Weekend Argus (Saturday Edition)
Reaching kids with the gospel of cricket
WHILE the dream of every schoolchild with a love for cricket is surely to don the green and gold of the Proteas, there are many other avenues open to passionate youngsters to serve the game they love.
One young woman whose life has been transformed by cricket is Relebohile Ntikane, a passionate, multi-disciplinary athlete who has been the co-ordinator of the groundbreaking KFC Mini Cricket programme in the Free State for the past five years.
Ntikane began her journey with Cricket South Africa’s award-winning grassroots development programme in 2017.
Academically minded and passionate about sports development and event management, she is exactly the kind of goal- and detail-oriented person CSA is fortunate to have to drive the growth of the game at the most basic level.
“The KFC Mini Cricket Programme touches and changes a lot of lives. From a player at school who is presented with a single opportunity and one day gets to be a restored individual, to a teacher-coach who gets to be the one making the difference with the role they played in that child’s life, and to witness them propel,” said Ntikane, with the kind of passion that has so endeared her to the Free State’s budding young cricketers.
When she speaks, she glows with a love for the game and a passion to reach more and more kids with the gospel of cricket.
“The experience has been nothing short of amazing, and I love the fact that this is a grassroots development programme that gives an equal opportunity to all kids, irrespective of their ability or home circumstances. It is inexpensive, everything – kit and clothing – are given out to schools free of charge, thanks to our sponsor, KFC, which funds the programme,” said Ntikane.
While she has touched many lives, so too the game of cricket has provided her with some fantastic opportunities for growth.
“The reward I have received from this programme as the KFC Mini Cricket co-ordinator was being given the opportunity to continue learning and developing, and being granted a full bursary to study at Boston College. I will be graduating soon, as I have finished and passed my higher certificate in marketing specialisation in sport. This is the best development programme nationwide that really touches lives differently,” she said.
Ntikane graduated in 2015 with a national diploma in sport management cum laude from the Central University of Technology and a Btech in sport management in 2016.
“I am motivated to work and learn, seeking to develop more and improve my knowledge in different workspaces. I’m very enthusiastic about my career, and keen to continue learning to be successful within the sport spectrum,” said Ntikane.
CSA always speaks about the importance of the “pipeline” of producing talented young cricketers, but clearly their sports management pipeline is in pretty good health too.