BCA Slams Rudi Webster
WICB/Shell Academy director Dr Rudi Webster is again the centre
of controversy in the Caribbean and this time the anger is coming
from the Barbados Cricket Association (BCA).
BCA boss Stephen Alleyne, who is rumoured to be in the running for
the vacant WICB CEO post, has hit out at Webster for his strong
comments about indiscipline among Barbadian students at the
Grenada-based academy. Webster had described the Barbadian
graduates as among the most indisciplined.
According to the Barbados Nation, Webster appeared on the Voice
of Barbados (VOB) radio station on September 21 and rapped the
young Bajan players for being an indisciplined lot. Webster said
the Guyanese and Jamaicans were the most disciplined of the 28
students in the May 15 and August 7 programme.
However, the BCA has lashed back in a strongly-worded letter of
complaint to the WICB. "The board of the BCA has written the West
Indies Cricket Board (WICB), of which the BCA is a member,
indicating that it has extreme reservations and concerns about a
public statement being made by someone associated with the academy
without the courtesy of providing that same information, and more
importantly, the details of that information to the BCA," Alleyne
said.
"The WICB has indicated it has concerns that it will research and
investigate the matter and will respond. The BCA is awaiting that
response before deciding what further needs to be done," Alleyne
said.
In related news, the BCA announced that five former national
players -- all over the age of 30 -- would get a chance to revive
their first-class careers. The five -- Winston Reid (retired) ,
Hendy Bryan, Dave Marshall, Dayne Maynard, Stanton Proverbs and
Ahmed Proverbs were among 56 players selected for a zonal
competition from which the Barbados team for the regional four-day
competition will be named.
The BCA pointed out that everyone involved would be considered for
selection for the first-class championship starting on January 31.
The 56 includes 29 who were not among those named in a 31-man
year-round training squad a few weeks ago.
Barbados plans to name its 16-man squad for the regional
competition on December 23.