Hero's welcome for Walsh

Patterson (left) and Seaga (right)

A JUBILANT Courtney Walsh will receive a hero's welcome when he returns to Jamaica for the start of the fifth and final Test match against South Africa.

That is the word from Prime Minister P. J. Patterson, who stated in his tribute to the fast bowler that a team under the direction of Minister Portia Simpson Miller, Minister of Tourism and Sport, had already been formed to make sure that Walsh received the "special welcome he deserves."

The accolades follow his bowling his way into history by being the first cricketer to take 500 wickets at the Test level yesterday during the second in a five-Test series against South Africa.

Mrs Simpson Miller praised Walsh's conduct, describing him as a "quintessential sportsman" and a "true gentleman and ambassador," who has used his athletic talents "to make all of us proud."

Edward Seaga, the JLP leader, also issued congratulations. "To capture 500 wickets is one of those immortal achievements which will endure for a long time to come", he said.

Back to Lead Stories