DCA hosted Antigua North Side Cricket Academy at the DCAA in Portsmouth; December 11 to 16

​The Dominica Cricket Association (DCA) hosted the North Side Cricket Academy from Antigua, at the Dominica Cricket Association Academy (DCAA) in Portsmouth, from December 11 to 16, 2016.
 
According to a release, through the efforts of Alfredo Frederick and Risha Farrell in Antigua, and Sam Kirnon, the DCAA Coach; a contingent of 12 players, one (1) Coach, eight (8) parents and two (2) siblings of the players, gave Dominica’s sports tourism product a further boost.  The team was also accompanied by its PRO, Clinton Bynoe, who is originally from Portsmouth.
 
Ridley Jacobs, Manager/Coach of North Side, said he made a trip ahead of this one in order to finalize arrangements.  “I came in before to meet with Sam and ensure that everything was in place for this trip, and we are very pleased with the preparation of the grounds. Dominica just has a good atmosphere for playing cricket.  This is our first trip outside of Antigua as a group. We chose Dominica because it is natural, and we are really excited to be here,” he said.
 
On December 12, the visiting team played a combined Under 13 & 15 team, winning handsomely after 25 overs with 118 runs, against the local team’s 46 runs.  On December 13, they had an even game against the Kalinago Territory; with the Kalinago Territory getting all out for 72; Antigua scoring 72 for 6, again in 25 overs. 
 
In the third match against a Roseau Cluster at the Botanical Gardens on December 14, the Roseau team was 47 for 8, off 20 overs, while Antigua was 48 without loss, from 5 overs.  Seventeen-year old Shawnisha Britney Hector captured the “Player of the Match” title, taking four wickets for four runs.  She was the only female on the visiting team, and one of only three female members of the Academy.  She is also a former Captain of the Leeward Islands Women’s Senior Team.
 
The North Side Cricket Academy consists of players between the ages of 4 and 19, but there is no minimum age requirement; the only criterion is that you want to play cricket. North Side provided each “Player of the Match” with iPads, and also made donations of cash and other items, including ties, to the teams they played, their Managers and their best players.