THE Guyana Jaguars romped to their fifth win in seven outings in the Regional Four-Day Championship when they crushed Leeward Islands Hurricanes by 10 wickets on Saturday night.
The victory bolstered the team’s position at the top of the points table, with the three-time defending champions yet to lose a match this season after drawing with Hurricanes last month and tying with Windward Islands Volcanoes last week.
However, manager/assistant coach Rayon Griffith feels that the Jaguars’ stupendous success as the most consistent team this season should be attributed to consistency, total team effort and the leadership skills demonstrated by captain Leon Johnson.
“We played consistent cricket … we batted better in the first innings this year, but having said that it was a total team effort … the younger players in the squad also played a big part,” Griffith, the former national and West Indies B team fast bowler said.
He added, “Yes, we played consistent cricket, yes, it was a total team effort, yes the younger players played their part, but the leadership skills of Johnson (Leon) also played a major part in our success. Johnson is a leader in the actual sense of the word. It is very evident from his body language and his constant interaction with the players. It is his confidence in the players’ ability which is helping them perform to their full potential and this is what gives them the belief.”
Further, the 38-year-old Griffith believes that the support received from the local governing body also played a pivotal role in the team’s success.
With three rounds remaining, the Jaguars are definitely on course for a fourth consecutive title.
Looking at the individual performances, Bramble is Guyana’s leading run-scorer so far with 481 runs after scoring three fifties and one century. He is behind Trinidad and Tobago Red Force captain Denesh Ramdin (564) and Windward Islands Volcanoes opener Devon Smith, who is leading with 873 runs.
In the bowling department, Veerasammy Permaul is the leading bowler so far with 41 wickets.
The tournament will resume on January 4. After seven rounds of action, the Jaguars have accumulated 118 points, followed by Barbados Pride (75.2), Trinidad and Tobago Red Force (71.6), Jamaica Scorpions (71.4), Leeward Islands Hurricanes (61) and Windward Islands Volcanoes (52.2).