'Umpires' strike a total failure'

Lalman Kowlessar, an executive member of the Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board (TTCB), has called the recent strike by the West Indies Umpires' Association (WICUA) during the sixth round of the Carib Beer Series a "total failure".

Kowlessar also praised the six umpires belonging to the Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Umpires and Scorers Council (TTCUSC), which was not a part of the strike, and who were drafted in to fill in the void created by the WICUA's boycott. "The games went on and the umpires did a great job," he said.

The WICUA had withdrawn its services for the last two rounds of the 2007-08 Carib Beer Series to protest against the West Indies Cricket Board's (WICB) decision to remove Trinidadian umpires Hayden Bruce and Kaso Dowlath from the list of officials for the tournament's sixth round. The duo are linked to the newly-formed Association of Cricket Umpires of Trinidad and Tobago, a body which is not aligned with the Trinidad board.

But Kowlessar said Bruce and Dowlath were not on the list of umpires recommended by the TTCUSC to the Trinidad board, though their names appeared on the list approved by the West Indies board's sub-committee for umpires. "This was noticed by the TTCB, which informed the WICB, pointing out the perceived error. The WICB then removed those two names."