Courtenay Gonsalves
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Courtney Alexander Gonsalves (31 August 1950 – 31 March 2013) was a Guyanese
cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...
er who played a single first-class match for
Essequibo Essequibo is the largest traditional region of Guyana but not an administrative region of Guyana today. It may also refer to: * Essequibo River, the largest river in Guyana * Essequibo (colony), a former Dutch colony in what is now Guyana; * Esseq ...
in the final of the 1980–81 inter-county Jones Cup, and also represented the Guyanese national side in the 1980–81 limited-overs Geddes Grant/Harrison Line Trophy. He later coached the Canadian national under-19 team. Gonsalves, a right-arm fast bowler, was born in
Suddie Suddie is a community in the Pomeroon-Supenaam region of Guyana, located on the Atlantic Ocean, one mile north of Onderneeming. Suddie Hospital is a small (approximately 100-bed) hospital. Rural outreach clinics are sent into the interior and al ...
in what was then
British Guiana British Guiana was a British colony, part of the mainland British West Indies, which resides on the northern coast of South America. Since 1966 it has been known as the independent nation of Guyana. The first European to encounter Guiana was S ...
(now part of Guyana's
Pomeroon-Supenaam Pomeroon-Supenaam (Region 2) is a region of Guyana. Venezuela claims the territory as part of Guayana Esequiba. It borders the Atlantic Ocean to the north, the region of Essequibo Islands-West Demerara to the east, the region of Cuyuni-Mazaruni ...
region). He was one of four Essequibo players from Suddie, the others being batsmen
Alfred Maycock Aubrey Alfred Maycock (born 26 June 1949) is a former Guyanese cricketer who played a single first-class match for Essequibo in the final of the 1980–81 inter-county Jones Cup. Maycock was born in Suddie in what was then British Guiana (no ...
and
Lennox Alves Lennox Alves (born 7 March 1956) is a former Guyanese cricketer who played a single first-class match for Essequibo in the final of the 1980–81 inter-county Jones Cup. Alves, a right-handed batsman, was born in Suddie in what was then Brit ...
, and wicket-keeper Jeff Jones. In his match for Essequibo, played against
Berbice Berbice is a region along the Berbice River in Guyana, which was between 1627 and 1792 a colony of the Dutch West India Company and between 1792 to 1815 a colony of the Dutch state. After having been ceded to the United Kingdom of Great Britain ...
at the
Kayman Sankar Cricket Ground The Kayman Sankar Cricket Ground is a sporting venue in Hamptoncourtpolder, a village on the Atlantic coastline of Guyana's Pomeroon-Supenaam region. Its chief use has been as a cricket ground, though in recent years it has also hosted grasstrack ...
in
Hampton Court Hampton Court Palace is a Grade I listed royal palace in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, southwest and upstream of central London on the River Thames. The building of the palace began in 1514 for Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, the chief ...
(on the Atlantic coast), Gonsalves opened the bowling with
Egbert Stephens Egbert Stephens (born 15 April 1952) is a former Guyanese cricketer who played a single first-class match for Essequibo in the final of the 1980–81 inter-county Jones Cup. Stephens, a right-arm fast bowler, was born in Dartmouth in what w ...
in each innings. He took three wickets from 16 overs in the first innings, finishing with 3/69, and failed to take a wicket in the second innings, conceding seven runs from two overs. While batting, he recorded a pair, the only Essequibian to do so.Essequibo v Berbice
Jones Cup 1980/81 (Final) – CricketArchive. Retrieved 1 December 2014.
Berbice won the match by nine wickets in what was Essequibo's only first-class match – only the final of the three-team Jones Cup (later the Guystac Trophy) was accorded first-class status, and Essequibo made the final only once, having defeated
Demerara Demerara ( nl, Demerary, ) is a historical region in the Guianas, on the north coast of South America, now part of the country of Guyana. It was a colony of the Dutch West India Company between 1745 and 1792 and a colony of the Dutch state fro ...
in an earlier match. The scorecards of the non-first-class matches played by Essequibo are not available before the late 1990s, and it is therefore uncertain how Gonsalves performed for Essequibo in earlier matches. However, later in the 1980–81 season, he played in the first two of Guyana's matches in the limited-overs Geddes Grant/Harrison Line Trophy. Gonsalves made his debut for Guyana against the
Windward Islands french: Îles du Vent , image_name = , image_caption = ''Political'' Windward Islands. Clockwise: Dominica, Martinique, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Grenada. , image_alt = , locator_map = , location = Caribbean SeaNorth ...
at Arnos Vale in
Kingstown Kingstown is the capital, chief port, and main commercial centre of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. With a population of 12,909 (2012), Kingstown is the most populous settlement in the country. It is the island's agricultural industry centre ...
, Saint Vincent. He took 1/10 on debut from four overs, opening the bowling with
Ray Joseph Ray Fitzpatrick Joseph was a Guyanese cricketer active during the late 1970s and early 1980s who played predominantly for Berbice and Guyana, with brief appearances for Northamptonshire (Northants) and Scotland. He was born in Berbice on 12 Febru ...
and taking the wicket of Vincentian opening batsman
Lance John Lance David John (born 7 April 1957) is a former Vincentian cricketer who played for the Windward Islands and the Combined Islands in West Indian domestic cricket. He played as a left-handed opening batsman. John made his senior debut for the ...
. He was less successful in his second match, played a week later against
Barbados Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands. It occupies an area of and has a population of about 287,000 (2019 estimate). ...
at
Kensington Oval The Kensington Oval is a stadium located to the west of the capital city Bridgetown on the island of Barbados. It is the pre-eminent sporting facility on the island and is primarily used for cricket. it has hosted many important and exciting c ...
,
Bridgetown Bridgetown (UN/LOCODE: BB BGI) is the capital and largest city of Barbados Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Island ...
, going wicketless and conceding 20 runs from three overs, mostly to Desmond Haynes. Gonsalves was the first Essequibian to go on to play for the Guyanese national side, which was at that time dominated by players from Berbice and Demerara. After the conclusion of his playing career, Gonsalves took up coaching, and was also at one stage a selector for the Guyanese national team. In 1998, he was awarded "Coach of the Year" by the
Guyana Cricket Board The Guyana Cricket Board is the ruling body for cricket in Guyana. Guyana Cricket Board The Guyana Cricket Board has regions who play cricket in the Country. Below is the history of the regions of certain cricket boards in the country. And also ...
, for his role in coaching North Essequibo to victories at several national tournaments. In later life, Gonsalves emigrated to
Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
. He became involved in Canadian cricket, and, assisted by
Pubudu Dassanayake Pubudu Bathiya Dassanayake ( ; born 11 July 1970) is a Sri Lanka-born Canadian former international cricketer and coach who represented both Sri Lanka and Canada internationally. He has coached Everest Premier League side Bhairahawa Gladiator ...
, coached the Canadian national under-19 side during its unsuccessful attempt to qualify for the 2008 Under-19 World Cup.Eddie Norfolk (9 August 2007)
"Canada chase World Cup spot"
– ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 2 December 2014.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gonsalves, Courtney 1950 births 2013 deaths Essequibo cricketers Guyana cricketers Guyanese cricket coaches Guyanese cricketers Guyanese emigrants to Canada People from Pomeroon-Supenaam