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Ken Borland



SA cricket will soon need a lawyer on the selection panel 0

Posted on October 04, 2021 by Ken

The way things are going in South African cricket, CSA are soon going to have to appoint a lawyer to sit on the national selection panel just to make sure nobody’s rights have been unfairly prejudiced by not being chosen.

In the good old days, all that mattered was runs and wickets and the balance of the team – referring to having gritty batsmen capable of looking after the new ball, some strokeplayers in the middle-order, an all-rounder or two, and a bowling attack suited to the conditions.

But nowadays, being deserving of a place seems to mean you are entitled to be chosen. Never mind that the selectors can only field 11 players at a time and there are, of course, no substitutions in cricket, unless someone gets concussed.

Selection is a thankless task because you can never please everybody. And even 15 years after the fact, your selections can still be dissected and slammed, as we have seen in the SJN Hearings.

The squad selected to play in next month’s T20 World Cup caused uproar over two main areas – the sudden dropping of George Linde and the continued absence of Faf du Plessis, Imran Tahir and Chris Morris.

I do believe Linde’s omission was the wrong call, but Victor Mpitsang and his panel are spot-on when it comes to Du Plessis, Tahir and Morris.

Morris is the easiest to deal with because the selectors have been told by the all-rounder’s people that he is not available for international cricket. Despite his tendency to tell the media all about the lack of contact he has had from Cricket South Africa. And, in case you were wondering, AB de Villiers has also officially made his retirement from the Proteas final.

Du Plessis and Tahir are trickier because they are still very much available for the Proteas, provided the finances around a short-term deal for free agents are to their liking. And both have been performing well, Du Plessis playing a couple of standout innings in the recently-completed Caribbean Premier League and Tahir had a successful campaign in the same competition.

The former Proteas captain struggled at the start of that tournament though after a long layoff caused by a serious concussion and then missed the last few games with a groin injury.

It is true that the current South African batting line-up is lacking experience, but they have been together now for this year and are ever-improving. Having Du Plessis in the XI would almost certainly mean leaving out Rassie van der Dussen, who averages 36 in T20 Internationals at a strike-rate of 134, figures which are remarkably similar to Faf’s – average 35, strike-rate 134.

Both he and Tahir have been true heroes for the Proteas, but we need to accept that the time to move on has come. The 42-year-old Tahir has a ready-made replacement in fellow wrist-spinner Tabraiz Shamsi, who for some time now has been the number one ranked bowler in T20 Internationals. And playing them both is not a realistic option because it would make an already long tail even longer.

I also find it infuriating when people rave about performances in T20 leagues and give them the same status as international cricket. These ‘mercenary’ leagues are domestic competitions and are not of international standard, simply because all of them have rules forcing the selection of a majority of local players. Even the IPL, which comes closest to bridging the gap, is still a franchise tournament.

But there is so much anger aimed at the Proteas these days that I have no doubt that if the trio of veterans had been selected, then there would have been an outcry over choosing old cricketers who have not been part of the team for the whole year.

Of course, the controversy has also been used by those whose rage is always directed at Graeme Smith and Mark Boucher to rant about their supposed shortcomings and unfair treatment of players.

At some stage we have to move on from the past and the Proteas are heading into this T20 World Cup in far better shape than I think most people expected.

1-0 down in a 3-Test series: Springboks know what they have to do 0

Posted on August 23, 2021 by Ken

Being 1-0 down in a three-Test series, the Springboks know what they have to do in the coming week: they simply have to find a way to win the second Test against the British and Irish Lions next Saturday and coach Jacques Nienaber believes they are still capable of doing this.

“The series is definitely salvageable next weekend, we have to, there’s no other choice. The things that have been highlighted are definitely things we can sort out – our mauls, our kicking game and the aerial contest. We also need to step up at the breakdown and we had a big discussion about our discipline, it was sad that that was highlighted at halftime and then it wasn’t great in the second half,” Nienaber said.

Scrumhalf Faf de Klerk echoed his coach’s determination that the Springboks have the capacity to win the second Test, also in Cape Town, and level the series.

“It’s not ideal losing the first Test but there are still two to go and I’m sure we can pull it back. There are a lot of things to get right, but a few of the guys had not played rugby for a bit. In the first half we played really well, we got a lot of balls back from our kicking game, we were getting good outcomes. But in the second half the Lions got the loose balls in the aerial contest.

“The Lions are a quality side and the other challenge was that the guys that came off the bench for them are as good if not better that the players they replaced. Our discipline just slipped in the second half and if we could replay the first five minutes after halftime then the match would probably have had a different outcome. But we are a proud team and we will definitely make sure we rectify our mistakes,” De Klerk said.

Another area South Africa need to look at is their bench, which had surprisingly little impact, even though Nienaber denied they had adulterated the Springbok effort, saying he was “not disappointed in them”.

The starting front row of Ox Nche, Trevor Nyakane and Bongi Mbonambi had had an excellent first half, but they were replaced en masse at the start of the second half, which turned out to be a big mistake. Nche did express some surprise that he had been taken off, particularly since he had been standing up very well to highly-rated tighthead Tadhg Furlong in the scrums.

“I didn’t think the Bomb Squad would come on that early. We practise for a full game, that’s our fitness levels. But whatever the coaches feel is right is what we go with. I did my homework on Furlong because I knew how highly-rated he is. So I knew how he scrummed, I was prepared,” Nche said.

SA A game another step in the Boks’ preparation, starting well the lesson carried through 0

Posted on August 03, 2021 by Ken

Wednesday night’s SA A game against the British and Irish Lions in Cape Town is another step in the Springboks’ preparation for the Test series, according to backline coach Mzwandile Stick, and the important lesson they will want to carry from the Georgia Test two weekends ago is that they have to start well.

It took the Springboks a good half-hour before they got into the swing of their Test against Georgia, which was understandable since it was their first Test in 20 months. Georgia’s physical, combative approach troubled South Africa in the first quarter, but they know a slow start against the British and Irish Lions will lead to way more severe punishment.

“For us, this is an SA A game, but in terms of the Springboks it is about making sure we are better than we were against Georgia, that’s our main focus. For example, one of the things is that we did not start very well. It’s most important that we keep chasing that 80-minute performance. We certainly can’t afford to switch off against the Lions.

“Against them we have to make sure we are at our best from the start and for all 80 minutes. It’s difficult to find weaknesses in the Lions, there’s not much to speak about because they have the best in Europe in each position. So we have to be at our best in every department otherwise the Lions are a team that will punish you,” Stick said on Tuesday.

But with the country in a miserable state due to Covid and civil unrest, Stick admitted that the Springboks will once again have a higher purpose – trying to lift the mood of the people as they did when they held the World Cup aloft in 2019.

“We are living in a very sad time with what we see on social media and on the news on TV. One of the main things the Springboks aim to do is put smiles on peoples’ faces, we want to give them hope. I will never forget after we won the World Cup everyone was on the street – whatever colour: black, brown, white, yellow – and we all spoke one language.

“That’s the sort of hope we want to create, we want to make sure we unite the country. Hopefully all the bad stuff going on at the moment stops soon,” Stick said.

Sharks will need to be quicker … but also be smarter – Am 0

Posted on June 17, 2021 by Ken

The Sharks have to beat the Bulls and get a bonus point at Kings Park on Saturday if they are to be in the Rainbow Cup final, which means they have to score four tries. That will probably mean they will try to play an even quicker game against the Currie Cup champions, but captain Lukhanyo Am said on Tuesday that they also have to be smart in how they play.

If the Bulls score four tries and get a bonus point then it probably won’t matter who wins the game because their points difference is so much better than the Sharks that the home team would need to beat them by 34 points just to draw level. So Am’s charges can’t just throw caution to the wind and go all-out trying to just score as many tries as possible.

“We’re not going to shy away from our DNA, but the Bulls present a different threat to the Lions and we need to try and find the balance between running, flashy rugby and smart, tactical rugby on the right side of the field. We’ll want to bring energy and continuity and we’ll be trying our best to get into the final,” Am said on Tuesday.

This will be the last time the likes of Am, Makazole Mapimpi and Siya Kolisi will be playing for the Sharks until the end of the chockablock Springbok schedule towards the end of the year. The Sharks do, however, have nine players in the extended Springbok squad and their clash with the dominant force in domestic rugby for the last year will be thrilling.

*Perhaps the biggest surprise after the Sharks officially confirmed on Tuesday that Stormers hooker Bongi Mbonambi will be joining them at the end of the Lions tour was that the Springbok star had held out for so long before signing his new contract.

Mbonambi was already poised to join the Sharks back in March, when his Roc Nation stablemate Kolisi had already been unveiled as a key signing for the Durban franchise.

The talented 21-year-old Fez Mbatha has been the Sharks’ first-choice hooker recently, but Kerron van Vuuren and part-time flank Dylan Richardson have also had plenty of time in the middle of the front row. Former Maties and SA U20 hooker Dan Jooste is also under contract at Kings Park.

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    1 John 2:5 – “But if anyone obeys his word, God’s love is truly made complete in him.”

    James 2:14 – “What good is it if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds?”.

    Love without action is useless.

    If you love God unreservedly, you will offer your best to him and be willing to serve him wherever he wishes to use you.

    Love has to manifest itself practically.

    “Love requires uplifting and inspirational deeds.

    “How genuine can your love for God truly be if you are aware of a serious need and do nothing to alleviate it?”- Solly Ozrovech, A Shelter From The Storm



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