By Neto Baptiste
Over 40 young players took part in the Rufus Lewis Swetes Revival Cricket Camp on opening day in Swetes on Monday. (Photos courtesy Colin James)
Participants in the Rufus Lewis Swetes Revival Cricket Camp have been reminded that nothing comes easily and that hard work pays off in the end.
Those were the advice of former national, Leeward Islands and West Indies fast bowler, Sir Curtly Ambrose, who gave brief remarks during the camp’s opening ceremony held in his hometown at the Swetes community playing field on Monday.
“There is no shortcut to progress, you want to be the best you can be then you have to train your mind and prepare yourself to work hard and at the end of the day you will reap the rewards. There will be the detractors and people will tell you that you can’t make it but use those negative comments and turn them into positives. If you want to be the best cricketer you can be then prepare to work hard, make sacrifices, be committed and once you do those things then I am sure you will make it to the top,” he said.
Sir Curtly was, at the time, addressing the over 40 young players assembled at the opening ceremony on Monday, awaiting the start of the one-week initiative being hosted by the Helping Hand Foundation.
The iconic fast bowler was joined by another Swetes village and former West Indies teammate, Ridley Jacobs, who expressed gladness in seeing that effort is finally being made encourage the return of hardball cricket to the community.
“I think that over the years, you look around Swetes and there was no cricket playing but this, I think, will revive cricket and I hope that is the not too distant future that we will see a few more international players coming out of Swetes. I must add that I am very proud to be born here in Swetes and played most of my cricket here in Swetes,” he said.
Head of the Helping Hand Foundation, Colin James, explained that the one-week camp is just the beginning of things to come for the revival of cricket in the once touted cricket community.
“Our overall objective was to have a three to four months intense cricket coaching programme with hardball variety utilizing the talents, skills and coaching ability of Sir Curtly Ambrose and Ridley Jacobs right here at the playing field from September right through until December. The planning for that is ongoing and we are speaking to a number of corporate citizens to make sure that happens and we want the youngsters from the community and the Irene B Williams School to be here from three to five in the afternoons so they could benefit from the coaching of Sir Curtly Ambrose and Ridley Jacobs,” he said. The camp will be headed by former national coach Abdiel Hughes who will be assisted by a number of players from within and around the community.