da roleta： At a glance it would seem that the Barbados CricketAssociation (BCA) vs Barbados Cricket League (BCL) match wasa waste of time
Andi Thornhill19-Dec-2001At a glance it would seem that the Barbados CricketAssociation (BCA) vs Barbados Cricket League (BCL) match wasa waste of time.That’s, of course, if you had to go by the result a smashing426 run win for the BCA team.Some blamed the defeat on the composition of the BCL squadwhich was virtually the same eleven that played in the BCA’sfirst division and placed second from bottom.Many believed that a new slate of players should have beengiven the opportunity to parade their talents.Honestly, though, I don’t know if that would have made toobig a difference but I wonder whether the fundamentalconcept of the game is still relevant.It was basically the re-enactment of an old tradition whichcame to an end in the early 1970s after the BCL was admittedto the BCA’s first division in 1969.The once annual match would give the stars drawn from thevarious BCL’s zones a chance not only to play against thecream of the BCA but the opportunity to press for a place inthe Barbados team.This match launched the regional and subsequentinternational careers of many a West Indian great. Playerssuch as like Seymour Nurse, Charlie Griffith, ClairemontDepeiza and the late Sir Conrad Hunte all made their way tothe top via this route.But, lest we forget, there were sociological reasons for theformation of the BCL in the first place.It was born out of a rigid class structure which at the timewould have prevented people from certain backgrounds frommaking certain leaps up the social ladder.Therefore, many of the BCL players at that time would havefelt they had a real chance to break social barriers throughcommanding performances. Some achieved it.There was a hunger to succeed because you wanted a betterlife, on and off the field.Today, of course, many of the social barriers that were anobstacle to progress are no longer there.The sacrifices made by others have made life a lot easierfor the present generation and I wonder whether this isfully appreciated by those to whom the baton has beenpassed.It is really in this context that I view the dismalperformance of the BCL in the recent match moreso than thecomposition of the team.Like everything else, if you don’t have any knowledge orappreciation of your history you will be incapable ofsustaining any gains made by those who suffered in the questfor change.The current crop of players may not see themselves in theforefront of social change because, let’s face it, if theywanted to and if they qualified, they could easily get intoa club for which their forerunners were once barred. What’sleft to fight for?If not social change surely the good name of the BCLdeserved a more determined defence.With scores of 86 and 80 the BCL players did not look asthough they were fighting for anything.And this is not to take anything away from the excellentperformances of people such as Ryan Austin, Sulieman Bennand Philo Wallace.To be frank, any further attempt to re-invent the past willonly make sense if those now entrusted with paving the wayof the future fully understand what was at stake then andnow.