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.”