24 senior and junior cricketers went on tour to Barbados at the end of the year, an excellent opportunity to experience the cricketing culture of the Caribbean and one that everyone will remember for years to come. The tour got off to a winning start with the U15s' convincing win against Wesley Junior School, the star players being Qamraan Trevelyn and Sam Harvey who had a partnership of over 100. Our leading all-rounder and Middlesex player Viren Patel dislocated a finger taking an excellent catch in the second match, which contributed to their later fortunes. The leading run scorer was Sam Harvey and Ethan Hayes the lead wicket taker on the tour – well done boys.

The U18s won all but one of their matches, where they witnessed an almighty batting display from the current West Indies U16 captain. Hemant Hirani captained the side with great skill and determination, backed up by a number of match winning performances from Daniel Murphy, Rabin Selliah and George Hudson who scored his first fifty for the 1^st XI in his last match for the school and was voted most valuable player. The man of the tour was Sammy Gaeton who provided everyone with great humour and was a genuine friend to the other 23 boys – no matter their age.

The Barbados team were in training when the group visited the famous Kensington Oval and Umer Zeeshan-Lohya was thrilled to be asked to join their fielding practice.

There was also time for some relaxation including an island safari, snorkelling along a coral reef, feeding turtles in the wild and chilling out on the amazing secluded beaches. All in all, it was indeed a tour of a lifetime!