Emma Dalton-Brown, Gleaner Writer
(From left), Kate Dyson, Leila Younis, Emma Dalton-Brown, Anya Schnoor, Beverley Kawass, Rosa Joseph in 'holding' pattern at the Red Stripe Mound at 7.30 a.m. on day two of the first Test match.
Having driven away, with a heavy heart, from Sabina Park a couple of hours ago, I have had time to reflect on one of the most incredible test matches I have witnessed. My cricket posse and I spent approximately 48 hours in the last five days on the Red Stripe Mound. Although we were never the last to leave the grounds, we always arrived first!
Avid cricket fans, we were thrilled to find that the spirit of the mound is back and in full force. We take our West Indies' hats off to all the organisers, bar crew, food staff, security, Red Stripe ladies, lunch-time presenter, clean-up folk, and anyone else who played a part in making the party stand a success. You know who you are!
Kitted out in WI T-shirts
Walking down South Camp Road on Thursday last week, my friends and I were kitted out in West Indian T-shirts and caps, waving our flags high and singing, Rally Round the West Indies. We knew it would be a tall task to beat the Aussies, but that was not going to stop us from enjoying ourselves at the most animated cricket grounds in the world.
Of course, we had to pitch up at 7:30 in the mornings to save our spot. Each day started in the 'café' area by the entrance, with the ritual of sharing a thermos of coffee, reading The Gleaner, and putting the world to rights! We'd then rush down to the 'beach', where we had chairs pulled up to the railing, with lounges and umbrellas placed behind us.
A large number of Australians arrived soon after us on the first day, but their arrival time became later and later as each day passed. I did warn them to pace themselves with the beer and rum! For those of you who could not make it this year, the pool is back. Or should I say was. Unfortunately a few foreigners got a little out of hand and before you knew it, about the same time we lost four wickets in that half hour after lunch on the third day, a leak sprung and a moat was formed around a small island! The behaviour of some was diabolical, and embarrassing for the rest of the Aussie troop. I know that they aren't all like that, but it left an unpleasant odour in the air!
The Windies saved my day late in the afternoon, however, as they struck back at the opposition and took four wickets from Australia when their second innings score was a measly 17 runs! It was a fire we have craved to see come from our players for far too long.
Appalled by the eating of 'sand'
Rainbow over Sabina Park. - Contributed photos
The match only got better on the fourth day, with a win very much in sight for the Windies, and life was a lot calmer on the mound. Boys wearing yellow and green came in looking rather sheepish, and their manners were kept more or less in tact. Not to say we weren't appalled by the eating of 'sand', but they kept themselves to themselves, and we continued to party hard between the Australian cricketers' lost wickets! Perhaps that full rainbow we saw joining the George Headley and North Stands early on Saturday morning had been a sign of luck after all.
There's not much point getting into a discussion about what went wrong on the fifth day with the West Indies' batsmen. Everyone is quite aware of what happened, and I'm sure the team can learn from the mistakes that were made. A victory was within reach at 9:30 in the morning and at the very worst, a draw a couple hours later. We put up a fight, but lost the momentum and stamina to see it through and send the Aussies down on'der de mound.
