BCB CARICOM Cup T20 Cricket at Albion...Police/Bermine capture title under lights

BCB CARICOM Cup T20 Cricket at Albion…Police/Bermine capture title under lights

Aug 03, 2015 Sports

By Sean Devers
At a venue where West Indies beat Pakistan in 1977 in the first ever ODI in the Caribbean, Police & Bermine combined beat favorites Rose Hall Town Gizmos & Gadgets in the Final by four wickets on Saturday night at Albion to claim the Berbice Cricket Board (BCB) CARICOM Cup t20 cricket title.

Champions Police Bermine combined celebrates. Manager Carl Moore is standing at left.

In a game reduced to 15 overs per side due to time constraints, a small but noisy ground which included many females and the owner of one of the sponsors NTN TV, Anand Persaud, the New Amsterdam combination reached 91-6 with five balls to spare in reply to the 90-6 made by the Corentyne side under Flood lights which are adequate to Regional 50-over games.
This club competition for Berbice first division teams was used to generate funds for the staging of the BCB’s three-day division one tournament and the Albion team, which was knocked out in the first round of the all day action which culminated just after 23:30 hrs, were not allowed to field a full strength team.
Test spinners Devendra Bishoo and Veerasammy Permaul were among the Cricket Guyana Inc contracted players banned from participating in the fund raising event.
With pulsating music coming from the ‘Fire Links’ sound system and the PA Announcer Haimkumar Mangal, talking non-stop, as he kept the crowd informed about what was going on, Rose Hall Town won the toss and opted to bat on a slow track but with far more pace and bounce than the one at the Providence Stadium.
The first five overs produced 32 runs as Vidal Crandon (22) and Jason St Clair, who also looked very efficient behind the stumps, give their team, which scored the highest total in the competition (94 from 10 overs), a decent start on the heavy outfield.
Crandon hammered the lively Nial Smith for four as St. Clair, who took the Man-of-the-Match award in the semis against Port Mourant, played the supporting role.
The pair picked the gaps and ran aggressively before Crandon was run out in the 8th over at 34-1. Clinton Pestano who scored 46 against Blairmount, joined St Clair and the 50 was posted in 9.3 overs.
But both batsmen fell in the space of three runs with St Clair (18) top edging a quick short ball from Smith, who generated some pace from the placid surface and Pestano being well taken at point off left-arm spinner Eugene LaFleur.
Police off spinner Andel Doris (2-23) sent back Delbert Hicks (9) and Eion Hooper (9) while Simeon Lawson (5) was run out as the lads from the third Town in Berbice, only managed 32 runs in their last five overs.
When the Champions began their chase they slipped to 27-3 from five overs with Pestano removing openers Jomal LaFleur (3) and Brentnol Woolford (7) while Hooper got rid of Martin Singh (3).
The experienced Devon Clements’ unbeaten 31 with two fours provided the glue which stuck his team’s innings together. And along with Romario Shepherd (13*) saw their team to victory after Collis Butts, the son of Test off-spinner Clyde Butts, had Eugene LaFleur (9) caught in the deep and bowled Skipper Anthony D’Anrade (4) when he played across one that kept low and was bowled.
Dot balls, especially by Hooper, who bowled the only maiden in the tournament, tightened the screws and with 42 required from 41 balls, LaFleur lost his cool and give his wicket away with a big shot but Clements danced into Butts and hit him to the mid-wicket boundary and slashed Troy Matheson for another four to free the shackles.
But although Damion Van Tull (2) was bowled by Matheson at 69-6 Rose Hall Town wilted under pressure with ragged fielding which give away a number of overthrows with sloppy fielding. Pestano, who conceded five wides in his last over, finished with 2-15, while Butts supported with 2-17.
Earlier, the 10-over preliminary rounds saw Bermine/Police beating Albion despite Jonathon Foo’s 52, Young Warriors, Rose Hall Canjie and Edinburgh beat Upper Corentyne, Bush Lot/DeEdward lost to Port Mourant and Rose Hall Town got past Blairmount.
Jomal Lafleur’s 43 spurred Bermine/Police to 91-5 from 10 overs and a 44-run win against Warriors, Canje, Edinburgh who collected $15,000 as the losing semi-finalist.
In the other semi-final, St Clair’s unbeaten 47 took Rose Hall Town to 83-3 and a 27-run win against Port Mourant who had to settle for the $15, 000 Prize as Butts had 2-8. The winners collected $80,000 and the runner-up $40,000.
Six spectators, Including Bishoo’s mother received Gate prizes when their names on their tickets were pulled from a box by spectators.
BCB President Anil Beharry, the former Berbice Inter-County big hitter thanked the sponsors for their support but said he was shocked and disappointed by the decision not allow their contracted players to participate by the Guyana Board since this was a BCB club competition.