New St James primary cricket competition bowls off today

Western Bureau:

Primary school cricket is slated to make a return to St. James today with action in the inaugural John’s Hall Primary School-Jerry Reid Under-13 Cricket Competition, which will feature three games at the Orange playing field, near Montego Bay.

Cricket has all but completely fallen off the radar in St James, which once had one of the most revered domestic cricket programme in rural Jamaica. It is the hope that this competition will help to spark a rebirth of the game at all levels in the parish.

“We are not playing any sanctioned club cricket in the parish at this time, and our high schools are not doing well at the Headley Cup level,” said Reid, a former national player and renowned coach and administrator. “If we want to revive our cricket, we need to start putting some focus on development at the primary school level.

“I fully endorse this competition, and I am happy to have my name associated with him. I was also asked to serve as the coordinator, and I have accepted,” added Reid, who once coached Jamaica’s Under-19 cricket team to Caribbean championship success.

The competition, which is being staged under the theme ‘Reigniting the Spirit of Cricket’ has not attracted a sponsor, but the organisers have decided to forge ahead using their own funds. The hope is that once the competition begins to attract attention, sponsors will be forced to take notice.

“We see the current state of cricket in the parish, and we know we can do much better, so we have decided to take on this project in the hope that sponsors will come on board down the road,” said Reid, who had the enviable distinction of representing Jamaica at the senior level in the era when rural players were being overlooked.

The competition is divided into two zones: Zone A - John’s Hall, Dumfries, Chatsworth, Maldon, and Granville. Zone B - Goodwill, Cambridge, Vaughnfield, Springfield, and Adelphi.

“We are starting with 10 teams this year, but I am sure the number of teams will be substantially more come next year as more schools are expected to come on board,” said Reid. “There were some primary schools that used to play very good cricket in former years, so we just need to get them involved again.”

In the 1980s and 1990s, St James had a powerful club structure that featured teams such as Riahs CC, Providence CC, Seawind, Jet Set CC, Montego Bay CC, and CRH Sports Club.

At that time, the league attracted several national players including the likes of former West Indies captain Jimmy Adams, batsmen Richard Staple and homegrown national players brothers Lawrence and Franz Cunningham.