Transforming Our Game

The year 2020 has certainly exposed the inequalities deeply embedded in our beloved South Africa. The political warfare created by Covid-19 has further entrenched us into a state of economic emergency that might take us decades to recover from. It almost feels like we have been mugged. Along the way the media has drowned us with valuable yet uncomfortable racial conversations and real life stories that have plagued the game for so many generations. My generation felt the end of the apartheid pinch whilst we navigated through the social injustice created by lawful racism. Along the way we passed a few old signs that read “Net Blankes” (Whites/Europeans Only). 

Eventually, we were allowed to play together but the seemingly simple word “merit” separated whites from blacks in any representative sports team. To this day this word is still used to describe any non-white athlete that has been selected for a team and it continues to separate us on the pitch. 

The philosophy of many of our young talented athletes has developed into one that looks at sport as a means to an end, especially young athletes that want to get out of their impoverished financial circumstances. The sad reality is that there aren’t many opportunities to earn a living from sport and our current national and franchise programs have dwindled to a point where they are barely able to keep afloat. This philosophy coupled with our socialistic approach to sport has created a challenging environment resulting in hindered growth and progression. 

To transform the game, we need to grow it at home first. The best period of my life was spent between the ages of 7-14 in my neighbours backyard, playing football and cricket. We used the garage door as goal posts in the football season and a slip cordon in the cricket season. The first week in July was dedicated to tennis as we watched Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi battle it out on the courts in Wimbledon. As we grew older it became Anna Kournikova… We loved the game and played the game to spend time with each other. 

We need to create an environment where a young boy comes home after cricket training and his father chats to him about his session. How did you do in the nets my boy? Did you get out? Who got you out? Was it a spinner or a fast bowler? What did your coach say? Did you have fun?

There isn’t a country in the world that has an equal society where the rich and the poor eat at the same table. Whilst South Africa has a deep dark past, not all our inequalities are directly related to race. It is important for us to educate and change the mindset of human beings that don’t see black and white as equal, but we cannot forget that the game is only there because we love it first. 

I had a conversation with a coach from New Zealand a while ago. The conversation progressed to a point where I explained how we pick our Provincial u19 Cricket Teams in SA. I went on to say we pick 14 players, half of those players need to be players of colour (Black Africans and Generic Black = Indian, Coloured and Asian), at least 4 of those players of colour need to be Black African, at least 2 Black Africans need to bat in the top 6 and everyone needs to have a role to play in the game which we call quality of opportunity, every player has to play 5 out of the 6 games in the week which includes an opportunity to play in all 3 formats (Time Cricket, T20 and 50 Overs). We spend a lot time feeling sorry for the individual while the game slows down, becomes less attractive, loses its romance and fights its way avoiding extinction. We need to fix the wrongs of the past, but we must find a balance between social reform and sustainability.  

The commercial value of our game needs to grow exponentially before we can reap the rewards of a flourishing sporting environment driven by results, which in time can align itself with our transformation objectives. We have sadly lost the respect and support of many commercial sponsors due to incompetence and divided philosophies around transformation, growth and development. These lines have become so blurred due to individual greed, theft and emotional discourse. 

The future of high performance sport in SA rests with its ability to commercialise. The game needs money to survive and we cannot keep asking for handouts. Sustainability will become the key to our success. We live in the most beautiful land in the world that is saturated with young talent and passion. Our diversity sets us apart from the rest. The romantic inside me still believes.