Republic Bank and Cricket West Indies launch ‘Five For Fun’ in Guyana A brand new format for kids’ cricket

Cricket West Indies (CWI), the governing body for domestic and international cricket in the Caribbean, and Republic Bank Financial Holdings Limited today announced the Guyana launch of ‘Five for Fun’ - a new format of cricket designed to appeal to children from 8 to 11 years old.

Unlike other sports sponsorships, the Five for Fun initiative is a true joint-venture whereby CWI and Republic Bank are co-owners of the intellectual property surrounding the format including format rights, trade'-marks and licensing. Leveraging their extensive schools’ development infrastructure, CWI and Republic Bank developed the Five for Fun platform together and piloted it in St. Lucia in 2021.

Five for Fun will also be one of the first steps in Cricket West Indies’ “Future Stars” programme, the development and participation pathway to introduce the next generation to cricket and develop their love for and involvement in the Caribbean’s #1 sport.

Following the pilot’s success, the Five for Fun will this year launch across the wider Caribbean, starting in Guyana, and soon in Grenada and St. Kitts & Nevis, while St. Lucia will kick off it’s second cohort. In the coming years, Five for Fun will be introduced to other Caribbean markets and beyond.

The Guyana “Five for Fun” programme begins today with the media launch and exhibition games to demonstrate how the game will be played. Over the next few weeks and throughout the August holidays, Cricket West Indies, working in close collaboration with the Ministry of Education Allied Arts Division; the Ministry of Culture Youth and Sport, and the Guyana Cricket Board will introduce several coaching hubs across the three counties in Guyana, to prepare the teams for a series a preliminary games.

From September, 15 zones, comprising 75 school teams will participate in zonal preliminary rounds leading to a grand “Five for Fun” finals.

Stephen Grell, Managing Director, Republic Bank (Guyana) Limited, shared, “It is the first of its kind, welcoming a notable diversity of participation and positioning young cricket enthusiasts for stardom.
We’re particularly heartened that this comes at a time when we’re encouraging students to return to school after such an extended time away from the classroom; and it presents an opportunity for recreational, developmental, physically invigorating activity, discipline and togetherness.

Karen Tom Yew, General Manager, Group Marketing and Communications, Republic Bank Limited commented: “When Republic Bank officially launched Five for Fun in the region in August last year with St. Lucia being the pilot territory – both male and female cricket enthusiasts between the ages of 8-11 were invited to join us on our Five for Fun journey. This approach was purposeful as we are working really hard to ensure we embed diversity, equity and inclusion in all that we do. This is in keeping with our solid history of responsible investment in the communities in which we operate. Our goal is to expand this programme across the Caribbean knowing very well how passionate we are as a people about our cricket.”

About Five for Fun

The rules and format for Five for Fun are designed around two basic principles: fun and inclusion. The ‘fun’ elements of the game are rooted in its speed, energy and simple rules. As regards inclusion, Five for Fun pits boys and girls of all abilities together as equals. Each Five For Fun game involves 5 Players per team playing 5 6-Ball Overs each. Each batter will face an over from a single bowler. If a batter is ‘Out’, they will still face their allotted Over but 3 Runs will be deducted from the team score. Full Rules for Five For Fun are available upon request.

KJ Singh, Senior Project Officer, Schools Cricket for CWI said: "Cricket West Indies is extremely proud to partner with Republic Bank on this critical grassroots cricket programme at the start of our “Future Stars” development pathway. Five for Fun allows both organizations to leverage and apply resources to give children the opportunity to play our region’s favourtie sport pastime and ensure that the legacy of the game is preserved with the energy of new generations of players and fans.”

Positioned as the foundation of the CWI Future Stars cricket development pathway, ’Five for Fun’ is all about putting a bat and a ball into children’s hands for the first time and getting them to participate in a straightforward game of 5 players per side and 5 overs each. The programme’s goal is to promote fun and engage children to grow a love for the game, while developing critical life skills such as leadership, teamwork, values, mental focus, patience, dealing with adversity, tactical awareness, confidence, time management, responsibility, physical development and much more.

The programme will also be used as a national talent identification medium, to migrate outstanding players, both boys and girls, to the next stage of the Future Stars development pathway, at both the representative and competitive levels. The ‘Five for Fun’ programme is poised as the starting point for the next generation of great West Indies cricketers.

Republic Bank & Cricket

Five For Fun is the third pillar of Republic Bank’s region-wide investment into the Caribbean’s favourite sport. Republic Bank is the Official Banking Partner of the Caribbean Premier League and one of the tournament’s long-standing supporters. Alongside CPL, Republic Bank launched its Spirit of Caribbean Cricket platform in 2019. Spirit of Caribbean Cricket is a digital media property whereby all the stakeholders of cricket ranging from fans to legends are invited to share their memories, anecdotes and opinions about the past, present and future of the game. Please see www.spiritofcaribbeancricket.com.

Derwin Howell, Executive Director of Republic Financial Holdings commented: ‘In every corner of the Caribbean, you are reminded that cricket is much more than a sport. It is part of our cultural lifeblood. From CPL to the school playground, Republic Bank continues to support cricket and, in so doing, fulfil the dreams of kids and the passions of some many citizens.’