‘Pat should be honoured in ARG’: Sir Andy wants physical remembrance of Pat Whyte inside historic venue

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By Neto Baptiste

There should be some form of physical remembrance of former sports director, Patrick “Pat” Whyte, placed within the Antigua Recreation Grounds (ARG).

This is the belief of iconic former West Indies fast bowler, Sir Andy Roberts, who said Whyte, who died last week at the age of 77, dedicated much of his time and effort into both the renovation and managing of the historic facility in the 1980s and 1990s.

“Pat was a true and committed Antiguan who did everything to perfection and he dedicated his life to serving this country, and I think that if we redo the recreation grounds that they should be some corner stone in there with the name of Pat Whyte. He had done so much for recreation grounds and he lived most of his life in the late 80s into the late 90s dealing with the recreation grounds. Recreation grounds was his baby,” he said. 

Sir Andy, who worked closely with Whyte is preparing the ARG ahead of its first Test in 1981 when West Indies played England, remembered the effort the administrator made in making sure that not only the field was ready in time, but the impact he also had on the erection of a number of stands at the venue.

“All of those stands that you see in there, with the exception of the double-decker that they have now demolished, Pat Whyte played a major role in those stands being built. He dedicated his life to make sure that recreation grounds would be, to Pat Whyte, the best place in the world for Test cricket and he committed himself to that,” he said. 

Jon Whyte, the son of Pat, said since his father’s passing, many people have reached out to share their stories and memories with the family.

“This last week, you start going through old photos, certificates and awards and you realise every organisation, the Ministry of Sports, would have acknowledged him at different levels. Staff would have gotten together, persons who would have organised different sporting tournaments would have sent their own plaques and awards, and it reminds me of something Sir Viv said [that] Pat Whyte didn’t belong to me or me and my mother in terms of the family. He belonged to the community of Villa, the community of Parham, the local community, the regional West Indies cricket community and there are so many people who are calling us and sending messages,” he said.

Whyte also served as a cricket umpire and commentator for a period spanning the 70s, 80s, and 90s.

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