Belize to Host Central American Cricket Championship Tournament
Goodnight and welcome to this week’s edition of Sports Monday, I am Paul Lopez. There is a huge regional cricket tournament to be played in Belize later this week. Teams from four countries, including Mexico, Costa Rica and England, will go head to head with the Belize Men’s National Cricket Team to see who will be crowned the 2023 Central American Cricket Champion. I travelled to Bermudian Landing in Belize River Valley to find out more.
Paul Lopez, Reporting
The sport of cricket is more than just a game for residents in the Belize River Valley. Their dedication to the discipline is unmatched in Belize. Most of the athletes on the Belize National Cricket Team have been playing the game since childhood.
Kenton Young
Kenton Young, Captain, Belize National Cricket Team
“I am from right here, Bermudian Landing and I have been playing cricket since I was a toddler. I can’t remember the exact age, but from I could remember I was playing cricket.”
Gareth Banner
Gareth Banner, Member, Belize National Cricket Team
“I am from Lemonal and I have been playing cricket since I was a young child growing up.”
Andy Dominquez
Andy Dominquez, Member, Belize National Cricket Team
“I am from Double Head Cabbage and I the play cricket from childhood coming up. We born eena it from we older siblings coming up, my grandpa. He always tell we he want we grow up and he the watch we the play cricket so we just carry on fih he legacy weh he mih want so.”
On Sunday, the Belize National Cricket team faced off against the Marleybone Cricket Club in Bermudian Landing. The club arrived from England on Saturday, ahead of the Central American Championship Tournament that starts on Thursday in the village.
Tim Cooper
Tim Cooper, Tour Manager, Marylebone Cricket Club
“The M.C.C. or the Marleybone Cricket Club in the world. The MCC is also three things in cricket. It is the owner of the laws of the game. So we are responsible for amendments to the laws of the game and incorporating those into the laws of the game. We are also the owners and the arbiters in the Lord’s Cricket Ground. Lord Cricket Ground is world famous as the home of cricket. We run that institution with all its history and all the tradition. We also are fundamentally the development of the game across the world.”
The Belize National Cricket Team has won two championships over the years and its eyes are set on a third. Doctor Roy Young the President of the Belize National Cricket Association says the team was formed from some of the top players in the ongoing national cricket tournament.
Roy Young
Dr. Roy Young, President, Belize National Cricket Association
“These guys are from I think six or seven teams overall. We try to have it open to anyone who wants to participate. But of course we try to target those who do well in the tournaments or are doing well in terms of batting and bowling and fielding and we make a call for players to come and try out and based on who come out and practice we select the players. So we have a good cadre of players for this tournament. That is the A team, also for the B team we are trying to have more participation from the younger players. Because we are at home, we could afford them that opportunity.”
The four-day tournament will be played at two venues, Bermudian Landing and Lord’s Bank with an average of two games per day at each location.
Kenton Young
“I mean it always a pleasure to represent your country. First and foremost I love Belize. I love playing for Belize and representing Belize, simply Belizean you know. It is truly an honor to play. We had a tournament before that we didn’t get to go, so it is nice to come out and play some games now.”
Andy Dominquez
“Dah wah big plus towards me, because I got my son coming up and I want my son look after my foot step and thing suh.”
Gareth Banner
“You can make a huge glow up for yourself, inspire others and play for team Belize. You can play outside on another team.”
Dr. Roy Young
“The spirit of the game is our lifeline. What we try to do is to bring people together and the spirit of the game yes is to develop sportsmanship and it is a game that we shouldn’t be fighting, quarreling and so on. So, we try to keep it that way. In one of our tournament we give an award for the team with the best sport man, the team with the best sportsman.”
Be sure to look out for that tournament later this week. The fourteenth season of the Anthony Mahler Mundialito Tournament kicked off on Saturday morning at the new and improved, Berger Field in Belize City. Work is still ongoing to complete the refurbishment of the venue. Notwithstanding the repairs left to be done, it was game on as twelve under-thirteen male teams and six female teams took to the pitch. In the first match of the day, it was Belize United against Reality Youth FC.
Richard Nunez
Richard Nunez, Head Coach, Reality Youths
“We dah from the Collet Area in Queen Square from Hostel Field. We start off with a couple of the guys. We took them to a join a certain team and when we sit down and decide that this thing easy we could make a team for ourselves. So, dah suh we get into it and get our own team.”
Shaughnessy Briceño
Shaughnessy Briceño, Assistant Coach, Belize United FC
“The kids have expressed a very wide affection for the game. It is not just about playing passing, the drills. When we are at training we implement the fact that they have to work together. There is a lot of culture in football, especially on the Southside.”
That game ended one –nil in favor of Belize United FC. Here is a look at how that winning goal went down. A ball to the midfield is killed by number seven, young Clive Medwood. He passes to number eleven Jonathon Garay who continues to push down the middle, passes it to Gordon who fires. Ball is still alive and number nine, Norman Munoz, is positioned for the kill!
In the second game of the day it was Royal Fusion Girls against Unity Presbyterian Girls. This is the first season that has the participation of female teams. Royal Fusion throws in the ball from the left field. Number fifteen, Shanalee Smith takes control and pushes towards the goal. She is in the penalty box, shoots and scores. Goal number two, Royal Fusion’s Amina Burgess tackles the defender near the penalty box. Unity Presbyterian’s number eight attempts to clear the ball, taken away by Burgess who shoots and scores. Ball thrown in, Burgess takes control and she passes it to Kevlyn Stevens for the one touch, stumbles into the penalty box, regains control and scores.That one ended seven goals to one in favor of Royal Fusion.
Sakenah Lopez
Sakenah Lopez, Head Coach, Royal Fusion FC
“I was very happy when they say they were going to have females. I said yes because finally we are entering you know. We are in that process developing more females, brining out more females for the love of the game.”
The third match of the day was between the Ladyville Rising Stars and Hattieville United. Number six for Rising Stars with the ball on the right corner, just outside the penalty box. He fires at the goal keeper. That is an easy goal. In another big goal for Rising Stars, number nine Fredrick Garbutt takes control of the ball at the center field, leaves one defender behind, shakes off another, drops a third defender. He makes it into the penalty box, shoots and scores! That game ended four goals to one in favor of Ladyville Rising Stars. All eighteen teams played on that day.
Anthony Mahler
Anthony Mahler, Minister of Tourism
“As you can see this changes the whole dynamics of this are and that is what we wanted t do, to showcase that the south side can have facilities like and they deserve the best that we can offer.”
And now for some quick updates from the Belize Elite Basketball League. Over the weekend the Belmopan Red Taigaz took on the Orange Walk Running Rebels and lost that game. Rebels defeated them ninety-nine to ninety-three points. The Belize City Defenders played a home game against the Punta Gorda Panthers and blew them out of the Civic, one hundred and five to sixty points. In the West, Benny’s Belize Hurricanes traveled to San Ignacio to take on the Western Ballaz. They won that game eighty-two to sixty-eight points. Also, San Pedro Tiger Sharks defeated Griga Dream Ballaz seventy-six to seventy-two.
Well folks, that is all we have for you in tonight’s Sports Monday. Until next time, be mindful that nature is the best playground. Go out and have some fun.
