Should cricket in any circumstance come before school? That is the question that has arisen in relation to the scheduling of regional youth cricket tournaments, and most notably the NorTel Under-19 Cricket Tournament.
The staging of the 1998 NorTel Tournament in Trinidad during the July/August vacation has brought this issue to the fore.
The NorTel Tournament has traditionally been scheduled for the summer vacation to allow adequate time for the series and team preparation, with minimal loss of time for school work.
The matches are played over the three days to give the players as much exposure as possible. Consequently, the entire tournament was scheduled to run for four weeks with orientation, three preliminary rounds, a championship round, a round for minor placings and an All-Star Game against past NorTel players.
Such an extensive cricket programme is vital to the development of the players for the very near future. In fact, some talented players can be expected to strengthen West Indies senior teams before the dawn of the new millennium.
These players must also be prepared for the international Youth Cricket Tournaments. And it is not just cricket, there is an educational tour and the NorTel All Stars spend an additional week in a personal development seminar.
This year the heavy rains in Trinidad resulted in a tournament that was reduced to one-day games following much frustration from rained-out fixtures.
The Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board of Control (TTCBC) had requested a switch to April/May as was the case for NorTel tournaments held in Trinidad many years ago.
While the weather would have been drier, the WICB did not move the tournament because of increasing educational concerns. Nevertheless, the TTCBC who had not hosted the NorTel Tournament since 1990 decided to proceed with the tournament in July.
While the rains in Trinidad may have been heavier and more persistent than usual, July/August is the rainy season there and throughout the region. Some commentators have therefore asked ``why won't the WICB permanently shift NorTel to the Easter vacation when it is drier?''
Therein lies a dilemma which the WICB has also faced in relation to the Under-15 tournament. Playing the tournament in the Easter vacation impinges on school time to complete the matches, without even considering team preparation and the development seminar. Some have argued that if these players are serious about a career in cricket, their best option is to miss some school so that they can get that precious exposure that comes only once a year compliments of NorTel.
The WICB's position is that it has a responsibility to encourage the development of the total person and an education is important for both the player and the team. Players need to invest their time in a good education to be more successful professional sportsmen and for a secure livelihood and self-esteem after their cricket career, particularly if it is short-lived.
With this policy in mind the WICB is planning to move its Under-15 tournament away from the April/May period to July or August in 1999. The April/May timing has resulted in some clashes with the school term.
The Board recognises that in some cases young players are being totally immersed in cricket during the time that they should be in school, and would like to see an end to this approach. Some may make the comparison with Olympic-bound young gymnasts in Europe and North America.
However, these young athletes are enrolled in specially designed academic programmes with personal tutors, as is the practice for minors in the entertainment industry.
A personalised academic programme could be considered by territorial boards in the future, but significant funding and the sanction and support of local educational authorities and parents would be key prerequisites. In the interim what do we do about? While the weather in Trinidad may have been worse than usual, the summer schedule could mean that countries like Trinidad with heavy rainfall in July/August will have to be ruled out as hosts for these tournaments.