Tony Becca, Contributor
Jamaica Gleaner.com
Congratulations are in order for Jamaica's cricketers for staying the course, riding their luck, and for winning the Headley/Weekes Trophy, a competition which, to some people, especially the Jamaicans, is the symbol of cricket supremacy in the region.
To others, however, especially the Barbadians, the symbol is the WICB's President's Cup.
It seems, according to the Board, that there are once again two cups - one for winning the preliminary round, or the league, and one for winning the play-off among the top four, or the knockout section.
Whatever it is, Jamaica are the champions of something, if somewhat luckily so.
After their first five matches in the league, Jamaica, winners of the title, at least one of them, on 12 previous occasions, were considered by many, who did not know that there are two titles up for grabs this time around, out of the running earlier on, having won only two and lost as many as three of their matches.
Led by captain Tamar Lambert, the man who seems to do nothing wrong while leading Jamaica, and favoured by a schedule which saw them going up against the outsiders in the competition, the non-territorial team, the Combined Campuses and Colleges, however, the team recovered to beat the CCC and to inch into the semi-finals, or rather the other competition.
There, as the fourth-placed team, they escaped by the skin of their teeth against Barbados and earned the most bonus points in a drawn match against the Windward Islands to win one of the titles.
Jamaicans, the same ones who took the team to task after the first five matches and criticised the selectors for some of those selected, are now lifting their glasses in a salute to the team's success. After all, according to them, they won the title and they made it six out of the last seven titles at that.
They really won a title, however, and may be they made it six in seven years.
Winning, however, whether from tape to tape, wire to wire, or just in the nick of time, is good, very good, and kudos to Lambert for being the leader most of the time, including the times when he was substituted by more successful cricketers who were considered better leaders, but who, despite their Test credentials as players, failed to deliver.
Leadership, it is said, is not inherited, nor is it necessarily gained by experience - of playing matches at a higher level, and it certainly is not bought or cannot be bought.
The Lambert connection aside, however, the team's performance, although it won the title, was ordinary, very ordinary.
Over recent years, the batting has let down Jamaica, and the fielding has been up and down. The bowling, however, particularly of Nikita Miller and Odean Brown, was superb, and that was the main reason for the country's success.
This year, the batting was again poor, especially with Chris Gayle and Marlon Samuels out of the team, with Samuels appearing only once.
The batting was up and down, and mostly down, with only wicketkeeper Carlton Baugh and Jermaine Blackwood batting with any consistency, and, to a point, the highly rated, Nkrumah Bonner.
All the others looked good but they all only played a good innings here and there with Lambert getting 121 against Barbados in the semi-finals.
Blackwood, however, was not only consistent, but he ended up being a fairly prolific scorer, scoring 94 and 118 not out in the final against the Windward Islands, once in the first innings total of 392 when the team started shakily, and secondly, in the second innings when the team scratched its way to a total of 200 runs.
A bit too hasty
At present, Blackwood, a lovely stroke player, seems a bit too hasty in going for his shots. At age 22, however, that is understandable. Like young Sunil Ambris of the Windward Islands, who impressed with a fine innings of 81 in the second innings at Sabina Park and followed that with 102 in the second innings of the final, and like Jonathon Carter of Barbados, he appears one for the future.
The bowling, however, was not as good as in previous years, but congrats to right-arm leg-spinner, Damion Jacobs for a wonderful debut season.
With Brown out due to injury, and Miller not enjoying the success of previous years, Jacobs grabbed the spotlight with eight wickets for 47 runs off 22 overs in the first innings, not, according to the Board, of the regional tournament, but in the final of the Headley/Weekes Trophy.
It was, however, as reported, beautiful bowling. With the Windward Islands going well at 155 without loss, Jacobs stepped up to the plate, picked up the first six wickets, and destroyed them for 242.
The match was virtually decided then and there.
Jamaica won the title, or a title, and the team of representatives deserved a happy home-coming, especially after the performances of Baugh and Lambert in dicey situations, John Campbell and Andre McCarthy in one or two instances, and Bonner, Blackwood, and Jacobs in the final of the Headley/Weekes Trophy.
In my humble opinion, however, Jamaica were unlucky, extremely unlucky, last year not to win the regional title.
After winning three and losing three matches this year, Jamaica finished in fourth position on 59 points, behind Barbados, who defeated them and finished in first position on 82 points. They then clipped Barbados by one wicket after a batting collapse in the last innings of the semi-final match, falling from a confident 111 for two to 155 for nine before squeezing to victory.
And in the final, in the match for the Headley/Weekes Trophy, they drew with the Windward Islands, who had defeated them in the preliminary round.
Going for a perfect six in six regional titles years last year, they finished the preliminary round with a perfect six from six matches, and finished in first position with a perfect 72 points. They were then was forced into a knockout after the league, however, played the fourth-placed Trinidad and Tobago, and lost to them in the semi-finals.
On that occasion, Jamaica lost one match only, lost the competition, and never won a title. This year, they lost three matches, won four, drew one, and won a title with scores which included 194 and 275, 204 and 136, 180 and 98, and 182 and 215, plus two collapses, one in the semis and one in the final, and both in the second innings.
Victory is sweet, especially if it is achieved after a good competition and good results.
Winning a first-class cricket tournament, or whatever, without playing Senior Cup cricket, without a two-day competition, is a wonderful achievement, however, even if, as seen and as reported, the general standard of the tournament was poor.
