a way to not play in the regional tournament. Thus, they may play a single game as the tests arrive; they go into test matches with no practice. In recent times, the WICB had to give in to their demands to play in IPL, so they play even less of the longer version. They walk straight from their T20 tournaments to the test team. If the WICB just makes the mistake and demands that they must play the 4 day regionals in order to qualify for the test team, the same people who refer to the WICB as the Worst International Cricket Board would be coming to the same players' defence. It is a contradiction, because if our players already do not play enough of the longer version, why condemn the WICB when they demand that they play more?

You see, some people here talk a lot here, some very loud in UPPER CASE letters, and they say the same things over and over again, and hope that they cam "tom fool" everybody. It is a crime, in my belief, to advise young people wrongly. People like Sarwan, a great talent was brought directly into the fight with the WICB, and used like a pawn; he has fallen by the wayside. He was never taught to take personal responsibility; he was taught that all his faults were the WICB or Otis Gibbson's. While he should be concentrating on building and solidifying his cricket skills, he was brought directly into the fight, and fell, unceremoniously. Jerome Taylor, who should be years ahead, again, is fighting to be be where he should have been. In the meantime, the man who used them is considered a genius for his victories over the WICB, even though it is very likely that the war has ended in baren territory. The no compromise, confrontational approach may have created a wealthy generation of players, but sadly, there may be nothing to defend in the aftermath; future generations may have been robbed of a source of livelihood from blindness, selfishness, greed, and lack of foresight.

In reply to Besar

Welcome to this Forum .

Oh Wise Man , please allow me to state a few things that I am sure you are aware of .

The longer versions of the game requires the following characteristics from ALL Players .

1 . Metal & Physical Stamina .

2 . Total Concentration , in ALL aspects of
the game .

3 . The ability to forge Partnerships .


4 . The ability to build an Innings .


In my opinion Teams that execute these very well generally win matches . Those that
do not , always lose .

The deficiencies of
our Players are not very noticeable in the shortest format of the game due to the duration of this format .

However in the longer versions of the game
those deficiencies are very noticeable , and cannot be denied . In essence while it is possible for our Players to overcome these deficiencies in the shortest version
of the game ; it is hard for them to do that in the longer versions of the game .

So then the question is how do Players
attain these skills ????? My answer to that is , by playing a lot of Cricket at
the highest level in the Region .

Now if WE compare the stats of our Players
to the stats of Players on Teams ranked above our Team the disparity is shocking in ALL versions of the game .

For many years those in the governance of Cricket in the Region , have failed ; and are failing to address this Issue . I know
some are going to say well they have the Professional League , but that was formed in 2013 , what the Hell happened in the previous years ??? .

BTW , Playing 1 round of matches , then the Semi Finals & Finals is still inadequate .
So also is the freaking 1 week Camps . Yes
I a well aware that the chattering Nabobs
of the WICB in this Forum will Bleat " They
aint have no money ".

When I read this retort ,I just want to know, who the Hell is preventing the WICB from getting Sponsors . One person has suggested that it is possible that Contract
obligations may prevent the WICB from seeking Sponsors . If that is true , then the people in the WICB have very poor Business Acumen .

BTW , the Regional Tournaments at one stage
did have Sponsors ; but they unfortunately stopped being Sponsors . Why ?? that
question has never been asked by our Brilliant people in the Media , nor has it ever to my knowledge been answered .

It would be nice if the supporters of the
WICB find out why these Sponsors stopped being Sponsors . The Bottomline is this ;
if WE want our Players to be fully competitive in the International Cricket
Arena :

MONEY MUST BE SPENT TO MAKE THEM

COMPETITIVE.HOWEVER WHEN OUR PLAYERS START

CLIMBING UP THE INTERNATIONAL CRICKET

LADDER ; THE MONEY SPENT WILL BE EASILY

RECOUPED .

In reply to casiba

Taking out One bad Apple & leaving the other Bad apples is a recipe for continuous disaster . But perhaps some of us like it so
.

I have said this before , and will continue to say this . I seriously doubt that
Cameron was acting on his own . I am of the belief that he had the support of the majority of the Presidents of the Regional Boards .

This is why he is going to be reelected
unanimously . Why would you fire the guy
when he was only doing your bidding ???
That is a non starter .

In reply to Besar

A strong administration's responsibility is to keep the system vibrant and create an environment where there is healthy competition for places. That will stop the players from being laid back and Hot and Cold.

Just look back at the WI regional, club and even international set up. No competition. No Fairness. No System.

WI Cricket is dependent of a few average individuals. Australia, India, England, SA all were able to strip down lethargic and Confrontational individuals and replace them with quality players. Sehwag, Yuvi, Pieterson, Strauss many more.

Can WI do? Not at all. All they can do it is select more below average players and cut their noses to spite the face.

You can say Gayle, Sammuels, Bravo, Russel etc dosent have Pride at International level. Ask regional teams they will say Fidel, Kirk, Baugh, Bernard, Chandrika and numerous other do not have Pride at regional level. The same will be echoed at Club level too.

Fact is WICB and its satellite units have created an environment that is devoid of pride, Fairness, Professional. You can keep attacking the symtoms every day. Yesterday it was Lara today Gayle and tomorrow it could be Russel and Blackwood. But they are just the symptoms of a weak and characterless system.

I played cricket all my life, also organised it and spent a lot of time money and effort into cricket. What I see on the field is not good, as Holding just said; this is not cricket, and we don't need anybody to change that but the players themselves. You can fight your issues with the WICB, but when you enter the field of play, don't humiliate yourselves as these guys have been doing. Focus on that a bit; all we ask for is effort, and we haven't gotten that.

The idea of more cricket in the longer version is elementary stuff; but how do you effect that in the region? And, why do companies sponsor events? Would your company be willing to sponsor regional cricket at this time.

Remember, many of us here did not start following cricket in the year 2000. Many of us can give a complete and thorough analysis on what happened, having witnessed all of it. It would bode well if you can spend some time advising the players, especially the seniors to change their approach, change their ways. they are humiliating themselves before the entire world, and that is not good. I have no doubt that they can compete if they apply themselves. That is all we ask; once they compete on a consistent basis, then we can then shift our focus to the WICB. I can never defend this level of nonchalance that I see coming from these guys on the field of play; I feel that if I do that, I'll be doing a disservice to the players, themselves. A lot of folks who come out here as champions of the players' causes are the worst enemies of these players. One just hope that when players read a forum that they eventually discover who their enemies are.

It is not that simple as you try to put it. Whatever deficiencies exist on the west Indies board started generations ago, but a lot of you guys only became vigorously critical and vocal only a few years ago when the new management team came from a particular area in the region you don't like. Up to then, all the poor management teams were tolerated; you try to disguise your insularity by pretending to be so concerned about the management, all of a sudden.

West Indies decline was not sudden, it was gradual over time, and when the new dispensation attempted to make drastic changes to stop the downfall, insularity raised it's ugly nose and stopped the process before it could even get off the ground. Some of you guys are just ashamed now, because you guys thought that once the management was replaced by the entitled, all would be well; SOS (same old sh-t). It is the same insularity that may have led to the death of cricket in some parts of the region long, long ago. Many talented people who were good enough to play for West indies never thought they had a chance, and migrated or sought other professions. In 1985, most teams in the Premier Division of some national competitions in some parts of the region could not field a team to play a game. Insularity had already destroyed their will by ten.

Yet, it is not that simple, I would prefer to deal with that in it's entirety, but I don't have the time and motivation. If you care about Daren Bravo or Kiron Powell, spend time and effort to advise them of the level of talent they possess. Don't let them wait until it is too late, and then blame others; only them can take the initiative and make sure that they give themselves a chance.

In reply to Besar
Agreed. Some of the best posts on this forum I have seen in a very long time.

The WICBC had been ordinary for a very long time, probably most of its existence, but we were excellent on the field because of personal responsibility and pride - of course we were able to harness (some) of the outrageous talent that existed through the systems at the local level.

In reply to Besar

Not sure who is insular... I had been in this board many many years before the last management came in and had seen the administrators questioned endlessly. There was unrest during the C&W Vs Digicel Fiasco, Digicell Contract extension fiasco and lot more...

We can go around advising players but that is going to make players feel indispensable than anything. Not everyone is mature and a senior player in the team would hardly be 25-30.

In reply to Pacy

Wha?????? Yuh kidding me?


Insularity is the spice that flavors Windies cricket, especially off field.

In reply to armchair

WICB got away with poor management when the sport was different the competitive environment has changed a lot, and Wicb has not adjusted. We still produce international quality players, not in the quantity we once did, can we say we are using international quality management?

In reply to Besar

I agree with some of the things you write BUT I disagree with most of it , however. The Blame is that of the WICB -POOR ADMINISTRATION---POOR-RAKEY , to quote a former Prime Minister of Barbados.

In reply to Pacy

I agree with what you write -totally agree and I endorse your sentiments.

In reply to Besar

Very well stated.

In reply to Besar

I completely endorse your post(S) above.

I guess the 'young brigade' (players, supporters, and posters here) all belong from the 'entitled' generation, so you will not make any impression on them.

In reply to Besar

You make too much sense for these people and you are correct. The players are paid professionals and should focus on doing their jobs on the field of play.

Some people here ignore that simple fact.

In reply to FuzzyWuzzy

Besars posts should be a sticky.

In reply to rhatid

This aint about what came first , the Chicken & the Egg . This is about the fact
that as I have stated very often in this Forum that UNLESS OUR PLAYERS GET TO PLAY

MORE MATCHES ESPECIALLY IN THE LONGER

VERSIONS OF THE GAME THEY ARE NEVER EVER

GOING TO IMPROVE .


LET ME REMIND YOU ABOUT THESE THINGS THAT

CAN NEVER BE DISPUTED OR DOUBTED , AND

ARE VERY WELL KNOWN IN CRICKET .


Playing more matches in the longer versions at the Regional level will definitely
improve our Players competitiveness in the
International Cricket Arena , Regionally &
Domestically .

For your benefit ,the fact is that to win matches Players must have the following
components , which are very important in
determining WINNERS & LOSERS :

STAMINA --- MENTAL & PHYSICAL


CONCENTRATION --- THE ABILITY TO DO THIS

FOR LONG PERIODS AT THE

AT THE CREASE & ON THE

FIELD .



The truth is that these attributes can only be obtained by playing a lot of Cricket , at the highest level in the Region . Having
a 1 week Camp aint going to help , nor having a 1 week Warm up match .

Let me once again say that the WICB ; its
many Friends in the Media & its Lackeys in
this Forum continuously talk about not having enough money to do what must be done to make our Players fully competitive in International Cricket .

THIS IS TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE ; I SEE NO

REASON WHY THE WICB CANNOT SEEK SPONSORS TO

DO WHAT MUST BE DONE . NOW IF IT CANNOT DO

THIS BECAUSE OF CONTRACTUAL OBLIGATIONS

THEN I WILL CONCLUDE THAT THE PEOPLE IN THE

WICB HAVE POOR BUSINESS ACUMEN .

In reply to casiba

Firing Cameron alone is akin to having a basket of Rotten Apples ,and getting rid of the worst one , when they are rotten this is not only counterproductive , but asinine .

Cameron had the backing of the most powerful
people in the WICB ; the Presidents of the
Regional Boards . If you don't believe me ;
wait until there are Elections for Posts in the WICB :

CAMERON IS GOING TO BE REELECTED

UNANIMOUSLY TO BE THE PRESIDENT OF THE

WICB . WHY ??? BECAUSE THEY SIGNED OFF ON

WHAT HE DID .

In reply to Besar

First let me Welcome you to this Forum ,

Many of the things you have stated , I have been saying since I joined this Cr
in the Region .

My take is that there exists a Symbiotic
relationship between those in the in the governance of Cricket in the Region & those in the Media .

It is those in the Media who have aided & abetted , the WICB in its lack of Good Governance ; its Arrogance ; Incompetence ;
Ineptness ; lack of Foresight & Vision .

Obviously if the Media was very critical of those in the governance of Cricket in the Region , the Regional Boards & the WICB
would have had to exercise Good Governance .

Let me cite the latest example of the WICB's lack of Good Governance & Incompetence . Very recently , the WICB
selected a Task Force to look into matters
regarding the aborted Tour of India .

THE WICB'S OWN TASK FORCE REPORTED TO THE

WICB THAT THE PLAYERS MUST GET THEIR

CONTRACTS IN A TIMELY MANNER .

IMAGINE , IT TOOK A TASK FORCE SELECTED BY

THE WICB ; TO TELL THE WICB THAT PLAYERS

MUST GET THEIR CONTRACTS IN A TIMELY

MANNER.


THIS AINT A FIGMENT OF MY IMAGINATION .