PORT-OF-SPAIN, Trinidad, CMC:
TWO Jamaican cricket trainers, David Bernard Snr. and Andre Coley, are among 15 regional coaches now taking part in a four-day fielding course in Trinidad organised by the West Indies cricket Board.
Bernard Snr., a former national senior team footballer, has been the physical trainer for Jamaica's cricket team for a number of years and has assisted with the fitness level of the regional team. He is the father of West Indies and Jamaica allrounder, David Bernard Jnr.
Coley is a former national cricket representative who served as assistant and head coach of Canada in the just-concluded Red Stripe Bowl.
Both himself and Bernard Snr. were members of the coaching staff at the inaugural George Headley Centre of Excellence Mini Academy which was hosted by the Jamaica Cricket Association at G.C. Foster last summer.
Five former West Indies Test cricketers are also taking part in the exercise.
The five are Ian Allen, Keith Arthurton, Winston Benjamin, Ezra Moseley and David Williams.
SESSIONS
The sessions that started yesterday, are taking place at the Sir Frank Worrell Development Centre.
Timothy Coyle, state manager of Game Development at the Tasmanian Cricket Association in Australia, is facilitating the course.
Debideen Manick, a WICB certified coach, will assist him.
"Conducting a fielding course at this time reflects the importance that the WICB is attaching to fielding as part of the modern game," remarked Dr. Michael Seepersaud, the Chief Cricket Development Officer of the WICB.
"At the end of the course, participants should be able to demonstrate competence in all areas of fielding, teach fielding skills relevant to the modern game, apply sequencing methodologies and a wide variety of fielding drills to the teaching of fielding skills, and utilise fielding techniques in planning strategy and tactics for various game scenarios."
Dr. Seepersaud added that the WICB will continue in its endeavour to improve the quality of coaching in all of the cricket disciplines, and the cricketing public should expect to see further programmes in biomechanics, fielding, batting, bowling and wicket-keeping.
The other coaches taking part are: Orin Bailey and Vibert Johnson (Guyana), Clifton Phillips (Barbados), Raymond Duncan (Grenada), Ralston Otto and Spencer Hanley (Antigua & Barbuda), Aneil Rajah and Roland Sampath (Trinidad & Tobago).
