Philo Wallace -right and Javani Tyson

Charelstown Primary Coach Elquemedo Willet sits with players

Nevis begins 20/20 series with convincing win

Nevis commenced the inaugural Leeward Islands 20/20 series with a convincing win over Montserrat last evening. Batting first, the Nevisians were led by a mixture of glorious and erratic batting to be bowled out for 143 in 18.4 overs. Man of the match, Javia Liburd top scored with 45.

Montserrat in response was pegged by the consistently tight bowling of the Nevisians to be hopelessly placed on 88 for 9 at the end of their 20 overs. Lane top scored with 19 and Tuit got 15. Ian Byron bagged 2 for 19; Aquito Willet 3 for 19 and Jason Campbell 1 for 17. Nevis winning by 55 runs.

In a more exciting match number two, Antigua batted first versus Anguilla and were off to a rocky start due to the extra pace of Kelbert Walters—at one point being 5 for 2. However, man of the match Kadeem Phillip swung his way lustily to 44 and Skipper Wilden Cornwall also went quickly to 32. Kelbert Walters bagged 2 for 11; Leonard 3 for 29 and Omari Banks 3 for 23.

Anguilla in an exciting run chase at one point needed 10 runs for victory from 3 balls—but sadly the script was not written in their favour. They were 118 for 5 at the end of 20 overs.

Skellekie 34; Kelbert Walters 29 and Shaka Hodge 27. Wilden Cornwall got 2 for 22 while Joseph, Athanaze and Hampson all got 1 wicket each.
Antigua won by 8 runs.

Nevis team

Windies A miss out on final as India A and Lions tie
Windiescricket.com

The West Indies A Team narrowly missed out on a place in the final of the tri-nation goodwill series when India A and England Lions played to a thrilling tie in the last preliminary match on Tuesday.

At the start of the day the Windies were ahead of the Indian on points. The Indians needed a tie or a win to qualify. England Lions up 343-8 off their 50 overs and India A replied with 348-8 off their 50 overs. Needing two runs off the final delivery to win, India A scrambled a bye to secure the tie and also book their place in Thursday’s final ahead of West Indies A.

England Lions finished the round-robin stage unbeaten while India A earned their points from a victory over West Indies A and the tie. Windies A had a single victory following their win by 166 runs over India A in the opening match of the series last week Monday.
Windies A will have their final match of the tour against Lancashire County at Old Trafford on Thursday. They return home on Friday and most of the players will be participating in the West Indies Cricket Board’s Caribbean T20 Tournament from July 22 to 31.

Three new faces in Bajan squad for Caribbean T20
Windiescricket.com

Three newcomers -- allrounders Larry Babb, Ashley Nurse and Jason Hinds, the younger brother of captain Ryan Hinds -- have been named in the Barbados 14-man squad for the West Indies Cricket Board Caribbean T20 Tournament to be hosted by Barbados and Trinidad from July 22 to 31.

Full SQUAD: Ryan Hinds (captain), Jason Hinds, Alcindo Holder, Javon Searles, Kevin Stoute, Larry Babb, Sulieman Benn, Jonathan Carter, Kirk Edwards, Kemar Roach, Carlo Morris, Dale Richards, Ashley Nurse, Dwayne Smith; Desmond Haynes (manager), Emmerson Trotman (coach), Vasbert Drakes (assistant coach), Jacqui King-Mowatt (physiotherapist)

FOOTBALL

Puyol puts Spain in World Cup final

Spain reached the World Cup final for the first time after a second-half header from Carles Puyol secured a narrow victory over Germany after an intriguing match in Durban.
Vicente del Bosque's side won their fourth straight game 1-0 and will now play the Netherlands in Sunday's final at Soccer City.

Spain deserved their victory after controlling huge periods of the match, but once again it was far from a vintage performance.

Del Bosque's team improved on their scrappy performance against Paraguay in the previous round but still struggled to carve out clear openings.

The winning goal came when Puyol showed great determination to atone for a poor first-half miss by heading home Xavi's corner with 17 minutes remaining.

The Euro 2008 champions, who defeated Germany 1-0 in the final of that competition, should have scored a second after striking with the sort of counter-attack that had been a trademark of their opponents' play in this competition, but Pedro failed to pick out a completely unmarked Fernando Torres.

Germany had invited pressure by adopting an increasingly deep defensive line as the match wore on - and may regret not taking the game to their opponents more while it remained goalless.

Bronte Swanston-Hendrickson

Carl Tuckett

Handing over of cheque

Nevis Team off to Antigua

The senior Nevis cricket team left the Vance Amory Int Airport shortly after 5pm yesterday en route to Antigua where they will engage in the first ever 20/20 Leeward Islands series. From this series of matches, a Leeward Islands squad will be selected to participate in the first ever West Indies 20/20 tournament

Captain of the team, Tonito Willet expressed confidence in his team’s ability to win the competition and stated: “It’s one of the best all round teams that I have seen representing Nevis in recent times’. Asked about additional pressure on his personal performance due to the fact that he is also leading the team, he confidently indicated:

“I like to lead from the front, so there will be no additional pressure on me”.

Manager Malcolm Ramsey for his part referred to his role as manager ‘as natural progression’ (quoting his friend ‘Scooby’). He indicated that the team has gelled well over the past few weeks of training and he too is quietly confident that the way they are prepared, they would stand a very good chance to win the tournament. He further indicated that the team respects his leadership style and that he very early established certain rules by which the players will be guided and does not expect any problems with the team on tour.

He also made a point of clearing the air on the Daynason Browne issue. “I have heard people saying that we are taking along a banned player. Let it be known that Daynason Browne was stripped of his captaincy and vice captaincy roles and has been suspended for two matches by the disciplinary committee. However, the said disciplinary committee also indicated that he be included in the 14 man squad. The management team however requested an extra player as he would not be available for the first two matches. Hence the reason that fifteen players are going to Antigua”.

The full squad reads:

Tonito Willet-capt; Javia Liburd-v. capt; Akito Willet; Duan Philip; Joel Simmonds; Trevier Smithen; Carlon Smithen; Carlos Adolphus; Ian Byron; Nelson Boland; Andre Browne; Jason Campbell; Jamoy Pemberton, Kejel Tyson and Daynason Browne.
Manager-Malcolm Ramsey; Coach-Deryck Parry and Trainer-Masefield Nisbett.

Nevis cricket team prior to leaving for Antigua

Big Rock goes two up

The Big Rock team, rebounded after being severely beaten in match two of the series versus the Nevis Masters team, last evening by taking victory in hard fought match three.

From the outset, it was quite obvious that the batsmen would struggle on a slow pitch and the opening bowlers were disciplined enough to keep the aggressive Merlin Liburd in check until he finally gifted his hand to a poorly played pull shot. Thereafter, Junior Mills excited the crowd briefly but wickets fell steadily, aided by two unnecessary run outs.
The experienced Eustace Johnson also hit some lusty blows towards the end of the innings but the Masters team would have known that 109 runs would not be enough, unless they bowled and fielded exceptionally.

The Big Rock team’s game plan was quite obvious, virtually playing the colloquial ‘every lash one ‘ game in running what seemed like suicidal singles but in most instances getting away with it, as throw after throw missed the stumps.

As the game climaxed, Southee managed to club two crucial fours over the close set field for boundaries and Rakish finished with a tug over mid-on to finish in emphatic fashion, much to the jubilation of the Big Rock team and their supporters, led by the verbose Winton ‘Parpa’ Parris.

Summarized scores: Nevis Masters: 109 for 9 in 20 overs: Junior Mills 38; Eustace Johnson 17 not out; Oneil Walters 11.

Anand 3 for 13; Rakish and Nazir 1 wicket each.

Big Rock 110 for 5 in 17.1 overs –Anand top scored with 25; Boye got 12
Hendrickson, Liburd, Monzac and Morton all got 1 wicket each.

The fourth game in the series will be played tomorrow Thursday at he Ramsbury grounds—the unofficial Meritzer Williams Park.

Female League intriguingly poised

Champions St.James’ will be battling for the fourth spot on Thursday night when they come up against Super Rockers in what has been billed a crucial contest for both teams.
Three teams have already qualified for the top four: Highlights Int; Empire and St.Thomas’ In with a chance for the fourth spot are Brown Hill, St.James’ and Super Rockers.

Matches scheduled for tomorrow Thursday are:

St.James’ v Super rockers at 5.30 pm and immediately after, in what is expected to be a ring-dinger, Empire takes on Brown Hill.

On Saturday 10th July, Alex Stars will play versus St.James’ at 7pm and then one of the semi final matches (to be determined) will be played. Next week should see the exciting completion of the bottom and top four semi final encounters.

Galle Test to be Muralitharan's last
Cricinfo staff

Muttiah Muralitharan, the leading wicket-taker in Tests and ODIs, will retire from Test cricket after the first Test against India in Galle, which begins on July 18. While he will not play the subsequent tri-series, and will pick and choose which ODIs to play in, Murali will be available for selection if the team needs him for the 2011 World Cup, which Sri Lanka is co-hosting.

Cricinfo has learnt that Murali met Aravinda de Silva, the chairman of selectors, and captain Kumar Sangakkara over the weekend to discuss his future. He was asked to consider playing the full series against India, but he was unsure about being at his best if bowled heavily throughout the series.

"Murali has been thinking for some time about the right time to go," a source close to the offspinner told Cricinfo. "All along he has been determined to go while he is still performing rather than just hanging on. He made the decision last week after the Asia Cup and met with the selectors and captain over the weekend to explain to them his position. He is really keen to play on to the World Cup but at the same time he does not want to stand in the way of younger talent. So he will see how things go over the next few months."

Kushil Gunasekara, Murali's manager, said the unscheduled Test series against India had made Murali fast track his decision to retire. "The selectors want Murali to be around just in case they don't find a suitable replacement for him for the 2011 World Cup," he said. "They probably want the spinners to work around Murali."

FOOTBALL

Dutch edge past Uruguay to reach final
By Chris Bevan, Cape Town

Two goals in three second-half minutes by Wesley Sneijder and Arjen Robben helped to see off a resolute Uruguay side and put the Netherlands into a World Cup final for the first time since 1978.

The Dutch looked short of ideas for long periods but still had the quality in front of goal when it mattered to set up an all-European final against Euro 2008 champions Spain or Germany in Johannesburg on Sunday.

After Giovanni van Bronckhorst's spectacular opener, Uruguay were gifted an equaliser when goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg failed to deal with Diego Forlan's long-range shot.

But Sneijder and Robben again made the difference for the two-time runners-up, who were left hanging on at the end following Maxi Pereira's injury-time reply. However, the Dutch held firm to make sure of their progress.

It was a dramatic end to an often tepid match as Uruguay, who were without the suspended Luis Suarez following his goal-line handball that helped them past Ghana in the quarter-finals, only showed real attacking intent when they fell two goals behind.

Cheered on by an army of Oranje fans, Dutch coach Bert van Marwijk saw his side struggle to find their feet in the early stages, with their only sight of goal being wasted when Dirk Kuyt fired wastefully over after keeper Fernando Muslera had punched Sneijder's cross straight at him.

The South Americans, in their first semi-final for 30 years, were defending in depth and in numbers but that tactic did not help them when Van Bronkhorst broke the deadlock after 18 minutes

The ball was fed out to the left-flank and the veteran Feyenoord left-back had time to look up and use his trusty left foot to spank an unstoppable 35-yard shot into the top corner.

But going ahead did not help the Dutch work out how to break down a well-organised Uruguay defence, and they also seemed unwilling to commit players forward in search of more goals.

Martin Caceres had to hold off Robben as he ran on to Robin van Persie's through-ball, but that was the nearest the Netherlands came to extending their lead.

Uruguay, in the absence of the prolific Suarez, were faring little better at the other end and Stekelenburg did not have a save to make until he had to deal with Alvaro Pereira's bouncing shot after 36 minutes.

That all changed before half-time, however, and it was the Dutch goalkeeper at fault as Forlan notched his fourth goal in six games in the finals in South Africa.

Stekelenburg had a clear view of Forlan's swerving strike from 25 yards out and got a hand to the ball, but was still unable to keep it out.

The Ajax keeper had another nervous moment at the start of the second half when he beat Edinson Cavani to a through ball but failed to make a proper clearance and Van Bronkhorst had to clear Alvaro Pereira's curling shot off the line.

But the game quickly got bogged down in midfield and there were few chances to speak of until Forlan brought a much better stop from Stekelenburg with a dipping free-kick.

The Netherlands had been disappointing up to that point but showed again how they do not have to play well to win games in the tournament with a two-goal burst in the space of three minutes that was enough to give them victory.

Van Marwijk's side showed signs of life when Van Persie latched on to a long ball over the top and played in substitute Rafael van der Vaart, who saw his low shot pushed away before Robben fired the rebound over.

And they were back in the lead after 70 minutes when Sneijder's shot hit the luckless Maxi Pereira and span in off a post, with Van Persie trying but failing to get a touch to help it on its way.

In their next attack, Robben made it 3-1, escaping the attentions of Diego Godin to meet Dirk Kuyt's cross and plant a firm header into the bottom corner.

Uruguay looked exhausted and Robben could have added a fourth when he burst forward on to a Van Persie flick late on, but got his attempted chip all wrong.

Instead the Dutch faced a frantic finale when, in the 92nd minute, Maxi Pereira ran on to a quickly taken free-kick, turned Eljero Ejia and curled a precise shot into the bottom corner of the net.

Uruguay coach Oscar Tabarez's team had time to launch a few balls into the Dutch box but van Marwijk's side survived and it is they who will go forward hoping it will be third-time lucky for them in a final following their defeats in 1974 and 1978.

Today Germany takes on Spain in the second semi final encounter in what is expected to be a thriller.

Tuesday, 6th July

ATHLETICS

The Titans Track and field club successfully hosted its Titans Grand Prix meet at Grove Park on Sunday 4 th July.  The meet was off to a late start but the small crowd in attendance grew to impressive proportions as the meet climaxed into the early evening.

Teams represented were:

Roots Athletics Club of Antigua

Extreme Velocity of St. Kitts

Gladiators Track Club of Nevis

St. Kitts CUT Team (U13/U15)

Wings Sports Club of Antigua

Pace Setters Track Club of St. Kitts

and hosts Titans Athletics Club of Nevis

The athletes competed fiercely in the 100, 200, 400, 800 and 1500 meters events.  The top long jumpers also had their day in the sun.  The meet climaxed with the exciting 4X100 and 4X400 meters events which caused the crowd to get closer to the action.

The previous evening, Saturday 3 rd July, there was an official welcoming and opening ceremony at Philsha's guest house.  The ceremony was chaired by Titan's President Timothy Caines and also addressing the gathering were: Lester Blackett-President of the Nevis Amateur Athletic Association (NAAA), Eddy Richards (Caines)—Patron for the meet, Mr. Mackey Tross of A1 Technology—Chief sponsor and one of the visiting Antiguan Coaches.

Blackett was warm in his praise for the efforts of the Titans club and welcomed all of the visting athletes to Nevis and wished the meet well.  Mr. Mackey Tross reiterated his company's commitment to the development of the youth and indicated that he was happy to be associated with the event, despite the present economic situation.

Timothy Caines--Titans chief

Titans grand prix athletes

Titans grand prix athletes

Titans grand prix athletes

Titans grand prix athletes

Titans grand prix athletes

Titans grand prix athletes

Titans grand prix athletes

Titans grand prix athletes

Titans grand prix athletes

---

HORSE RACING

OBAMA RULES SUPREME

When Obama led the way to the finish line at the Indian castle race track on Sunday 4 th July, that would have given the presidential horse the enviable record of not been beaten on the track.

It was the final race of the four race card and despite the fact that the turn out was well below par, those who were present were well entertained.

The first two races saw the bolting of at least one horse but generally everything went well for the day.

The final results saw:

Race one:

1 st place: Sheik Sung

2 nd Rosman

Lady Saw bolted and did not complete the race

Race two:

1 st Gottogetta Rhythm

2 nd Cover Girl

Mambo Beauty bolted and did not complete the race

Race three

1 st Full Breed

2 nd El Avion

Race four

1 st Obama

2 nd Dominquero

3 rd Khenrun

The next major event will be the much anticipated ‘Culturama races' and the Nevis Turf and Jockey club is expecting a bumper crowd on race day.

CRICKET

TCL Group West Indies Under-19 Challenge Trophy 

Thursday July 8 to Saturday July 10

Barbados v Windwards at Beausejour

Guyana v Leewards at Dennery

Trinidad and Tobago v Jamaica at Gros Islet

Monday July 12 to Wednesday July 14

Guyana v Jamaica at Gros Islet

Barbados v Leewards at Beausejour

Windwards v Trinidad and Tobago at Dennery

Friday July 16 to Sunday July18

Leewards v Jamaica at Beausejour

Trinidad and Tobago v Barbados at Dennery

Guyana v Windwards at Gros Islet

Tuesday July 20 to Thursday July 22

Jamaica v Windwards at Beausejour

Trinidad and Tobago v Leewards at Gros Islet

Guyana v Barbados at Dennery

Saturday July 24 to Monday July 26

Jamaica v Barbados at Gros Islet

Trinidad and Tobago v Guyana at Dennery

Leewards v Windwards at Beausejour

TCL Group West Indies Under-19 One-Day Trophy

Thursday July 29

Windwards v Barbados at Dennery

Leewards vs Guyana at Gros Islet

Jamaica v Trinidad and Tobago at Beausejour

Saturday July 31

Jamaica v Leewards at Dennery

Barbados v Trinidad and Tobago at Gros Islet

Windwards v Guyana at Beausejour

Sunday August 1

Windwards v Jamaica at Gros Islet

Leewards vs Trinidad and Tobago at Dennery

Barbados v Guyana at Beausejour

Tuesday August 3

Jamaica v Guyana at Gros Islet

Leewards v Barbados at Dennery

Trinidad and Tobago v Windwards at Beausejour

Wednesday August 4

Barbados v Jamaica at Dennery

Guyana v Trinidad and Tobago at Beausejour

Leewards v Windwards at Gros Islet 

Bopara shines in Lions victory

Cricinfo staff

Ravi Bopara missed out on selection for England's forthcoming one-day internationals against Bangladesh, but showed his worth as a limited-overs player with a starring performance in a 124-run win for the England Lions over West Indies A at New Road. Entering with his side in deep trouble at 14 for 3 in the 4th over, Bopara rallied the lower middle order on his way to 168 from 140 balls as the Lions were bowled out for 345 in the final over.

Bopara then returned with the ball in West Indies A's chase, breaking a threatening 95-run stand for the 4th wicket between Darren Bravo and Kevin Stoute, both of whom had passed fifty. He added the wickets of Chadwick Walton and Andre Russell to finish with 4 for 43 as West Indies A were bowled out for 221 in 40 overs.

England Lions 345 (Bopara 168, Trego 73, Tonge 4-69) beat West Indies A 221 (Stoute 64, Bravo 62, Trego 5-40, Bopara 4-43) by 124 runs

FOOTBALL

World Cup 2010: Brazil sack coach Dunga

Dunga has been sacked as Brazil coach following his country's quarter-final exit from the World Cup .

A statement from the Brazilian Football Federation (CBF) confirmed the former captain has been dismissed, along with his entire coaching staff.

Dunga, 46, who returned with his squad to Brazil on Sunday, had already said he was likely to go after the 2-1 defeat by the Netherlands on Friday.

The CBF revealed that a new coach would be installed by the end of the month.

Corinthians manager Mano Menezes and former AC Milan coach Leonardo have already been tipped as possible successors as well as former Brazil coach Wanderley Luxemburgo

Table Tennis

Notice

All Executive members of the St. Kitts-Nevis Table Tennis (SKNTTA) are reminded of the next Executive meeting this coming/tomorrow/today Saturday 10th July, at 630pm at the Conaree Community Centre. 

The main items on the Agenda are:

All members are asked to present and punctual at this very important meeting.

CRICKET

Nevis 20/20 Squad released

President of the Nevis Cricket Association Ronald Powell and Coach Deryck Parry met with the senior Nevis cricket squad on Saturday night and spoke to the players in reference to the team selected to represent Nevis in the upcoming Leeward Islands 20/20 tournament to be played in Antigua. Parry assured the players who did not make the team to continue practicing as there was still quite a lot of cricket to be played and eventually they would al make it into the team.

Powell fielded questions and concerns from the players before releasing the team. He also explained that the rules of the tournament stipulate the naming of a 14 man squad and a 14 man squad has been duly named but also indicated that the selectors have recommended the addition of Daynason Browne as a back up player who would only be available after serving his two match suspension and will only play in the event of an injury to one of the players Browne has however accepted the invitation to go to Antigua for the tournament.

The full squad reads: Tonito Willet-capt; Javia Liburd-v. capt; Akito Willet; Duan Philip; Joel Simmonds; Trevier Smithen; Carlon Smithen; Carlos Adolphus; Ian Byron; Nelson Boland; Andre Browne; Jason Campbell; Jamoy Pemberton and Kejel Tyson.

Manager-Malcolm Ramsey; Coach-Deryck Parry and Trainer-Masefield Nisbett.

Charlestown Primary continues winning ways

Champions Charlestown Primary remained undefeated in the TDC Primary school cricket league when they comprehensively won over the Elizabeth Pemberton Primary school, in the only match played on Friday 2nd July.

The EPP batted first and got to what looked like a competitive total of 73 for 7 from the allotted overs.

However, led by an impressive opening stand between Captain Ross Powell and Philo Wallace they knocked of the total in short order.

Powell was not out 27 and Wallace was on 25 not out.

Masters even score

The Nevis Masters team rebounded in their series of matches versus Big Rock to tie up the series one game all as they swamped the home team at the Ramsbury grounds yesterday.

The Masters batted first and raced to 179 for 8 on the back of a cracking 93 from Merlin Liburd which included 6 sixes and 10 fours. Jaston Liburd scored 27

For the Big Rock team, Rakish and Ravi got 2 wickets each while Blair, Southwell and Andrew got 1 wicket each.

The Big Rock team in response succumbed on 97 all out with Carlos Adolphus top scoring with 18; Ravi 15 and Jai scored 14. For the Masters, Gerard ‘Trini’ Charles got 4 for 32; Jaston Liburd 2 for 22; Teddy ‘Blackman’ Liburd 1 and Elroy David 1. The Big Rock team was bowled out in 14. 2 of the allotted 20 overs.

Invincible Highlights Trounces champions

The Highlights Int maintained their dominant run in the 2010 Female crciket league on Sunday night when they totally outclassed the defending champions St.James’. Highlights Int won the toss and batted first and managed to top the one hundred mark once again with a score line of 119 for 5 in 12 overs. There was one major difference as Ruby Chapman the dominant captain was removed for the first time for the season to a beautiful away swinger bowled by Giselle Skeete which was edged to wicketkeeper Lorna Webbe who took an excellent catch.

Curleanne Parris scored 28; Dorcella Powell 20 and I. Pemberton 11 not out.

Giselle Skeete got 2 or 20; Judy Morton 2 for 30 and M. Browne 1 for 9.

St.James’ in response struggled from the very first ball when Judy Morton was brilliantly caught by Esther Matthew, right back on the long on boundary. Except for two mighty hits by the powerful Giselle Skeete, the champion team had no real answer for the accurate bowling of the Highlights team. They eventually folded for 42 for 9-eefectively all out as Vera Brandy refused to take the crease.

Giselle Skeete 18 and Paula Wallace 6 not out. The game was not without excitement however with the agile Angel Leader pulling off a breath taking save on the square leg boundary and Paula Wallace pulling off an amazing catch which both had the crowd shouting in amazement.

Latoya Bussue was quick an accurate for her 3 for 5; Malva Rawlins got 2 for 10; I. Pemberton 2 for 17 and Catilda Charles 2 for 10.

Prior to that, St.thomas’ easily disposed of the Alex Stars in a game which created some excitement as well. The Nurses batted first and got to 65 for 8 in 1 overs. Simmonds got 13 and Siribu 8. Amazingly, there were no fewer than 5 run outs. A. Jeffers bagged 2 for 8.

St.thomas’ completed an emphatic win in just 4.2 overs with Nevilla Daniel with Nevilla Daniel pulling a first ball bouncer majestically over square leg for six and Tasha Forrester also hitting a few big ones of her own. Daniel not out on 31 and Forrester not out on 25.

Meanwhile, in matches s played on Saturday 3rd July, Empire also took care of Alex Stars. Empire batted first and scored 119 for 2 in 12 overs. Sherilyn Liburd got 30; Charmaine Walters 43 and Diana Browne 12.

D.Simmonds and Cressy Mills got 1 wicket each. The Nurses then got to 51 for 8 with Dionne Flanders 7 not out and V. Phillip 6.

Sherilyn Liburd bagged 3 for 8; Patsy Hanley 2 for 6, with Walters, Powell and Maynard all getting 1 wicket each.

In match two, Super Rockers restricted Highlights Int to 92 for 1 in 12 overs. Ruby Chapman 30 not out and Curleanne Parris 34. Super Rockers could only manage 61 for 3 in 12 overs with Blondina Griffin 14 and Myrthlyn Eliot 12.

For Highlights, Rawlins, Pemberton and Parris all got 1 wicket each.

Charmaine Walters got 43

Highlights celebrate again

Nevilla Daniel -commanding knock

Giselle Skeete--got Ruby Chapman's wicket

Daynason Browne Apologizes

Daynason Browne who has been suspended from the Nevis senior Cricket team for the first two matches in the upcoming Leeward Islands 20/20 series, has apologized to Manager of the team, Malcolm Ramsey for a breach of the code of conduct.

Browne however insists that the incidents for which he was penalized were not taken in their true context.

As regards the incident of having been found with alcohol in the dressing room, Browne indicated that he had just taken a bottle from another player and had just indicated to the player that that ‘is bad stuff’ and was in the process of reading the label when he was seen with the bottle in his hand. As regards the issue of swearing, he stated that he was not swearing at anybody. He said that he had used an expletive to describe the way the pitch was spinning but never meant to insult anyone. He was just warning his fellow players to be careful when they went out to bat.

As regards not participating in the training exercises, he stated that he had received an injury and had indicated such to the Trainer. He admitted that he had failed to indicate such to Manager Ramsey.

Browne further explained that he is really sorry for the series of incidents which obviously placed him in a bad light with the Manager and his team mates but stated that he is still very much committed to Nevis cricket and intends to perform at the highest level whenever he is reinstated into the team.

Daynason Browne

Renaming ceremony confirmed

The much anticipated date for the renaming of Grove Park has been confirmed. Mr. Alsted Pemberton, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Social Development yesterday indicated that the date for the very significant ceremony will be Wednesday July 28th.The ceremony will be held at Grove Park and will commence promptly at 5pm.

The premier sporting venue will be renamed in honour of Nevisian sporting hero, Elquemedo Tonito Willet who created history by being not only the first Nevisian but also the first Leeward Islander to make it into the senior West Indies Cricket team.

According to Pemberton, it will be a ceremony with a difference and several of the cricketing greats from around the Leeward Islands who have played with or against the great left arm leg spinner will be invited to give brief remarks at the function.

The general Public is invited to be a part of this special moment in honour of this great cricketing pioneer who although receiving many glowing accolades in his lifetime, has remained humble and committed to developing the youth of Nevis, especially at the Charlestown Primary School where he works as a Sports Officer.

Young ‘ZULU’ Stars

Aaron Howell aka ‘Zulu’ was quick to draw attention to the fact that the little boy who played so splendidly yesterday for the St.Thomas’ Primary was related to him. “That’s my son’, he declared proudly as the youngster led the St.thomas’ Primary School to victory over the Elizabeth Pemberton Primary School in the TDC sponsored Primary school cricket league.

The EP School batted first and lost some key wickets early but managed to get to 53 all out in 8.2 of the allotted 10 overs. Their batting was undermined by an inspired spell of bowling by ‘Zulu’s’ son Rahim Howell who not only picked up 4 wickets for 7 runs but had the distinguished honour of securing the first hat trick of the league. S.Jeffers got 2 wickets and S. Herbert 2.

The EP school’s coach Adelvin Phillip was cock- a-hoop when the St.Thomas’ team was struggling on 12 runs for 4 wickets. “We gonna finish this just now’, he stated confidently. However, soon the only cheering in Grove Park was from the impressive support crew for St.Thomas’ as a badly lined over from young Elliot, leaked 18 crucial runs. When it really mattered, young Howell, played stodgily to keep out everything thrown at him, to be 4 not out at the end. A. Liburd top scored with 19. St.Thomas’ 54 for 7 at the close. J.Elliot 4 for 18 and D.Bissoon 2 for 12.

In the first match of the afternoon, VOJN shocked the Joycelyn Liburd primary into submission

The JLP batted first and got to 50 for 6 in 10 overs. Darwin Challenger top scored with 19. R.Etienne got 2 wickets and N’cosie George 2.

VOJN had no major scares in getting to 54 for 4 in just 7 overs. Akeem Liburd got 11 and there were 20 extras.

Darwin Challenger picked up 2 wickets for 2 runs.

Rahim Howell-Player of the match

Darwin Challenger (purple shirt) and VOJN player of the match

Highlights continue winning ways

The Highlights Int team continued their dominance of the 2010 female cricket league with a resounding victory over the Brown Hill team last night. In a much anticipated match up. Brown Hill batted first and could only muster a miserable 36 for 6 from the allotted 12 overs. So dominant was the Highlights team that only one four was struck and they only gave Tway 12 extras. Kel Williams and Claudia Saddler top scored wit 8 runs each and V. Hanley got 6.

Leslie Berkley after a superlative evening in the field got 3 wickets for 2 runs in her only over.

The Highlights team then sent the spectators home early with Ruby Chapman who is still to be out once, 16 not out and Curleanne Parris 16 not out.

Prior to that match, there was little more excitement as the match between St.thomas’ and Super Rockers see-sawed right down to the final over. St.Thomas;’ was off to a rollicking start with Lydia Claxton and Nevilla Daniel posting 43 in just 4 overs in an impressive opening stand. However, Chaliese Browne came into the attack and with her extra pace and bounce forced the batters into error while hooking and suddenly the St.Thomas’ team was on 54 for 4 and not getting the ball away. Then Denise Browne marched to the crease and her cameo swung the game back to St.Thomas’ as she struck boundary after boundary. Browne was 23 not out at the end; Nevilla Daniel 24 and Lydia Claxton 10.

Chaliese Browne 4 for 21.

Super Rockers unbelievably got to 73 before they lost their first wicket and just failed to fire at the end with Sherilyn Smithen having a bad night and missing too many balls. Shockingly, some of her team mates applauded when her painful vigil came to an end. Super Rockers 78 for 2 from 12 overs. Blondina Griffin was on 35 not out and Sherilyn Smithen 13. C.Pemberton picked up 1 for 6.

Matches remaining n the preliminary rounds are:

Saturday 3rd July

6.30 pm—Alex Stars v Empire

2nd match--Super Rockers v Highlights Int

Sunday 4th July

6.30 pm—Alex Stars v St.Thomas’

2nd match—St.James’ v Highlights Int

Thursday 8th July

6.30 pm—Super Rockers v St.James’

2nd match—Empire v Brown Hill

Saturday 10th July

6.30 pm-Alex Stars v St.James’

2nd match—1st semi final encounter (TBA)

Chaliese Browne

Leslie Berkley

Ruby Chapman -still undefeated

2ND CARIBBEAN CLUB BASKETBALL CHAMPIONSHIP TIPS OFF

Daily Herald

MARIGOT--Six of the best teams in the Caribbean are set to lock horns in the 2nd Annual Caribbean Basketball Invitational Tournament that tipped off on Thursday July 1-4 in the Omnisports Hall, Galis Bay.

The event is organised by the Saint-Martin Basketball Committee in partnership with the Collectivite of Saint-Martin. Participating teams include Golden Lions (Martinique), E.D.O (Guadeloupe), Horsford Ghetto Roots (St. Kitts and Nevis), Dolphins (Anguilla), defending champions Blazers (Dominica), and Killer Bees (St. Martin).

"The feedback we received on the tournament from participants last year was extremely positive," noted St. Martin Basketball Committee (SMBC) President William Lewest. "They viewed it as a high standard tournament in terms of the quality of play, ambience, and organisation. With the special effects we made them feel they were NBA stars. Now those countries are singling our tournament as a top event to go to. That was very encouraging for us and we hope to make this one even better."

Asked for his predictions given the high level of the teams, he said: "Guadeloupe wasn't in the mix last year and they have a good team. So it's going to be interesting. I'm still backing St. Martin but Dominica as defending champions have a strong team. They proved it. I’ve heard a lot of the Ghetto Roots team from St.Kitts so I am expecting them to do much better than the St.Kitts Hitters who participated last year but did not do well."

"All the games last year were down to the wire. The only blow out was to Anguilla but hopefully Anguilla has a better team this year. Personally I think we could see a final between Killer Bees and Guadeloupe. But again you can't rule out Dominica and they have a huge fan base to drive them on. It's going to be tough and very close."

Lewest added next year he hopes to add Dominican Republic, Curacao, and Aruba to the line up. "We could use two venues, Dutch side and French side. I believe in involving both sides and also because it's easier to get sponsorship on the Dutch side."

The opening ceremony and presentation of teams takes place Thursday at 6:00pm before the first games. Elected officials are expected to make welcoming speeches.
The first matches scheduled for Thursday's opening round are Horsford Ghetto Roots against Golden Lions followed by Killer Bees versus Dolphins. The last match of the evening will be E.D.O against Blazers. Games on the following days begin at 5:00pm.
On Sunday the final matches start at 3:00pm with the first match to decide third place. The shooting contest starts at 5:00pm followed by a slam dunk contest, and then the final championship game will be played.

Admission to the tournament is $5 at the gate and $2 for children

Invitation to all female footballers to attend meeting

The St. Kitts-Nevis Football Association (SKNFA) is reminding all parents/guardians that its Saturday morning football program will recommence this coming/tomorrow/today Saturday, 3rd July, at 8:00 a.m. at the Basseterre High School grounds.

For any clarification and/or further information, please call 466-8502.