The appalling outcomes of repeated administrative decision making ‘madness’ and abject performances on the field of play maybe considered ‘normal’ and unsurprising. However, these recurrent gaffes are quickly eroding a pillar of West Indian history and development. When discussing Caribbean culture I always tell students that it is characterised by complexities and contradictions. We say one thing and do another. Examples are easily found in every aspect of life from politicians to even those who impart the word of god. 

A recent example is the decision by the WICB and its selectors to replace Dwayne Bravo as the ODI captain as well drop him and Kieron Pollard from the team to play South Africa in their five match ODI series. In the aftermath of the disastrous tour of India in attempt to heal wounds and move forward it was agreed upon at a meeting chaired by St Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves in Port-of-Spain that no reprisal will take place against any player. Additionally, the final report on the disastrous aborted tour indicated that all parties were partly guilty. 

But then again one should not be totally surprised as the WICB and its selectors have a rich history of arriving at mind boggling decisions. These selection decisions come on the heels of the surprised omission of Ravi Rampaul from the provisional list of 30 players from which the final World Cup 15 will be chosen. An explanation for his exclusion is still outstanding and may never be provided. The lessons should have been clear that the way forward had to be premised upon open channels of communication and the (re)building of trust; the benefits of which will redound to all major stakeholders—WICB, players, WIPA, sponsors and the fans.

The views highlighted by chairman of selectors Clive Lloyd leaves much to be desired in terms of convincing the general interested West Indian public that Jason Holder is the right person to lead the West Indies team to the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand which starts in 48 days on February, 14th. All the countries save England are entering the World Cup with experienced captains. Although England have sacked Alastair Cook, Eoin Morgan is a very experienced captain at the ODI level. The fact that Bravo was selected captain to India and there were no openly expressed concerns about his captaincy then, begs the question as to why suddenly he is not good for the job.

If the team selected to play the ODI series against South Africa does not perform with any creditability then entire plot to win the World Cup can fall apart before the tournament starts. This will only add more pressure on Jason Holder. These selections seem to indicate that Bravo and Pollard may not be selected for the World Cup. At least the WICB press release did not give any indication as to why the players were left out. And even if the selectors reluctantly and surreptitiously cede to political and public critique and select Bravo and Pollard for the World Cup—the deadline date is January 8th—they would have missed the opportunity to give the new captain all the opportunity to prepare competitively with the best available players. 

And if they are selected, what would have been the logic and reason for leaving them out on an all-important dress rehearsal series against South Africa? And furthermore why create so much of unnecessary noise and unwanted distraction? This latest fiasco does not augur well for team unity and this can severely affect the team’s chances of winning its 3rd World Cup. It has been commented on umpteen occasions that the actions of the WICB over the years have reeked of blunders after blunders.  However, they seem to be systemic and regardless of whoever is the administrator the problems are repeated. It will remain a case of classic of administrative madness if the governance system is not overhauled as has been recommended by the PJ Patterson Report and several commentators including past and present players.

Another problem that is likely to resurface and which has been a characteristic of West Indian cricket and politics is the issue of insularity. This is not healthy for the sport given its current state of affairs both regionally and internationally. To have a reversal of the current bottom of the table position (being ahead of Bangladesh and Zimbabwe is no cause for celebrations after ruling the world for 15 years) requires making the best decisions for West Indies cricket which should be bigger than the egos of all and sundry. Happy holidays and a bright and prosperous 2015 to all athletes, administrators, sponsors and the Caribbean fans of all sporting disciplines.

Renaldo Frederick remembers standing on stage in the Palladium Theatre playing the part of the panman Goldteeth, who is about to unveil a new pan with his panside from Boomtown. As the Paladium audience cheered for a pan side of pimps called Red Army and jeered for Goldteeth to “get off the stage”. Goldteeth looks up from his pan and into the audience. “It is my favourite scene in Pan! Our Music Odyssey,” says Frederick. “After Boomtown played its piece with a pan no one has ever heard, I looked up, and I didn’t see myself at all. I saw someone who stood for something, someone who was confident and believed in what he did, and it brought tears to my eyes.  Every actor tries to find his golden scene.  This was it for me. I knew there was nothing else I could do; nothing else I wanted to do in that moment or in life.”

Frederick is the talk of the town these days. The 21-year-old actor had the  starring role in the docu-drama Pan! Our Music Odyssey and the starring role of David in a short film called Flying the Coup. He played David, a clueless police officer who begins work the day of the 1990 coup. Both films became major hits in the 2014 Trinidad Film Festival.  Flying the Coup won The People’s Choice for best short film. Confident and poised; articulate, talkative and funny, Renaldo exudes talent, but that sense of stability that he displays is a far cry from his early life. “I grew up in all over Trinidad,” says Frederick. 

For a time, he lived with his mother, then his grandmother, Meryl Mark, in in Arouca. Between eight and 16, he lived in Malabar by his father in Arima an operations manager at  WASA. At 16,  he went back to live with his mother, Reisa Mark. “I had a strong personality.  My mom and I had a lot of arguments about things I should do and about responsibilities and privileges. I decided not to stay by my mom. I stayed by a teacher, then a friend.  It was chaotic.” One constant in Frederick’s life was school.  He attended St Joseph Boys RC up to Standard Four and transferred to Christian Primary Academy in Arima. “In school, I liked presentations. I sat in the back of the class to watch what everyone did. I loved school.” At home, Frederick watched a lot of television.“TV contributed to my creative, imaginative side. I liked cartoons like Dexter’s Laboratory and Discovery Channel; shows about science and animals, horror and comedy.  I like information. From TV, I had a vast library to pull from when I began acting—all kinds of colours, sounds, emotions.”

Frederick topped the SEA exam and headed for Trinity College. By then, practically everyone was telling him he should be a lawyer – “…because of the way I always spoke.  But that means I would have to be in a courtroom or an office. I wanted something active where I could relate to people; something where I could travel. I thought about tourism and events management so I chose business subjects in Form Three. My favourite subject was Spanish.  It hurt me deep in my heart when I got a Two in CXC.” Then came a life-changing experience:  Shawn Smart, the drama teacher at Trinity College East said, “Hey, Renaldo, I’m having an audition for the Secondary School Drama Festival.”  

Frederick got the minor part of Portuguese Joe, in the play Man Better Man by Errol Hill.  He received a Most Promising Actor award for the part.  The following year, 2010, he acted in Dueling Voices by Zino Constance, and  received a Most Outstanding Acting award and a scholarship to go to  the Trinidad Theatre Workshop. In Upper Six, he acted in the Jamaican play, Two Can Play, along with  Chanel Glasgow “…the girl I was always getting awards with. We were so excited to do something with a Jamaican accent.” 

One day, in a casual conversation with his mother, Frederick learned his mom was good friends with Ernest “Che” Rodriguez, the film director, writer and  producer. “Che and I automatically meshed. He’s like my second dad now. Che involved me in a short film, The Blood and the Bois by Sigmond Cromwell,  that got in the T&T  Film Festival. It was my first time acting for a camera. I played the younger version of Che’s character. In 2012, Che encouraged Frederick to pursue film and theatre, and he funded the young actor’s initial start at UWI in St. Augustine. “I didn’t know there was a major like film,” he says.

Again, he found happiness and stability in school. “My first year, I lived in Port of Spain.  The second year I started living in a dorm in UWI. If I got expelled from the dorm, I would have nowhere to go.   Everything is in my little dorm room.” In April 2013, Frederick heard about an audition for a young man,  who looked like a young Bob Marley to play the part of a pan man for the lead role of  Goldteeth in Pan! A Music Odyssey. “They wanted a character unique and not false.  It was challenging.  At the opening in Globe Theatre, I had butterflies and dragons in my stomach. I  worried about doing justice to this part.”

He pulled off the role of Goldteeth with a casual strength that was both refreshing and memorable.  He proved his versatility with the comic roles of David and as Weed Guy, a role he played this year in the Hollywood comedy movie Girlfriend’s Getaway directed by Roger Bobb. Frederick is currently  employed with  The National Theatre Arts Company of T&T in the Division of Culture under The Ministry of Arts and Multi-culturalism. “We’re training in dance, music and acting bringing everyone in the programme to become a triple threat in the theatre realm,” he says. No doubt, Renaldo Frederick will become a triple threat as his star rises in local and international film.  

It’s the season for surprises and nostalgia and as if with these thoughts in mind, Short Pants Productions combined the two and preempted the three wise men of the east with its We Three Strings series of pre-Christmas concerts at the Little Carib Theatre on December 21. Rather than gold, frankincense and myrrh, cuatro virtuoso Robert Munro, extempo and classic kaiso maestro Relator and our very own successor to Stephane Grapelli, Stanley Roach the “City Gate Fiddler”, presented packed houses with a medley of Christmas music, traditional, humourous, local, original and sometimes irreverent. After such a three-course feast audiences will need the interim to fully digest before tackling ham and pastelles.

The shining trio is well known locally and in Relator and Munro’s cases internationally. The first performer, introduced by Sharon Pitt, has however, probably covered more ground than the other two put together. While many will know Stanley Roach for his daily performances at City Gate, a few others will recall the “Marathon Man” of the 1990s, when Stanley could be seen pounding the PBR sans violin. For this reviewer it was an immense pleasure finally to see Stanley in a concert situation. He was the man who introduced me to the musical surprises of T&T. I met him during my first weeks in Trinidad when I wandered into a heaving rumshop in Curepe Junction and heard the unmistakable strains of Danny Boy floating above the Friday night cusses, smoke and rum fumes.

Intrigued I made a request-probably some Bach, or Vivaldi or even Paganini. Like a magic classical and traditional folk juke box, Stanley played every request I called for and more. I used to catch up with him in most of the watering holes on the East-West Corridor, where to my perplexity he’d play for a shot and move on, until he gave up the puncheon for running, but never put down his fiddle. 
The comparison with Stepane Grapelli is not unwarranted, nor the association that Grapelli has with his Gypsy Swing partner, Django Reinhardt. I was more than happy to hear his distinctive improvisational approach on numbers like Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas and the Creole syncopation of his interpretation of O Come All ye Faithful. In a country notorious for undervaluing or even ignoring its genius (just think Fitzroy Coleman languishing in the hills of St Babbs), where until very recently there was little call for classical violinists, Stanley has fiddled on, faithful to his largely self-taught talents. 

For the uninitiated, he began his set, accompanied by brother Orville on keyboard, with Bach’s Air on a G String, the double entendre title meeting with as much approval as Stanley’s faultless interpretation. Sorento allowed him to evoke the formal Christmas balls of 19th-century Martinique with their creolised panache and a Castillian segued into a the waltz cum chachacha of Bambino, all these three confirming Stanley as unique in the eastern Caribbean for what might be termed his “Creole Gypsy” style. Entirely unassuming but prodigiously talented, Stanley deserves a place in the UTT music department, alongside Errol Ince, as his style and catholic repertoire should not be allowed to go the way of oblivion. 

It’s rare for a classical violinist to be comfortable with improvisation; there are a few in Cuba, where he’d be welcomed as the maestro he is, but at this end of the Caribbean we need to cherish him and the example of a life, however impecunious, dedicated to bringing the people their music and the music of the world. Relator is as familiar with the concert stage as Stanley is with the road and his set provided a perfect balance in terms of humour, intimacy and familiarity. Favourites like Sip and Chat, Make a Friend for the Christmas, Bottle and Spoon instigated a cosy Little Carib sing-along while surreptitiously giving seasonal advice: Some people so greedy, they drinking fast and speedy; sipping and chatting is the way to go. With extempo, and or spirited inspiration Relator introduced a Nagib Elias commercial “which has nothing to do with the programme or Christmas” and more than got away with it, along with a Dean Martin impersonation and the irreverent (There’s no) Christmas on Sesame Street.

Robert Munro, ably accompanied by Dominic Townsend on second cuatro, Andrew David on electric bass and his granddaughter Selena St Rose on maracas, reminded us all that while the cuatro usually features as not much more than a cameo instrument in our brief parang season, in the hands of a maestro, it can become a solo lead. With eyes closed Munro’s first three traditional seasonal favourites (Mary’s Boy Child, Hark the Herald Angels, How I Wish I were a Child Again) might well have been played on a harp, for the intricacy of his melodic picking technique. A galloping joropo version of Rio Manzanares returned the audience to the more familiar local soundscape, while the following Felicia, a Munro original composition proved that strings can function as percussion as well as melody, rhythm and harmony.

Although self-taught Munro’s style has far more in common with South American and Latin solo cuatristos, Cuban tres players or Brazilian cavaquineros, who fully explore the melodic as well as the rhythmic potential of their instrument.  Drawing on South American repertoires Munro dazzled with such compositions as Ypacarai, Sol en Merengue, El Manaquero and Carnaval Llanero and proudly showcased the already impressive precussion skills of his young granddaughter Selena St Rose. Gift wrapping the finale, the Three Kings of String played the signature We Three Kings before prising the want more crowd out of their seats to send them chipping into the Woodbrook night to the strains of Relator’s Bottle and Spoon.

It was rather untimely and distasteful to listen to the Christmas message by the leader of the Opposition and MP Dr Keith Rowley in which he took potshots at the party in power and its leader, PM Kamla Persad-Bissessar.

I had expected at this festive season a few words of felicitations and good cheer giving hope and optimistic expectations for the future. Instead, we were treated (or mistreated) to bad news of a decline in oil prices and alleged corruption by people in high office. This was certainly the wrong timing for such bad news. Are we politicising Christmas now?

This is like telling our local television channels not to show the movie Home Alone to kids because it contains scenes with fire, electricity and electric tools which are all dangerous (if used in the wrong way). 

When do we get to the point where we need to recognise the good in something and stop branding everyone the same way because of the behaviour of a few. 

What is so wrong with the Prime Minister giving out toys to brighten the day for a few less fortunate kids? What do we have to put a swarm of flies in the ointment and question the origin of the toys? Are we saying that there are no good people out there anymore who “have” and think of the have-nots?

If the Government of the day gives monetary tokens to the churches to have a better Christmas then we should all stop and say hurray. If previous governments were not as sensitive and generous enough then take a page out of the book of this Prime Minister.

Let’s keep out the politics from the season of goodwill. 

WKS Hosein
Chaguanas

Somebody in power better do something. Something has to be done. I was at a bank very recently when I noticed a young security guard, who was only doing his job, go up to a big man who walked into the bank with a knitted cap, which was holding up a lot of hair.  

The guard went up to him and told him that he would have to take off his hat. There is a very visible sign which says that hats, caps must be taken off when you enter the banking hall. The man became very belligerent and said something to the guard and the women who accompanied him began to laugh. They then walked off and went to the line. 

After I was done with my transaction, I went to the security guard and asked what happened. He said that the big man said that he is always coming into the bank with the hat on etc, and walked off. The guard told the assistant manager who went up to the man and told him that the next time that he comes into the bank he must take off his hat. She probably felt that getting him to take that hat off now might have caused some chaos. 

I am aware of the fact that all banks have this rule. I do not know from where this man just landed. The guard then told me of another incident. A man, another big man, parked in the handicapped spot and left the car to go to the bank. He obviously did not have a handicap and there was no one else in the car. The young guard, again doing his job, went to the big man and asked him to move his car because it was there for the handicapped. Do you all know what this big man told this young security guard, who looked no more than 23 years old? He looked at the young man and said: “What happen, yuh doh like black people?” The security guard was himself “black.”

Now, now, a very dangerous precedent has been set and if nothing is done to stop this dotishness, then T&T will continue on its downward spiral. I am an eternal optimist, however, and I appeal to my fellow citizens to take personal responsibility for our country’s future.  

We are said to have the best education system in the Caribbean, and even when our children migrate and attend schools in these foreign countries, they are applauded for their academic abilities. So those of us who are continuing to educate ourselves and are not stuck in the 70s, please try your best to educate the future and let them understand that no matter what colour we think we are, no matter if we are unhappy about the colour that we are, we are human beings; we bleed when we are cut, we cry when we are hurt, we sleep when we are tired, we eat when we are hungry and you all know the rest.

My wish for 2015 and beyond, is that our young people truly understand what this life is all about, truly understand the tenets of their faith, understand what faith, hope and charity really mean and what these three precepts can do to make their lives worth living and if they practise these they will leave this world a better place than they met it.   

If you have problems with being who you are, eg your skin colour, the environment in which you were born, if you are an unhappy person (happy, caring persons who respect life and community follow rules) get professional help. This really does a lot to lighten the burden of your history. 

Remember Barack Obama’s words regarding his Cuban initiative: “Change is difficult when we carry the weight of history on our shoulders.”  Lighten up my people.  

Anna Maria Mora
Via e-mail

I wish to make an input in the context of the controversy re online purchasing versus abject profiteering. A few years ago, one day before travelling to the USA on holiday, I decided to mow my lawn. My container only had about a pint of gas which I poured into the mower and started up while my wife went to get a refill at the gas station. 

There, to her surprise, she was informed that our container was not approved so she was unable to purchase any gas using the one she had. On enquiry, she found that the smallest approved unit at the station cost TT$125. On her return home I went to another gas station, filled our container and finished my mowing. While in Florida, five weeks later, we bought a plastic can for US$1.65. 

On our return to T&T we compared our US purchase to the local one. To our absolute consternation, we found that they were the same size, model and from the same manufacturer. I can very well imagine the number of landscapers who were caught unawares and paid through their noses for this exhorbitantly over-priced item.

Manny Joseph
Via e-mail

PORT ELIZABETH—Kraigg Brathwaite and Marlon Samuels scored centuries to avoid the follow-on before South Africa rattled through the West Indies on a rain-shortened fourth day of the second Test yesterday. Brathwaite scored 106 and Samuels made 101 at St. George’s Park but a brisk collapse reduced the West Indies to 275-9 in response to South Africa’s 417-8, when rain brought the day to a premature end.

Bad weather had also wiped out the morning session, meaning just 35 overs were bowled in the day, but South Africa’s outside chance of forcing a result in the match remained after they took five wickets for 15 runs in a five-over spell after tea. Only the first day was not affected by rain, but better weather is forecast for Tuesday, when 98 overs are scheduled to be bowled. “Things can happen very quickly,” said Morne Morkel, who took 4-69 in 20 overs. “If we can bat quickly and have enough overs to bowl, it’s never nice for a team to have to survive 50 to 60 overs.”

The home side’s hopes appeared to be disappearing during an afternoon of entertaining strokeplay that saw Brathwaite and Samuels extend their partnership for the third wicket to 176—a record for that wicket for West Indies against South Africa . Twenty-two-year-old Brathwaite steadily built on his overnight score of 65 to record his third test hundred and his first overseas. “He is a very strong person mentally, which is definitely showing in his game,” Samuels said. “They used to say he batted too slow but now he is scoring a little bit faster. It’s good to have an opening batsman who is showing determination.” Brathwaite’s 106 came off 186 balls, with 12 boundaries.

Samuels came through a tough spell of short-pitched bowling from Morkel to reach his sixth century by hitting legspinner Imran Tahir, whom the batsman gave a torrid time throughout the afternoon, to the midwicket boundary.

Both batsmen then fell in the space of four deliveries, with Samuels trapped lbw by Vernon Philander and Brathwaite becoming Morkel’s third victim of the innings when he edged to second slip.
“As soon as conditions look tough for the bowlers, we look for one guy to put their hand up and knock the door down. I felt quite strong and quite good in my rhythm,” Morkel said.
The paceman was the only bowler to trouble the pair during the afternoon session, but Tahir roused himself after tea to pick up the wickets of Denesh Ramdin (20) and Shivnarine Chanderpaul (7) in the same over.

South Africa leads the three-match series 1-0 after winning the first test by an innings and 220 runs.

SCOREBOARD
 South Africa 1st inns 417-8 dec.
West Indies 1st inns

Kraigg Brathwaite c Petersen b Morkel     106
Devon Smith c Amla b Morkel     22
Leon Johnson c du Plessis b Morkel     0
Marlon Samuels lbw b Philander    101
Shivnarine Chanderpaul b Imran Tahir     7
Denesh Ramdin lbw b Morkel     20
Jason Holder c de Villiers b Morkel     1
Jerome Taylor not out     10
Sulieman Benn c Petersen b Imran Tahir     4
Kenroy Peters run out     0
Extras: (4lb)     4
TOTAL: (for 9 wickets)     275
Overs: 79.

Fall of wickets: 1-55, 2-55, 3-231, 4-233, 5-260, 6-261, 7-265, 8-270, 9-275.
Bowling: Dale Steyn 14-3-48-0, Vernon Philander 18-4-41-1, Morne Morkel 20-2-69-4, Imran Tahir 26-2-108-3, Dean Elgar 1-0-5-0.
Toss: West Indies.
Umpires: Billy Bowden, New Zealand, and Paul Reiffel, Australia.
TV Umpire: Aleem Dar, Pakistan.
Match Referee: Ranjan Madugalle, Sri Lanka.

PORT ELIZABETH—While batting on yesterday’s fourth day of the second Test, it was not lost on Marlon Samuels that he had narrowly missed out on three figures in his last innings at St George’s Park seven years ago.

The 33-year-old right-hander was determined not to make the same mistake twice. It was no surprise therefore when he unfurled a high quality innings of 101 to help propel West Indies to 275 for nine at the close. “Last time I was here I made 94 at this ground and I’m basically sitting in the same seat,” said Samuels. “I told myself when I get in the 90s again I am definitely going to be a little bit more positive and try and go to a hundred. So against a number one team with a world class bowling attack and getting a hundred, it’s a wonderful feeling.”

Resuming the day on 60, Samuels was positive in his stroke-play, cruising to his sixth Test hundred in style. He cleared the ropes at long on with leg-spinner Imran Tahir before following up with a loft over mid-wicket for four a few balls later, to reach his landmark.

All told, he batted 160 balls, in 203 minutes and counted 14 fours and a six. Samuels, a mainstay of the tourists’ batting in recent years, said he was enjoying the responsibility. “I’ve been waiting for these opportunities and they are a lot of responsibility. It’s a good feeling,” he told a media conference. “I’ve been around for a while and I usually have young players asking me stuff and whenever they ask me stuff, it reminds me I have a big part to play.”

Samuels put on 176 for the third wicket with 22-year-old opener Kraigg Brathwaite who hit 106, his third Test century. The pair carried West Indies to 231 for two in the second session before being separated. CMC

Despite having the camp in Mexico called off and a delayed departure for another camp in Florida, Derek King, coach of the national Under-20 football team said he was pleased with his team’s preparations to date for next month’s Concacaf Under-20 Championship in Jamaica.

In Jamaica, T&T, the reigning Caribbean Football Union Under-20 champions after blanking Haiti 3-0 on a Kadeen Corbin hat-trick at the Hasely Crawford Stadium, in early September, will compete in Group A against the host, USA, Panama, Guatemala and Aruba in their round-robin pool.

Group B comprises Mexico, the two-time defending Concacaf Under-20 champions; Cuba, Canada, El Salvador, Honduras and Haiti. At the end of the group play, the top team from each group  advances to the World Cup, and the second and third place nations from each group advance to the final day knockout phase, with the chance to dispute one of a pair of play-in matches which will determine Concacaf's other two World Cup spots at the Fifa Under-20 World Cup New Zealand 2015.

Prior to beating the Haitians in the final, T&T which was on a first round CFU qualifying bye defeated Suriname (2-1) and Curacao (4-0) and drew 1-1 with Cuba to top its four-team pool with seven points while the Haitians swept past Dominican Republic (2-1), Aruba (2-1) and St Kitts/Nevis (5-2) for maximum nine points.  

Speaking about the team preparations, King said, “I have reached a stage where all I can do is my part in getting the guys as ready as can be. “Lask week the guys were working as hard as can be and everything is going well. The guys got Christmas Day and Boxing Day off and then we resumed training on Saturday at the Hasley Crawford Stadium, Mucurapo until we depart later in the week.”

The 20-man squad will be captained by Shannon Gomez and includes several of the regulars from the CFU Under-20 Championship which T&T captured earlier this year. But there is some additional experience coming into the fray with previous Under-20 team captain Duane Muckette returning to the line-up and former Under-17 members Lelan Archer and Brendon Creed also making the cut along with USA-based forward Ricardo John following an impressive season for Virginia Tech. “We’ve kept the majority of the squad from the Caribbean tournament because not only have they proven their worth but they’ve also earned their places in the preparations for the final tournament,” King said. “All in all the squad is a balanced one and we’ll continue to work on our game and fine tune what we need to over the next few days during the camp before we head into the tournament,”King added.

A former national defender and coach of Joe Public, which he led to five titles in one season  King said he was also imprressed with the showings of former Queen’s Royal College standout and national Under-20 captain Duane Muckette who suffered a torn MCL while in training with the University of South Florida, and missed the CFU competition, but has since recoverd. He said, “Muckette is showing his quality in the midfield along with Creed, who will be using as a central defender because of his strong tackling qualities.

The other overseas-based players called into the camp like midfielder Andre Fortune and Leland Archer, both of whom were part of the Under-17 team which came within one win of qualifying for the Fifa Under-17 World Cup held last year in United Arab Emirates have also been impressive. “These player such as Muckette, Creed and Ricardo John all definitely add some quality to what we already have with the likes of Corbin, Levi Garcia and the other boys who did exceptionally well for us in the Caribbean Championship. “I want the sessions this week to be of the same good quality because it will be a good way to carry on to the camp in the USA and also the tournament in Jamaica,” King said.

The lone player yet to join the team is goalkeeper Johan Welch of Houston Dynamo Juniors who will link up with the team in Florida. T&T will open against host Jamaica at the National Stadium in Kingston on January 9 followed by matches against Aruba (January 11), Guatemala (January 14) and Panama (January 18) before endinfg round-robin play against USA three days later.
The National Stadium in Kingston and the Montego Bay Sports Complex will each play host to Group A matches, while the latter venue hosts all the action in Group B, and the final phase on January 24.

The team is set to depart for a mini training camp in Miami on January 1 which is fully funded by TSTT and the 20-man squad  and technical staff will be based at the Shula’s Hotel and Resort in Miami Lakes. T&T’s first training match will be against the Kendall Soccer Coalition team of the USA Soccer Development Academy at the St Thomas University Ground on Saturday January 3 at 3pm while the young Soca Warriors will meet the Weston Soccer Club at Weston at 7pm two days later before facing Canada U-20s ahead of their departure for Kingston on January 7.

With regards to the camp, King said: “This camp is a much welcomed one for the team. It’s an excellent opportunity for us to be together as a team in a close environment before our first match in the tournament.  “We really appreciate the effort of the association and also very important for us,  the contributions of the Ministry of Sport the Sportt Company and TSTT to ensure we could get the training camp arranged and the team can go into the competition without the off the field headaches.”

T&T Under-20 squad: 
Goalkeepers: 1.Johan Welch (Houston Dynamo Juniors/USA), 2.Javon Sample (Central FC).
Defenders: 6.Shannon Gomez (capt) - (W Connection), 3.Martieon Watson (W Connection), 7.Maurice Ford (W Connection), 4.Brendon Creed (Temple University/USA), 8.Leland Archer (College of Charleston/USA), 5.Jesus Perez (North East Stars), 15.Neveal Hackshaw (North East Stars).
Midfielders: 13.Kevon Goddard (Central FC), 17.Akeem Humphrey (Club Sando), 18.Matthew Woo Ling (St Anthony’s College), 9.Aikim Andrews (W Connection), 10.Akeem Garcia (W Connection), 12.Jabari Mitchell (W Connection), 16.Duane Muckette (University of South Florida/USA), 11.Levi Garcia (Shiva Boys HC), 14.Kishun Seecharan (Club Sando).
Fowards: 19.Kadeem Corbin (St Ann’s Rangers), 20.Ricardo John (Virginia Tech/USA).
Technical staff: Derek King (coach), Hutson Charles (assistant coach), Michael Maurice (goalkeeper coach), Stephen Hart (technical advisor), Michael Taylor (physiotherapist), Michael Williams (equi pment manager), Douglas Archer (manager), Wayne Cunningham (assistant manager), Sharon Joseph (trainer), Terrence Babwah (doctor), Shaun fuentes (media officer/technical video)

Concacaf U-20 Championship 
Groups
Group A: T&T, Panama, Jamaica, Aruba, United States and Guatemala.
Group B: Mexico, Cuba, Canada, El Salvador, Honduras and Haiti.

Fixtures
January 9 (Jamaica National Stadium)
Aruba vs Panama, 3 pm
USA vs Guatemala, 5.30 pm
Jamaica vs T&T, 8 pm
January 10 (Montego Bay)
Mexico vs Cuba, 3 pm
Honduras vs El Salvador, 5.30 pm
Haiti vs Canada, 8 pm
January 11
T&T vs Aruba, 3 pm
Panama vs USA, 5.30 pm
Jamaica vs Guatemala, 8 pm
January 12
Canada vs Mexico, 3 pm
Cuba vs Honduras, 5.30 pm
El Salvador vs Haiti, 8 pm
January 14
Guatemala vs T&T, 3 pm
Aruba vs USA, 5.30 pm
Jamaica vs Panama, 8 pm
January 15
El Salvador vs Canada, 3 pm
Mexico vs Honduras, 5.30 pm
Haiti vs Cuba, 8 pm
January 18
Panama vs T&T, 3 pm
Guatemala vs Aruba, 5.30 pm
Jamaica vs USA, 8 pm
January 19
Cuba vs Canada, 3 pm
El Salvador vs Mexico, 5.30 pm
Haiti vs Honduras, 8 pm
January 21
Panama vs Guatemala, 3 pm
USA vs T&T, 5.30 pm
Jamaica vs Aruba, 8 pm
January 22
Cuba vs El Salvador, 3 pm
Honduras vs Canada, 5.30 pm
Haiti vs Mexico, 8 pm
January 24
Second Play in Seed vs Third Play in Seed, 2 pm
1st Play in Seed vs Fourth Play-in Seed, 5 pm
1A vs 1B, 8 pm

In 2005, during a Stanford graduation ceremony speech, Steve Jobs, the co-founder of Apple, told the audience: “Stay hungry. Stay foolish.” His message? Don’t settle, don’t be afraid to take risks. Don’t be afraid to be daring and ambitious! Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish. 

The contemporary world whose purchase of choice is the newest smart phone or software and emerging nations with new found spending power are redefining what sport means. Part of the new attitude to sport is the digital transformation—a world where it seems you are only as good as your internet connection.

The sheer talent, promise and potential of the nation’s youth and young people as represented by our athletes is simply breathtaking but you have to watch and pay close attention. In pursuit of their dream, in striving for excellence, our Olympic and Commonwealth athletes endure punishing hours of training and the arduous task of endless repetition.

Often their inspiration, dedication, resilience, commitment and self-discipline go unnoticed. Through sport, our talented sons and daughters break boundaries on the global platform that is the Olympic, Commonwealth and other multi-sport games.

For us at the Olympic Committee, we remain indomitable and passionate in our belief that the goal of the movement to use sport to educate and serve young people, is as relevant today as it was 2000 plus years ago. 

One thing is certain: When we engage children and young people and reach out to them to bring them to sport, to show them the power of sport and the Olympic values, we must ensure that their inspirational role models our athletes are at the centre of what we do and why we do what we do.

Moreover, it is essential that we meet the integrity challenge by protecting Olympic and Commonwealth sports from the dangerous threat posed by doping, gambling, the cycle of corruption and poor governance.

If we don’t face these challenges our right to self-regulate, our autonomy, legitimacy our stewardship will be taken away from us. To whom much is given much is expected.

Therefore, I propose that the TTOC will continue to vigorously promote the adoption of good governance and ethics across the country’s Olympic and Commonwealth Sport movement and that we be unwavering and advocate and vigorously promote a good governance code for sport in T&T and ensure that affiliated NSOs align with the Olympic Charter and include in their constitutions basic universal principles of good governance. 

The TTOC must lead from the front in championing for the development of a sport industry. This will require not just lobbying and finger pointing but the articulation of the conceptual framework that will inform the policy debate.

Our collective challenge is to take sport mainstream. Sport is still on the margins of T&T society. The children, youth and young people have a lot of different interests that present a threat to active sport and healthy lifestyles.

The responsibility to create and shape a bright sustainable future for tomorrow’s athletes and for sport on the whole falls to our generation of sport leaders, administrators, athletes and coaches.  We have to modernise how we market, promote and brand Olympic and Commonwealth sport and the Olympic and Commonwealth values and ideals to the current and future generation of public, media and corporate audiences.

The climb is steep. The hurdles are high. It is a challenge we must accept. It is a dream we must live and honour. Failure is not an option. There is no excuse. Let us fear not nor impose limits on ourselves.

Let us unite under the tent of our shared values and vision for sport and arm in arm walk our talk and be the change we want to see in doing so let us accept the advice of the late Steve Jobs and Stay hungry, Stay foolish.

Editor’s note: Brian Lewis is the president of the T&T Olympic Committee. Today’s column is an excerpt from his presentation at the 2014 TTOC annual awards function which was held last night

DirecTV WConnection FC, the reigning Digicel T&T Pro League champions, recently took time away from their football duties to engage the club’s Arima fan base, during a visit  to the Shoppes of Arima.

Assistant coach and former top Pro League striker, Earl Jean alongside France based mid-fielder Jomal Williams and St Lucian midfielder Tremain Paul dropped in on one of the club’s supporters, Sa’ Longue fashion, to present them with replica shirts for the Christmas season.

“Such an event is a deliberate effort by W Connection to connect with our many fans around the country that have supported the club during the last 15 years. They have played a key role in our success” said Jean. “All in all, this first appreciation gift for the holidays is a good start as we look to doing this throughout the league season.”

Sa’Longue fashion is a unisex clothing store that has been in existence for two years. It is owned by sisters Michelle King and Melissa Figueroa. King is the wife of former W Connection player and current T&T national Under-20 coach, Derek King.

The Kings have been supporting the club since its inception in 1999, with Michelle noting she met her now husband at a W Connection match.

Marvellites I made a clean sweep of the major honours as the 2014 bpTT Mayaro Netball League ended a thrilling season with its distribution of prizes at the Mayaro Indoor Sporting Facility on Saturday. The event sponsored by Guayaguayare-based Industrial Solutions Company Limited. Marvellites senior team was dominant in all competitions, capturing the league, knock-out and ‘Big 4’ crowns. 

“We really played consistent netball during all the competitions. We prepared really hard for the season and we are thrilled with the results. I want to thank our management team, our sponsors, and our players for their splendid effort. We are eagerly looking forward to next year,” said a happy Marvellites captain, Tenille Adams.

Shantel Seemungal, of Manzanilla Netballers, was the league’s stand-out player, capturing the two major individual awards, Most Valuable Player (MVP) and Best Defensive Player.

Joel Primus, Community Sustainability and Stakeholder Relations Adviser, of longstanding sponsors BP Trinidad and Tobago, said the company was proud to play a pivotal role in the development of netball over the years in its home community of Mayaro. He commended the Mayaro Netball Association for keeping the sport alive and taking the association under the umbrella body for all sports in Mayaro.

Association President Allison Acosta thanked bpTT for partnering with the association to develop netball in the south-east communities, providing opportunities for young people to fulfill their sporting potential and cementing community togetherness.

Honour Roll
League Championship: Champions – Marvellites I; 2nd – Guaya Netters; 3rd – Grande All Starz.

Knock-Out Competition: Champions – Marvellites I; 2nd – Manzanilla Netters.

Big 4 Competition: Champions – Marvellites I; 2nd – Guaya Netters; 3rd – Grande All Starz; 4th – Manzanilla Netballers.

Most Valuable Player: Shantel Seemungal (Manzanilla Netballers).

Best Defensive Player: Shantel Seemungal (Manzanilla Netballers)

Best Centre Court Player: Shurice Gordon (Toco Ballers)

Most Disciplined Team: Grande All Starz.

Most Goals: 1st – Jillisa All (Marvellites I); 2nd – Nicola Cabrera (Guaya Netters); 3rd – Nikkita Francis (Grande All Starz).

T&T’s senior cricket team will be bolstered by the return of their top West Indies players for the upcoming Nagico Super50 tournament that will be played in T&T from January 15. President of the T&T Cricket Board (TTCB), Azim Bassarath said that Dwayne Bravo, Keiron Pollard, Sunil Narine, Ravi Rampaul and Darren Bravo have all indicated that they are willing to play for this country in the tournament and this is welcome news.

According to Bassarath: “It is heartening to see that Keiron Pollard and Dwayne Bravo will be coming home to play in the Nagico Super50. Sunil Narine has also indicated that he would play,as well as Ravi Rampaul and Darren Bravo.” Pollard, Dwayne Bravo and Ravi Rampaul were not selected for the West Indies one day series against South Africa and is available. Narine who was called for an illegal bowling action during the Champions League in October will get a chance to test out his corrected action before the World Cup starts in New Zealand and Australia in February.

Bassarath said last’s year loss in the finals of the Nagico was really hurtful and he is looking forward to the Red Force taking the title this time around. “We had a very good tournament last time around until that final period where we lost a very close final to Barbados. “I am delighted with the fact that the senior guys will be here for this tournament and on paper we have the team to win the title. However experience would tell that you can have all the big names but it all comes down to what you do on the day and we will be hoping that our players prepare well, go into the games a focused lot and bring home the title this time around.”

Red Force will begin their campaign against the West Indies Under-19 cricket team at Shaw Park in Tobago. After that they return to Trinidad, where they play their remaining matches at the Queen’s Park Oval. All matches at the Oval will be played as day/night affairs, while the other matches to be staged at the National Cricket Centre (NCC) in Couva will start at 9.30am. The national cricketers are currently in training and early in the new year the selectors would announce the team to take part in the series. 

T&T Olympians Cleopatra Borel and Keshorn Walcott were the toast of the town on Monday night, as they walked away with the Sportswoman and Sportsman of the Year Awards respectively at the T&T Olympic Committee 17th Annual Awards at NAPA, Port-of-Spain.

Borel, 35, a national shot put athlete, had a memorable year. In July at the Commonwealth Games in Scotland, Borel had a top throw of 18.57 metres which earned her a silver medal behind Olympic champion Valerie Adams of New Zealand. Last month at the Central American and Caribbean Games (CAC) in Mexico, Borel defended her title comfortably with a top throw of 18.99m. Borel and swimmer George Bovell (men’s 50m freestyle) were the only two athletes to win gold for T&T at the CAC Games. 

Javelin competitor Walcott, who won this country’s second ever Olympic gold medal in 2012, had a successful year after an injury-plagued 2013. Walcott, who did not attend the awards because he was training at the Hasely Crawford Stadium, also got on the podium at the Commonwealth Games when he captured silver. Track and field dominated the junior awards as Machel Cedenio and Aaliyah Telesford snatched the sportsman and sportswoman of the year awards respectively. One of the highlights for Cedenio and Telesford was competing at the CAC Junior Track and Field Championships in Mexico. Telesford won gold in the girls Under-20 100m and was also part of the quartet that won the girls U-20 4x100m relay, while Cedenio grabbed gold in the boys U-20 400m event.

Bovell took home the sports personality of the year award, while football coach Bertille St Clair was handed the Alexander B. Chapman award for his contribution to sport and Olympism.

HONOUR ROLL
Sportswoman of the Year - Cleopatra Borel
Sportsman of the Year - 
Keshorn Walcott
Junior Sportswoman of the Year - Aaliyah Telesford
Junior Sportsman of the Year - Machel Cedenio
Sports Personality of the Year - George Bovell  
Alexander B Chapman Award - Bertille St Clair
 

Brian Lewis, president of the T&T Olympic Committee (TTOC) says as local athletes and their technical teams chart a trajectory for sustained and continued success on the international stage, integrity in sport must be at the core of what they do.

Speaking at Monday’s 17th TTOC Awards Ceremony held at Theatre I of the National Academy for the Performing Arts, Frederick Street, Port-of-Spain, he said: “It is essential that we meet the integrity challenge by protecting Olympic and Commonwealth sports from the dangerous threat posed by doping, gambling, the cycle of corruption and poor governance. If we don’t face these challenges, our right to self-regulate, our autonomy, legitimacy our stewardship will be taken away from us.”

Lewis added: “The TTOC will continue in 2015 to vigorously promote the adoption of good governance and ethics across the country’s Olympic and Commonwealth sport movement and that we be unwavering and advocate and vigorously promote a good governance code for sport in T&T, to ensure that affiliated national sporting organisations align with the Olympic charter and include in their constitutions basic universal principles of good governance.”

The TTOC head said his organisation would remain indomitable and passionate in its belief that the goal of the Olympic movement, to use sport to educate and serve young people, was as relevant today as it was 2000 plus years ago. Reaching out to young people and enticing them to become part of the sporting culture, he said, and illustrating the power of sport was among the Olympic values.

He added that the TTOC and NSOs must ensure that athletes who were inspirations and role models were at the centre of all efforts. “The TTOC must lead from the front in championing for the development of a sport industry. This will require not just lobbying and finger pointing, but the articulation of the conceptual framework that will inform the policy debate. Our collective challenge is to take sport mainstream. Sport is still on the margins in T&T society. The children, youth and young people of contemporary T&T have a lot of different interests that present a threat to active sport and healthy lifestyles,” he said.

Lewis added, “Part of the new attitude to sport is the digital transformation of sport; a world where it seems you are only as good as your Internet connection. The sheer talent, promise and potential of the nation’s youth and young people as represented by our athletes is simply breath-taking, but you have to watch and pay close attention. In pursuit of their dream, in striving for excellence our Olympic and Commonwealth athletes endure punishing hours of training and the arduous task of endless repetition. Often their inspiration, dedication, resilience, commitment and self-discipline go unnoticed.”

Outspoken president of the T&T Cricket Board (TTCB) Azim Bassarath is looking forward to a better 2015 after a title-less year in T&T’s cricket. T&T’s performance this year left the president an unhappy man and while continuing to seek ways to get this country back to the podium, he admits that funding will be a key element, moving forward. “It was indeed a tough year for us in regional cricket. We did not start off 2014 bad, reaching the finals of the Nagico Super50 series, only to lose to Barbados. That loss was very painful because we dominated that tournament and given the players at our disposal we should have gone on to win that title.”

Bassarath said after the runner-up position, the players wanted to win the First Class title but again this country just missed out on the title. “At the beginning of the four-day First Class series we played well but then went on to lose the tournament by a few points. “We entered the Headley/Weekes tournament and lost to Windwards in the semis and of course this was very crushing for the players. The senior players have done well but collectively we have not been able to bring home a title and this is something that is worrying and we want to put that straight as soon as we can.”

While admitting that it would be difficult to take the regional First Class title for the 2015 season after the poor start this country has made in the first segment, Bassarath said a marked improvement would be good. “We have not done well in the WICB Professional Cricket League thus far and when the tournament resumes, we will be playing catch-up cricket,” he said.  “The players have admitted that they are not playing good cricket at the moment and this is heartening to see and it gives me the confidence that they would now take ownership of what is going on and improve.”

The national youth teams also failed in their bid to win regional titles and this Bassarath blamed on lack of preparation due to funding issues. “Our youth teams did not prepare well,” Bassarath said.
“The TTCB development programme is the best in the region and other territories have looked at us as a model in this regard. However, it needs funding and we had tremendous problems with funding in the last few years and it caught up with us. We had no choice but to cut back on our preparation and it showed in the results that came our way.”

He added: “I am hoping that, this coming year, we get funding that we have been deprived off for the past three and a half years. I held a very good meeting with the Minister of Sport Dr Rupert Griffith as well as acting CEO of SPORTT Adrian Raymond and things are looking hopeful. “We want to invest heavily in youth development again because the youth tournaments over the years have produced excellent cricketers for our senior team as well as the West Indies by extension. Players like West Indies Test captain Denesh Ramdin, Ravi Rampaul the Bravo brothers Dwayne and Darren, Keiron Pollard and Sunil Narine all came through at a time when we prepared our players well.

Bassarath added: “I listened to an excellent feature address from Cleopatra Borrel at the TTOC function on Monday night and she called on those in authority to invest in young people, who put this country on the map. I hope that sport lead the way in 2015 for a better T&T.”

The recent issues emanating from sport in this country were not leading towards a direction which left us with an exciting expectancy. From Lifesport to the decisive day when Ecuador defeated our Women’s Soca Warriors left us all in limbo as to what we can expect in the future. However, to people like myself who have the habit of showing appreciation for outstanding service in sport, I was very pleased and elated to have seen that the former men’s national football and women’s hockey coach Bertille St. Clair was eventually awarded for his contribution to sport in this country, and I refer to both T&T.

What a deserving award to a man whose life has been dedicated to working feverishly to bring our young people towards a competitive standard both on the field and in the classroom. I happen to be a lucky person who was able to recognize and appreciate the tremendous job St Clair had done, from his early days as a cricket and football coach in the schools system, through to the women’s hockey team, then on his successful jaunt as the first national coach to have qualified for the FIFA Junior World Cup in Portugal in 1991.

Having been one of the successful coaches who learnt his coaching philosophies from the famous Technical Director of England Charles Hughes, St Clair kicked off his career as a football coach by starting his own coaching school, coaching at Signal Hill for many years until he was called to our national youth program as coach. He also had stints with our national senior team, and despite his good efforts, the hierarchy, in their normal style, decided that a foreigner was better to take an already prepared squad to Germany in 2006.

The result is now history and when all the stakeholders walked away with one million dollars, poor St Clair was made to go in search of his portion. Time will tell us when or if any was paid to him.
I suppose that the Olympic committee gave him the Alexander B. Chapman award for his services to women’s hockey, seeing that the general secretary was a national player under his guidance.
Congratulations, Bertille St. Clair, I am proud of your contribution to sport in T&T, especially with the young people who have benefitted from your fatherly guidance and persuasive manner of teaching.

It was easy to recall the actions and reactions of some of the so called sports gurus across the world, most of whom are idolized by the sports fans. After watching two exciting cricket test matches between India and Australia, where truly superb, batting, bowling, and to a lesser extend fielding were established, out came the age old habit of sledging by the Australians, which was followed by some awkward incidents, including players throwing the ball towards the wicket when the batsmen were well in the crease.

Thanks to the person who controlled the audio during play, as we were saved from what some lip movements indicated language that we hear from people whose vocabularies were sadly lacking.
And across to the Barclays English Premier League to listen to the hugely popular Chelsea Manager Jose Mourinho accusing a referee of being against his team simply because the referee adjudged a decision which the Portuguese felt was a penalty. Now, that was child stuff, especially as these referees make mistakes very often and with different teams. Maybe he should have asked his players why they missed the goals which were not obstructed by the referee or even the opponents.

These high profile managers in world football, do not often act in keeping with the image they portray and it is a pity that we all have to sit by and salute their team’s efforts despite their behavior. Now we can look into the crystal ball in order to find out whether our under prepared Under-20 squad will take our country towards the FIFA finals in New Zealand later in the year. The entire selection process of these youth teams does not possess a method which will bring the best players to these national teams. The belief is that it is only the players who are attached to the pro leagues and maybe the super league are good enough to be considered. 

Sometimes victory brings false beliefs as we have seen when both the U-20 and U-17 teams qualified in the preliminary rounds. This was admitted by some members of the coaching staff and only time will tell the fans whether or not the policies for selection worked to their benefit. I wish the team good luck and best wishes as I do to every national team that represents our country. And may I take this opportunity to wish all sports fans peace, love and blessings from the good Lord for the New Year. We have a beautiful country and I hope that our people will help to keep it that way.

A place in history can either be good or bad. There is simply no room for middle ground. So when the history of West Indies cricket is finally written, the name Wycliffe Dave Cameron may become synonymous, with disaster, destruction and depravity of West Indies Cricket.

While not for the first time, a sitting West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) president finds himself in the firing line, Cameron seems heading to be top of the list as the “Worst WICB president in history”. Not that this seems to matter much to Cameron, a man who appears consumed by power and prestige of a job, rather than the unification of the islands. In the most recent scenario where Dwayne Bravo was sacked as West Indies captain and several other players thrown to the side, Cameron has shown no remorse for angering not only the people of the region but also appearing to break a gentleman’s agreement with two Caribbean Prime Ministers, Dr Ralph Gonsalves (St Vincent) and Dr Keith Mitchell (Grenada).

West Indies cricket can ill afford to continually make friends their enemies, as the WICB have done with India and now under Cameron seem intent on following through with CARICOM. Those who know Cameron should not be surprised at his reaction to Caricom intervention as a few years ago in a radio interview with me; he first said:  “Caricom should not get involved“, before quickly catching his senses to reply “I should not say that, Caricom is Caricom…”. It was no surprise a little bit later (all of 90 seconds later, there was a loud click and thump and the phone line connection and interview with Cameron was over). Notably on that occasion, Cameron was not president but a vice-president of the WICB, but clearly not much has changed in terms of his belief in Caricom intervention.

So history will forever show that Cameron brought the once powerful West Indies team to its lowest point and instead of attempting to repair the damage  inflicted more damaging blows on the sport without blinking an eye. Many have already called for his dismissal with some on several radio programmes, blaming Cameron’s jealousy of the prominence of T&T players to be at the centre of this entire matter.

However, it is unfair to blame or cast aspersions on all Jamaicans because of Cameron’s riposte, as I am certain many persons both know and respect many intelligent, caring and sincere Jamaicans. It would appear that Cameron has forgotten that he was asking for the assistance of Caricom in the threatened legal matters with the Indian Cricket Board.  Cameron must have received news that the Indian Cricket Board will no longer be pursuing matters against the WICB, so he no longer needs to listen to CARICOM leaders or care about hurting their feelings, or breaking their trust.

And yes, trust in leadership is one of the most important ingredients in establishing motivation and inspiration; therefore can anyone be in doubt of the abject poor state of the game of cricket in the Caribbean with this sort of leadership from Dave Cameron. Alas, though, Cameron is not the only man aboard this sinking ship as he was quoted as saying that the decision of the Clive Lloyd led selection committee to make the necessary changes only to the One Day squad mere months before the World Cup was “unanimously agreed to by the members of the WICB.” 

Therefore that means the following all said yes in signing their names to the devaluation of West Indies cricket.
Wycliffe ‘Dave’ Cameron - President
Hon Ambassador Emmanuel Nanthan—Vice President
Joel Garner MBE,  Deighton Smith, Anand Sanasie, Anand Kalladeen, Wilford ‘Billy’ Heaven, Dr Donovan Bennett, Enoch Lewis, Baldath Mahabir, Azim Bassarath, Julian Charles, Elson Crick (member directors).
Hon Richard ‘Ricky’ Skerritt, Clifford Reis, Jennifer Nero, Don Wehby (non-member director). 

Michael Holding, Ian Bishop and Fazeer Mohammed, have all either written or spoken on the merits or demerits of players left out or included, so my position is quite clear: If it walks like a duck, smells like a duck, I do not need to taste it to know it is a duck.  So at the moment, unless it appears our leaders in the region show some concern for cricket and forget about petty island rivalry, West Indies cricket, a once rich proud legacy, will forever be tarnished and become rotten with the stench of hubris.

We must also rewrite Lloyd’s role in all of this given his decision in the 70’s to lead many West Indian players to join with Kerry Packer and walk out on representing the West Indies team. Then in 1998, Lloyd was the manager , when the then Brian Lara led West Indies team refused to travel to South Africa over money woes again with WICB. Lloyd, on that occasion was again disappointed that the players did not listen to him in threatening to abandon the tour then. In fact, it was reported that efforts were made to ask Courtney Walsh to captain the team instead of Lara but he refused. Now we have déjà vu in India with the Dwayne Bravo led West Indies team.

It appears that the T&T players, when it comes to leadership and fair play are the most outspoken and forthright and that probably dates back to the very same Kerry Packer days when Derek Murray was the vice-captain to Lloyd but always considered the intellectual in the group based on his educational background. Sadly at the moment, the deafening silence from the T&T Cricket Board over the many puzzling non-selections of local players adds credence to the belief that “Cameron and all of them in this together.”

West Indies cricket may soon be lost for good, but Wycliffe Dave Cameron’s history will indelibility spell a legacy of many d’s from disaster to destruction, thankfully though not dunce, because you would need to fool yourselves into believing this was for the good of cricket. The landscape does not look bright for cricket in the region, but we can only hope that Cameron’s reign ends sooner rather than later or that the WICB changes its colours and new blood reigns with the intervention of CARICOM.

Caricom must recognise how important cricket is too the region, and in T&T our leaders need to stand up and be counted now. —AB

In my 2012, year-end review, I noted that 2013 onwards would be bumper years as policy changes would be implemented by the government to fast track the diversification of the economy to include the creative industries. That was done in parts, but the effectiveness of the promised diversification still proved to be moribund in 2014. Low album production numbers, few international tours by local artistes despite some lifting of restrictions and diminished intellectual property rights exploitation, either paint a picture of stasis or serve to reframe the context in which we make music in the world.

The Trade and Investment minister’s boast was that his ministry is going to “strengthen it (the creative industries sector) by putting some commercial sense and commercial acumen into developing the sector with people who have succeeded in those areas…who have been there, who have done that.” His “super” boards have seen a number of defections, desertions and resignations. The effectiveness of these boards is challenged by having unstaffed state companies run by an executive board. They have not made positive returns on investment in the short term and have not put in place the policies that are supposed to move the sector forward.

Creative Industries
The role of the new CreativeTT to be facilitator rather than financier—to stimulate the business and export development of local creative industry to make money—was reversed: it’s sponsorship of Machel Montano’s performance at Rotterdam’s Zomercarnaval in July seemed like an expensive gamble to place banners and posters in front of Dutch eyes. The private sector instead saw and heard Montano’s competitive rival Bunji Garlin and RCA signed him for distribution in the largest music marketplace. 

A misstep in identifying creative capital? The European distribution of the music of Montano has not been solidified by any agency of note. In February, the Arts and Multiculturalism ministry promised that its Trinbago Interactive Music Expo would place local talent in front of movers and shakers in the European music marketplace. To date, no artiste has claimed success: either our talent is not worthy or the gesture of the grand strategic project is yet to gain traction.At the end of 2013, soca artistes Bunji Garlin, Montano and KMC attracted some European labels. 

One year later, collaborations with DJ collectives fronted by Trinidadian DJs like Jillionaire (Christopher Leacock) of Major Lazer and Lazabeam (Keshav Chandradathsingh) of Jus Now, had summer festivals alight and enhanced the role of the remixer in the music mix. Bunji, in his new role of “paladin of soca,” along with his wife Fay Ann Lyons have bent the soca sound on its ear by utilising electronic dance music (EDM) producers to produce market ready music that makes foreigners wine. 

Major Lazer, Jus Now, iM4RiO, Richie Beretta, DJ Crown Prince and Lemy Currey have attempted to move soca closer to an idea of mainstream global success. For every policymaker’s promise yet unfulfilled by a clueless bureaucracy, there have been small victories. Patrick Manning’s Philharmonic Orchestra to be peopled by “foreign musicians” has become a local reality via the Ministry of the Arts, with Minister Lincoln Douglas saying, “After only 20 rehearsal sessions, T&T can boast a professional, skilled, National Philharmonic Orchestra,” further developing its repertoire in 2014 with a premiere public performance at Queens Hall in August.”
 
Nationals of all hues with strident but diminishing imperfection made a case for the expansion of the role of musicians in stimulating interest and awareness of a specific aspect of the performing arts. UTT became another proving ground for a new cabal of musicians and composers showcased in end-of-academic-year recitals and during an International Symposium on Concert Music from the Caribbean in November.

MUSIC PRODUCTION
Critical to any overview of music in 2014 however has to be a review of product. Despite an almost universal abandonment of individual CD production or digital compilation for commercial exploitation, soca artistes are producing quantities of new music every year to varying popularity. The local digital sales platform TrinidadTunes.com shifted its focus from acquisition to streaming with the introduction of WE Music app. Competitive app Chune by young developer Kern Elliott continued its role of showcasing “underground music artistes.” 

Of further significance was the rise of the young promoter attempting to mainstream “underground” music: Yvan Mendoza (True Talk, No Lie), Gerry Anthony (New Fire), Jeanelle Frontin (ESCAPE Series) all had series of themed shows that allowed for the showcasing of newer talent. Public accolade and response was muted in some shows, but their determination points to a mindset that acknowledges the pitfalls of the local music industry and the moxie of the creative entrepreneur that is needed to bride the gap between wishful thinking and positive financial returns for music.

MINORITY MUSIC
A case study for the fragmentation of the music landscape here in these islands is Tobago-born soca artist K.Kay (Kevon Joseph). An artist and hit maker in Tobago with 25 releases there, he is yet to find favour in Trinidad or on what can be considered national stations. This business savvy artist has agreements with US-based Fox Fuse for distribution, CD Baby for aggregation and a synchronisation deal with Sugo Music. 

Determined as he is, his tunes Wine Up on Me, remixed in 2014, and the recent Let Loose have very limited YouTube views, and even less radio airplay. Tobago seems like a different country as far as recognition and access to markets here in Trinidad is concerned. A case of blind indifference or naive notions of stardom may be made by some. I note that there are many artists who add to the landscape of local music. The intention of increasing local content quotas on broadcast media, stymied still after many years, may make room for these artists.

Jazz artists hold a place of special importance in my view of local music, and the continuing production of only a handful of commercially released albums—Chantal Esdelle & Moyenne, Clifford Charles, the Ming-produced TriniJazz Project, Theron Shaw, Pedro Lezama—does not create significant impact for industry growth but acts as a statistical indicator and marketing tool for a buying public of live music as well. 

The concert and festival scene saw increased numbers at shows, increased events showcasing Caribbean jazz artistes (the return of Shades of Vaughnette, an All Star tribute to Raplh MacDonald, Eat Drink Jazz), and an increase of ticket prices for the Tobago Jazz Experience coupled with the “concept of the fence.” The near-completion of the multi-seat Shaw Park Entertainment Complex may ease the logistical problems that the over-subscribed beach location exhibited in April 2015. Despite these factors, jazz artistes still validly complain about the burden the small economies of scale here has on their careers. That cabal of musicians must continue the symbiotic relationship with its audience here. 

Non-festival recorded music output of genres outside of soca/calypso/carnival music have small numbers that should make the case for some focused marketing and funding enhancement. Incremental increases in local value added of our music product should be tallied to make a case to policy makers that the existing music “industry” does not read from the same textbook as the wider global marketplace. 

Some new innovation at year end should stimulate thinking persons and smart artists. It was announced that CWC signed a deal with music streaming site Deezer for Caribbean music on its platform. A boon for artists thinking commercially. 2015 can only make sense for a new music economy if we continue to create excellence, engage commercially, and reckon that government forays into commercialising the creative industries will be imperfect. The struggle continues, but we all are enjoying it as the music plays on.

Click http://bit.ly/2014ttmusic to read an expanded version of this column.

So, once again, you have overspent in spite of your promises to yourself, your spouse and your children! You have probably also put on a few pounds although you were really determined not to eat as much as you did. You are beginning to think of tomorrow—the start of a brand new year and all the uncertainties it will certainly bring.

My advice to you is to let go of yesterday and all its pitfalls and begin to look forward to tomorrow with an attitude of gratitude and a realisation that you are still on this earth with your loved ones. That is something we should never overlook. Those of us who lost loved ones this year can really relate to the gift of another day, another year, and hopefully many more with our loved ones. While we are here, let us strive to live our best lives and to be our best selves.

We can begin the journey of self-renewal by reflecting on 2014. Today is probably a very good day to reflect on how much we accomplished—or not—last calendar year. I am pretty sure that we all have some regrets but let’s try not to spend too much time beating up ourselves, crying or feeling hopeless. Rather, let’s find the strength to assume a determined attitude and let’s pick ourselves up and face 2015 with hope, and a spirit of starting over with energy, motivation and self-determination.

We all have inner strength that we don’t even know we have—all we have to do is discover it by taking on a “can-do” attitude and by being determined to move on and do better as we strive to life our best lives:

• Let’s take better care of ourselves by exercising and eating healthily.
Remember to choose exercise methods that fit with your lifestyle. Choose whatever truly will work for you and if this is walking for 20 minutes three or four times a week, then do this. Exercise does not have to involve a great deal of money for cute outfits or gym fees although if going to the gym works for you, then do that. Make wise selections and along with exercise, eat small meals throughout the day instead of one large meal at night. Make wise choices.

• Let’s strive to be better parents, friends, neighbours and co-workers
We can all do better in this department because time has become such a scarce commodity and because too many of us have slipped into the habit of texting, tweeting, and e-mailing instead of calling, visiting or writing a note or sending a card (now we send electronic ones). Try not to spend too much time on self-pity—spend this time on goal-setting and making fixed plans to make improvements in the areas that we want to improve. Make incremental change and celebrate small triumphs along the way.

• Let’s make deliberate and consistent efforts to reach out to family members
Don’t wait until it’s too late, folks. Whatever you need to say, make the time and find the courage to say it—before that chance is taken away through sudden illness or death.

• Let’s develop habits that bring us joy and get rid of the ones that seek to destroy or hurt us.
Some habits like drinking too much or abusing our loved ones physically and emotionally may need you to seek some additional support, even professional help but if this is what is needed, do try to find the courage to make a start or a plan to get that help. I am seeing the destruction of many families because one individual just refuses to make a change. If alcohol abuse or any other “bad” habit is causing pain to you and your loved ones, this is a good time to reflect and take some form of action!

• Let’s de-clutter our environment—get rid of unwanted “stuff” and keep only what you need
This might sound like a habit that’s not important but you may be surprised to learn of how many homes are disrupted because the environment is not one that is conducive to a healthy or happy family life. Kids and grown-ups need and crave—and should have—an environment that is organised and enjoyable. 

Additionally,
• Let’s strive to live a more organised and meaningful life
• Let’s clarify our goals and move forward, remembering that each journey begins with that first step
• Let’s celebrate small ‘wins’ along the way
• Let’s learn the power of forgiveness

Happy New Year!

Dr Starke is a psychotherapist/Life skills coach and OD (Organizational Development) consultant who provides workshops/seminars for employees and supervisors. E-mail thestarkereality@gmail.com or www.ctclifeskills.com.55