Ugandan women’s referee commends Nigeria over T20 tourney

Uganda-born match referee at the recently concluded Nigeria Cricket Federation (NCF) Women’s T20 Invitational Tournament, John Trust, has said the event will make a well-rounded impact on Nigeria’s Cricket.

He said while most people concentrated on the play on the field, he was more impressed with the planning by the NCF, especially in their choice of workers and volunteers.

Trust, an International Cricket Council (ICC) top umpire, said when he was appointed the referee, he knew the organisers of the event wanted the best possible level of neutrality and professionalism.

“This is a T20 International event and attracts ranking points from the ICC, meaning that all possible condition for fairness was required. And apart from the three traveling umpires that were invited, Nigeria’s local umpiring team that joined us in the Playing Control Team (PCT), were very impressive,” he said.

As a traveling umpire, Trust said he was familiar with some of Nigeria’s leading umpires, but noticed that the ones the Federation presented for the tournament were young and upcoming, which initially gave him reasons to worry until the tournament got off.

“They were not perfect, but were well informed and open to learning. As the tournament progressed, they improved tremendously and I think the pool of top umpires in Nigeria has swelled with the exposure of the experienced ones,” he stated.

He said Nigeria’s plot to expand the base of top umpires through the event was impressive, adding that it was a strategic move that would get Nigeria on the front side of the game’s development.