Fond memories come from hard work

THE EDITOR: We West Indians like to talk about the glory days of West Indies cricket in the late 1970s and throughout the 1980s. Yes it is nice to have fond memories of our heroes’ achievements. Even today you see newspaper articles talking of the greats of those times.

I have noticed however that no one speaks of the hard work that went into those teams of the Lloyd/Richards era. That was the essence of the team. I remember other Test teams speaking in awe of the training sessions that they have seen the West Indian team go through. I remember seeing for myself the talented Vivian Richards spending hours in the nets just so that he could get himself prepared for his next innings. The end result? A magnificent century at the Queen’s Park Oval. From all reports coming out of the West Indies camp this kind of dedication and application are sadly missing from the present West Indies team. Throughout the history of mankind certain basics do not change. There is no substitute for hard work.

It does not matter what sphere of life you are talking about. “By the sweat of your brow you shall eat bread.” It is a lesson we as elders have to teach the young ones of our society. In that sense the West Indies team has a tremendous responsibility to the youth of the region. The West Indies team has an opportunity to show the youth the rewards of discipline and hard work. If by so doing, they can become heroes to our youths then maybe these young people’s lives could find some direction and focus as they would have someone worthy to emulate. It would be the first step to breaking the cycle of hopelessness and despair that is obviously enveloping so many young people at this time.

RONALD  SAMMY
Palmiste