IN THE NEWS

The Maties Cricket Club has produced several great national cricket players since its establishment in 1866. These included players like Eddie Barlow, Kepler Wessels, Garth le Roux, Denys Hobson, Mike Proctor, David Rundle, Adrian Kuiper, Peter Kirsten, Darryl Cullinan, Omar Henry and Roger Telemachus. Telemachus is presently the head coach at Maties, with Warren Kirsten as his assistant.

Since its inception to the Boland Cricket League in 1992 Maties has constantly been a major playing force and has won the Premier League title on no less than five occasions (the last in the 2006/2007 season). In recent seasons Maties has also won the Boland Pro-twenty competition twice in the three years of the competion’s existence.

Maties Cricket has always been a significant contributor to Boland Cricket and has become an important nursery for them with many of its exciting young talent representing Boland at various provincial levels. During the past years the Club has contributed up to 16 players on occasions (to various Boland and Cape Cobras sides) in one cricketing season. The Club has vast player potential, with members totaling 80 in the 2008/2009. An additional 250 male students are also involved in the very popular Inter-Hostel leagues. The Club, furthermore, supports an active and excellent Women's Cricket Team, which has produced several high-class South African players such as Claire Terreblanche.

With the support of its sponsor, Steinhoff International, Maties Cricket has over the last two years launched several initiatives to establish itself again as a major force in the Western Cape and South African cricket. With the further support of Cricket South Africa, one of the major objectives of the Cobras franchise and the University is to establish, as a priority, a brand new indoor cricket facility at Coetzenburg – the Western Cape Cricket Academy. This will be a modern high-tech, but functional indoor cricket facility which will advance cricket in the region significantly. It will afford all players from the region the opportunity to develop and improve their individual skills during the off-season in particular, which is not possible at present due to the lack of a high quality indoor facility.

Stellenbosch University has an excellent and modern infrastructure, which includes access to experts in academic fields, i.e. sport psychology, perceptual motor activities, a vision laboratory, biokenetics centre and a gymnasium, as well as eight cricket fields (two of which are of first class standards), a clubhouse and experienced sports administrators. This allows the Club to professionally attend to the day to day running of activities, as well as providing an effective support system to the University’s Hostel League. It, therefore, makes perfect sense to establish the Cricket Academy at Stellenbosch. During 1997, the Club was the runner-up in the National Club Championship Week – to win this particular competition has become another major objective for the Club.

During the last few years Maties Cricket has successfully hosted the USSA tournament (2008), the Coca Cola Cricket Week (2006), the PG Bison Week (2007), as well as the preliminary competition of the Women’s World Cup (2006). It has also hosted several SuperSport matches for the Cape Cobras and a number of matches for various Boland teams at senior and junior levels.

For more information on Maties Cricket or the Cricket Academy please contact the Chairperson of Maties Cricket, Mr Sidney van Heerden, at tel. 021-808 2941 or the Maties Cricket Co-ordinator, Mr Andre du Toit, at tel. 021-808 4691.

Men: Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays 17h00 - 19h00
Women: Tuesdays and Wednesdays 17h30 - 19h00