By Neto Baptiste
Coach of the Combined Schools cricket team, Pernel “Shafto” Watley, has commended his players for back to back wins on the opening weekend of the Super40 limited overs competition staged by the Antigua and Barbuda Cricket Association (ABCA).
The team, which has struggled to win matches in any of the association’s competitions for quite some time, beat Bethesda Golden Eagles by 200 runs on Saturday, before claiming a four-wicket triumph over New Winthorpes on Sunday.
“It was the first time we were getting to 200 so I am excited. We have to give credit to the other coach, Mr Sylvester Joseph, because while I was away he did his part and was the one running the team, and you have to give credit to the guys from Combined Schools coming from the Two Day and getting a lot of licks, so the way they went out and played was quite positive.
“I was quite surprised with the way they ran between the wickets and putting the pressure on the fielders,” Watley said.
In Saturday’s fixture, Schools batted first and amassed 225 runs all out in 39 overs, before bowling out Bethesda for just 25 runs. The youngsters then returned on Sunday to bowl out New Winthorpes Lions for just 77 runs, before reaching their target at 78 for six in 26.1 overs.
Watley said that although he is happy with the team’s latest success, there is still a lot of work to be done.
“There are so many things to take the guys’ minds away from just cricket, so as a coach you have to be able to cope with it and you get the understanding that sometime in the future things will happen. It’s not going to just come overnight and maybe for the rest of the season, you never know, we mightn’t win a next game,” the coach said.
Combined Schools consists of players who are attached to a number of secondary and tertiary learning institutions but do not represent any of the clubs competing in the cricket association’s competitions.