10 Upper Corentyne cricketers receive Patron Educational grants
- Dennis D’Andrade re-elected unopposed as President
Long-serving cricket administrator Dennis D’Andrade was on Wednesday re-elected President of the Upper Corentyne Cricket Association (UCCA) when the association held its biennial elections at the Skeldon Community Centre Ground.
D’Andrade and his entire slate were re-elected on a 19-0 vote, as clubs in the area rewarded them for the outstanding work they are doing in the largest sub-association in the county of Berbice.
Others elected were former national player Sydney Jackman as Vice-President, Reeaz Hakim as Secretary and Victor Thakurdeen as Treasurer, while Lawrence Mentis would serve as the Assistant Secretary/Treasurer.
The newly-elected President committed his executives to continuing the outstanding work they are doing and stated that they would hit the ground running with three new cricket tournaments in the next few weeks and the hosting of several developmental programmes, including a social skills seminar and mini academy.
He hailed the outstanding cooperation of Berbice Cricket Board President, Hilbert Foster, who has visited the area, a total of 107 times on cricket related matters since his election to the position almost four years ago.
Vice-President Jackman had earlier provided a comprehensive report to the clubs on the outstanding work of the association with special emphasis on several tournaments played, assistance received from the BCB, developmental programmes and sponsorships obtained in an aggressive marketing drive.
Like the President, Jackman hailed the hard work of Foster in making sure that cricket in the Upper Corentyne area is always on the move.
Jackman stated that in his entire involvement in the game for over 60 years, he has never seen a more progressive leader, who is passionate about the development of the game and players.
The elections were done in the presence of Cricket Ombudsman Malcom Peters, who verified the clubs present before the AGM and elections.
Meanwhile, 10 youth cricketers from the area received educational grants totally G$100,000 from the BCB under its Patron Trust Fund.
Those receiving the grants were Trevon Sukhu, Gibeon Yacoob, Alameen Khan, Keshan Khan, Venus James, Gobin Doodnauth, Charran Singh, Jeremiah Joseph, Abbas Khan and Orlando Joseph.
Foster congratulated the youngsters on being selected to receive the grants and spoke on the importance of education as a key factor in becoming a successful cricketing career.
With hundreds of youngsters over the last four years benefitting from massive investments in education by his board, Foster announced that more emphasis would be placed on making sure that all Berbice cricketers complete their educational careers.
He praised the cooperation of BCB Patron Vickram Bharrat, who is sponsoring the educational grants along with the hosting of social skills seminars across the county for youth cricketers.
UCCA President Dennis D’Andrade expressed thanks to the BCB for investing heavily into the education of players in the area and noted that the association would continue to follow the progress made by the players in their respective schools.
