Logie Has Big Plans for Windies Under 19s

From not getting past the first round in South Africa, to reaching the quarter-finals in Pakistan, the West Indies Under-19 cricket team has been on an upward curve in the youth World Cups.

And coach Gus Logie is hoping the upward movement continues in New Zealand, 2002.

?We are hoping to do two better than the last time and get to the final,? Logie said yesterday on the closing day of the team?s one-week camp.

The 14-player squad, captained by Guyanese Narsingh Deonarine, leaves Trinidad today for Barbados before jetting out to New Zealand for the tournament.

The Windies are grouped with Australia, Scotland and Kenya in Group D of the 16-team series.

They will go into action having played just one competitive match, a 42-over a side encounter against Mutual Caroni Wanderers on Monday, which the Windies youths won by one run, despite totalling a meagre 110.

?Yesterday was some sort of revelation for us,? Logie admitted of the practice game.
?But,? he added, ?they showed, despite that, they could fight. With 110 they believed they could win and they did.

That in itself is going to be a boost for their confidence. It showed that with proper thought, with more thinking in their approach to the game, and certainly with a better score on the board, they would be able to give a good account of themselves.?

Logie has had just a week with the team. He concedes that is not the ideal amount of time to prepare a group for such a tournament.

But that time disadvantage is not bothering the coach unduly.
?With the teams we have had in the past, we started in a similar vein. We struggled in the preparation stages early on, but we have shown we are able to grow and learn as we go on.?

According to the coach, the 2002 squad, which includes some members of the successful 2000 Costcutter West Indies Under-15 team, has a little less big-match experience than previous squads who were able to call on the likes of recent WI senior team selectees Ryan Hinds, Ramnaresh Sarwan and Marlon Samuels.

Skipper Deonarine and middle order batsman Tonito Willett played first-class cricket with the West Indies B side last season. Off-spinner Shane Shillingford turned out for the Windward Islands. And Shillingford and Jamaican opener Donavan Pagon underwent specialised training at the Shell Cricket Academy in Grenada last year.

But, said Logie, ?what these players lack in terms of experience, they certainly have in terms of attitude and talent and commitment.?

They have also coped well enough with the week of instruction.

?I think they have adapted to the regimen of the training that we have so far tried to incorporate in the squad,? Logie said.

?I think the ethics we tried to incorporate, the rules that we tried to incorporate, I think most of the players have accepted that. They have tried to accept their roles in the team.?

The coach is hoping, too, that his charges will show the right spirit to overcome opponents, many of whom have had much more competitive preparation for the tournament.

?In order for us to get the best out of them, they have to be comfortable within themselves and with each other. I think that is where team spirit comes in.

The squad:
Narsingh Deonarine (Captain), Ron Matthews (Guyana); Ryan Nurse, Alcindo Holder (Barbados); Donovan Pagon, Lorenzo Ingram (Jamaica); Dwayne Bravo, Lendl Simmons, Ravi Rampaul (T&T); Gareth Matthew (St Kitts), Tonito
Willett (Nevis), and Gavin Tonge (Antigua)?Leeward Islands; Shane Shillingford
(Dominica) and Darren Sammy (St Lucia)?Windward Islands.
Team Management?Courtnay Daley (manager), Gus Logie (coach), David Cumberbatch (physiotherapist).

SOURCE: Trinidad Express.