|
By Keith Holder
IT is not what
many fans would have anticipated until the last four
teams had been determined but after a very long wait
for more than a decade-and-a-half, ICBL Empire and
Super Centre Spartan, the two most revered teams in
local cricket, are meeting in the final of the
island’s top limited overs championship again.
The fact that this
is only the third time in 32 seasons for such a
clash in the Sagicor General Super Cup championship
– known prior to 2004 as the Barbados Fire Cup - a
very big crowd is expected to pack the Carlton
ground at Black Rock on October 22.
Spartan were
champions on the other two occasions – 1975 and
1990.
Hardly anyone
would have dared to predict an Empire-Spartan
showdown for the 2006 climax, based on the
indifferent form Spartan exhibited in the latter
stages of the preliminaries, along with a poor
First division season during which they finished
11th of 16 teams.
On the contrary,
Empire were as consistent as ever. They agonisingly
failed to reach the final of the revamped Division 1
championship which was split in two zones, and
eventually finished third. But they ended the
preliminaries of the Super Cup as the only unbeaten
team and duly advanced to their fifth final in the
last seven seasons and eighth all told.
Spartan won their
first three matches in the one-day tournament but
never tasted victory again until the quarter-finals
against new First division champions Caribbean
Lumber YMPC. It was due in a very big way to two of
the over 30s brigade, Hattian Graham and Dave
Marshall.
The former
Barbados players, better known for their bowling –
Graham as a pacer and Marshall, a leg-spinner –
buckled down in old-time fashion like their life
depended on it to spur Spartan to a two-wicket win
at Beckles Road when everything seemed lost.
Their unfinished
ninth wicket partnership of 85 will remain a talking
point for a long time as they hauled Spartan around
from 52 for eight in pursuit of 136.
The rest as they
say is now history.
So what should one
expect in the final? Based on recent performances,
three-time champions Empire are favourites to retain
the title but Spartan will argue they have lost only
once in nine finals, and that their record eight
titles must be respected.
Statistics in the
last seven seasons, however, more than count for
Bank Hall-based Empire as they have beaten the
Parkites in five of six one-day matches.
Empire won by four
wickets off the very last ball at Bank Hall in 2000
as they chased 229 in a rain-hit semi-final which
was reduced to 38 overs a side; by 107 runs in a
quarter-final at Queen’s Park in 2001 after amassing
338 for nine; by six wickets in the semi-finals at
Bank Hall in 2003; by 54 runs again at Bank Hall in
the second round in 2005 and by 43 runs at the same
venue in Round 4 this season.
Spartan’s only
victory during that period was by 18 runs in the
quarter-finals at Bank Hall in 2004 when 508 runs
were scored for the loss of 16 wickets.
Empire captain
Jason Haynes expressed confidence of a win.
“We are always
excited to play against Spartan. There is rivalry
dating back for decades now. They are two teams who
traditionally do well and any clash between the two
is known as the derby, so we are eagerly looking
forward to it. We have great rivalry all the time so
it should be a good game,” he said.
“The team has some
all-round depth. We have batting all the way down to
No. 11. Most of the guys have first-class experience
and guys who are upcoming and promising Barbados and
West Indies players. I think we stand a very good
chance of winning.”
His opposite
number Sulieman Benn reckoned the fighting spirit of
Spartan should serve them well.
“We have had a
rough tournament in the three-day season but our
one-day tournament has been decent. We have been
fighting ourselves to get here but we are here
nonetheless,” Benn asserted.
“We have the
momentum going. We just need to get a consistent and
good XI together.”
Teams (from):
Empire – Jason
Haynes (captain), Jason Parris (vice-captain), Ryan
Hinds, Shawn Graham, Kevin Stoute, Alcindo Holder,
Robin Parris, Jamal Smith, Javon Searles, Ryan
Nurse, Amory Holder, Marlon Blagrove, Andre Evelyn,
Ian Perryman, Andre Tudor.
Spartan – Sulieman
Benn (captain), Wayne Blackman (vice-captain), Shane
Browne, Corey Yearwood, Rohand Nurse, Mark Trotman,
Livingstone Puckerin, Hattian Graham, Dave Marshall,
Damien Maynard, Philip Browne, Omar Marshall, Sean
Hunte, Edson Benn, Andrew Layne.
Umpires: Andrew
Corbin, Anthony Farrell, Ricardo Harrison, Anthony
DePeiza.
Duckworth/Lewis
Administrator: Patrick Grazette.
Match referee:
Vincent Lashley.
Man-of-the-Match
adjudicator: Livingstone Coppin.
Prize Money:
Champions $10 000; Runners-up: $7 000.
Admission: $5. NB:
Children will be admitted free.
Start: 9.30 a.m.
CUP
CHAMPIONS/RUNNERS-UP
Year Champions
Runners-up
1975 Spartan
Empire
1976 Spartan Banks
1977 Maple
Carlton
1978 St. Catherine
Banks
1979 Banks
Barclays
1980 Maple
Banks
1981 BCL Banks
1982 Spartan Maple
1983 Yorkshire
Wanderers
1984 BCL
Carlton
1985 Spartan Maple
1986 BCL YMPC
1987 BCL
Yorkshire
1988 Spartan
Carlton
1989 Carlton St.
Catherine
1990 Spartan
Empire
1991 Police YMPC
1992 St. Catherine
Police
1993 Empire
Wanderers
1994 Police
Pickwick
1995 YMPC
Spartan
1996 St. Catherine
C&W (BET)
1997 Spartan YMPC
1998 No Final
1999 C&W (BET)
Police
2000 C&W (BET)
Empire
2001 Empire
Carlton
2002 Spartan YMPC
2003 Police
Empire
2004 Pickwick BCL
2005 Empire St.
Catherine
|
