By Tym Glaser, Associate Editor - Sport 
The Reverend Wes Hall in full flight during his speech at the Michael Manley Cricket Trust awards ceremony at the Courtleigh Hotel, New Kingston yesterday. It earned his a standing ovation from the packed crowd. - Dennis Coke
THE OCCASION belonged to some of the brightest young cricket talent in the island but the spotlight was stolen by the Reverend Wes Hall at the Michael Manley Cricket Trust awards ceremony yesterday at the Courtleigh Hotel, New Kingston.
Thirteen schoolboy stars were rewarded for performances spanning three years (1999-2001) before a star-studded and packed audience which included three players from the legendary tied Test of 1961 (Hall, Alfred Valentine and Bobby Simpson), two members of the 1950 West Indian side which defeated England in England for the first time (Valentine and Allan Rae), government ministers (Burchell Whiteman and Wykeham McNeill), former Test stars (including Michael Holding, Jeffrey Dujon and Maurice Foster), former presidents of the West Indies Cricket Board (Rae and Pat Rousseau) and a host of other cricket luminaries.
However, the stage belonged to current WICB president and former Test paceman Hall who wowed the audience with a long but humorous speech which left reporters clambering for their thesauruses.
Significantly, he told the young awardees to look to the past for lessons for the future.
"A very important thing when questing for excellence that you must know is the West Indies' cricket history," Hall said. "History is the memory of a nation and if you do not know your history you are condemned to make the same mistakes over and over ... and politicians know that very well.
"You have to trace West Indies cricket back to the 1860s when we first started to play against America and Canada," he said. "You will look and you will see that 100 years ago in 1901 the English tolerated us for the first time. We played 20 games and lost 19. There was a large poster in England that had five little West Indians saying 'Dr Grace, we come to learn, sir'. How well we have learned."
Hall then went on to recite West Indian successes and drew the parallel with the Caribbean region finding its political feet and the importance of the game to the region. He then recounted recent series sweeps at the hands of Pakistan, South Africa and Australia and said: "You say things have gone bad but I want to tell you we have turned the corner. You may not believe me but I will say it again, we have turned the corner."
The following awards were presented by Holding, Valentine, Dujon and Glynne and Joseph Manley and Barbara Bucknor, daughter of the late J.K. Holt.
Batting Awardees
Grace Shield - 1999: Carlton Baugh Jnr (Wolmer's). 2000: Damion Henry (Calabar). 2001: Sheldon Allman (KC).
Headley Cup - 1999: Rashard Marshall (York Castle). 2000: Glemore Hall (York Castle). 2001: Maurice Kepple (Old Harbour).
Bowling Awardees
Grace Shield - 1999: Jermaine Lawson (Waterford). 2000: Andrew Richardson (KC). 2001: Craig Lynch (KC).
Headley Cup - 1999: Kamal Dennis (STETHS). 2000: Kamal Dennis (STETHS). 2001: Darren McTaggart (Dinthill).
Special Awards
Lorenzo Ingram - all-round performance (William Knibb). Shane Powell - wicketkeeping (Vere).
