Captain's Report August 2003
New and returning players
It is good to have Olaide Banks. His supportive and team spirit, as well as his strong arm will serve us well. It was good to have his brother, Omari, the West Indies all-rounder, play with us. It is good to have Wade Allard join us. Wade is working in practice to get in a position to help the team on the field. He will also help us in technology. It is good to have Roland Anderson back and look forward to his help. It is also good to have Carl Thompson and Patrick Gayle. Up to August 10, we had 22 players represent us thus far.

Results so Far
We lost one ill-fated game to PACC. A shortage of players (9 men), cheating umpiring and very, very questionable scoring, all worked against us. Otherwise, we have 10 wins in 12 games.
NR NHC - rain no play
W HFCC 231 all out; HWI 236 for 4 in 27 overs
W HWI 214 for 9; HPCC 116 all out
W HWI 301 for 8 declared in 34 overs; HBCC 122 all out
W HWI 206 for 9; HJCC 161 all out
L HWI 217 (batting 2 short); PACC 218 for 8
W LPSH - - won on forfeit
W HWI 187 all out; ECC 184
W SCC 28; HWI 29 without loss in 2.1 overs
W HPCC 200 for 9; HWI 202 for 4 in 28 overs
W HWI 195 all out; MCC II 175 all out
W NHC 80 all out (batting 1 short); HWI 82 for 5 in 12 overs

Level of play and Teamwork

We have played well. We have had our plan. We have supported the plan and delivered the goods. We walk out together as a team; walk off as a team, except in a few cases. The support of each other on the field has improved. We even have better support in the pavilion. Olaide has been a very positive help here. We had a team problem that was taken care of and is now behind us. Let's move forward as a team.
Batting
The batting has delivered for the most part, preventing a total team crash. Eccles, Nolan, Jhagroo, Bennett, Beckford, Mena, Deen, Scott and Ffrench have had gems, but practice will improve their output.
Bowling
Johnson, Bennett, Deen, Beckford, Scott, Eccles and Nolan have done well but will all improve with practice. Paul's 7 for 11 and Scotty's 5 for 29 have been the highlights.
Fielding
We gave our best fielding display in the middle 15 overs vs MCC II. That type of focus and effort needs to continue. More focus on fielding at practice will help. We have been moving in this direction.
Fitness
We need to work more on individual nominal fitness. The fitness training before practice and games have helped, without unduly tiring the mass of players. The warm ups that we have before taking the field have helped and shows more professionalism and teamwork.
Non-playing Responsibilities
Pitch wetting, pitch rolling, and grass cutting remain a concern. This can end up being costly to us. We still have 6 more home games. At $150 for the roller, and $60 for grass cutting, this can cost us another $1200. Financing of this has fallen off and could pose a significant problem before the season is out. Mr. Hinds, Eccles, Jhagroo and Myles (Ken) have been quite helpful in assisting Mr. Bennett with grounds preparation. Most of the guys have been good in picking up after the game. We need more help. It would be good to get more non-playing members involved in this.
Individual Roles
Mr. Johnson is in charge of umpiring. Mr. Ken Myles is in charge of scoring. They have done well. Mr. Roache needs special commendation here. He has filled many gaps - getting food, putting up the tent, cleaning up, scoring, etc. and is normally the first to volunteer (sometimes the only one). We need more commitment like this. Others need to work the scoreboard, score, umpire, provide refreshments, and particularly, help with field preparation.
Spectators
It is good to see members and other who are not playing in a game coming out and cheering. It is good to see the families coming out again.
Looking forward
We will continue to stick to our plan. We have NO time off. We have to maintain our winning ways, but not get dejected or turn on each other when we do lose. We should get even more professional, beat the teams as much as we can, not be boastful in our exploits, but send our message. We plan to go all the way. We will play Division 2 #2 or # 1 in the first round.

Respectfully submitted

Errol R. A. Eccles, Captain [August 9th 2003]