CRICKET, GOATS, DONKEYS, BIRDS AND DOGS

Feb 17, 2010 Features / Columnists, Peeping Tom

Security for the Guyana leg of Cricket World Cup 2007 was tighter than small-sized jeans on an oversized behind. Not even a fine pin could get past the security checkpoints.
Patrons were scanned and detailed checks of bags were carried out. The only liquid allowed through the turnstiles was water. The police and security personnel guarded every inch of turf on the ground as if crown jewels were laid out on the surface. No one dared to run onto the playing area.
The authorities took no chances. Even musical instruments were not allowed into the stadium during the matches. Security personnel exercised the greatest of vigilance.
Yet during the match between the West Indies and Sri Lanka, a stray dog made a mockery of these security arrangements. It wandered quite aimlessly onto the field of play, oblivious to the serious state of the contest and much to the amusement of the crowd and the bemusement of the foreign press, who must have wondered how this stray dog managed to get onto the field of play.
It just shows that no matter how much you plan for perfection, it cannot always be guaranteed. The stray dog must have embarrassed the organizers but since no harm was done, the match continued and the incident served as a lighter moment in the day.
Of course if it had been two goats that had strayed onto the field of play, there would have been a great uproar. Guyana would have been condemned and the local authorities would have demanded a full-scale forensic investigation into the presence of the goats.
The Twenty20 World Cup is coming to Guyana soon. A quarantine of four-legged animals may have to be placed on animals in the near vicinity of the stadium because the last thing we would wish is a contest being decided by the ball hitting a goat on the way to the boundary.
In other countries, particularly in big grounds in Australia, it is not unusual to find pigeons on the ground. And the ball has been known to have struck a pigeon or two during matches. But in the main the ball usually forces the birds to scatter as it approaches where they are feeding on the ground.
In England last year during a Twenty20 match between Yorkshire and Lancashire, a fielder was throwing the ball back to the wicketkeeper when it struck a pigeon and killed it. The player retrieved the dead bird and placed it over the boundary.
The last World Cup played in England, during certain matches, players often had to scramble off the ground to avoid being mobbed by the invading crowd after the final ball had been bowled.
The sight of dogs during international matches is not new to Guyana. During the golden days it was not unusual to find dogs straying onto the playfield and the authorities leaving the crowd in stitches as they tried to shoo the animal off.
But these distractions can no longer be tolerated because with all the security arrangements that are now necessary for international matches, the ICC is bound to be concerned that an animal, even though harmless, can still find its ways through the tight security dragnet that is in place for these types of matches.
Guyana therefore has to be careful when it comes to the hosting of international matches and even for regional first class matches. There is not only a need to lift the standard of the local players but also of the ground conditions. Guyana is competing with a great many other countries in the Caribbean for the hosting of international matches and our chances will be seriously reduced if we do not maintain high standards.
The Guyana Sugar Corporation has taken a positive step in this regard and has prohibited certain activities from being played in the Complex.
The last thing that is needed is for a first class match to be played and some player gets cut by a piece of broken bottle left on the field after some show that was held at the same venue.
So let us keep the goats off the ball field. Let us keep the dogs in the kennel and let us hope that at all times the enthusiastic spectators will stay beyond the boundary.

Latest News

CRICKET, GOATS, DONKEYS, BIRDS AND DOGS

Related

Similar Articles

The Glenn Lall Show | November, 6th, 2024

Follow on Tik Tok @Glennlall

THE BLUNT OF THE DAY

Sports

$1.5M up for grabs at K&S National Futsal Championship

Big Names Ready for Group 4 Showdown at ENET...

West Indies hammer England in series decider

Guyana Amazon Warriors confirm squad for 2024...

Excitement brews ahead of Hamilton Green’s KO...

SAMUEL FOO wins SEN School’s Chess Competition

Features/Columnists

A broad-based movement for the people’s voice on oil

Rising Gun Crimes in the Caribbean: Urgent Action required by all

That ever-present ‘they’

Publisher’s Note

Weekend Cartoon

Bridge Watch

Demerara Harbour Bridge

> Berbice Bridge […]

CRICKET, GOATS, DONKEYS, BIRDS AND DOGS

Share this:

Related

Similar Articles

The Glenn Lall Show | November, 6th, 2024

Follow on Tik Tok @Glennlall

THE BLUNT OF THE DAY

Sports

Features/Columnists

Publisher’s Note

Weekend Cartoon

Bridge Watch

Demerara Harbour Bridge

> Berbice Bridge […]