Leeward Island's captain Stuart Williams on his arrival at the Norman Manley International Airport yesterday. - Junior Dowie/Staff Photographer A STRONG Leeward Islands cricket team arrived yesterday for their fourth round Busta Cup match against Jamaica at Kaiser Sports Club on Friday.
Both teams are coming off third-round victories, a position which puts them in the leadership on 27 points.
Jamaica trounced Barbados inside three days at Sabina Park this week while the Leewards overcame threatening weather to record a tense eighth-wicket win over West Indies B with just eight balls to spare at Grove Park.
The top teams are ahead of Trinidad & Tobago (21 points), Windward Islands (18), Guyana, Barbados and West Indies B (12) and Bangladesh A at the bottom on 10.
The Leewards loom as the main threat to Jamaica, according to captain Stuart Williams.
"Leewards against Jamaica is always a big game. We are always looking forward to play Jamaica here," said Williams, a former West Indies opening batsman.
The teams played to an exciting draw after Jamaica had won first innings points last year.
Williams, who has already scored more than 400 runs in the series, sees the game as crucial and according to him "any game against Jamaica is important. The game is more important at this stage as teams are searching for vital points.
"We are batting well and the bowlers are coming into their own ... Kerry Jeremy has already picked up 20 wickets and Adam Sandford 15, so it's pretty balance," Williams said.
Despite the Leewards getting good results, the skipper thinks that the best is yet to come.
"We are getting there, we have some bits and pieces of the puzzles that we still have got to put together but we are getting there," said Williams.
"We play a special brand of cricket, we are positive people by nature and we are going to play our style of cricket."
Apart from Williams, the team has two other experienced players in Dave Joseph and Kerry Jeremy, who have played in a one-day internationals for the West Indies.
Also travelling with the team is former West Indies Under-19 captain Sylvester Joseph who made a double century (211 not out) against West Indies B.
The Leewards' manager, Ingleton Liburd, sounded as confident as the captain and believes that his team is capable of beating Jamaica.
"If we are to beat Jamaica this weekend we will have to play good all-round cricket. We need to bat, bowl and field very well," he said.
However, Liburd also said his team was here "to play good game. We come to play tough cricket, we expect the batters to continue performing at the top as they have done and bowlers to keep on being consistent."
The Leewards squad: Stuart Williams, Alex Adams, Sylvester Joseph, David Joseph, Junie Mitchum, Ian Tittle, Omari Ebanks, Jason Williams, Kerry Jeremy, Ricky Christopher, Adam Sandford, Goldwyn Prince, Anthony Lake. Coach John Archibald and Manager Ingleton Liburd.
