Welcome home Leaupepe Ross Taylor and Murphy Su`a!

Dear Editor

It`s always a personal pleasure when our Samoan celebrities acknowledge their Samoan identity!

So, to our most celebrated Cricket icons in Ross and Murphy, let me say, “’Welcome. Welcome. Welcome to our Samoa”.

I have just read, happily, the double page spread in the Observer in the Sunday Samoan issue and just wanted to “tweak” one bit of data in the article.                                                                      

Whoever wrote the P.M’s speech should had been clear/explicit/factual and precise with text and contents of the speech. 

As we all understand, every single syllable the Hon Prime Minister utters in public is recorded and WOULD be considered and accepted as HISTORY and FACT, as part of our Samoan/ Samoan Sports HISTORY, whatever the Hon. PM is speaking on!

I partially agree with the Hon. Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi when he spoke, (and I quote), “the sport has come a long way in Samoa, 20 years after it was registered.” end of quote.  

My issue is the accuracy of this assumption, and the interpretation and context of the word REGISTERED.  

The Sport of Cricket in Samoa  is/was always registered under something. Cricket has been played in Samoa for over 70 years. 

As a former “voluntary” C.E.O of Cricket, I would had advised the speech writer NOT to use the word “Registered”, as it infers that “the sport has come a long way ONLY after being registered. 

My issue with this is that if historians, researchers, archaeologists etc. in the year 3017 and forever reads this, they COULD be drawing a few wrong assumptions from this article/speech.

I also totally agree with the Hon. Tuilaepa paying tribute and acknowledging the contributions/sacrifices of Seb Kohlhase. He has unselfishly stayed faithfully to his beloved Sport of Cricket for well over 50 years. Seb had been through the modernisation of the Sport as it was known as Cricket, then Samoa English Cricket or SECA. and the latest cliche Samoa International Cricket or SICA.

So “Ladies and Gentlemen, the simple FACT is “English Cricket, Samoa English Cricket, Samoa International Cricket, and Kirikiti Samoa, has come a long way since the sport was introduced to Samoa by the palagis whether it was 1930, 1935, 1945, 1960 1977, however many years ago.

I am also advocating strongly that Seb Kohlhase deserves his place in the ICC Hall of Fame if not, at least a local sports recognition award of some sort. 

Which vividly brings to mind that in the 1950`s I used to go and watch my father play Cricket for the Nelsons Cricket Team. Oh, and they actually had a Cricket Competition (in the mid-40s!!) that included teams like Marist Brothers Cricket Team, Burns Philp Cricket Team, Morris Headstrom`s Cricket Team and others.

And as a memory jolt and a footnote on this missive, the very first Political Leader of Samoa that played the sport of CRICKET is the late Hon. Fiame Mataafa Faumuina ll.

I know because I saw him and my dad played in the same Cricket Team!!

And Ive also had the privilege of watching/seeing Leaupepe Ross Taylor and Murphy Su`a play Cricket for the Black Caps.

Did I say Kirikiti somewhere????? What’s happened to our beloved Kirikiti????

So Leaupepe and Murphy, enjoy your time on-island and thank you for being Samoan.

 

Laki Uaea Apelu

Samoa Observer

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