109 108 Cricket The statistics for 2023 will show that 39 more games than the previous year were played, 21 more games ended in victory and that the team achieved a 50% overall win rate. This was an excellent year for cricket at Kearsney. By playing more games this year, players had more opportunities to hone their talents and skills. Kearsney again participated in the KZN Coastal High Schools 100-ball W100 competition in the first term. This popular competition allowed captains to lead their teams in a different format and develop a different tactical awareness of the game. The 1st XI finished top of the log table after the round-robin fixtures were completed, but lost in the final at Kingsmead against Westville Boys’ High School. The experience of playing under lights at Kingsmead was enjoyed by all and will remain in the memories for years to come. The U16A, U15A and U14A are still developing the skills for this format and will undoubtedly improve in 2024. What an incredible year this was for the 1st XI, who ended the season with a 70% win rate! A truly remarkable achievement. Congratulations to the players and coaches for the hard work and dedication that was put into this season. It would be remiss not to mention the Herculean batting performances by Hayden Bishop, who broke Kearsney's batting record this season. It’s been a while since we have seen a batsman with such class, technique, and determination – congratulations Hayden! In a first for Kearsney cricket, the 1st XI toured Zimbabwe this year. The team performed with distinction and returned home with the winners' trophy, defeating Westville Boys’ High in the final. It is positive for cricket that many of the goals set for this year were achieved. Playing shorter cricket formats like T20 and 100ball games for the lower sides helped with player retention. The feedback from parents and players was overwhelmingly positive. Colour cricket was played in some matches, helping to boost spectator turnout and enjoyment levels. We plan to do more of this in 2024. The triangular series played against Hilton and St Charles was also a great way of playing two games on the same day, via a shorter format. Players could be rotated across the two games to give more opportunities to batsmen and bowlers. There was the most unusual ending to Inter-house Cricket this year—a four-way tie! The 100-ball competition was played with much enthusiasm by all houses in the first term. Unfortunately, the weather played a significant part in the outcome. Plans for 2024 include a series of super-overs to decide the winners and rescheduling fixtures to Term 4 for a more realistic result. In an exciting new venture for cricket at Kearsney, Mr Mthokozisi Shezi has been appointed the Head of the Kearsney Cricket Academy. Mr Shezi, a former professional cricket player with the KZN Dolphins and Cape Cobras, will add tremendous value to the Kearsney cricket community. Plans to add more turf nets on the AH Smith Oval have taken shape, and those nets will be ready midway through the new year. This will allow our cricketers to enjoy practising outdoors and in a topquality facility. The extension of the SportZone will also boost cricket at Kearsney. When completed, there will be nine dedicated cricket nets. The KZN High Schools Cricket Association trials were held at Kearsney in September and in October. Eleven Kearsney boys were selected for the various provincial teams. The successful cricket season would not have been possible without many people's hard work and input. A word of thanks goes to: • Mr Cliff Hunter, Mr Stephan van der Westhuizen and the ground staff for preparing the fields for matches and practices; • Mr Justin de Beer and Mrs Sigrid Ceronio from Empact Catering for the teas, lunches and snacks on Saturdays; • the Sports Office, led by Mr Waylon Murray and Mr Sithando Nkosi, for their fantastic job in ensuring that cricket flourishes in the first and fourth terms; • all Kearsney coaches for their time and effort in giving the boys an enjoyable experience. Results: Played 156, Won 79, Lost 70, Drew 7 Mr Dean Moodley MIC Cricket The Kearsney College 1st XI will go down as one of the best teams to represent the College in its 102year history. The record books will reflect that they played 38 matches, winning 27 and losing just 7. Many of these matches were either T20s or 100 ball matches, which are extremely unpredictable at the best of times. It demonstrates how consistent and dominant this team was. The season started with a cricket festival at Michaelhouse in January, which saw us notch up impressive wins over St John’s College (Harare), Falcon College and Michaelhouse. Standout performances were Hayden Bishop’s 132* and 157*, Ross Coetzee’s 148* and 5-fer, and Ryan Browning’s first fivewicket haul for the 1st XI. This week was followed domestically by victories over Michaelhouse again, DHS twice, Westville, Clifton and Glenwood twice. The Independent Schools Cricket Festival came next. It was initially a steep learning curve, as the team lost to St Andrews College and St Stithians College. However, they bounced back strongly against St Albans, where Bishop scored another century, assisted by Otsile Ntsele’s rapid 61 off 28 balls, before beating Cornwall Hill College in a close encounter on the last day. Unfortunately, the perfect end to the season didn’t materialise, with a 20-run loss to Westville in the final of the 100-ball competition, under lights at Kingsmead. Term 3 was extremely exciting as Kearsney was invited to the St John’s College (Harare) T20 Ram Slam tournament for the first time. The desire to play well and the extraordinary skill and mental toughness shown under extreme pressure by the 1st XI were magnificent to behold. There are many fond memories of Zimbabwe, such as Cameron Veenstra and Jack O’Donovan smashing 50s and the bowlers fighting hard to keep us in the game. Fortunately, the 1st XI got over the line twice against St John’s College, by five runs on both occasions, where Murray Weyer’s death bowling was exceptional. Revenge was sweet against Westville in the final, where the First XI played some exceptional cricket to bring the trophy back home. It was very pleasing that the 1st XI managed to take that momentum into a phenomenal Michaelmas Cricket Week. We enjoyed a 14-run victory over KES, where Mathew Mendes de Oliveira took one of the best schoolboy catches ever to get rid of the SA U19 captain Back row: Sandiswa Yeni, Ryan Browning, Jack O’Donovan, Dominic Hislop Middle row: Cameron Veenstra, Ross Coetzee, Matthew Mendes de Oliveira, Otsile Ntsele, Murray Weyer Front row: Mr Cameron Gordan, Adam Zeiler, Mr Andre van Zyl, Hayden Bishop, Michael de Beer, Mr Matthew Savage, Dylan Wiggett, Mr Peter Kirsten CRICKET 1ST TEAM 1st XI Cricket Provincial Selections • U15 Week (Pretoria) – Litha Gonya, Aaron Blackburn, Keegan De Jager, Daniel Miskey, Cade Francis • U17 Kingsmead Mynahs – Jack O’Donovan • U17 Week (Benoni) - Cameron Veenstra, Sandiswa Yeni, Murray Weyer, Ryan Browning • U19 Week (Makhanda) - Hayden Bishop (Captain), Ross Coetzee
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