Tony Becca The Super Cup cricket competition got under way on Saturday and unfor-tunately Supreme Ventures are missing.
After a wonderful sponsorship of some $35 million over the past three years, Supreme Ventures have decided to call it quits an it is regrettable, it is definitely understandable.
As much as they may love sport, as much as they may love cricket, business is business and apart from the small returns in terms of public relations, with few people watching the games they got little or nothing out of it.
The good news, however, is that Supreme Ventures have not turned their backs on the sport.
Although the money is not the same, Supreme Ventures are still in cricket. This time, however, instead of spending their money on clubs and in the clubs, on parishes and in the parishes, on prize money and on incentives, they have decided, along with Courtney Walsh, to go into the highways and by-ways, find young talent and nurture it.
While that may not be what the Jamaica Cricket Association (JCA) would prefer, while the clubs and parishes will certainly miss their financial input an it will only last for three months, this move by Supreme Ventures is a good one, and will be a good one if it is properly monitored.
It is definitely one which could serve Jamaica and West Indies cricket well.
Cricket Clinic
Based on the reports, the idea of the Supreme Ventures Courtney Walsh Cricket Clinic is to get some 300 youngsters from around the island into a camp where they will be taught, not only how to defend their wicket, not only how to drive through the covers and not only how to cut a ball off the seam or how to spin it while dropping it on a good length.
Based on the reports, the youngsters, most importantly, will be taught also how to appreciate the game, how to think about the game, how to score runs, how to compete, how to read the game, how to plan the dismissal of a batsman and how to become a good captain.
Looking at the Jamaica team and at the West Indies team of today, what is also of great importance is that the young players will be guided in other things but hitting, bowling and fielding the ball.
According to Walsh, according to Supreme Ventures CEO Brian George, the youngsters will be taught about life in general so that whether they make it or not as cricketers, they can become good citizens.
The next Walsh
That is lovely and hopefully the coaches - Junior Bennett, André Coley, Robert Samuels and Robert Haynes, physical training expert David Bernard Sr. and all the other people who will be guiding the youngsters - understand that and that in their bid to find the next Lawrence Rowe, the next Maurice Foster, the next Michael Holding, the next Walsh, the next Jimmy Adams, the next Jeffrey Dujon or even the next Alfred Valentine, they will not forget it.
West Indies cricket is in a terrible state and no building from the top, no academy will save it and neither will any withdrawal from Test cricket for however long a time.
Although three months is not a long time it would be nice if something like this was on going, the only thing that will help West Indies cricket, the only thing that will assist its return to the top or near to the top, is proper training, proper guidance and proper development with the bat, with the ball, in the field and of the mind of young people, young players with talent.
It may be a long road but it is the only road and thanks once again to Supreme Ventures, to Walsh, Holding and Adams who have agreed to help and to an extent, also to Victoria Mutual Building Society (VMBS).
As George has begged them to do, hopefully other companies will see the need and instead of standing by and criticising the players, get involved so that in time, maybe not too long from now, they can praise them - and especially so knowing that they played a part in the transformation.
