committee will come under the microscope this evening when they face affiliates at their first annual general meeting since seizing power last summer.

Member clubs will be asked to elect a full slate of officers at the meeting, which takes place at Warwick Workmen's Club (7.00 p.m.).

It was just last July that the present committee were put into office for an interim period following the ouster of the previous executive under the leadership of long-serving president Ed Bailey.

James said he was hopeful that the work he and his committee had carried out since would encourage clubs to allow the policies in effect to continue.

"Let's face it, if our cricket had been allowed to continue in the direction it was heading much longer, that is without a youth development programme, you would have had to place the sport on the endangered list,'' said James.

"It was sad. We had no young bodies coming through the ranks and the senior players that we have today would have had to stay around much longer than they would have liked. But we've taken steps to change that and as a consequence the future looks good.'' While the Board will likely receive support for the policies implemented so far, it remains possible that one or two changes on the executive could take place.

However, James said that all executive members were willing to run again because of the success they had achieved so far in reviving the sport.

"I believe that we all will make ourselves available if the affiliates see fit for us to return. If they approve the direction that we have steered cricket towards thus far, I think we are willing to stay and try to improve it even more,'' said the president.

"I think we have accomplished a lot in the short period. I think we have revived the sport on the Island. I think we have got the public and the business sector interested and by reviving the youth programme we have really given it a boost.'' By persuading former long-time sponsors Shell to return to the fold just weeks after taking over in July, James and his committee quickly establised a rebuilding programme.

"That was the starting incentive that we wanted,'' said James. "Then others like BF&M and John Barritt's came aboard to help us with the youngsters.

Getting a junior development programme off the ground was a major step, especially when there hadn't been an attempt to do so in the past eight years.

"Just by having the sponsors back on board, it shows that we have restored faith in the business community. And we now hope that with additional financial support from them we will be able to make even more strides in the development of our youth.''