A few words to the wise

The meaningful intention of the executive of the St Vincent and the Grenadines Cricket Association Inc to have two rounds of competition in the National Lotteries Authority Premier Division has been hit with a snag.

The reality of the situation is that the competition is being drawn out; hence it is becoming counter-productive to the players and to the sport in general.

Several factors are responsible for the extended stay of the competition, inclusive of the late start, disruptions for regional hosting of cricket matches, the unavailability of venues, among others.

As it stands, we are in the month of June, and there are still 10 matches outstanding.

This could run the competition’s completion into late July or early August.

Critically though, players in the main, at this juncture, are demotivated.

Teams are not showing with sufficient players; there has been one defaulted match and some teams are fielding some players who are included just to make up numbers.

Therefore, the competition is brackish and a poor advertisement of cricket.

And, one cannot fault the players in this regard, as there is little incentive for them.

Many, through the competition, hope for a selection to the St Vincent and the Grenadines senior team for the Windward Islands tournament. So what do they have to look forward to?

Also, the prize monies, although raised this year, are not such that players will be that enthused to go beyond national selection as reasons to extend themselves for some personal gratification and financial incentive.

In addition, the cultural interference and that lack of passion for sports in general have griped cricket as well.

As a consequence, the decision makers of the SVGCA Inc have found themselves between a rock and a hard place.

What then can be done to salvage some status of the highest level of cricket competition in the country at this the 11th hour?

The SVGCA Inc could find itself fishing in a dry pond and throwing monies at the wind, as some standout performers will benefit from others’ mental detachment from what is taking place, as they simply go through the motions.

This column is therefore suggesting that the top four teams enter a semi-final play-off, then final to determine the 2017 champion.

It will be an exercise in futility to prolong the agony of an uninspiring, unresponsive and less than casual competition, which is being touted as the premier division.

Anyway, like the competition itself, such a suggestion will fall on deaf ears, as those who hold the decisions will not budge, but come at the end of the year, at their gala dinner and choke listeners with the superlatives and report how successful the 2017 national cricket competitions were.