All at stake

When West Terrace Primary and Hillaby Turner’s Hall meet in the finals of the Herman Griffith Cricket Competition tomorrow, it will be the ultimate grudge match.

Everything will be on the line when the two teams meet at the historic Empire Cricket Ground, with Hillaby Turner’s Hall looking to capture their first ever Herman Griffith title, while West Terrace will be hoping to win their second, having won the competition in 2014 and finished runners-up in 2016.

The fact that there is a healthy rivalry between the two schools makes the matchup even more mouthwatering.

When they met in the National Sports Council’s Six-for-Six Softball Cricket Tournament two months ago, Hillaby Turner’s Hall emerged victorious on their way to winning the competition.

However, West Terrace got their revenge when they defeated them by 18 runs in the preliminary round of the Herman Griffith competition after they were drawn in the same zone.

Physical education teacher at West Terrace, Rodrick Harmon, told Barbados TODAY he had all confidence in his “talented team”.

“At the end of the day it will boil down to how the boys are feeling, but once we play the type of cricket we’ve been playing all season I think we will be ok. From the quarterfinals we played some really good teams and I’m glad the boys held their nerves and stuck to what they were taught and were able to pull through,” Harmon said.

Raheem Archer’s century in 2014, led West Terrace to their first ever Herman Griffith title. (FP)

“We played them in the six-a-side in tournament and they beat us but we played them in the early rounds in the Herman Griffith and we won that, so it will be interesting to see what happens tomorrow.

“But I believe that once we play true to form we should be fine because it’s a talented side. We have two openers in Roni Watson and Treshea Rogers who have been impressive and very consistent scorers, while fast bowler Jazario Adamson-Forde and off-spinner Anahri Hinds have also been very consistent as well,” he added.

Meanwhile, physical education teacher at Hillaby Turner’s Hall, Dexter Gill told Barbados TODAY his side’s chances of lifting the title were as good as West Terrace’s.

He lauded the performance of the team, and revealed that the school had never made it past the quarterfinals of the competition.

“Our chances of winning are just as good as West Terrace’s, 50/50. It could go either way so we will have to wait until tomorrow after the final ball is bowled to see, but I’m pretty confident in the team because of the way the boys performed throughout the season. The basics are there and I can’t go in there with any doubts.

“I would have to say that our team is a balanced team because each member plays an important role. I’m not applying any pressure on the boys. I told them to go out there, give of their best and enjoy the game and we will see who is victorious,” Gill said.

“I’m not going into the game fearful because they beat us in that one game. It was a close game so I know they are formidable opponents, but I also know we can beat them.”

randybennett@barbadostoday.bb