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Letter to the Sports Editor…Sidique Mohamed deserves selection

Apr 16, 2015 Sports

Dear Editor,
I refer to an article in the Kaieteurnews paper dated 2015-04-13 under the caption ‘NECC/CRICKETERS PROTEST AGAINST ECB CHIEF SELECTOR’ and wish to add a few dimensions to the issue.
I once briefly served as Chairman of Selectors (Senior) of the ECB and indeed it is quite a difficult job. During my tenure, selectors were not paid but they are now being given a stipend. It is therefore inherent upon them to ensure that they are present to all trial matches as well as to visit the various committees and look at competition matches in order to spot talent and create a record of local performances. Unfortunately this is not the case with the current crop of selectors. I remain extremely disappointed in the manner in which teams are selected and quite ridiculously those who are entrusted in carrying out such duties are not qualified because they have played little or no competitive cricket at any level.
Interestingly the Chairman of Selector of the ECB is even a national selector! He certainly does not have any technical knowledge and therefore his method of selection will be very limited and even flawed. I have known Siddiq Mohamed personally and will take the credit for being the first person to spot his talent as a Coach at the under 15 level. It was no coincidence therefore that he progressed rapidly within a short space of time and was rewarded by being selected in the national under 15 quad in 2013. He is a gifted player whose work ethic is unmatched by most of the current ECB players selected. I can attest to this since he trains regularly at the Anna Regina Community Centre Ground and he is now a senior player for his club.
Not many cricket competitions are being played on the Essequibo Coast, Pomeroon and the Essequibo Islands. In fact no youth cricket is played in the county. Therefore the selection of any youth team is not difficult based on the existence of talent, performance, technical capability, fitness level and the gut feeling of judging a cricketer. In this case Siddiq Mohamed should have been high on the list for selection having represented the country, played at the under 17 inter-county level and took the most wickets in the recent trial matches. He is also a solid batsman also, yet he found himself batting at No. 9 in the trials. Just who really are the Coaches and technical personnel?
Many of the players selected are not in any club, would have played very little cricket; simply because there are no structures for them. I have seen this unfortunate episode manifested itself a million times in Essequibo, even during my time as a youth player. In such cases there are always good players who are sidelined because the selectors don’t know them, are incompetent, biased and in other cases they destroy the evidence so as to encourage favoritism and bartering for players by the area committees, even if they do not deserve selection.
This is quite a crass act by the ECB selectors to deny SiddiqMohamed his rightful place. It was indeed a devastating blow for the young cricketer and the ECB selectors must be held accountable. I wish to commend the executives and members of the North Essequibo Cricket Committee for representing its players and their continued vigil to expose the incompetency of the ECB.
Just recently the President of the ECB, who also is the President of the Pomeroon Cricket Committee, banned a local player from the Pomeroon on the day he was to challenge the incumbent for the Presidency of the Committee! The local player would have organized a one day sports event for teams in the Pomeroon on the basis that cricket is starved in the area. It was not the first time that he would have done so and was not sanctioned. Why would an Official ban a player for promoting cricket when the very Committee cannot provide sponsorship and leadership for the Commmitte? Not surprisingly a senior official of the GCB was present when the ban was instituted. Will cricket ever rise in Essequibo? Siddiq Mohamed’s exclusion is only one dimension of cricket’s debacle in Essequibo.
Elroy Stephney.

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