Glitz and glamour at Border cricket gala
Marais and Kirchoff score big in awards ceremony as season comes to end
THE curtain came down on the 2017/18 season with a glamorous Border Cricket 2018 Awards Gala Dinner at Buffalo Park on Wednesday night.
The big winners on the night were Marco Marais and Maryka Kirchoff from the Border senior men’s and women’s teams respectively who both claimed two of the major awards on the night: the coveted player of the season awards as well as the batter of the season titles.
Sithembele Langa and Zintle Mali rounded out the main awards claiming the bowler of the season gong on the men’s and women’s sides respectively.
However, the night was not only to recognise the main teams as all role players in Border cricket were acknowledged for their various contributions, from the internal league to the rural and club leagues.
Players who received national colours during the season were also acknowledged including young up and coming stars Jason Niemand and Akhona Mnyaka, who represented the South African U19 team at the U19 World Cup, and Mali, who was included in the SA Women’s team for the ODI series against India earlier this year.
A host of awards were handed out on the night as Border cricket tried to make sure everyone who deserved it received some recognition for their impressive work.
On the playing front it was a solid season for the Border men’s team and they will look to take the positive momentum built up over the current campaign into 2018/19.
For the Border women’s team they got the chance to play against the best of the best after being promoted to the top league and they will do well to take that valuable experience into the next season as well.
“The Border senior team did really well this season and if you look at the number of young players that are coming through into the side it is very exciting for us going forward,” admitted Border cricket CEO Thando Booi.
“For the women’s team I think it was a good experience for them and it showed in the way that they were playing towards the end of the season.
“We believe that they belong in the top league and can compete at that level and they will continue to get better in the coming seasons.”
The final cricket fixtures for the season will now be played next month with the Border women’s team set to defend their spot in the top six at the interprovincials and then the finals of the club champs will take place toward the end of the month.