Jamaica Cricket Association (JCA) second Vice-President Fritz Harris says “an absence of quality leadership” is among the reasons the sport has suffered a “visible decline” locally in recent times.

And he told the Jamaica Observer that the decline is central to his decision to support JCA first Vice-President Dr Donovan Bennett, who has indicated he will challenge their boss Wilford “Billy” Heaven at the next election which is expected to be held by March.

“Our sport is suffering from an absence of quality leadership, inclusiveness, the will to get things done, and knowledge and appreciation of systems, traditions and culture. The net effect of the named weaknesses has resulted in a steady but visible decline in all areas of the sport,” he explained after confirming he has sided with Dr Bennett.

“The leadership of cricket over recent years has created a state of malaise in the sport. The question for us, therefore, as we approach a renewal exercise, is: Do we continue as is, or do we seek to implement changes where necessary?” Harris posited.

Heaven, looking to become JCA president for a fifth-straight term, has been at the helm for over 10 years.

He defeated Milton Henry for the top job in 2013, then turned back the challenges of Harris in 2016 and Mark Neita in 2019. He was returned unopposed in 2021.

Heaven, at one point, had indicated he would step aside at the end of this cycle, before more recently citing “unfinished business” as the reason for seeking another term.

During his time as president, Heaven’s detractors have pointed to a series of miserable campaigns, particularly in the regional four-day competition, which a Jamaica team has not won for just over a decade.

In the midst of the gloom, the Jamaica franchise performed outstandingly to lift the 2022 regional Men’s Super50 Cup. But the team fell down horribly last year, finishing at the base of the eight-team tournament without a win in seven matches.

There has also been criticism about the JCA’s commitment to developing girls’ and women’s cricket. But while there has been a sparsity of women’s cricket locally, the senior women’s team clinched the 2022 regional Twenty20 title and finished second in the Super50. Jamaica’s women, however, placed fourth in both competitions last year.

Despite talk of deficiency in development programmes, a massive highlight for the Heaven administration came last summer when Jamaica won the regional Under-19 50-over and three-day double, the country’s first such triumph since 2010.

Heaven said in the Observer’s Tuesday publication that the COVID-19 pandemic wiped out three years of “development work”.

He added: “That has set us back significantly, especially with our Under-15s, but I believe we hit the ground running after COVID and we’re out there now in full swing. We’re playing a lot of cricket now.

“Whenever I say this, people raise their eyebrows but I believe we may even be playing too much cricket. We need to get the focus to build stronger teams and to have better competition. That is what will sharpen us.”

The JCA president, who identified a two-pronged approach to the development of the sport, said the association should “now focus on the cricket aspect” since it has “done remarkably well as a business”.

But aside from charging that the JCA has veered away from staging “elite” development camps for players, Harris countered that there are a number of outstanding issues, including a breakdown in the relationship with club and parish associations.

“The Jamaica Cricket Association built a reputation around the Caribbean as a nation strong on development…[but] unfortunately those as we knew them are of the past.

“There is a lack of engagement at constituent membership levels, resulting in fewer communities engaging in the sport,” he said.

“There is an absence of initiatives to eliminate or reduce challenges affecting competition organisers or potential organisers and players or potential players. This is reflected in the unavailability of grounds for schools, parish teams and others.

“There is a shortage of quality competitive leagues. The year in, year out conversations on an inadequate Senior Cup has become impatient of action, [and] tinkering with development leagues such as the Minor Cup and Junior Cup has proven unfortunate.

“The attempt to replace clubs and parish associations instead of complementing them needs a relook. We need to establish an effective season of cricket with a menu of competitions suited to our realities, and for the attainment of desired outcomes,” Harris argued.

The JCA second vice-president, who in the past has served as honorary secretary and national team manager, said the development thrust should not be limited to players.

“We should provide training for advancement in all areas of the sport — administration, coaching, marketing and communications, match management, etc, through existing memorandum of understanding with institutions such as GC Foster College, University of Technology and The University of the West Indies,” he said.

Harris, while noting that the road to development will not be easy, insisted that Heaven had sufficient opportunity to lead the journey but failed to do so.

“We have lost our way and must be prepared for the hard grind required to get back on course. The Jamaica Cricket Association urgently requires a mindset change at the very top…a change to a mindset of inclusiveness where engagement is not occasioned but perennial, a mindset where talent development is uncompromised and is placed above whim and fancy of the one or two.

“We need to prepare, share and secure consensus on a national cricket strategy, covering areas such as funding, [management of Sabina Park], [staging] international cricket. The engagement of partners such as players, our members, government, private sector, box holders, high schools, tertiary institutions, Cricket West Indies, and the media must be an absolute priority,” Harris told the Observer.

“The current president is in his 11th year at the helm. That length of tenure in the context of things, afforded [more than] adequate time for the delivery of programmes, growth of the sport, improvement in finances, engagement of members in particular constituent members, and forging of partnerships with the private sector. Regardless of the method of evaluation, tool or assessor, the grade points on all areas mentioned are below acceptable,” he said.