Posts by Jono Cook
The Northwood Knights’ 2022 cricket journey
The trip to Balgowan and the Roy Gathorne Oval last Saturday (22 January) turned out to be a tough one for the Northwood first XI.
Michaelhouse compiled a match-winning 305 for the loss of 7 wickets in their allotted 50 overs and Northwood’s reply was a modest 174 all out, which left the Men of House 131-run winners.
Northwood put Michaelhouse in and a measured start by openers Murray Baker (57) and James Kennedy set the ideal platform for House, the first wicket falling in the 16th of the allotted 50 overs with the total at 96.
And that ideal platform was not undone as House captain Jeremy Foss (71), Thomas McCall (48) plus the contributions of Joshua Heath (25) and Robbie Lawrence (27) took the home side to a formidable 305.
When it was Northwood’s turn to bat the Michaelhouse bowlers were backed by excellent support in the field with the spin of Joshua Heath (3 for 14 in 5 overs) and seam of Michael Thornton (2 for 14 in 6 overs) doing much of the damage.
In the last 8 matches between the two schools’ premier cricket sides, House have won 5 and Northwood 1 while 2 matches had to be abandoned.
After action satisfaction: The Northwood Knights reflect on a meritorious win over one of SA’s cricketing heavyweights, KES.
I have no information on yesterday’s 100-balls per innings contest between Northwood and hosts Glenwood. Evidence suggests that Northwood coach Khalipha Cele’s boys have demonstrated that they are able to bounce back.
Feature photo: Best wishes to the Northwood coaches for the 2022 year. Former Proteas pace bowler Mornantau (Nantie) Hayward has been in the director of cricket position since October 1 and is also the U16A coach. Nantie obviously also works with first XI coach Khalipa Cele while the second XI (the Brown caps) are piloted by Vaughn van Jaarsveld and Brian Gow, with Alex van der Merwe (U15A) and Sam Mofokeng (U14A) completing the group.
Northwood had put together a good set of results going into the Michaelhouse fixture, having won 4 and lost 1 of their matches at the Grey High School festival in Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth).
First up was a T20 match against the hosts, Grey High, and the outcome did not favour the Knights, as the Northwood first XI is known. Despite getting off to a brisk start with James Nielsen’s 32 off 18 balls leading the way, Grey managed to pin the Northwood batsmen in their creases.
Not being allowed to rotate the strike put the Northwood batsmen under pressure and it took a 24 off 15 balls from captain Adam Chislett – the skipper came in with 3 overs to go – to push the Durban north lads to a total of 159.
The Grey opening batsmen took their time in establishing the platform for what would be a winning partnership and duly hauled in the run target with three overs in hand.
The Knights bounced back from the 10-wicket loss to earn an emphatic 92-run win over local side and match hosts Framesby High the next day before reeling off three closely-fought wins on the trot in their remaining festival games.
Northwood director of cricket Nantie Hayward in his Proteas fast bowler heyday.
The Framesby match had to be reduced to a 45-over match due to rain. Having been put in, Northwood compiled a solid total of 199 with the main contributors being James Nielsen (40 off 70 balls), Ethan Grace (71 off 80) and captain Adam Chislett (29 off 29).
Chislett and Grace then opened the bowling and were able to contain the Framesby run chase. The pressure reaped its due reward with leg-spinner Saurav Matai taking 3 wickets in 4 balls in his eventual 3 for 18 from his maximum 9 overs. Ethan Grace completed a productive match in returning bowling figures of 2 for 15 in his 9 overs.
Adam Chislett opened the bowling with Ethan Grace restricting Framesby in the first 10 overs. Saurav Matai channelled his inner Shane Warne as the leg-spinner took 3 wickets in 4 balls. Matai finished with figures of 3/18 in 9 overs. Ethan Grace also contributed with the ball taking 2/15 in his 9 overs. Framesby all out for 107 to leave Northwood 92-run winners.
The 2022 Northwood first XI after beating noted cricket nursery St Andrews School of Bloemfontein.
Next up for the Northwood Knights was a 50-over match against St Andrews School of Bloemfontein. Saints won the toss and got off to a good start, earning 54 runs before the opening batsmen were separated.
The Knights bowlers were then able to get wickets in clusters, which stymied Saints’ goal of building partnerships. With Adam Chislett picking up 4 wickets for 44 in 9.3 overs and Jason Pearce 3 for 29 in 7 it was a commendable effort to keep the run target below 200 as Saints’ innings folded to 189 all out from 46.3 overs.
Chasing 190 off 300 balls, Bradley Bumberry and the aggressive Jason Pearce added a 73-run partnership (Pearce getting 57 of the 73-run partnership) but it was touch and go at the end with 50 still needed to win and just three wickets in hand.
Under pressure, Northwood kept their heads and Evan Fouche alongside Ethan Grace got the Durban lads past the winning post with 1 wicket still intact.
On the same day at the Lance Klusener U15 festival hosted by his alma mater Durban High School (DHS) the Northwood U15A side beat Jeppe by 11 runs.
Northwood U15A made 144 all out in 44.5 overs with Jed Mun-Gavin 34 (43), Kyle White 25 (44) and Connor Leclezio 23 (53) standing out, to which Jeppe responded with 133 all out in 46.5 overs, the chief Northwood U15A wicket protagonists being Ben Cilliers (5/35 from 9.5 overs) and Matthew Norton (2/16 from 7 overs).
Nantie Hayward will be hoping his hard work as director of cricket at Northwood will bring the same reward as his wicket-taking process back in the day.
Next up for the Northwood Knights at the Grey festival was the premier team of one of South Africa’s greatest cricket nurseries, King Edward VII School (KES) of Johannesburg.
The gist of it is that in reply to KES’s 180 all out, Northwood reached 181 for 6 and a four-wicket victory.
Northwood skipper Adam Chislett (2 for 30), Ethan Grace (2 for 15) and Jason Pearce (2 for 26) restricted the KES batsmen to 180 all out before Grace (44), Pearce (32) and Evan Fouche (32) did the bulk of the business in piloting the Northwood ship home.
Just 96 days earlier, at Maritzburg College’s Oppenheimer Michaelmas Cricket Week, the KES first XI had beaten Northwood by 7 wickets.
Not exactly the same player personnel without doubt. But I would venture that a fair number of the same players played in both matches, so a Northwood turnaround of great merit.
This especially notable day for Northwood cricket also included the U15A side beating the Maritzburg College U15A team by 4 wickets. Northwood U15A’s successfully chased down the Maritzburg College U15A total of 212 for 7 to end on 213 for 6 with the main batting contributors being Aiden Potgieter (57), Ryan Fisher (46 not out) and Ross McGlashan (38*).
Earlier, two of the Northwood U15A bowlers to do make notable inroads into the Maritzburg College U15A batting attack were Ben Cilliers (2 for 30) and Matthew Norton (2 for 43).
Northwood’s first XI Knights then rounded off a successful festival in the Eastern Cape with a 9-run win over locally-based Pearson High. This high-scoring game saw the Knights compile 288 for 6 in their 50 overs, to which Pearson replied with 279 all out.
Three years prior, almost to the day, when the two schools had last met, Northwood edged home by 2 runs, and this time round the winning margin was also in single figures.
This Saturday, 29 January, Northwood host Clifton School first XI on the Smith Oval.
Ups and downs in the pool for Hilton College firsts water polo
Saturday, 22 January 2022 was the start of this year’s KZN schoolboy water polo season, with an exciting clash between Hilton and Kearsney College.
The hosts, Hilton, have been the more dominant school in water polo over recent years. With this being their 150th anniversary and first home fixture of the year, a tough fixture was expected.
The senior team results were dominated by Hilton College, including an impressive performance by their first team earning an emphatic 19-7 win in the final game of the day.
The junior age groups saw some competitive games, with Kearsney winners in the U14A game (11-7) and a tight win for Hilton in the U15A game (11-9).
This past Tuesday, 25 January (yesterday) the Hilton College first water polo team travelled to play against Westville in the late afternoon at Westville and it was the home side that prevailed to a 10-8 victory.
This Thursday, Friday and Saturday will see the Hilton first team playing in a festival at St Andrews College in Grahamstown.
First team water polo results:
22 Jan (at Ducasse Aquatic Centre, Hilton)
Kearsney 7 Hilton 19
Westville 10 Kearsney 8
The Kearsney water polo first team vs Hilton:
Dimitri Diakogiannis, Blake Kruger, James Pohl, Thomas Godwin, Ryan Sim, James Kewley, Luc Painting(vice-capt), Xavier Andrews (capt), Gary Wood, David Pohl, James Francke, Guy Roberts, Siyen Gounden, Luca Sandri
Coach: P le Roux
The Hilton College first water polo team vs Westville:
Tanner Bailey, Cameron Gray (capt), Oliver Lello, Ross Taylor, Jack Waterhouse (vice-capt), Ben Watt, Jono Bregman-Frangos, Matthew Hayes, Caine Letschert, Dean Macleod-Henderson, Stèfan Swart, Retief Malherbe, Mitchel Wilson
Coach: J Sileno
Kearsney firsts basketball beat St Charles, edged by Hilton
Kearsney College basketball’s first team played two matches over the weekend.
First up was the home match last Friday, the opponents St Charles College.
The feedback from Kearsney follows:
“Kearsney hosted St Charles for the first basketball fixture of 2022 last Friday (21 Jan). They started the game well and were able to score freely whilst limiting St Charles’ scoring opportunities.
“Kearsney had a 15-point lead at half time (30-15). The third and fourth quarters were tightly contested with both teams playing tough defence. However, Kearsney’s 15-point lead from the first half proved too much for St Charles to make up and Kearsney achieved a good win to end 56-36.”
Top points scorers
Kearsney – 13 points apiece to Njabulo Ngcobo and Matthew Damons
St Charles – 9 points by Mnqobi Mbili
“Kearsney then travelled to Hilton on last Saturday for the first full schools’ basketball fixture of the year with 20 teams participating.
“The first quarter was tightly contested with both teams feeling each other out and neither gaining the upper hand.
“In the second quarter Kearsney were unable to make their shots and Hilton capitalised on their defensive lapses for the home team to go into half-time 27-19 up.
“Kearsney played better in the second half and were able to claw their way back into the match.”
Kearsney had a late run, but Hilton – in their first match of the year – made three crucial free throws, which ensured that they finished 52-49 winners.
Top performers
Kearsney – 21 points by Matthew Campbell and 9 points by Matthew Damons
Hilton – 13 points by Qhawe Soji and 11 points from Roelf van der Merwe
Kearsney first basketball team results so far:
(Home team first)
21 Jan: Kearsney 48 St Charles College 32
22 Jan: Hilton College 52 Kearsney 49
Upcoming on 29 Jan: vs Kearsney Old Boys
The Kearsney first basketball team that played against Hilton:
Njabulo Ngcobo, Matthew Campbell (capt), Matthew Damons, Lathi Sali, Jamol Langeni, Luca Borrageiro, Sifiso Msomi, Andile Nomvete, Robbie Jorgensen, Oliver Brazier, Lehumo Mahlabana, Gregor Campbell
Coaches: Miles Delport and Mr K Nzama
# The Hilton College first basketball team that played against Kearsney:
Michael Fox (vice-capt), Kwame Huyberechts, Kediretswe Mbaakanyi, Chisha Mulenga, Saphiwa Nzimande, Oyisa Pupuma, Qhawe Soji (vice-capt), Nic Thorburn, Roelf van der Merwe (capt), David Tshebi, Tawanda Kugotsi, Tiisano Tisane, Declan Sawyer
Coach: Nhlakanipho Khumalo
# Next up, Hilton play Westville on Saturday, 29 January 2022.
Kearsney College first XI dig deep at Hilton
Kearsney lost the toss and were asked to field in a 60/50 declaration game on the Hart-Davis Oval at Hilton College on Saturday, 22 January 2022.
In this format, as I understand it, the team batting first are allotted 60 overs in their innings with the team batting second allotted 50 overs. If the team batting first do not utilise all 60 overs the balance is transferred to the team batting second.
The feedback received from Kearsney hereunder: Information on the outstanding Hilton players in the match would be much appreciated.
“The Hilton track, which was flooded a week ago, was surprisingly batting friendly and the bowlers had to toil for any joy. The strong Hilton side, who bat deep, amassed 259/9 in their allotted 60 overs despite being 120/5 at one stage.
Pick of the Kearsney bowlers were Bryce Wiggett with 3/43 and Hayden Bishop with 3/95. Kearsney’s batting response started disastrously, with the openers back in the hut in the first over, with a solitary run on the board.
However, Hayden Bishop and Ross Coetzee knuckled down and soon utilised the batting conditions to their advantage, despite hostile bowling from the Hilton quicks, and bounce and turn from their very competent spinners.
Bishop (52) and Coetzee (82) ensured the draw with their stoicism and patience, despite a small hiccup in the latter stages where Kearsney lost three quick wickets for 13 runs. Kearsney finished on 160/7 in their allotted 50 overs – an excellent result considering the quality of the opposition on home turf.
Photo caption: Kearsney College’s number 3 batsman Hayden Bishop looks to play the ball through the off-side at Hilton.
It was a treat to see the return of competitive schoolboy cricket in KZN.
1st X1 Hilton 259/9 (B Wiggett 3/43, Bishop 3/95)
1st X1 Kearsney 160/7 (Coetzee 82, Bishop 52)
Match drawn
* The Kearsney College first XI host Durban High School first XI in a 100-ball match on the AH Smith Oval come 3pm this afternoon, 26 January 2022:
Kearsney first XI vs DHS today (3pm)
1 Ross Coetzee
2 Adam Zeller
3 Hayden Bishop
4 Michael de Beer (wk)
5 Bryce Wiggett (capt)
6 Fritz Rheeder
7 Dylan Wiggett
8 Ross Phillips
9 Matthew Bergset
10 Nhlakanipho Ngubane (vice-capt)
11 Asande Nyawose
Coaches: Andre van Zyl and Matt Savage
Kearsney first XI matches so far this year:
* Festival matches at Kearsney
* 10 Jan: vs Michaelhouse
Match abandoned
* 11 Jan: Kearsney 137 all out
Dolphins Academy 141 for 5
Dolphins Academy won by 5 wickets
* 12 Jan: Kearsney 177 all out
Maritzburg College 178 for 7
Maritzburg College won by 3 wickets
* 13 Jan: Clifton 129 for 8
Kearsney 130 for 5
Kearsney won by 5 wickets
22 Jan: (Declaration match at Hart-Davis Oval, Hilton College)
Hilton 259 all out
Kearsney 160 for 7
Match drawn
Upcoming on 29 Jan: vs Glenwood first XI at Kearsney
# Hilton College first XI vs Kearsney College: Jake Carstens (vice-capt), Charles Swart, Ivan Lockem, Matthew Stewart, Casey Nicholson, Kristofer Watt (capt), Jarryd Pike, Ross Boast, Matt Wilson (wk), Kieran Kilmartin (vice-capt), Christopher Roy
Coach: Dale Benkenstein
# Other Hilton first XI result: lost a T20 match by 4 wickets away to Bishops on 15 January.
Hilton 135 for 8
Bishops 137 for 6
Bishops won by 4 wickets
# Next up, Hilton play Westville first XI on Thursday in a T20 match at Eston Country Club (3.30pm start) before meeting the same team at Hilton’s Hart-Davis Oval in a declaration match on Saturday, 29 January (9am start).
Maritzburg College squash team win at Westville
Maritzburg College’s master in charge of squash Alan McGuigan reports that the school’s Top 8 squash team had to dig deep against hosts Westville last Friday.
It was College’s first fixture of the year and no easy task against the competitive Westville squad.
“Our boys put in a noteworthy team effort to run out 5-3 winners.,” says Alan.
“Matt Mason, William Galliers and Veer Premchund recorded impressive 3-0 victories in their respective matches while Nikhiel Moodley and Thomas Pratt were involved in crunch contests that would ultimately decide the fixture, both boys digging deep to record crucial 3-2 wins.”
Congratulations to both teams for what they brought to this fixture.
Westville outshine Maritzburg College in the pool
There were 8 water polo matches on Saturday with visitors Westville winning 6 and hosts Maritzburg College 2.
The first team match saw Westville come away with a 12-goal winning margin while the U16A encounter was Westville’s by 8 goals to 3. There was much satisfaction for the Red Black and White’s water polo community in seeing the new College boys clinch a 7-4 victory in their first game for their new school.
In total over the 8 matches, Westville netted 65 goals at the Dudley Forde Aquatics Centre to Maritzburg College’s 32.
Maritzburg College director of aquatics Darren Sherriff said the first team match was a tough contest.
“Westville managed to take an early 3-goal lead in the 1st chukka,” Darren says. “College fought hard in the 2nd chukka and managed to pull back 2 goals but Westville were able to extend their lead to 6-2.”
Westville came out firing in the 3rd chukka and added a further 3 goals to their tally in taking a commanding 9-2 lead.
“Going into the last chukka, Westville were just too accurate and strong for the College side and came out the victors (15-3).”
SCORES
(Westville score first)
U14B drew 7-7; U14A lost 4-7: U15B won 7-1; U15A won 8-3; 4th lost 7-8; 3rds won 7-2; 2nds won 10-3; 1sts won 15-3.
Second team defeat spurs on College firsts basketball
The Alan Paton Hall was busy on Saturday as the players and spectators from hosts Maritzburg College and visitors Westville enjoyed the competitive basketball.
No less than 18 matches were played, which is a tremendous collective effort of all those involved. Of the 18 matches, College won 10 and Westville 8. Of the 4 “premier category” matches, College won 3 (1sts, U16A and U14A) while Westville won 1 (U15A).
College first team coach Zinhle Cele reports that the long-time rivalry with Westville provided a good start to the season.
“Shaking the cobwebs off, College won a number of the day’s junior games, which set a nice pace for the open teams.”
Zinhle said the College second team suffered a disappointing loss (39-24) which made the first team more determined than ever to work towards a welcome victory.
The teams were evenly matched in the opening exchanges with neither side able at that stage to pull away significantly from their opponents on the scoreboard .
“No side held the lead for too long in the first quarter and it looked for a while as though it would be a close final score.”
Into the second quarter of the match Maritzburg started to pull away.
“With an impressive defensive play by Mbonambi and Mthimkhulu, and hard-to-stop fast breaks from the likes of Sithole and Janse van Rensburg, Maritzburg College were able to establish a promising lead,” said Zinhle.
And once College’s rising star Henman got into the swing of things it became clear that the home side were not going to falter.
Henman added a hefty 17 points from the scoring opportunities that came his way.
SCORES
(from the Maritzburg College perspective)
1sts won 71-56; 2nd lost 24-39; 3rd lost 20-27; 4th lost 19-27.
U16A won 24-18; U16B won 27-15; U16C lost 18-26; U16D lost 19-20.
U15A lost 28-30; U15B lost 20-25; U15C lost 18-28; U15D won 18-15; U15E won 27-2.
U14A won 20-8; U14B won 21-4; U14C won 22-6; U14D won 18-6; U14E won 31-6.
* College won 1 out of 4 of the senior age group matches.
* College won 2 and lost 2 of the U16 matches.
* College won 2 out and lost 3 of the U15 matches.
* College 5 of the 5 matches in the U14 category.
Westville first XI notch win on Goldstones
Westville and Maritzburg College were involved in a heartening 15 cricket fixtures on Saturday and while College won 11 of those matches it was the Westville first XI who took the honours on Goldstones.
The visiting Westville skipper won the toss and put the College first team in to bat on their home turf in the KZN capital.
Feature pic: After their win on Goldstones the Westville first XI went to Snows to support their U14A team to victory.
“College were not able to put together any meaningful partnerships up front and the Westville bowling attack was able to restrict College to 52 for 4 at tea,” said College coach Robbie Coutts.
Westville were able to pin the College batsmen down and runs were scarce. The solitary substantial partnership was that between Luc Jacobs (61) and Bryn Brokensha (27). With wickets falling at crucial times College weren’t able to kick on and the outcome was a total of 151 for 9 wickets in their allotted 50 overs.
In contrast, Westville got off to a flier with 30 runs on the board after the first 3 overs and at the start of over 16 the opening batsmen were still together. Cayden Hohls then managed to break up the openers but at afternoon tea Westville were in a strong position at 105 for two.
Maritzburg College’s Luc Jacobs, running in from the Princess Margaret Drive End, launches into his delivery stride.
Credit: Justin Waldman Sports Photography
Westville navigated the home stretch well and reached their winning target for the loss of 3 wickets and with more than 50 balls to spare.
There was an outstanding 77-run win for the Maritzburg College U16A team against the strong Westville side at Collegians Club while College won the U15A match by 7 seven runs and Westville U14A were comprehensive 90-run winners.
SCORES IN BRIEF
First XI: Maritzburg College 151/9 (Jacobs 59; Ngugi 3-28, Mahomed 3-31) Westville 152/3 (Gopalan 52, Pillay 48*, Simpson 33) Westville won by 7 wickets.
Second XI: Westville 217/9 (Thandar 60, Maxwell 37) Maritzburg College 218/6 (Quin 52, Woolridge 40, Currie 34, Armstrong 30) College won by 4 wkts.
Thirds: Westville 131/8 (Young 38) MC 134/3 (Thompson 50) College won by 7 wkts.
Fourths: Westville 75 (Stead 4-14, McIlrath 3-7, Lawrence 3-12) MC 76/8 won by 2 wkts.
U16A: College 223/7 (De Costa 60, Miller 50, Hosking 37) Westville 146 (Robertson 32, Jordaan 30, De Costa 3-17) MC won by 77 runs.
U16B: College 69 (Hughes 5-17, Bremer 3-23) Westville 70/1 won by 9 wickets.
U16C: Westville 146/6 (Madison 31, Paverd 31; Samuel 3-30) MC 147/6 (Bernstein 80*; Maseko 3-27) MC won by 4 wkts.
U15A: College 155 (Bester 38; Pillay 3-26) Westville 148. MC won by 7 runs.
U15B: College 122 (Mitchell 3-9) Westville 91 (Sutcliffe 33; Van der Vliet 4-15, Clark 3-3). MC won by 31 runs.
U15C: Westville 128/6 and MC 122/7. Westville won by 6 runs.
U14A: Westville 261 (McGough 56, Delvin 33, Baudach 48; Gasa 3-47) College 171 (De Bruyn 39, Du Toit 34; McGough 4-25). Westville won by 90 runs.
U14B: Westville 85 and MC 90/3 for MC to win by 7 wkts.
U14C: Westville 35 and MC 36/3 for MC to win by 7 wkts.
U14D: Westville 86/9 (Ncula 4-14) MC 89/2 (Maud 42) MC won by 8 wkts.
U14E: MC 118/5 and Westville 101/5 (Lee 46) MC won by 17 runs.
New Shane Warne documentary sure to entertain and inform
It seems a long time ago that we had Test cricketers with the personality and sheer entertainment value of Shane Warne.
I may be wrong, but it is almost as if players have, for the most part, been herded into a regulated “sameness” that discourages overt displays of originality. Perhaps that is due to the intense media scrutiny they find themselves under.
A new documentary on Australian leg-spin legend Shane Warne looks set to remind us of what we have lost, but at the same time it leaves us appreciating the true-blue characters of the game. Let us hope we will see more of his like sometime soon.
I don’t personally know Shane, so my observations come from the “outside”, and are purely based on what I have read and seen. He has always fascinated me and is certainly someone that I would love to know.
Straight and to the point, the full-length film is simply titled Shane, and was released on digital download in the UK recently. And the reviews of it suggest it is a must-see for every sports enthusiast. I am not sure if it is available in South Africa yet and something that I am looking forward to.
“I liked loud music, I smoked, I drank and bowled a bit of leg-spin,” Warney says in characteristic fashion. “I don’t have any regrets.”
Well, there were plenty of things – as more comprehensively highlighted in his compelling autobiography – No Spin, written with the assistance of Mark Nicholas – that I am sure Shane Warne would manage differently if he could go back in time. But, just like every single one of us, he is a fallible human being who makes mistakes.
One thing is certain: Shane Keith Warne has packed a lot of “life” into his life. Perhaps he could best be characterised as someone who wasn’t afraid to “have a go” – at just about everything and anything. And, most of the time, his innate self-confidence has served him well.
The film also offers insights into what his peers thought of him; greats of the game like (Lord) Ian Botham share their views, while his friendship with fellow celebs, like superstar singer Ed Sheeran, is an example of how well Shane has fitted into the celebrity world.
There are also closer-to-home interviews with his ex-wife Simone Callahan (a 10-year marriage) and their three children – Jackson (22), Summer (24) and Brooke (20).
Shane’s relationship with actress and model Elizabeth Hurley was plagued by unrelenting media attention; the demands of different career paths meant much time apart – and was probably the primary cause of their eventual break-up.
English actress and model Elizabeth Hurley and Shane Warne were the subject of unrelenting media scrutiny during their relationship.
It’s interesting that despite all the hurt his indiscretions caused, the 52-year-old Shane has still managed to maintain a pretty good relationship with all those closest to him – and just about everyone else who has crossed his path in what has been an action-packed life.
Born in the Melbourne suburb of Upper Ferntree Gully on 13 September 1969 – Shane is certainly a fascinating person. A natural storyteller, Warney was a certainty for a media role after his playing days were over.
The insights he offers on his own life, his thoughts on his evolution as a cricketer, reveal a man who is perceptive when it comes to the subjects he knows so well – and who has a caring side to him that may not be readily apparent to the casual onlooker.
Warney was a hugely competitive, evolving cricketer who explored, developed and employed every weapon he could in his bowling armoury. He certainly had an early appreciation of how body language could be used as an additional advantage in the leg-spinner’s bag of tricks.
Something that came as a complete surprise to me was the revelation that, at just six years of age, both his legs were broken in a playground accident. His dad made a trolley for him, and the determined way Shane propelled himself around, using just his hands and wrists (which became immensely strong), for six long months suggest – in hindsight – perhaps an early indication of the person, and type of cricketer, he was destined to become.
With Shane it has been, at times, a constant battle between his “up for anything” persona and his more thoughtful side.
In the early days.
It would serve us well to understand that nothing prepares a person for the all-encompassing attention that celebrity brings.
As Shane says in another interview: “People meet the headline and not the person. It’s confusing and potentially derailing. My personal life has been played out on the front pages, back pages, the women’s magazines.
“Sitting on my balcony, and I get papped (photographed by a member of the paparazzi) with my shirt off… I said, ‘Are you serious? I’ve got my big fat guts out on the balcony’.
It’s time for the batsman to concentrate on that ball like never before.
“I resented it (the constant attention) for a while. I understand it now, but to try and deal with it every single day might be hard to understand.
“When you grow up you think fame could be pretty cool. When I was 21, 22 years of age I had my first exposure to it. There’s no school you can go to, to learn about it. You’ve just got to try and do your best to learn and deal with it.”
Always up for a bit of fun, part of his enduring appeal is that he is able to laugh at himself. And he is honest, admitting, that he was selfish in his pursuit of cricketing immortality – and family did take a back seat at times.
A magical spin bowler, yes. As a dad and partner? Quite a handful but, one suspects, well worth the “extra effort” in the end.
Never boring, that’s for sure.
Shane Warne with 2 of his 3 children, Brooke and Jackson, in 2019.
Maritzburg College 1st XV beat Glenwood for first time in 11 years
It was a moment to savour for the Maritzburg College first XV when they overcame an 11-year hoodoo to beat the Glenwood first XV 20-12 on Dixons in Durban on Saturday.
Red Black & White head coach Cameron Fraser said that the College boys under the captaincy of flanker Corbin Thunder were determined to break the first XV win drought against Glenwood.
Justin Waldman Photography feature pic caption: The powerful Maritzburg College first XV left winger Siphozola Radu finds some space with flyhalf and head boy James Beauclerk in support.
Coach Cameron said of the 3-tries-to-2 victory that turning the 11-year tide of losses in this decades-old contest between two proud rugby schools required a brave performance from the lads in Red Black & White.
And they duly delivered, did captain Thunder’s young men.
“College managed to win the physical battle upfront and avoided ill-discipline as best as they could,” said the coach.
The men from PMB gained the early ascendancy when right wing Kuhann van den Berg chased after a telling attacking kick from scrumhalf AJ Knoetze and managed to offload the ball to inside centre Liam Prinsloo, who raced over in the corner for the opening points of the game (5-0).
Coach Cameron said the match was of an exceptionally physical nature and the number of penalties conceded was a by-product. College’s lively number 9 AJ Knoetze slotted a penalty goal towards the end of the first half to leave the visitors with a handy 8-0 lead going into the changeover.
“Glenwood struck back early in the second half after some powerful surges from their forwards,” said the College coach.
“Glenwood caught College unawares at the breakdown to eventually crash over the line on the blindside.”
Now within just 3 points of College (8-5) Glenwood then leaked a penalty and Thunder’s men conjured up a very destructive maul to bring the Red Black & White within striking distance of touchdown.
And after a number of pick-and-go’s there was no stopping the inspirational Red Black & White captain and flanker Corbin Thunder, as he breached the try-line whitewash despite the attention of a posse of Glenwood players on his back.
Scrumhalf AJ Knoetze converted captain Thunder’s try and with the scoreboard reading 15-5 College had regained a bit of breathing space.
Going into the last quarter of the game, alert Maritzburg College hooker Quentin Pitout contrived to pinch an overthrow off a Glenwood lineout and then demonstrated his mobility and rugby intelligence to swerve inside and outside the approaching Glenwood cover defenders before offloading to his left winger team-mate Sipho Radu who dived over in the corner.
With College now in a comfortable 20-5 lead and 10 minutes left on the clock, the never-say-die Glenwood lads hit back with a converted intercept try under the posts (20-12).
The gutsy Glenwood men were on the attack as the match drew towards its close but it was a superb Willian Pretorius turnover at the breakdown that saw the Red Black &White number 8 deny the Green Machine and put the College victory beyond doubt.
A memorable moment captured by the educated lens of Justin Waldman Photography as Team College enjoy the satisfaction of a hard-earned victory over the Glenwood first XV on Dixons in Durban on Saturday, 4 September 2021.
“It was a special performance by the College 1st XV who will be highly motivated to repeat this result in the return fixture on Goldstones this coming Saturday [11 September 2021],” Red Black and White coach Cameron Fraser concluded.
It certainly looks to be an absolute belter of a match in store between these two age-old rivals on what we hope will be a balmy Goldstones spring afternoon.
MARITZBURG COLLEGE FIRST XV vs GLENWOOD
1. Mawande Mdanda
2. Quintin Pitout
3. Roydon Swift
4. Joshua Kähler
5. Christian Williamson
6. Corbin Thunder (capt)
7. Wela Takata
8. Willian Pretorius
9. AJ Knoetze
10. James Beauclerk
11. Siphozola Radu
12. Liam Prinsloo
13. Lusanda Mtshali
14. Kuhann van den Berg
15. Spha Ngcobo