Carib ECCB T20 tournament launched

Sep 05, 2010 Sports

Cricket teams affiliated to the East Coast Cricket Board are eagerly awaiting the start of the Carib Beer T20 competition which will be staged at various venues on the Coast.
Some 44 teams, an increase of 3 from last year’s competition will battle for top honours and will be out to dethrone defending champions Lusignan Sports Club.
This year’s edition of the tournament was officially unveiled on Friday at the head office of Ansa McAl Trading, Beterverwagting, East Coast Demerara, where the company, under its Carib Beer brand is once again the exclusive sponsor.
PRO of the company, Darshanie Yussuf, said Ansa McAl and Carib Beer are proud to be part of the competition.  “Once it’s an activity that promotes positiveness, we are happy to support, and that’s the reason we’re behind the East Coast Carib T20 competition,” Yussuf remarked.
It was also revealed that Ansa McAl will be sponsoring the East Coast T20 team, which will now be known as the East Coast Carib Jaguars.
President of the ECCB, Bissoondyal Singh, stated that the sponsorship from Carib Beer has been able to develop T20 cricket on the East Coast for the past three years. He noted that this year’s format will be a bit different from previous years, where the top four teams from the 2009 competition will engage each in a one-day festival to officially open the tournament.
“This will have no bearing on the actual competition. It’s just an initiative to get the tournament off and running. We expect all the matches to bring out the finesse, flair, and fantastic atmosphere that T20 cricket is known for,” Singh, who is a vice-president of the Guyana Cricket Board, explained.
He thanked the company for once again supporting the works of the ECCB while noting that corporate backing is critical to the development of sport.
Singh, who is also president of the Demerara Cricket Board, said that his Board plans to have all 26 grounds on the East Coast of Demerara operable so that they can be used during the competition.
Most of the venues are under thick vegetation due to the current inclement weather.
However, Singh stated that his executives will contact the various clubs to ensure that the grounds are in shape so that competitive cricket can resume.
The champion team will be rewarded with $100,000 and trophy with the runners-up collecting $50,000 and a trophy. The third and fourth placed teams will pocket $25,000 each.