The local cricket community is mourning the death of highly respected umpire Hector Watson.

Watson was a member of the Bermuda Cricket Umpires Association for more than 20 years and remained active out in the middle until the time of his death at the age of 60 last month.

He served the BCUA in various capacities, including secretary and treasurer, and went on to attain West Indies Cricket Umpires Association accreditation, the highest certification in the region.

Watson represented the BCUA at WICUA conventions in St Lucia and Trinidad and also assisted the Bermuda Cricket Board in hosting an ICC tournament in 2015.

He had the honour of officiating in the popular Eastern Counties competition and took great pleasure mentoring new and younger umpires and preparing them for regional examinations.

“Those who knew him well often described him as a smiling, unassuming individual, but a stickler for detail, proper deportment and following the rules,” Emmerson Carrington, the BCUA president, fondly recalled.

“The president of the Barbados Cricket Umpires Association, Gregory Brathwaite, characterised Hector as full of energy and instrumental in the execution of the convention held in Bermuda.

“Vivian Johnson, secretary of the WICUA, noted that Hector made some profound contributions to discussions at the conventions which stimulated much dialogue among attendees. He is remembered for being forthright and honest in his views and opinions.

“His presence and value to our association and the cricket fraternity will certainly be missed. On behalf of the executive and members of the BCUA, I extend sincere condolences to his family and wish that they find some solace in the sentiments expressed here.”

Arnold Manders, the Bermuda Cricket Board president, described Watson’s passing as a major blow for the greater cricket community.

“That’s a great loss because we are short of umpires,” he said.

“He’s one of those umpires who was very keen, always looking to keep himself up to date, knew the laws thoroughly and how to apply them. Surely he will be a great miss to the cricket fraternity.”

Born and raised in Barbados, Watson came to Bermuda as a police officer in 1984 and was one of the first officers in the Bermuda Police Service fraud department.

He studied business at University of Maryland and went on to get his CPA designation.

Watson also taught accountancy at Bermuda College and GED mathematics at Westgate Correctional Facility, skills which would later serve the BCUA well.

“With his knowledge of numbers, he shared a lot with us,” said fellow senior umpire Stephen Douglas. “He was an accountant, so where he was strong he shared that knowledge with us, and he was very articulate and a stickler for detail.”

Allan Douglas, the BCB high-performance chairman, also expressed grief over Watson’s passing.

“It’s sad to hear of his passing and knowing the dent it is going put in the umpiring fraternity,” Douglas said.

“The cricket fraternity is saddened by the loss of someone we valued in the middle to govern and guide this wonderful sport. I will miss him.

“It’s sad that he has passed. To his family and loved ones, I wish them well.”

Among those Watson took under his wing and mentored was fellow umpire Dexter Smith.

“It goes without saying that this is an extremely difficult time for the umpires,” Smith said. “As one of the newer umpires who got to work with Hector a fair bit over the past two seasons, I saw him as a mentor who was ever-willing to pass on his knowledge or assist in any way.

“His gregarious nature punctuated by an eye-catching ability to laugh hardest at his own jokes in a quite distinctive way will be missed dearly.”

Watson’s funeral service is today at 4.30pm at Vernon Temple AME Church.

Hector Watson, cricket umpire, was born in Barbados on November 12, 1962 and died in March 2023, aged 60