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Players ready for showdown of words
Colin Chichester
While agreeing that he would not be surprised at all if he loses, three-time defending champion Frederick Collins equally admitted that he would not be surprised if he wins the Guyana Association of Scrabble Players (GASP) National tournament, Collins, who was Guyana’s last representative at the World Scrabble Championship in a brief interview with Kaieteur Sport, revealed that his preparations has been ongoing for the last six months with an accelerated phase occurring over the past month.
Abigail McDonald
That period included an experiment called Word Smith which was a concept introduced by the local players who participated in the tri-nation tournament in Barbados that also involved Trinidad and Tobago and who felt the need to improve their knowledge of words.
Collins also indicated that over the past month he has engaged several players via the internet in addition to doing a lot of word search.
The champion added that scrabble is such a game that you have to battle a combination of factors, one of which is the bag that holds the tiles.
“Each player has two opponents in one game and the first is the bag, you just hope that you pick tiles that could improve your chances of winning,” Collins pointed out.
Moen Gafoor
In response to who he reckoned will be difficult to beat, Collins disclosed that even though all the players have a good chance, he felt that on form, Abigail McDonald seems to be the one to beat.
Colin Chichester-
“On my day I can beat anyone so I think my chance is as good any other player”.
Chichester, one of the stalwarts of the game, and who finished a creditable 5th at the previous tournament, admitted that his preparation has not been as intense as in the past, but still believes that he will put up a good showing and his aim is to go all the way.
“I still depend on my ‘old’ system, where I try to use a lot of 3-4 letter words which has really helped me in the past”.
He too reckoned that McDonald will be difficult to beat, but did not overlook Collins, who he referred to, as usually consistent and very experienced in this format.
Scrabble champion Frederick Collins (left) seen collecting the 2007 National C/ship trophy.
“Fred (Collins) did a lot of preparations for this tournament and is normally a dangerous player, but others such as Moen Gafoor and James Krakowsky could also prove to be a handful.”
Abigail McDonald-
“I haven’t done anything different and as you know sport in Guyana do not allow you the luxury to practice all day, you still have to mix work with the sport”.
In reference to the talk of her being a strong candidate to wrest the crown from Collins, McDonald responded by saying that “you just have to reflect on what happened in 2007, when Ewart Adams was highly favoured to defeat Collins, but faltered due to his inexperience in such situations.
“Adams at the point of the final was the frontrunner, his form showed every sign of winning the tournament, but Collins, who has time and again proven his worth on the ‘big’ occasions quickly erased the favourite status that many felt he held.”
She conceded that Collins in such scenarios has a distinct advantage and he uses it to perfection.
However, she too believed that anyone of the top five rated players could claim the title.
Moen Gafoor-
“My preparation was hampered a lot by the recent birth of our first child, which forced me away from the sport for four months.
The reality is that even though anything is possible, I feel my chance of winning the tournament is slim.”
He also concurred with the views of the others that McDonald on current form is the player to beat.
Other players who could spring surprises are Leon Belony, Orlando Michael and Ulric Harris, who is a former champion.
Opening ceremony is scheduled for 09:00 hrs, followed by the competition
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