Finding future stars in KZN – and they're not just guys

The two-day tour covered the areas of Mtubatuba in the Umkhanyakude district, Esikhawini, Port Shepstone and ended in Umzinto.

The delegation included CSA schools manager Niels Momberg, Eugene Jacobs from the Griqualand West Cricket Board together with Cheryl Stiles and Sarah Band from the sponsor's marketing department.

The Port Shepstone stop included a number of girls' teams as well as teams from special needs schools to illustrate the reach of the program in giving all children the opportunity to play sport.

The sponsorship has been running for 25 years and aims to promote the development of cricket amongst the youth of South Africa. It is a scaled down version of hard ball cricket played with a soft ball and on any surface. The game gives primary level children the opportunity to try their hand at batting, bowling and fielding in a fun, informative environment.

Many of South Africa's cricketing heroes such as Mark Boucher, Makhaya Ntini, Herschelle Gibbs and Shaun Pollock, came through the program, which acts as inspiration for the youngsters and the lure of free Bakers biscuits is an added incentive to attract children to the game.

“The tour gave us the opportunity to see how the program is being run and to highlight to the participants the role we play in keeping the program alive. Interacting with the people who have benefited from the sponsorship reinforces the far reaching effects involving children in sport at a young age has on individuals and communities,” says Cheryl Stiles, Bakers Marketing Manager.

To find out more the Bakers Mini Cricket program, contact CSA on (011) 880 2810.