Noreiga makes slow progress after surgery

Former West Indies off-spinner Jack Noreiga is now bed-ridden after successful abdominal surgery last week.

His daughter, Jackie Noreiga, said yesterday her 67-year-old father had a surgical operation at the Sangre Grande General Hospital to remove an obstacle in his intestines. “The obstacle was removed but the doctors told us that he is responding very slowly. My father is conscious and knows everybody who comes in to visit him at the hospital. It is just that he is not responding as well as we had hoped,” she said. Noreiga, the former Paragon stalwart who lives at La Florisante, Arima made his Test debut for the West Indies in the 1970/71 series against India at Sabina Park, Jamaica. During the series he grabbed nine wickets for 95 runs in front of his home crowd the Queen’s Park Oval in Port-of-Spain which is still a West Indies record for the most wickets taken in an innings. His remarkable figures read 49.4-16-95-9.

In all Noreiga played four Tests and captured 17 wickets at an average of 29.00. In 27 First Class matches he nabbed 67 wickets at 29.67. Up until the last local cricket season Noreiga was attached to the Moosai’s Sports Club of El Dorado as coach. The team campaigns in the Carib National League Second Division. ”When my father gets over this I would like him to settle down a bit and take it easy. He has to remember that he is not young anymore and the hustling cannot continue.” she said. Jackie is one of nine Noreiga siblings comprising, five boys and four girls.