British Invasion at Sabina

Even though the pre-lunch session of Day 2 of the First Cable and Wireless test at Sabina Park saw the English fans with little to cheer about, they were out in their numbers and ?having a whale of a time?, according to Steve and Lee from Colchester.

While Fidel Edwards steamed in from the southern end, already with the scalps of Vaughan and Trescothick, shirtless bodies in search of a little ?colour? could be seen scattered all around the ground. Some have already started to acquire a healthy tan, while others are desperately screaming for a little soothing aloe vera gel.

The majority of fans in the Barmy Army are located in the Air Jamaica stand to the southwestern end of the park. This stand is semi-covered and almost none of the tourists are interested in sitting in the shade. Others can be seen in the all-inclusive Red Stripe Mound, as well as in the big George Headley stand. English flags and Banners can be seen lining the rails in the east and west wings, and all around the ground. As a matter of fact, yesterday some had to be removed on request as they were blocking the advertising boards.

If we didn?t know better, we would wonder if we were at Kensington Oval instead of Sabina Park. It seems as if the huge levy placed on the tickets did not deter the many fans that made the trip in search of sun, sea, rum, and of course--calypso cricket. According to a few of the Englishmen, they chose Jamaica because it was a bit cheaper to stay than Barbados. Michael Holding, former West Indies fast bowler and international cricket broadcaster recently stated quite bluntly in an interview that, "Barbados hasn't even got a molehill, much less a mountain." He was of the belief that tourists should try to experience Jamaica instead. Many of the fans that are here for their first visit are having a grand time and said they will definitely be back.

A group of Colchester United Football Club members are staying all the way in Runaway Bay, which is over two hours away from Kingston by car. They said they wanted a bit of the resort life as well, and so they get to see a lot more of the island on their daily travel to and from the ground. They still had to pay the levy though, and as Lee informed me, it cost him two hundred and sixty-two pounds for his tickets for the five days. They had no idea they could escape the price hike if they had waited until they got to Jamaica. Instead they purchased tickets from NCM, the agents for the WICB in England, as they were told they wouldn?t be able to acquire tickets otherwise.

Steve who had bought his tickets for the George Headley Stand said he wanted to be with the Barmy Army so he ended up buying tickets for the Air Jamaica Stand when he got here anyway. His tickets cost him a mere 9 pounds per day compared to over 50 pounds per day paid by Steve. One Jamaican fan ruefully said, ?I hope they don?t do that to me when I go to England in the summer.?

Nevertheless, the fans are here in their numbers to escape the cold and dreary England. If it did in fact change the minds of some, maybe it is a good thing, because we would really have a British Invasion on our hands. As the post lunch session progressed, with Butcher and Hussain staging a fightback, the loudest cheers could be heard from the tourists. If you took your eye off the cricket for a second and you heard a loud roar, you might have thought that we had a wicket, but instead it was a ball racing to the boundary.

At the close yesterday play was ended prematurely because of rain, with over an hour lost in the final session. The sun-seekers should have had to take a temporary break and seek shelter. Not the Barmy Army though. They were heartily partying away in the downpour; seemingly oblivious to the conditions, so happy are they to be here, and maybe made even happier by a few Red Stripes.

Of course the various weather experts are predicting that the rain shouldn?t be too much of a problem, and we hope they are right. Day 3 has dawned much clearer around Sabina Park. Already the players are going through their warm-up drills. More than likely today and Sunday the local fans will be out in their numbers to even the balance. With the West Indies likely to be starting their second innings by the end of the day, no doubt the stands will look more like home. Since the four ?big guns? Lara, Sarwan, Gayle and Chanderpaul all failed yesterday, there is the anticipation of some payback today.