Jason Anderson, the St George’s wicketkeeper, has been chosen as this year’s Warrington “Soup” Zuill Cup Match Sportsmanship Award winner.

Anderson was chosen by a panel of judges for his perseverance after fracturing a finger on his right hand while batting in his team’s second innings.

“Jason showed character and sportsmanship for coming to bat with a broken finger when his team needed him,” said Hoyt Zuill, the award organiser and son of the late Warrington “Soup” Zuill.

When contacted yesterday, Anderson said that he was honoured to have been chosen. “It feels good to win this award because in the past people have said this and that about my attitude, but I never thought my attitude was unsportsmanlike or anything like that,” he said.

“It is nice to know people see that my attitude towards the game is sportsmanlike and I was selected for the award.”

Anderson required hospital treatment after being struck on the index finger on his right hand by a ball from Malachi Jones.

“I went on the back foot to play straight up and down, and the ball came up to a height where it came into contact with my finger at the base of the handle,” Anderson said.

“I tried to play it off like it did not affect me, but the next shot that I played [a top-edged hook for four to get him off the mark] I knew it was serious and that I needed to go off for treatment.”

After undergoing scans and receiving treatment, Anderson returned courageously to the crease to resume his innings, adding 15 runs to his individual tally before skying a Jordan DeSilva ball to mid-off to give Janeiro Tucker a record 26th catch in Cup Match.

“I was watching the match on TV at the hospital and I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, wickets are falling’,” Anderson said. “I wanted to get back and make some form of contribution and it may not have been possible to continue batting had I not gone to the hospital.

“I actually ended up getting an inflammation shot, which basically reduced the level of pain.”

This year’s panel of judges comprised of Cup Match umpires Oscar Andrade and Emmerson Carrington, and former Cup Match players Wendell Smith, Dwayne Leverock and Allen Richardson.

Anderson, who plays domestic cricket for Cleveland County, the Eastern Counties Cup holders, and has also played for Bermuda, will be presented with the award at the conclusion of the Warrington “Soup” Zuill Memorial match on September 28 at Lord’s in St David’s.

This year marks the fifth anniversary of the award that honours the legacy of the late sports statistician and historian, who passed away in 2008 at age 77.

“The award came about from my sisters,” Hoyt Zuill said. “They had discussed doing something for Cup Match in memory of our father. They then they told me about it and left the rest to me.

“The award represents how our father thought and felt about sports in general and he had a saying: play the game hard, but play it clean.”