Sunfoil Education Trust supports young cricketers

Jesse Chellan, CEO of KZN Cricket, Razak Moosa, Willowton Group CEO and Fa-eez Jaffer, President of KZNCU

The SET will be funded through Sunfoil sponsoring R2,000 for every six and R1,000 for every four scored by South Africa in a home Sunfoil Series Test match. The initial funding already available for disbursement exceeds R1.5m.

The SET will be governed by four trustees, two each appointed by CSA and Sunfoil. The trustees will help to establish relevant criteria for the Trust to support deserving cricketers, along the following lines:

• Cricketers needing support in the pursuit of education and training at schools or tertiary institutions approved by the trustees.
  
• The allocation of bursaries and/or support should mirror that of the SA population.
  
• The support should seek to meaningfully advance the transformation of SA cricket.

Mentorship programme

To support young cricketers, CSA has also designed a support and mentorship programme with a view to improving their success rate. This will be managed by CSA with support and guidance from the trustees who will be appointed for an initial three year term with an option for re-appointment for a further term of three years.

"Cricket is very fortunate to have sponsors like Sunfoil who have shown that they want to be involved in the broader society and not just cricket. Their desire to invest in our aspirant young children is beyond measure and has to be admired," commented CSA chief executive, Haroon Lorgat.

"The launch of SET is a new level of Sunfoil's commitment to support cricket in this country. They have understood the need for us to support talented youngsters in a holistic way so that we can achieve our dual vision of making cricket a truly national sport and South Africa a nation of winners.

Impetus to transformation

"It didn't take long for Sunfoil to appreciate the need for us to give impetus to our transformation goals by supporting young cricketers who may otherwise drop out from the pipeline development programme due to socio-economic needs. I must say that I feel this to be one of the more rewarding initiatives I have personally been involved in during my time as a sports administrator," Lorgat said.

"Development is an inherent part of our business and the rewards of our investment in this area are being seen where it matters the most - at grassroots level," Shoaib Moosa, Sales and Marketing director of the Willowton Group said. "We hope to unite South Africans through the game of cricket and illustrate that it is possible to rise above any circumstance, no matter how challenging, with the right attitude. The Sunfoil development coaching programmes and their tournaments around the country are teaching players that any dream is achievable through perseverance and hard work."