Innswood, St Catherine – The effort left the small but lively crowd smiling, but in the end Jamaica were condemned to last place in the 2005/06 Carib Beer four-day season after losing by 51 runs to Guyana at Chedwin Park here yesterday.

Set 334 to win in a minimum 69 overs on a pitch of variable bounce, the Jamaicans, led by Marlon Samuels’ 99-ball 81 and a 65-ball 57 from Daren Powell, sent more than a few shivers down the spines of the Guyanese before being dismissed for 282 in 58.4 overs.

Allrounder Narsingh Deonarine, preferred as an offspinner to the specialist Imran Jefferally (4-64), as well as wrist spinner Mahendra Nagamootoo (3-93) and pacer Reon King (2-46) were the bowling heroes for Guyana.

Earlier, the Guyanese who resumed their second innings on 114-6, were dismissed in 19.1 overs of the pre-lunch session for 163 – skipper and man-of-the-match Shivnarine Chanderpaul hitting 63 not out – leaving the hosts with what seemed at the time a highly improbable target.

Scores in the game which was Jamaica’s last for the regional season: Guyana 314 and 163; Jamaica 144 and 282.

Encouraging as the Jamaican last day effort was, the overall performance of last year’s double four-day champions will inevitably trigger much soul-searching in the local cricket fraternity. Not only did Jamaica fail to win a game, they lost three and there wasn’t a single century maker in 10 innings.

Further, cricket fans yesterday were struggling to recall the last time, if ever, that Jamaica came last in the regional first-class tournament.

The win means an automatic place in the final four of the Carib Series for Chanderpaul’s Guyanese regardless of what happens in their outstanding game against the Windward Islands.

Yesterday, Jamaica’s captain Wavell Hinds argued that his players were “victims of our success last year.”

“Players came with a ‘business as usual’ attitude, they were on auto pilot, but credit is due to the other teams… they stepped up,” he said. It was incumbent on Jamaica’s players to “take ownership and responsibility” for their own performances and to “prepare” themselves properly for games, he said.

Regarding yesterday’s run-chase itself, Hinds, who stroked a 60-ball 47 before being run out going for a second run, said his team missed out by “losing too many wickets too early”.

Also, he suggested “one of our top five batsmen should have stayed through the innings”. But he praised Samuels and Powell, in particular, for “fantastic knocks”.

In the morning session yesterday, Guyana added 49 runs for their last four wickets before being bowled out. Chanderpaul not out 34 overnight, hit four fours and one six in his 151-ball, 184-minute knock. Ramnaresh Sarwan (8), who is nursing a sore right index finger, was removed by a lifter from pacer Daren Powell, the ball lobbing to forward short-leg off the glove. Powell in an incisive burst of 3-24 from nine overs also removed Esaun Crandon (8) and Imran Jefferally (1) to end with 3-47 from 18 overs. Fellow pacer Jerome Taylor, who did surprisingly little bowling in the game, trapped Reon King (0) leg before to end the innings.

The Jamaicans had an early setback in their one-day style run chase when Donovan Pagon (2) slashed a wide Reon King delivery to a gleeful Krishna Arjune at point at 9-1. But cheered on by the small crowd, Samuels, who looked in immaculate form from the start and Chris Gayle, who gradually looked better as his innings progressed, were soon in control.

They shared 94 runs for the second wicket in very quick time before Gayle (41 with a six and three fours off 55 balls) chose to hit against the breese and was caught at long off for the first of Deonarine’s four wickets. Tamar Lambert (0) came and went first ball, caught at midwicket to set the Jamaicans further on the back foot.

Hinds and Samuels then gave the fans renewed hope before the latter was bowled by a devilish delivery from Nagamootoo that scuttled through at ankle height. The elegant right-hander had slammed a six and eight fours in 114 minutes.

Carlton Baugh (11), swinging across the line, was bowled by Deonarine, Bernard (8) was adjudged leg before to Nagamootoo and Gareth Breese (3), was brilliantly taken by Deonarine at slip off Nagamootoo. Suddenly the Jamaicans, although ahead of the required run rate, were 188-7 and seemingly out of it.

But Powell, showing steely resolve and a wide range of strokes, soon had the crowd cheering again. In the end their frenetic running between wickets proved their undoing, a direct hit from extra cover sending back Hinds, attempting a second run on a misfield at 237-8. The Jamaica captain had faced 60 balls and hit four fours. Jamaica fell to 237-9 when Taylor (0) was trapped leg before by Deonarine.

But even then it wasn’t over. An accomplished Jermaine Lawson made 18 (28 balls, three fours) in a last wicket stand of 45 to the great delight of the crowd before King sent the Guyanese into lonely celebrations by bowling Powell.

The latter had hit five fours in his inspired 81-minute knock.

Scoreboard

Guyana first innings 314 all out

Second innings (overnight 114-6)

S Chanderpaul not out 63

R Sarwan c sub Beckford b Powell 7

E Crandon lbw Powell 8

I Jefferally lbw Powell 1

R King lbw Taylor 0

Extras (byes 13, leg byes 2, nb3) 18

Total (all out) 163

Fall of wickets: 7-136, 8-152, 9-160

Bowling: Lawson 8-1-23-1, Powell 18-3-47-3, Taylor 5.3 – 1- 5-1, Gayle 9-4-13-1, Samuels 17-8-49-2, Breese 10-5-10-2.

Jamaica first innings 144 all out

Jamaica second innings

C Gayle c Arjune b Deonarine 41

D Pagon c Deonarine b King 2

M Samuels b Nagamootoo 81

T Lambert c Chanderpaul b Deonarine 0

W Hinds run out 47

C Baugh b Deonarine 11

D Bernard lbw Nagamootoo 8

G Breese c Deonarine b Nagamootoo 3

D Powell b King 57

J Taylor lbw Deonarine 0

J Lawson not out 18

Extras ( byes 7, leg byes 3, no balls 2, wides 1) 13

Total (all out) 282

Fall of wickets: 1-9, 1-10, 3-104, 4-143, 5-158, 6-182, 7-188, 8-237, 9-237

Bowling: King 8.4 -0-46-2, Crandon 11-0-53-0, Nagamootoo 19-0-93-3, Deonarine 16-0-64-4, Jefferally 2-0-6-0, Sarwan 2-0-10-0.

Result: Guyana won by 51 runs

Toss: Guyana

Umpires: Norman Malcolm (Jamaica); Glenford Johnson (Grenada)

Match referee: Dudley Bryan