LLOYD

KINGSTON (CMC):

THE 1975 and 1979 West Indies teams that won the first two ICC Cricket World Cups will be honoured during the opening tournament match.

ICC Cricket World Cup (CWC) 2007 organisers say a brief ceremony prior to the West Indies clash against Pakistan at Sabina Park on March 13 will herald the achievements of the players who registered back-to-back World Cup titles in the 1970s.

"We will be honouring the (Cricket) World Cup winners of 1975 and 1979 - the teams from the glory days led by the great Clive Lloyd," ICC CWC 2007 managing director & CEO, Chris Dehring, said on Monday night while addressing the annual West Indies Players' Association (WIPA) awards in Barbados.

"We will be entertaining them and presenting them with that famous trophy - the Prudential Cup - on Caribbean soil. It will be great and we look forward to having them with us on such a historic occasion," Dehring said.

Clive Lloyd led the side to victory in the inaugural event and the Caribbean side repeated as champions four years later under the same captain.

The surviving 18 members of these two squads will be hosted at the West Indies/Pakistan match by the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) and ICC Cricket World Cup West Indies 2007 Inc. and will be presented with various memorabilia to mark the celebration.

Three deceased players

Presentations will also be made later in the tournament to the families of three deceased players - Keith Boyce, Roy Fredericks and Malcolm Marshall - and to the family of the late Sir Clyde Walcott, the manager/coach of both teams. Elaborating on this initiative, CWC corporate communications director Marvia Roach said the West Indies icons would receive 'significant acknowledgement' of their accomplishments which - 30 years ago - signalled the beginning of the team's dominance in international cricket.

"West Indies cricket owes a priceless debt of gratitude to these gentlemen. Their heroics are a major part of the reason that the Caribbean is now on the threshold of hosting the Cricket World Cup and, having been the first to win the event, they should rightly be recognised at the start of the 2007 tournament," she said.

Number of mementos

Roach said there will be a number of mementos for the ex-cricketers, including a special-edition tie and replica West Indies team shirts for ICC CWC 2007. The latter will be a one-off brand which the current West Indies team will only wear during the tournament.

"WICB and CWC are also finalising certain surprise plans to salute the 1975 and 1979 victories by these West Indies players," she added.

1975 WEST INDIES TEAM: Clive Lloyd (captain & Man of the Match), Gordon Greenidge, Rohan Kanhai, Alvin Kallicharran, Deryck Murray (wicketkeeper), Sir Vivian Richards, Andy Roberts, Collis King, Maurice Foster, Lance Gibbs, Vanburn Holder, Bernard Julien. Keith Boyce (deceased), Roy Fredericks (deceased). Sir Clyde Walcott - team manager and coach (deceased).

1979 WEST INDIES TEAM: Clive Lloyd (captain), Gordon Greenidge, Alvin Kallicharran, Deryck Murray (wicketkeeper), Sir Vivian Richards (Man of the Match), Andy Roberts, Collis King, Faoud Bacchus, Colin Croft, Joel Garner, Michael Holding, Larry Gomes, Desmond Haynes, Malcolm Marshall (deceased). Sir Clyde Walcott - team manager and coach (deceased).