Sunday, February 19, 2012

Open letter to Ernest Hilaire and Julian Hunte

I am a concerned West Indies cricket supporter who honestly thinks the efforts to get the best support for the game is not being managed effectively. We the people of the Caribbean would like to know the following:
1.Is Chris Gayle ever going to play again under your leadership?
2.Will the impasse between Chris Gayle and the WICB be resolved, anytime soon, or ever?
3.What are your short and medium terms plan for cricket?
4.How much longer do you both have in office?
5.Are you satisfied that the upcoming tour of Australia has been offered the best options for locations and earnings?
6.When will we hear the truth, nothing but the truth, so help us God?
7.What technical/financial support is being offered to JCA to reach the standard to host a first class test/T20

If you answer YES to any of these questions (1,2, or 5) then the rest of the answers should lead us somewhere. If the answers are NO, then you both should resign.

What NO means here, is that neither of you have the best interest of cricket and it is possible you do not know what to do...cause that is the impression we are getting. I have been following WI cricket since 1974 and this has to be one of, if not the worst spell of leadership I have seen.

We have had the best cricketers in the world and while the performance of the players started to slip back in 1995, way before your time in leadership, you have done very little to help, based on what we have seen/heard. I urge you therefore to
1.tell the people the TRUTH
2.resolve the matters at hand
3.tell us why the best players in the region are out playing for other clubs

I am giving you an ultimatum of 30 days within which time you can call an emergency meeting of your board and do what is required.

WI cricket is dying under your leadership and we as a people do not want that. We like options. Use the best efforts to get this done

Saturday, February 18, 2012

Australia vs. West Indies - March 16 to April 27

I must admit this note is being written with a little bit of anger, so forgive my use of emotive language.

I have not seen or heard of a WICB development plan in a long time, so I am not sure what they have planned for
■player development
■venue development
■marketing
■financial planning and growth
■competitions
■media rights and broadcasting
■export of players
■human resource management
■capacity building for countries

What then I ask, what are the statistics with respect to hosting events in the region? What are the top earning venues and how are we going to develop the others? Is this the first time Australia is coming to the West Indies and not playing in Jamaica?

My idea for any tour would depend on the following
■airfare
■accomodation
■ground transportation
■meals
■training facilities
■crowd support/fan base
■foreign exchange rates
■suitability
■media output
■safety and security

Jamaica as a top-rated tourist destination by any survey has most if not all those in place at a very high standard...then why isn't Sabina Park a venue of choice?

Now it takes me to the point of LEADERSHIP...each participating country must have a plan which includes all the things I mentioned above which feeds into an overall programme and then the WICB would design programmes aimed at improving the sport - amidst all the accusations of insularity, mismanagement, bad mind and just plain inability to get the job done.

One of the best assets in cricket is not representing the WI now. Why? Because a few ill-advised persons have taken it on themselves to apply justice, natural justice and personal vendettas against him (Chris Gayle); and the JCA has said nothing.

We want answers

We want efficient people to lead

We want people with a CRICKET agenda

We want the best business and financial model

Andy Cummings was FAR less a cricketer than Chris and T&T made their voices heard....go figure!

I am sick and tired of the drama...how about you?

Monday, February 13, 2012

Rihanna and the Willie Bounce

The 54th Grammy Awards celebration is now behind us. I enjoyed the 'throw back' because I got to enjoy some really first class music being modernized. I am happy to know Bruce Springstein is still relevant, Bruno Mars gave us a doo-wop performance something Frankie Lymon (Why Do Fools Fall in Love) would have been proud of; The Beach Boys; Glen Campbell (Rhinestone Cowboy) and much more. Chris Brown's Lip Sync was classic, he showed off his physical abilities and his dancers did their thing.


Rihanna has been blazing the trail and representing herself well...and has some firsts in terms of digital sales etc. I may know enough of her music, but her Caribbean origin has is well known, but she has impacted on the world scale and she continues to make inroads. So her 'Willie Bounce' was the topic of discussion last night and into this morning and I am appalled at the words thrown at this lady.



They have been from her physical look, hair, dance moves, videos and the information was almost too much for me; but I say this to say...



1. So she has used Willie Bounce - so what? What have we done with the dance if it is ours

2. The young lady knows her market and is driving her product to meet the needs of her market

3. She obviously knows the power of the Jamaican Brand...do we? If so, how are we using it?



I find us quick to criticise, vilify, destroy people by our comments, without offering a palatable solution, and I am bothered; especially since we are in an economy that the creative sectors of sport and entertainment are so valuable.



I challenge our entertainers and those who manage and support to use our skills, expertise and talent to explore the options, put in to practice and make MONEY from it. In the meantime protect the enviable Jamaican Brand...use what is positive to enhance the Brand and by extension see it as a by product of the rich culture Jamaica has.

Leave Rihanna alone....Mind your own business.


Note: I heard Jeffrey Campbell on RJR 94 FM on Palav and he represented his craft, himself, family and JAMAICA at a level I wish some of our entertainers should. Call Gerry McDaniel at RJR to hear the programme. It was a joy to listen to.

Wednesday, February 8, 2012

The Business of Sport, May 3 - 4, 2012

We are 84 days away from the second edition of The Business of Sport and we would like your continued support. The event will be in Kingston, May 3 -4 and will have two exciting days of dialogue, networking, action and opportunities to create better business relationships. We are using the theme "Stay in the Game" and we think the discussions around

Contracts
Sport Psychology
Image and Dollars
Money Management
Culture and Sport
Athletes and how they survive

...will help the discussion along as we seek to find new ways and means to get a better handle of The Business of Sport.
We hope you will make the trip. Please go now to www.thebusinessofsport.org and register so we can secure your spot for the event.

You will soon get your notices regarding air travel, hotel accommodation and general transportation. The conference fee remains at US$150. Please pass this information on to your colleagues.

We look forward to hearing back from you

Thanks as always for your support.