Future TT cricket stars groomed at NGC Academy
Tuesday, December 27 2016
KUMAR RAMPAT, director of the NGC/TTCB (National Gas Company/Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board) Cricket Academy has expressed great satisfaction at the recent successfully concluded 2016 programme at a function to honour the 16 graduants at the Sir Frank Worrell Development Centre in Balmain, Couva.
The West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) territorial development officer noted that two of the inductees, Kelon Lynch and Daniel Williams, were called to the TT Red Force trials and this has served to motivate their colleagues to earn similar rewards for their hard work.
In giving an overview of the unique holistic development programme, a finishing school for young cricketers hoping to break into the Red Force team, Rampat said the academy commenced on October 14 and ran for nine weekends.
“As is common knowledge by now, the weekend programme starts at 5 pm on Friday afternoons and ends at 5 pm on Sunday evenings. During this 48- hour period, the inductees are in camp and are involved in a series of personal development activities delivered through a carefully planned programme. The physical fitness exercises and practice of cricket skills continue to be very intense and demanding,†he said.
He said 18 of the most talented young cricketers in the nation were selected for the NGC/TTCB Academy but unfortunately not all were able to accept the offer due to the fact that three of the selectees were attending university, two outside of Trinidad and Tobago and another here at home.
“Several selectees were also attending school and were in Form Six so were not available to participate.
Their academic obligations precluded them from accepting the offer to join the academy,†he lamented.
He also advised that Justyn Gangoo, a talented left-hand spinner in the Under-17 national team was very unfortunate to incur a broken left thumb in a privately run T10 tournament after just his first week into the academy and had to withdraw upon medical advice.
“Replacements for these guys had to be found and after due diligence the academy arrived at a total of 16 participants to ensure that the quality of the inductees remained high,†he said.
In preparation for the start of the programme, two meetings were held with parents of the inductees and the objectives of these meetings were to inform about the philosophy of the academy; provide an insight into the challenges of the curriculum and how these would impact upon their child; and present an opportunity to ask questions, and voice concerns.
He said inductees expressed great satisfaction with their accommodation at the refurbished SFWDC at Balmain as each room was air-conditioned and outfitted with Cable TV.
The programme director said meals were provided buffet-style and inductees were encouraged to have their fill. Co-ordinator Naushad Mohammed was also always on hand to ensure that all those who wanted seconds were able to fulfil their request.
He said the programme continues to be very varied, catering to the personal differences of the inductees. This year, since the intake comprised a number of secondary and tertiary level students, Saturday evenings (after 7 pm) was set aside for academic pursuits and project work. “This arrangement was largely appreciated by the inductees and parents alike,†he said.
The physical fitness sessions, conducted by Gregory Haynes and Adarayll John were enormously challenging; the series of lectures by various presenters, and the cricket activities were largely appealing to the inductees who by their own admission benefitted tremendously.
2016 NGC/TTCB National Academy Inductees - Avinash Mahabirsingh, Christian Thurton, Daniel Williams, David Williams Jr, Emilio Gopaul, Iqwe Craig, Jabari Mills, James Duncan, Jayden Seales, Keagan Simmons, Kelon Lynch, Leonardo Julien, Navin Bidaise, Shaaron Anthony Lewis, Shatrughan Rambaran, Te-Shawn Alleyne.
