Former Essequibo Inter-County senior captain and CWI Level 11 coach, Elroy Stephney, has once again emerged at the Essequibo Cricket Board (ECB) citing poor leadership and inactivity.
Stephney, who was once Chairman of the senior selection panel and the Cricket Development Committee, lamented that “the Board has survived its usefulness and so have the jaundiced members who remain out of sight and incompetent”.
“I am deeply saddened that the situation is one of despair given that the Board has not held a competition for the last two years and none of the executives are active participants,” he told Chronicle Sport recently.
Stephney, also a former National Under-15 and U-19 manager, referred to a huge waste of duty and called on the constituent members to demand results from their leaders.
“It is inconceivable that you have a leader who does not even command an ounce of respect within his constituent, and yet he has been at the helm of the highest cricket office in the country for the past five years,” said Stephney.
He further questioned the omission of Essequibo players from the senior national Super50 squad and noted that the ECB leadership had again failed to represent players at a time when they needed such support.
“ECB players will continue to be on the side until our representatives’ lenses and those of GCB are replaced ”.
“It is unfortunate that Essequibo players continue to be questioned for the wrong reasons, given that they are repeatedly marginalized.” Stephney recalled that cricket under the stewardship of Kayman and Beni Sankar flourished with a number of very competitive competitions at the junior and senior levels.
“The leadership of the Sankars is unrivaled in the history of Essequibo cricket and unfortunately their legacy is being ruined by a group of inert and chaotic group of people who basically claim our interest.”
The successful former captain, who captured Neville Sarjoo’s first under-16 national competition and was Man-of-the-Match in the semi-final against Albion at DCC back in 1993, argued that a complete overhaul of the structures the personnel is required to transform the game in Cinderella county.
Stephney referred to people like Trenton Peters, Jaimini Singh, Ramcharran Singh, Rovendra Mandolall, Mark Stephney, Ramesh Narine and the late Berchmore Reid, who played, with pride and soul during the glory days – a time he has always referenced be repeated.
“I’ve seen many talents here but they will really need the blessings of the Creator if they are to succeed to the highest level.”
“Our cricket is simply in a war zone; battered and bruised by the irresponsibility of unsuspecting leaders, discouraged by the cowardly action of our own selectors and a blatant disrespect towards our female cricketers, ”continued Stephney.
“This exposure has been raising its ugly head for far too long, yet those executives who stay on high horses and continue to enjoy personal benefits”.
The elegant left-hander is appealing for the restoration of the ECB Hostel and for the Board to implement a strategic plan that will lead to the game being reunited among the eight committees.
“I have lasting memories of the glorious encounters I had played against Bartica, Wakenaam, Leguan, East Bank. there was great competition and hopes rose when we played back then, ”Stephney went on.
“Unfortunately, I can’t speak the same for the players now. In fact, what I can say for them is that there is no hope whatsoever with the current executives whose tenure has been a pitiful failure, ”he concluded.
Stephney, who remains an executive of the Essequibo North Cricket Committee, expressed his commitment to serve once the environment is favorable and that the overhaul of the system at Essequibo is real.
“I am ready to bring respect and resilience back to Essequibo cricket and I appeal to other stakeholders for us to do this through a systematic, transparent and democratic process. Our cricket continues to be a mess because of our incompetent leaders, ”Stephney noted in disgust. .