OVERWHELMED by how things went in the recently concluded, truncated schoolboy cricket season, Keith Wellington, president of the Inter-secondary Schools Sports Association (ISSA), is hoping that season will act as a catalyst for an even better staging next year.

With schoolboy cricket having not been played since it was called off in March 2020 due to the novel coronavirus pandemic, Wellington says it was important to get off the mark and work their way back to pre-pandemic practices.

At the onset, 21 schools indicated participation in the rural area Grace Headley competition, while only 13 signalled intention to compete in the urban area Grace Shield.

St Elizabeth Technical High School (STETHS) won the rural area title with Excelsior topping the Grace Shield, while Wolmer’s Boys’ collared the Twenty20 competition.

“We had a small number of schools but we wanted to have the restart because we know, usually, the most difficult thing in life is to start over. And so, we thought that we would use the opportunity this year to not only restart the competition but also try and set the tone for what is to come 2023,” Wellington told the Jamaica Observer shortly after the T20 championship match at Sabina Park on Wednesday.

“I think we were able to accomplish that. Thanks to the schools that participated and certainly our sponsors GraceKennedy through First Global Bank and GK Insurance, as well as JPS [Jamaica Public Service] who provided the lights, and of course Sabina Park and our other sponsors. So we are happy with what we were able to accomplish for the last two and a half months,” he added.

According to Wellington, playing the T20 final under lights at the cricket mecca was a move aimed at rekindling the enthusiasm of schools, and by extension students who aspire to one day represent Jamaica or the West Indies but whose dreams might have been thwarted by the pandemic-induced pause.

“What we want to do is build on this, so first of all we want more schools coming back on board next year, now that face-to-face classes have resumed. Once we have more schools on board we would also love to see a little bit more being put in by our sponsors, not just those who are currently on board but those who are interested in the development of cricket. We know that once we are able to get those things on board we will see an improvement in the cricket,” Wellington opined.

And though his school came out on the losing end of a thrilling T20 championship match, Wellington, the principal of STETHS, said he couldn’t have asked for a more invigorating encounter.

STETHS went down by four runs to Wolmer’s Boys’ after falling short at 83 all out in chase of the 87-7 posted by the Heroes’ Circle-based boys.

“It worked well for us because if Wolmer’s had made 87 and STETHS made 88 off 12 overs, I don’t think it would have been as good as what we ended up with, so I’m pleased with the outcome overall. There was some good, exciting cricket and I couldn’t ask for more,” Wellington declared.

“But I think STETHS is always going to be there. We have a very strong programme and it’s a young team, because only the captain will leave this year and so I know we will do well,” the principal said as he looks to next year’s edition.