Chris Green, a resident, paints a wall on Campbell Street, central Kingston, yesterday, in preparation for the ICC Cricket World Cup.

Mark Beckford, Gleaner Writer

With the opening ceremony out of the way and the first match of Cricket World Cup 2007 scheduled to begin 9:30 tomorrow morning, final preparations for the event awarded to the West Indies 10 years ago were still under way up to late yesterday afternoon.

Tractors, dump trucks, painters, sweepers and persons wielding machetes were seen in and around the environs of Sabina Park, preparing the city for the biggest sporting event ever staged in the Caribbean.

Sabina Park, which will host the group games, including the opener and a semi-final, was a scene of frenetic activity. Workmen moved around the stadium putting in last-minute touches on therenovated stadium. Venue Operations Man-ager Raam Naraysingh said the stadium was almost ready and would be fully operational for the opening match. He also revealed that the rows of seats that were still to be re-installed as of Friday are now in place.

Final touches

Noel Gayle, a disgruntled resident of Goodwin Park Drive, near Sabina Park, Kingston, points to the condition of his dwelling. Gayle, along with other residents, accused the authorities of leaving them out of preparations for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2007. - photos by Rudolph Brown/Chief Photographer

"By 6:00 this evening, we will be completely ready to host the World Cup. Preparations are coming along, we are just putting on the final touches and shutting down the venue Monday so that we can open to the public 7:00 on Tuesday morning," he told The Gleaner yesterday.

But while Sabina Park presented a picturesque view with its lush, green grass, colourful seats and towering stands, Goodwin Park Drive, located just two chains away from the stadium, was a sore sight. A dilapidated structure greeted The Gleaner team on arrival, with trash and overgrown shrubs being seen all along the street. Residents at 1 Goodwin Park Drive, on seeing The Gleaner team, poured out of the dwelling to complain bitterly about being neglected during preparations for the mega event.

"Look deh, man, not even fence dem gi we. The whole a roun so fix up - Gully Bridge, Hart Street, and Kingston Gardens - and we no get nutten," said Noel Gayle, a resident of the area. "Look weh we de, we inna Sabina backyard and ah the worse part right ya so, the people dem haffi pass through and dem not even put up a likkle wall fence. South Camp Road look like foreign and roun' ya suh look like gutter."

National Heroes Circle, on the other hand, was a major hub of activity as persons planted shrubs, removed garbage, installed grillwork and painted the walls ofthe park. A workman who was working on a gate at the east of Heroes Circle told The Gleaner that work would have been concluded within a few hours.