Tony BeccaTHERE is a feeling among some former West Indies players that unless you have played cricket at the highest level, unless you are numbered among the great players, you know nothing about the game.
There is also a feeling among some of those on the West Indies Cricket Board that they are the fountain of knowledge, they have all the answers, and only they can solve the problem of West Indies cricket.
Well, that is not true. There are others around the territories who know the game, who can offer good advice, and whose opinion should be respected.
One such person is Owen Arthur, Prime Minister of Barbados and one of the game's devoted fans.
Over the years, Arthur has made some wonderful comments on the subject of West Indies cricket and on Tuesday in Bridgetown he was at his best.
To a number of board members, the salvation of West Indies cricket lies in an academy, and Arthur was quoted as saying at a cocktail reception for the Barbados team to participate in the Busta series that an academy would be like "a roof imposed on a weak structure".
Arthur is one who supports anything which will help the West Indies team return to its former glory, he knows an academy can help, and it is a safe bet he will support it.
Based on his comments in the past, however, based on his comments on Tuesday, he also knows an academy will not solve the problems of West Indies cricket - not until the weakness in other areas are strengthened.
One such weakness is at the club level, and the Barbados PM was spot on when he said cricket development should start at the grassroots level with the clubs.
Anyone who knows what is happening or is not happening in the clubs will know the clubs have failed West Indies cricket and until something is done about it, there will be no change in the fortunes of the West Indies team.
Cricket is suffering from lack of participation, the West Indies team is suffering from the lack of quality players coming through the system, the clubs are the life line of West Indies cricket and the clubs, the majority of them, do little to spread the gospel of cricket, they do little to foster the game and in terms of teaching skills, grooming players, and preparing them to perform, they do little to develop young players.
The majority of clubs do not emphasise the importance of training and practicing, they do not discuss the game, some do not even have a coach, some do not even appreciate the importance of a good pitch - either that or they do not know what is a good pitch, and some are so poorly organised they turn up short for matches.
A habit is a habit, and if players are not properly prepared by the clubs they will not be ready for the challenges of first-class and Test cricket, and the best coaches, the best sports psychologists, the best psychiatrists will not be able to help them when they face quality opposition at that level.
The clubs must be blamed for what is happening at the top, and in many respects it is their fault.
When one looks at the cost of preparing a pitch and maintaining a ground, however, plus the water bill, it takes a lot of money to fund a club, and equally guilty must be the fans who do not support the clubs, the governments who offer no assistance, the territorial boards and the West Indies boards who treat them like poor relations.
"We need to bring back a situation where the psychology of cricket is imparted in our players by the relationships fostered at the cricket clubs," said Arthur, and he is right - no question about it.
His are words of wisdom, his suggestion key to the future of West Indies cricket.
After promising his government would respond through policy if the Barbados Cricket Association were to ask for help for development, the Prime Minister went on to say this: "In addition to spending money on the stands and the new management structure, we must give some considerations to restoring strong clubs."
Hopefully those, like the members of the West Cricket Board, who have ears to hear, will hear.
