Santa Cruz Sports Association says victory in the North Zone 40-over final on Saturday will be a victory for their community and over the negativity that exists in the North Trinidad village.
Santa Cruz Sports take on unbeaten El Socorro Youth Movement (EYM) in the final.
The match will be played at their home ground, the Brian Lara Recreation Ground in Santa Cruz, and the team hopes that victory in the final will bring a much-needed positive spark back into their community.
Santa Cruz on the Final
“One of the things that we are trying to do is to bring back a little positivity in the village. We are hoping it will create an impetus for us to launch a youth academy. We want to do that and we want the youths to know that there is hope outside of the negativity around,” team spokesman Glen Riley told northzonecricket.com.
“We want it more than ever. We are (high in confidence). We are trying to get the village to come out and support the final. We are going to make an announcement on the mike system on Friday. We had a session (Tuesday) and we have a session on Thursday in which Darren (Bravo) will be part of the training process also,” Riley added.
Riley said that Santa Cruz Sports Association has endured a dismal season in league play, but the addition of Bravo has fired up the team.
They went unbeaten in their last five games in the 40-over tournament and qualified before the final round of matches in the preliminary stage.
“It was a very disappointing league season but the guys put it together and started to come to training more and they were influenced by the likes of Darren (Bravo) coming onto the side and they stepped up their game. They had the ability, the same players, they just stepped up their game. And that is a good sign,” Riley said.
Riley explained that Bravo’s influence has lifted the teams’ performance level.
“With the experience that he has, and just him stepping on the field it was a motivating factor also with the other factors and they know that he is a person that does not like mediocrity. He likes to perform at a certain level and he gives out the same about just as everybody else in the training sessions and on the field,” he said
“He gives 100 percent. If they say five laps, he is making the five laps also. In the fielding, he is in the fielding session also. The catching, he is in it. Everything,” Riley added.
Riley said Bravo has been an excellent sounding board to club captain Christopher Kashma Mitchell, and ensured the team leadership dynamic was not altered when he joined his village team.
“Darren did not rush back into the team and take over the captaincy. He said let (Kashma) continue with the captaincy and he would work along with the players,” Riley.
Riley believes his team can beat El Socorro Youth Movement if they play at their best.
“I know they are a good team but once the players that we have perform, we could match any team in the whole league. Once our players perform at their optimum, we will give them a real run for their money. It won’t be easy,” he said.
EYM on meeting Santa Cruz
Santa Cruz Sports Association’s opponents in the final, EYM, said that Bravo’s presence must be respected given his fine qualities as a player.
“Darren Bravo will always be a factor for any team coming up against him. We know the caliber of player (he is). We know in the local fraternity, he has dominated for years, despite all his international stuff in the background,” said EYM President Ismahieel Ali.
“As a local player, we have to respect that but he is just one player out of the team. He has benefitted them over the last couple of weeks and they are definitely going to give us a good game. We are expecting a good turnout from his home fans as we are playing in their own den,” he added.
Ali said that his team has had a great run in 2024 and is looking forward to lifting another trophy for the season.
“It’s been a wonderful tournament so far for us coming off the two-day and getting into the 40-over limited-overs game. We’ve had six games, six victories on the trot, and coming up against Santa Cruz, who we have heard has strengthened up a bit with some experience in Darren Bravo and a couple of others,” he said.
“It’s another final for us, another opportunity for our players to continue the form and continue the dedication they have put into this season, and another trophy up for grabs.”
Ali said his team has had excellent performances from all his players during the season and he knows that any of his players can inspire them in the final.
“Every single game we would have counted on contributions from our top order, our middle order, our lower order, and then the bowlers. The bowlers have bowled in tandem. They have an idea of who is the leader and who needs to attack, who is to defend et cetera. They are well led by their captain Shakeel Prince and he has been leading them off and on the field,” he said.
The North Zone 40-over tournament final commences at noon on Saturday at the Brian Lara Recreation ground. The game will be streamed live on the North Zone’s YouTube channel.
The winner will receive $8,000, while the runners-up will cop $4,000.
The two second-placed clubs from the two qualification groups will receive $2,000.
