I’m not too familiar with the current crop. There are two decent PeterHouse boys that I watched at the St Johns T20. Muyeye is a really good batter, I think he got 3 hundreds in the tournament, including 160!! I haven’t seen him bat in a longer format though. Then there’s a bowler called Chiminya, also decent. They may still have a year left though and that’s a private school, implying that the folks have money and they may have plans for uni. Here’s a funny story, the Prince Edward opening bowler Deon Mandizvidza (sp?) was on the u19 tour but got sent home from Australia by Mangongo for calling him a racist (against the black guys!!). That’s what I like about Steve, takes no s**t!! Anyway this kid has a great action and is currently around 130. He’s got something you can work with, but sounds like he’s got that all too familiar chip on his shoulder that makes this place such a f*^ing treat to live in. Dollar might not be available, he’s an ok batsman, bit of a hitter, no finesse, but is talented. The good thing is that this option is making kids think twice, which is great. That’s all I’ve really seen of late.
These ZC guys don’t like private school kids. They’re forced to pick them at age group and u19 because the rest are generally s**t, but if you look at the franchise players you’ll find very few with a private school education. That’s not just because private school gives you more options, there’s genuine prejudice against “advantaged” guys, it may be getting slightly less now that there are so few decent cricketers out there. I don’t know if Jayden Shardendorff will be available, he’s ok, a bit one dimensional, but solid. His brother Dane, only 15 is a fantastic talent, perhaps the brightest talent over the last couple of years. He could do with toughening up mentally and hasn’t done as well as he should, but he’s the real deal. If someone mentored this kid he’d go far.
There’s Dion Myers (St George’s), also a prospect, but not finished school yet. The only other decent kids I’ve seen at high school level are Erasmus in Form 1, Bhawa, Welch jr, and Bennet in Form 2. Mitchell (grade 7). I’m talking batsmen here.
I don’t know who on the ground reports back to the ZC hierarchy anymore, Or what their talent spotting abilities are, but the truth is cricket is at an all time low. Most age groups will have only played 8 games the whole year and there are so few kids interested in specialized coaching and very few can afford the $20-$40 an hour price tag. It’s absolutely essential because school coaching is virtually non existent. It’s virtually impossible anyway to teach a young batsman anything in a school net environment in a 10 minute batting slot. More and more kids are giving up cricket for water polo as well. Things are not good.
The CFX academy ended up being a Campbell/Bvute initiative that was managed by Doug Higgins, who owned all the equipment and was the main coach. He wasn’t getting paid what was agreed and got fed up and mothballed his equipment. There’s an ongoing dispute over ownership of the facility I think? Anyway last time I checked it was lying idle, which is a great pity. That inspired Gary Brent and Sean Bell to set up the Howzat Academy at Heritage school, but they’re struggling a bit for membership. Its the same thing- all ZC have to do is pay to play, but they want everything for free and don’t seem to want to fully engage with Gary and less so with Doug Higgins, who calls a spade a shovel. It’s a crying shame because they have a wealth of knowledge. Alistair Campbell is moving to Cape Town permanently.
I saw an article where Mangongo was singing praises about that fast bowler you are talking about Googly. Apparently he can hit 135kph already. Interesting to see they had an issue after all that. A lot of those kids are too young to make the academy anytime soon. I guess they need to work on a facility where the kids get intensive training during the school holidays. The only challenge with that I guess is that a lot of those kids are multi-talented and play other sports.
1 thing cricket does have over a lot of sports in Zim is that I think in terms of opportunities after school it is one of the brightest especially if you add the academy and I'm assuming they must have some kind of franchise contracts. I think only Athletics and Golf offer better opportunities because you get scholarships to the US. If you are not from a privileged background those 3 sports are your best way out if you have the talent. Rugby and football don't offer as many opportunities unless you are the absolute cream of the crop. ZC probably has more money than every other sports association in Zimbabwe combined.
Are there more guys like Taffy Mupariwa in SA? I saw that he played in the KZN junior setup on his profile. Matigimu who was bowling 135+ kph at the last world cup seems to have disappeared. I know he was based in SA on a scholarship I think.
Yes I’d forgotten about Mupariwa and Matigimu. I will look into them. Once they’re into that scholarship thing overseas they’re not likely to be available for RS.
If the Rising Stars project is keeping young talent in the country then it is serving an immense purpose, and clearly one that our existing first-class structure wasn't filling.
My All-time Zimbabwe XI
Neil Johnson, Brendan Taylor, Murray Goodwin, Andy Flower (w), David Houghton, Sean Williams, Heath Streak (c), Andy Blignaut, Paul Strang, Eddo Brandes, Blessing Muzarabani
Firstly will they ignore the white guys, because they’re mostly (but not entirely) the guys that are leaving.
If they are non partisan in their selection will the white boys actually see it as an opportunity?
If for example they picked one or two white kids they might opt out because they would feel out of place because that’s a long time to hang with people you feel out of touch with. I’m not saying that would happen, but it might. Let’s see.
It would be quite interesting if we had the capacity and money to have a mostly white franchise, an extra one. At the end of the day, we’re pretty different from each other and the system in general has polarized us. We mistrust each other and with just cause. The time is not quite right for that because the economy is so bad and people have no optimism for the future, but if circumstances were different, it would be an interesting prospect.
Someone should interview Doug Higgins, would be well-worth the read.
My All-time Zimbabwe XI
Neil Johnson, Brendan Taylor, Murray Goodwin, Andy Flower (w), David Houghton, Sean Williams, Heath Streak (c), Andy Blignaut, Paul Strang, Eddo Brandes, Blessing Muzarabani
Firstly will they ignore the white guys, because they’re mostly (but not entirely) the guys that are leaving.
If they are non partisan in their selection will the white boys actually see it as an opportunity?
If for example they picked one or two white kids they might opt out because they would feel out of place because that’s a long time to hang with people you feel out of touch with. I’m not saying that would happen, but it might. Let’s see.
It would be quite interesting if we had the capacity and money to have a mostly white franchise, an extra one. At the end of the day, we’re pretty different from each other and the system in general has polarized us. We mistrust each other and with just cause. The time is not quite right for that because the economy is so bad and people have no optimism for the future, but if circumstances were different, it would be an interesting prospect.
To get better mileage in the Logan Cup or leagues in Zimbabwe each franchises should not have more than 4 white players & each team should be forced to have a least 2 non black player in a squad of 15...
Firstly will they ignore the white guys, because they’re mostly (but not entirely) the guys that are leaving.
If they are non partisan in their selection will the white boys actually see it as an opportunity?
If for example they picked one or two white kids they might opt out because they would feel out of place because that’s a long time to hang with people you feel out of touch with. I’m not saying that would happen, but it might. Let’s see.
It would be quite interesting if we had the capacity and money to have a mostly white franchise, an extra one. At the end of the day, we’re pretty different from each other and the system in general has polarized us. We mistrust each other and with just cause. The time is not quite right for that because the economy is so bad and people have no optimism for the future, but if circumstances were different, it would be an interesting prospect.
Goodness me! Are we supposed to progress with such a mindset? Sad beyond words.
Looks like the Rhinos are trying to turn into that all white franchise Googly. cant be the only person who noticed that. I think they are now based in Harare too which is a strange decision.
To get better mileage in the Logan Cup or leagues in Zimbabwe each franchises should not have more than 4 white players & each team should be forced to have a least 2 non black player in a squad of 15...
Just an idea...
Or simply select your best side, white or black..just an idea
Looks like the Rhinos are trying to turn into that all white franchise Googly. cant be the only person who noticed that. I think they are now based in Harare too which is a strange decision.
They aren't based in Harare. With national players busy, the team is full of young guys from Midlands and Mash West.
Firstly will they ignore the white guys, because they’re mostly (but not entirely) the guys that are leaving.
If they are non partisan in their selection will the white boys actually see it as an opportunity?
If for example they picked one or two white kids they might opt out because they would feel out of place because that’s a long time to hang with people you feel out of touch with. I’m not saying that would happen, but it might. Let’s see.
It would be quite interesting if we had the capacity and money to have a mostly white franchise, an extra one. At the end of the day, we’re pretty different from each other and the system in general has polarized us. We mistrust each other and with just cause. The time is not quite right for that because the economy is so bad and people have no optimism for the future, but if circumstances were different, it would be an interesting prospect.
Goodness me! Are we supposed to progress with such a mindset? Sad beyond words.
What are you sad about? My opinion or the reality on the ground? The guys are all mostly polite to each other and get along just fine, but naturally the whites gravitate towards each other and vice versa. Whenever you see age group tours the white kids room with each other and vice versa. When the older guys go for a beer it’s often the same situation. It is what it is. There’s no real animosity or anything like that, it’s just that true integration is a myth. It’s the same in South Africa.
And you know what p**ses me off? You can have Sunrise which is a Hindu Club, Universals which is a Moslem Club, Takashinga which is a black Club, but if you have White Rhinos the world comes to an end? Different cultures are embraced except for our white one? What if we don’t want to colonize, take slaves or whatever, but we do want to respect others but hang with our own, is that a crime?