Long Island win Michael Holding Masters Cricket League
DEFENDING champion Long Island Masters defeated Clarendon Masters to retain the Michael Holding Masters Cricket competition at Ultimate Oval in Discovery Bay, St Ann, on Saturday.
Long Islands Masters won by nine wickets.
Long Island won the toss and inserted Clarendon to bat and the latter started disastrously losing their first five wickets for just 12 runs on the board, but they recovered to end the innings at 158 all out. Howard Copeland 55 top-scored, while Collis Johnson 38 gave good support.
The pick of the bowlers was Winston Myers, who bagged three for 28 in his six overs and Gary Hewitt chipped in with two for 18 in eight overs.
The victors made a mockery of affairs after racing to 159 for one in 22.5 overs. The only wicket to fall went at 90 when Cyrl Choy went for 58. Delroy Morgan, 68, top-scored, while Roger Roye contributed 26.
The lone wicket went to Collis Johnson for 26 runs in four overs. Fielder Copeland suffered an injury to the face from a Morgan straight drive and took no further part in the game after being attended to by team captain and doctor Richard Watson.
It was a very happy Cliff Roye, captain of Long Island, who spoke after the final.
“We are very happy to be crowned sole champion this year after sharing the title last year with South St Elizabeth. Last night (Friday) when we were making final preparations for this match we realised that if we made early inroads into Clarendon’s inning we could win,” he said.
Clarendon captain Watson attributed his teams loss to “overcast conditions at the start of the innings”.
“If we had won the toss we would have put in Long Island to bat as well. We also had a bad decision against us for the second wicket of one our main batsmen Winston Osbourne and that affected us as well,” he lamented.
Twelve outstanding cricketers from the Jamaica National Primary School Competition received bursaries of $50,000 each for their schooling. They are Shaquille Fennel of Moneague, Rick Walker of Hoolebury and Mike Gordon out of St Ann; Terrin Wyckham of John Austin and Jerome Bonner of Wood Hall out of Clarendon; Osmond Roy Gayle of Bull Savannah, Kimani McKoy of John Austin and Alex Lindo of Hopewell out of St Elizabeth; Shamar Morris of Cambridge out of St James; Tajoy Coke of Jacobson out of St Mary; Dillon Morgan of Woodlands and Kevaughn Anniford of Harmon’s out of Manchester.
