What's a little rain?

You have to love cricket people and the lengths they will go to make it possible for the game to go ahead.

This week at the Switch Schools SA20 finals I watched the ground staff and officials spend an hour and half getting the wicket at the Tuks Oval to a state where a shortened game could take place. And just as the players were taking the field, the heavens really opened and everyone rushed to put the covers back on. Half an hour later the rain stopped and they took the covers off again, under the most ominous skies since the great flood.

They went back out again but the game was eventually abandoned after a few overs were bowled, when the rain came back again and time ran out.

The scenes were repeated the next day. In that case there were enough overs bowled for a result to be declared according to the Duckworth-Lewis method. It was interesting to see that, when the rain came back near the end and it was clear that it was all over, the fielding players took off to fetch the rain covers, followed closely by the batting team - leaving the dry of the clubhouse. It was instant and instinctive, it's a lesson cricketers are taught at their schools: when your game’s over you cover the pitch so that someone else can play on it tomorrow.

That finalists in the boys and girls sections were identified at the end of that rain-soaked week was testament to the determination that there must be play, if it's in any way possibe.

You have to love cricket people.

The Jeppe U14 festivals were absolutely worth the time and money

My sporting highlight of the weekend? ….. Well, the Lions thumping the Stormers, obviously, and St David’s showing they belong among the water polo top guns, producing that final against Bishops at the KES tournament.

But it’s got to be the two U14 festivals at Jeppe. They haven’t been tournaments for a number of years now and that’s how it should be. Two schools pulled out of it this year (a third did so last year) because, apparently, they think it is a waste of time and money if 13 year-olds aren’t playing for league points and a trophy – imagine that!

The festivals were great events without them. The disappointment I saw on faces when games were called off because of lightning and rain, showed that while the results don’t count, the boys want to play, and they play to win.

You can see the schools take their responsibility to teach the little ones properly by the quality of the coaches they send. The legendary Coach Vipes - Roland Andongndou, possibly the most experienced (and one of the more successful) school basketball coach around, was in the St Stithians corner at the basketball. The equally experienced Alex Christians is with the Jeppe team; and I spotted St John’s 1st team coach, Clemen Kock, watching his school’s babies with keen interest.

Down at the pool, there was one current national player, Luka Rajak, coaching the St John’s team and another – David Marshall - refereeing many of the games. The number one referee in the country, Lucky Letshabo, also officiated in some of the matches.

Steven La Marque a former director of coaching of SA Water Polo was there, coaching the Maritzburg College team; and Jason Sileno who has coached SA national sides at various levels, was there with St Stithians.

The water polo teams played nine games over their four days, the basketball teams slightly less. And in the absence of having to win at any cost, all the players in the squads got time on the court or in the pool. I was watching out for that particularly, and I can confirm that it happened.

If that’s not worth the money and effort, I’m not sure what is.