'We'll Be Hard on Indiscipline' - WICB

It has been identified that one of the many factors that is seriously eroding the foundation of our cricket and prevents our players from giving of their best is a lack of discipline. The West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) has been confronted with a number of disciplinary matters over the last few months ? some of them have been highly publicised. Comments have come from wide and varied sources, and the problems have similarly come in various shapes and sizes.

The WICB recognises that we will have to tackle the issue of discipline "head-on" if our cricket is ever to regain its integrity. Discipline is not something with which we can play around.

The WICB will have to take some hard and, maybe, unpopular decisions to stamp out the infelicities creeping into our cricket and threatening to railroad the hard work of those who have built West Indies cricket with their blood, sweat and tears.

Although there is a huge outcry for action on a number of fronts, the WICB cannot conduct our affairs in the arena of public opinion.

Although a number of disciplinary matters are quite serious, we must allow the natural justice to take its course before making public comment.

Out of our consultations and revisions, the WICB will not only be seeking ways to punish those that might have transgressed, but we must be looking for ways to either eradicate or limit the occurrence of indiscipline by highlighting to our players the consequences of their actions.

It has often been said that West Indies cricket mirrors what is happening in our society.

Historians have made this connection with much aplomb. We can scroll through the eras of West Indies cricket and almost match the mood of the game to the prevailing temperature of the society.

In the last decade, our fall from the pinnacle in the game coincided with a breakdown in basic discipline in our societies. Poor attitudes, inadequate self-motivation, poor work ethic, poor concentration and poor planning have been identified as some of the glaring deficiencies in the armoury of our cricketers.

This is why the WICB and administrators of the game at all levels throughout the region have to harness every opportunity to address the indiscipline that has entered the game at almost every level. It calls for collective responsibility.

The WICB cannot succeed without the territorial boards and they cannot succeed without the clubs and they cannot succeed without the support of the communities in which the clubs are situated. When it comes right down to it, all of us have a responsibility to safeguard our cricket heritage.

The WICB must and will lead the way. We will have to dig deep into our hearts, minds and souls to find creative ways to help our players to gain the measure of self-control necessary that will help us to see our West Indies team start winning consistently again.

One of the first and most critical things that the WICB, the guardians of the West Indian cricket heritage, must pay special and immediate attention to is instilling in the present generation of cricketers the pride they should derive from representing the region.

The WICB will have to provide for them the examples of the great West Indies teams of the 1950s, 1960s and 1980s and show them how they succeeded through a positive and winning attitude, strong discipline, hard work, self-motivation, courage, good planning and professionalism.

These are some of the qualities exemplified by Laurie Williams, who played 15 limited-overs internationals for West Indies, before he died in a tragic car crash a couple of Sundays ago in his native Jamaica.

Many people who have commented on his life have described Williams as a gentleman and it is hard to recall anytime that the mild-mannered all-rounder ran afoul of the authorities.

Williams was a real team man and was always willing to encourage his teammates when it seemed things were not going right.

He may not have been a record-breaking cricket star, but he will live in the memories of those with whom he came into contact because of his personable demeanour.

The WICB extends its condolences to his family and the Jamaica cricket fraternity.