Is Rose Hall Town Youth and Sports Club the best youth organisation in Guyana?

– Prime candidate for the GCB Club-of-the-Year award

By Brandon Corlette

The Guyana Cricket Board’s (GCB’s) 2018 Awards Ceremony is fast approaching, and the Rose Hall Town Youth and Sports Club (RHTYSC) of East Berbice (Region 6) may be in contention to cop The Cricket Club of the Year Award.

Primarily known for possessing one of the best cricket teams in Guyana, this youth organisation has dominated the various cricket tournaments played in Berbice in 2018; and has won the GCB Cricket Club of the Year Award in 2004, 2005, 2009, 2010 and 2016, in addition to receiving the International Olympic Committee Award for sports and the Rotary International Award for community development, both in 2011.
Another award received by the RHTYSC is the Medal of Service from the Government of Guyana in 2016.
The year 2018 has been another productive year for this illustrious cricket club, with it having won numerous Berbice Cricket Board (BCB) tournaments, among which are: the Ramnaresh Sarwan Under-17; the New York Business Group Under-19; Patrons’ Cup First Division; Sky Vodka T20 First Division; Naeem Nasir Memorial Second Division; Rafick’s 100-ball Second Division; Rhonda Lewis Memorial Second Division; Magic Moments T20 Second Division; the Brian Ramphal double- wicket, and the Pepsi 50 Over First Division tournaments.
In the ongoing Ivan Madray 100-ball tournament and the Busta-sponsored tournament, RHTYSC have thus far performed brilliantly, and may well be lifting those titles.
In the numerous finals in which the RHTYSC were involved, they were at a disadvantage in that they had to play away from home conditions at their Area H ground. Thirteen finals were played away from home conditions, in contrast to the two finals played at Area H.
The RHTYSC finished runners-up in these few tournaments: Mike’s Pharmacy Under-15 final, against Albion; Da Silva’s Under-13, against Port Mourant; and Elizabeth Styles’ Under-21, against Blairmont.

While the club has been winning tournaments, it has simultaneously been producing standout players who went on to represent the county of Berbice and were involved in the Cricket Guyana Inc. (CGI) Franchise tournament. In 2018, four RHTYSC players were in the Berbice Under-15 team; one was in the Berbice Under-17 team; four were in the Berbice Under-19 team, while nine of its male players participated in the CGI Franchise League. Additionally, five of its female players were in the Berbice Under-19 team, while eleven were in the Senior Berbice Female team.
Most of these players – both male and female — went on to represent Guyana at different levels. Three male players were in the Guyana Under-15 team, and three were in the Guyana Under-19 team; while six female players gained the opportunity to play for the Guyana Senior Team, and three female players were named in the Guyana Under-19 team.
Clinton Pestano, who has had a dream 2018 in the Guyana Jaguars colours, is one of the RHTYSC senior players. He played in the 2018-2019 Regional Super 50 tournament and picked up an unforgettable hat trick against the Trinidad and Tobago Red Force. He captured the wickets of West Indies star players Lendl Simmons, Dwayne Bravo and Keiron Pollard. Pestano’s impressive performance with the white ball has given him opportunity to play in the ongoing Cricket West Indies Regional 4-Day tournament, and he immediately has had an impact in the first game, scoring a glorious half-century and picking up six wickets in the match.
Axed Guyana Jaguars batsman Assad Fudadin is also a senior member of the RHTYSC team, and is currently representing the Jamaica Scorpions in the Regional 4-Day tournament. The youths of RHTYSC have been equally brilliant, with Jonathan Rampersaud (West Indies Under-15), Kevlon Anderson (West Indies Under-19), Shabika Gajnabi (West Indies female team) and Sheneta Grimmond earning themselves maiden call-ups to West Indies training camps.

Shemaine Campbell and Sheneta Grimmond were selected to play in the historic ICC stand-alone Women’s World T20 tournament, with the latter sustaining an injury. Kevin Sinclair has captained the Berbice Under-19 team and has captured the Most Valuable Player award, along with consistent left-arm spinner Keith Simpson. Jonathan Rampersaud – who at 14 years old was the youngest player to feature in the CGI Franchise League — copped the Most Valuable Player award in the Under-15 Inter-County tournament.
Having achieved so much, the RHTYSC has given back to its outstanding players and members of the society. The sports organisation has held an awards ceremony, and over 3 million dollars in cash and prizes were given to worthy recipients. Grassroots cricket is an important asset to an aspiring cricketer, and the RHTYSC has hosted a cricket academy for approximately 320 youths, with qualified coaches holding brainstorming sessions and sharing their knowledge.
With all this achievement, the Rose Hall Town Youth and Sports Club (RHTYSC) is among the elite cricket clubs in this country; and time will tell if the illustrious sports intuition would receive the well-deserved Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) Club-of-the-Year award.