THE last bit of glorious summer weather held up this past weekend when the
Sunfoil Township Tournament at the Soweto Cricket Oval, Elkah took place.
More than 120 kids and approximately 50 staff members spent their weekend
alongside the cricket field and were treated to sterling entertainment as
the matches took place.
At the opening function on Thursday, kids were treated to visiting one of
the most memorable landmarks of the area at the Orlando Towers. Messages of
encouragement from the Gauteng Cricket Board, Cricket South Africa and
Willowton Group (Sunfoil) and wishes for the spirit of the game to be upheld
were shared over a traditional African dinner.
Teams participating were selected from the GCB Development Areas namely
Soweto, Johannesburg Central, Vaal Area, Kagiso and Alexandra. Montrose
Primary School and an invitation team from KwaZulu-Natal were also invited
to join in the tournament.
The boys started their matches around mid-day every day and continued to
play under lights over the three days. Montrose Primary topped the log of
group A and faced the KZN invitation team, who topped the B-group, in the
final. Montrose bowled first and needed 83 runs to win the game. Montrose
had scored 33/1 after 7 overs when the teams were called off the field due
to lightning warnings and soon thereafter rain prevented any further play.
The net run rate was used to determine the winner. At the same stage during
their batting innings, the KZN invitation side was 29/2. Montrose was named
winners of the Sunfoil Township Tournament of 2013.
Individual awards were also given to Thando Makweto from Montrose Primary
(Bowler of the tournament), Amogelang Sima from Soweto (Batsman of the
tournament) and Nathan Gilchrist from Montrose (All-rounder of the
tournament).
Cassim Docrat, Chief Executive Officer of the GCB, was delighted with the
success of the tournament. “The most important part of developing the game
of cricket is to get kids to play it. This tournament is an opportunity for
these young boys to do just that. My sincere thanks go out to the hosts of
the tournament, the Soweto Cricket Club and the sponsor Willowton Group, as
well as Cricket South Africa, who has supported us throughout the planning
and execution of the event. I would also like to thank the organising
committee for their dedication and hard work,” Docrat said.
Shoaib Moosa, Director of Willowton Group concurred and added, “This is the
second year the Sunfoil Township Tournament has been played in Gauteng and
we are delighted to see how the quality of cricket has improved.”
“Our company is passionate about cricket and it is our philosophy to
encourage the youth to become involved in a sport that focuses on teamwork
and good values. Sport has a way of bringing people together and helping
them achieve their dreams, this is just one of the ways Willowton Group will
continue to champion the causes of our communities.”