The Georgetown Cricket Association (GCA) and Demerara Distillers Limited (DDL) will team up to undertake the First Division 50-Over competition.
The event was launched at the Everest Cricket Club on Thursday and will be used as a platform for young cricketers to enhance their talents.
At the launching ceremony, DDL Brand Manager Larry Wills stressed the significance of the competition and the company’s support.
GCA representative Roger Harper
“Demerara Distillers Limited – our Pepsi brand – is very happy to sponsor our First-Division Pepsi Tournament. Now we know that this tournament is very pivotal… helps to select the senior team for Essequibo, Demerara, and Berbice respectively and so we are very happy to be a part of it. It is difficult to have sponsors jumping in their own free will, and assisting these lower-end competitions,” Wills said.
He added that everyone should focus on the big stage, but at the same time, the grassroots programmes must not be neglected.
“The grassroots programme, whether it’s for the children or for the First Division, helps the board to make decisions that really and truly impact the team and its performance at the end of the day.”
GCA representative Roger Harper underscored the significance of the sponsorship and more so, the event in developing cricket in Georgetown.
DDL Brand Manager Larry Wills
“Georgetown Cricket Association has a history of effectively and efficiently running cricket competitions. So, I would like to assure Wills and DDL that we will continue that way and we are really appreciative of DDL, and Pepsi in particular, partnering with us to sponsor and run off this 50-over First-Division competition,” Harper said.
He added that it had been a while since GCA was able to run off a First-Division competition, stressing the importance of pulling off a well-executed competition.
“We look forward to giving our youths the opportunity to showcase their skills and out of it we hope that a lot of young talent [emerges] and [we be] better able to strengthen cricket in Demerara, Guyana, and West Indies as a whole,” he declared.
The tournament will see nine clubs battling for supremacy as the teams will be divided into two zones: Zone A – consisting of Malteenoes Cricket Club, GNIC, the Muslim Youth Organisation Club, Guyana Defence Force, and Police with each team facing off on a round-robin basis and Zone B – consisting of Georgetown Cricket Club, Transport, Demerara Cricket Club and Everest Cricket Club with teams playing each other twice.
The two teams with the most points in each zone will advance to the semi-finals and thus the winners will then advance to the final.
A powerplay policy has been developed with the implementation of the international standard powerplay.
With the main focus on pace bowling, the teams are permitted to bowl 20 overs of pace within the 50 overs, failing thus the team will penalised and 10 runs an over will be added on to the batting side.
The first match is set for Saturday with Demerara Cricket Club coming up against Everest Cricket Club.
