Chedwin Park will be ready, organisers say
Those who visited last week to watch a three-day practice match for the Jamaica squad harboured grave doubts.
But those in charge at Chedwin Park say the scenic, old ground will be more than ready for tomorrow’s start of the WICB regional four-day cricket season involving Jamaica and the Windward Islands.
In fact, Ephraim McLeod, head of the Grounds Committee at Chedwin Park representing resident club, St Catherine Cricket Club, is bubbling with confidence.
“The ground (Chedwin Park) will be in superb condition,” he told the Observer.
McLeod said concerns about the “look” of an hurricane-ravaged and decaying two-storey wooden structure on the western side had been eased. This followed agreement between the owners of Chedwin Park, the Sugar Company of Jamaica and St Catherine CC for the removal of the broken remains of the top floor.
“The remains of the upper deck will be removed by Thursday leaving just the bottom floor standing and once that is done everything will look much better,” McLeod said yesterday.
He said the bottom floor of the old building which was once the St Catherine Cricket Club’s main stand would be renovated to be used as a “lunch room” ahead of a two-day practice match for the visiting South Africans in June.
Spectator stands and grassy areas around the field will also be made “spic and span” ahead of tomorrow, McLeod said.
Also, he expected the pitch which last week was disappointingly slow with more than a hint of uneven bounce and overly generous help for spinners would be much improved. “We are happy that we had that practice game because it allowed us to see what we need to do in terms of rolling and additional work,” McLeod said.
The outfield, which was unusually patchy and uneven last week following prolonged drought, would also see improvement following consistent wetting and rolling leading up to match day, he said.
The game at Chedwin Park will be the only opportunity for local cricket lovers to see the Jamaica team in first-class competition this season following a cost-cutting, shortened and revamped tournament from last season.
Jamaica versus Windward Islands apart, Trinidad and Tobago will take on Combined Campuses and Colleges (CCC) at Jarrett Park in Montego Bay, while Barbados face Leeward Islands at Kensington Park also starting tomorrow. A similar format will be maintained for the remaining five rounds of the tournament in the eastern Caribbean and Guyana through January and February.
Last year all seven regional teams played on a home-and-away basis over a three-month period.
