RHTY&SC invests heavily into youth cricket development programme

Founded in September 1990 by the award-winning St Francis Community Developers, the Rose Hall Town Youth and Sports Club (RHTY&SC) has, over the years, developed into one of Guyana’s leading cricket clubs.
The club has won a total of 125 cricket tournaments at all levels and has also produced 124 players for Berbice and Guyana while a total of 16 has gone on to play for either the West Indies or the United States of America.
The club has stated that its success over the last 34 years has been based on a formula of sheer hard work, dedication, visionary leadership, and proper forward planning.
As the RHTY&SC enters its 35th year, management has taken a decision to invest heavily in the development of new cricketing talent at the junior level (between the ages of 11 and 15). The cricket development management committee, led by veteran administrator Robby Kissoonlal and including Keith Hicks and Tyrone Pottaya, is responsible for the special project with the assistance of Coach Ryan Kissoonlal.
The committee intends to attract at least 60 new cricket talents into the RHTY&SC membership, to arrange several development programmes and to obtain the necessary equipment/gear needed for the coaching staff. The club on Wednesday last receive a six feet by 4 feet batting mat that would be used by the youth cricketers in the batting cage on the concrete pitch.

RHTY&SC Secretary Hilbert Foster stated that the expensive batting mat would allow the youth cricketers to practice all year around despite the weather conditions and allow the coaches to conduct one-on-one sessions. The batting mat would also reduce the damage to the balls on the bare concrete pitch. The club also received a 120-foot practice net, compliments of former Under-19 player Sharma Sukhdeo. Sukhdeo, who now resides in the United States of America, is a strong supporter of the club and readily agreed to donate the practice net which would be used around the batting cage. The RHTY&SC now has a total of four practice nets at its disposal.
The club now has four additional practice sets for the Under-13 players. The plastic kits are mainly used by players who are playing the game for the first time and are being taught how to play the game properly by coaches. Foster disclosed that the RHTY&SC now has a total of 20 sets and plans to obtain more in the future. Dozens of cricket balls were also shipped from the USA, with sponsorship from overseas-based Guyanese Rendrick Batson, a former RHTY&SC First-Division Captain Feroze Islam and US-based Cricket Zone store owner Ravi Etwaroo. The balls would be used for coaching sessions, junior elite training and practice matches among the youths. The club has also invested in fielding equipment, a bowling machine, catching cribs, exercise equipment among others in an effort to produce all-round players.
Additionally, Foster stated that the club invests heavily into its membership by assisting with personal cricket gear, uniforms, educational materials, bicycles, and electronic tablets among others. Membership to the club is free.
The club has also invested heavily in the upkeep of the Area H Ground for the restart of the 2024 season by repainting the two side screens, constructing over 300 feet of boundary boards and planting grass at selected spots. The RHTY&SC has also sought and received assistance from the Region Six Regional Democratic Council (RDC) to undertake urgent repairs to the main pavilion. A $800,000 mobile grass cutter was also recently purchased with the assistance of Dr Frank Denbow and Panthera Solutions Inc.
The Area H Ground is the home venue for players like Kevin Sinclair, Kevlon Anderson, Junior Sinclair, Shemaine Campbell, Shabika Gajnabi and Sheneta Grimmond, who are 2024 Caribbean Premier League (CPL) players.