President of the West Indies Cricket Board Whycliffe “Dave” Cameron believes that at least one Vincentian cricketer is passing up an opportunity to be on the senior West Indies cricket team.{{more}}

Cameron was giving the keynote speech at the St Vincent and the Grenadines Cricket Association’s awards and recognition ceremony, last Friday night at the Murray Heights Hotel, when he made this assessment.

Addressing the topic: “West Indies Cricket- opportunities for Vincentian cricketers”, Cameron, without revealing the identity of the individual, hinted that the player’s fitness was a debilitating factor.

“Mr Crick (Elson) and I have been subject of a couple of messages on social media about one of the players who is inside here, who has not been playing for the West Indies that everybody feels should be playing and we have to be defending ourselves …”, Cameron said.

“He knows who he is and I am saying to you, If you gonna be better, then you have to do the work. It cannot be that the WICB and the St Vincent and the Grenadines Cricket Board (Association) has to be over you to ensure that you do what you [are] supposed to do… It is said that practice is not what you do when you are good; it is what you do to be good”, Cameron lamented.

In continuing his advice to the player in question and others, Cameron noted: “Players ought to prepare themselves in order to compete by being fit, by eating right and by engaging in a routine that suits their particular area of interest … It is your role, it is your responsibility to be fit”.

Basing his presentation on the financial benefits of especially cricket, Cameron said that more financial opportunities will be rolled out in 2014 for regional players.

“Sixty players from the region, in addition to fifteen players which the West Indies Board retains, will be offered contracts next year for six months,” he disclosed.

But Cameron noted that the WICB has indicated to the various territorial boards that they should ensure that the players work for their money.

“For this to make sense, we must ensure that all support systems are in place… We must ensure that these guys turn up for work every day and that they have the facilities… We must ensure that we have coaches in place, trainers and physios and where you are lacking, you need to speak to the WICB”, the WICB president stated.

Cameron stressed that one does not have to be a player to benefit from cricket. He, therefore, prescribed that “the region build an industry, be employed in that industry, acquire the requisite skills to compete with our international competitors on and off the field and advance the industry by standards worthy of emulating.”(RT)