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WEEK ENDING MARCH 6, 2016 | guyanatimeSinternational.com
GFSCA to field 3 Wintz looking for more teams at Florida Cup opportunities in CPL 4
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Amrit Rai
he annual Florida Cup is slated for March 1113 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, USA, and the Guyana Floodlight Softball Cricket Association (GFSCA) will field three teams at the competition. This year the Guyana Consulate in Miami in collaboration with South Florida Softball Cricket League (SFSCL) is hosting the tournament as Guyana celebrates 50 years of Independence. Preliminary rounds in the Masters and Open categories will be played at Brian Picollo Park in Cooper City on March 11 and 12. Both category finals will be played on March 13 at the Fort Lauderdale Cricket Stadium. This year, the GFSCA will feature
three teams. GFSCA’s Wolf Warriors will be making their debut in the Open Category, while Floodlights and Floodlights Legends will be playing in the Masters. GFSCA’s Wolf Warriors were champions of the Open, while Floodlights were champions of the Masters in the 2014 edition of Guyana Softball Cup 4, played in Guyana. Floodlights were also champions in New York at 2015 Independence and Legends Cup when they defeated Regal Masters in the final. F l o o d l i g h t s , Floodlights Legends and GFSCA’s Wolf Warriors are expected to give fierce competition to the teams from Florida, New York and Canada. Regal, also from Guyana, is expected to play. The three GFSCA teams are very confident of lifting both Open and Masters titles of Florida Cup 2016. GFSCA’s Wolf Warriors will feature some of Guyana’s top softball players in captain Amrit Rai, Mark Harold, Azad Azeez, Safraz Karim and Reaz Karim among others. Floodlights and Floodlights Legend will also feature some reputable players in
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Ramo Malone
the Masters, such as Ramchand Ragbeer, Lakhram Singh, Lalta Gainda, Ramo Malone, Jagdesh Persaud, Jailall Deodass, Uniss Yusuf, Kenrick Persaud, Ramesh Sunich, Surendra Nauth, Steve Narine, Poran Singh, Lloyd Rooplall, Pithamber Maharaj, Anil Beharry, Ago Gopaul, Ricky Deonarain, Goordial Mattai, Ravi Lutchman, Joe Lutchman, Sydney Jackman Jnr., Ganesh Singh, Motilall Chumundat, Arjune Badal, Ashmool Ali, Mohan Sukhu, Fizul Ali, Goverdhan Arjune, Jaipaul Singh, Narinedat Roy, Sahadeo Budhu, Dennis Mangru. The three GFSCA teams have already started departing for Florida.
e’s not express pace, but he makes up for that with a nagging line and length and the ability to be very deceptive. He’s also no slouch with the bat, and a safe pair of hands makes him an asset in the field. In a nutshell, Paul Gordon Wintz has all the attributes of a T20 player, as he can give his team solid overs up front and at the ‘death’, chip in with vital lower-order runs and save critical runs in the field. The Berbician, who now plies his trade for city side Demerara Cricket Club, is preparing for his second stint in the Hero Caribbean Premier League (Hero CPL), set for June 29 to August 7. Wintz, who turns 30 on March 7, made his maiden appearance in the ‘Biggest Party in Sport, suiting up for the Guyana Amazon Warriors in 2015. Opportunities were limited, as he played just one game, claiming 0-17 from three overs against St Lucia Zouks at Gros Islet. At the Player Draft in February, Wintz was again snapped up by his home franchise, Guyana Amazon Warriors, and the all-rounder is looking forward to more on-field action in CPL 4, with the aim of helping the team to lift its maiden title. “I’m looking forward to playing more game actually, and we’ve done fairly well over the last years, going to the finals and semi-finals, so hopefully we can go all the way this time and win it,” Wintz told this publication on Tuesday. Despite just a solitary appearance in 2015, Wintz was confident of being picked up at the Player Draft in Barbados. “I was good in the practice games and I think I bowled well in the one match I played [in CPL 2015], so I was looking forward to getting select again this year.” He added, “There will be about 10 preliminary games [this year], I’m looking to play at least seven and get wickets up front and come back and get wickets in the death overs.” Commenting on the composition of the Guyana Amazon Warriors squad and the franchise’s chance of coming out on top, Wintz said, “Well you have to be optimistic, you can’t count yourself out, but rather take one game at a time…and by the halfway stage you
Paul Gordon Wintz
should know where you stand in the competition.” With the likes of international superstars AB deVilliers of South Africa, Shane Watson of Australia and Brendon McCullum of New Zealand set to debut at CPL 4, Wintz is excited to rub shoulders with the foreign players and gain from their experiences. “Most obviously with players of that calibre it would be nice to rub shoulders with them and play amongst them,” Wintz related. In the space of six years, Wintz has played just three regional T20 matches, the first of which was in 2010 against Mumbai Indians when Guyana played in the Champions League in South Africa. He has picked up two wickets; both of which came against South Australia in the Champions League. He has an impressive List A career, capturing 32 wickets from 19 games at average of 19, and an economy rate of 4.62. Wintz also has a highest score of 38 not out and an average of 16. With the large pool of international players not familiar with Wintz’s style, the all-rounder could be the go-to man for the Guyana Amazon Warriors at CPL 4. (aramzan@guyanatimesgy.com)