Bay school’s great catch
Bayview Primary school’s mini-cricket team have won an opportunity of a lifetime – to shadow the Proteas cricket team this summer.
The Helenvale, Port Elizabeth, school was one of three picked from 60,000 entries nationwide to join the KFC MiniCricket “Kids Join The Proteas On Tour” initiative.
The other schools were Amstelhof Primary from Paarl and Nomandi Junior Secondary from Port St Johns.
The schools will join the Proteas during their ongoing KFC T20 International Series against Zimbabwe in East London, Potchefstroom and Benoni.
Their two days with the Proteas promise to be a fun and exciting experience for the lucky pupils, who will be immersed in a uniquely tailored experience, ranging from an interactive training session to camping in the same hotels as the national team in the towns that are hosting the one-day internationals.
The winning teams will also receive official tour kits to kickstart their cricketing adventure.
On match day, the children will be led in a convoy and escorted to the stadium where they will participate in the official guard of honour for the playing teams.
The children will perform some of the match duties, including being ball boys and ball girls, at the coin toss and participate in the taking of official photographs.
“At KFC we are fully committed to the development of our country’s young cricketers,” KFC public affairs director Thabisa Mkhwanazi said.
“The KFC Mini-Cricket Kids Join Proteas Tour is a special competition, giving young cricketers a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to not only meet, but to rub shoulders with their Proteas’ heroes.”
Since its inception, the KFC Mini-Cricket programme has grown from 89,000 children to more than 120,000.
More than 5,500 schools take part in the programme, coached by almost 10,000 volunteer coaches.
The dates for the South Africa versus Zimbabwe T20 series are: October 9, Buffalo Park Stadium, East London; October 12, Senwes Park Stadium, Potchefstroom; October 14, Willowmoore Park Stadium, Benoni.