Ken Borland

Following the resignation of the rest of the Cricket South Africa Board on Monday morning, the Members Council will now focus their efforts on setting up an interim board comprised of fit individuals to steer the federation to their AGM on December 5 and also formulate a new Memorandum of Incorporation for the election of directors.

The three remaining independent directors and the last non-independent director, Free State president Zola Thamae, all stood down on Monday morning, following the weekend resignations of five of the non-independent directors on the Board.

With no Board now in place, the 14-strong Members Council is currently in charge of CSA and their first order of business is to set up an interim board, none of whom will be directors from the last four years and none of whom will be eligible for the new permanent Board once it is in place.

The Members Council will present their plans to sports minister Nathi Mthethwa later on Monday, ahead of their scheduled meeting with him on Tuesday, and they will also consult with Sascoc over the composition of the interim board.

While ensuring independent directors are a majority on the board is one of the major recommendations of the Nicholson Commission, a big focus of the Members Council will be in ensuring these independents are fit to serve cricket, because they have been disappointed with the level of contribution made by the independent directors in recent years.

“Everyone on the Board has now gone and we will now move forward with our interim board plan. We want to send the Minister a response before our meeting on Tuesday. We’ve opened communication with Sascoc, but we need to nominate people who will add value to cricket, we need to guard against people coming in who are not going to help CSA.

“We want to get that interim board as clean as possible and you can’t serve on that body and then be a Board member afterwards because that would be a conflict of interest and we don’t want people to be persuaded into doing things that are not for the benefit of the game. Knowledge of cricket is going to be key and the biggest question facing us is whether we want totally independent figures or cricket people,” a provincial president who sits on the Members Council told The Citizen on Monday.

The administrator confirmed that they were trying to convince a recently retired Protea of high standing to swop his whites for a tie and sit on that interim board.

Much of the blame for CSA’s mess can be laid on the shoulders of previous independent directors, on whom the Board depends for expert corporate governance advice, who did not ensure those running the organisation stayed on the straight and narrow.

Schalk Burger was usually at the vanguard when it came to setting a high intensity for the Springboks, but the legendary loose forward does not see that same intensity yet in the current crop of players as they return from Lockdown, which is why he does not believe the national team are ready to compete in the Rugby Championship.

The South African-based players have only had a maximum of three games each – the SuperFan Saturday warm-up, the dour Springbok Showdown and just the opening round of Super Rugby Unlocked. But a decision is due to be made on Friday as to whether they travel to Australia for the Rugby Championship, which is due to start on November 7, with the Springboks taking on Argentina in Brisbane.

“At the moment the Boks are not ready. I just haven’t seen the intensity to match the intensity we saw in the All Blacks/Australia game on the weekend. For us to perform away from home, I think the guys are a few games short. Rassie Erasmus said he wanted them to have six games before playing Test rugby, but if it is true that the November 7 match has already been postponed then they will have more time.

“But we have magnificent players and we play differently to the All Blacks and Wallabies, especially in the way we defend. It was so easy for Australia to get width with just one or two passes, but we rush up and make that so difficult. And we pride ourselves on our scrums and lineouts, so we would have put Australia under so much more pressure,” Burger said in a Laureus Sport For Good Foundation webinar on Wednesday night.

Burger also added that he was concerned about the injury suffered on a French field by Handre Pollard and the lack of certainty over who will back up Elton Jantjies at flyhalf, as well as the injuries at lock.

“Lock and flyhalf are real concerns. Lood de Jager, Handre Pollard and RG Snyman have all suffered major injuries and they are nine-to-10-month injuries, so one wonders if they will be ready for the British Lions tour next year, which is a red-letter event for South Africa. I’m waiting for a few young locks to really stand up, there’s massive scope for that now.

“At flyhalf, Elton is the most natural choice to take over from Handre, but we need someone else too. The question is whether that is Damian Willemse or Curwin Bosch. Kicking for poles will be very important and that’s probably Damian’s most inconsistent area. Or do they use Frans Steyn as cover for flyhalf? That’s all got to unfold over the next year and there are still lots of questions to be answered,” Burger said.

“But the biggest worry is that the guys have not played much rugby. Their intensity is not sharp enough and it looks like they are having difficulty handling the fact that there are no crowds and they need to adapt to that.”

 

A mid-winter afternoon drive in the Pilanesberg National Park might not be the time hardened twitchers are expecting to see loads of exciting birds, but it was still a very rewarding jaunt on a sunny day that quickly dropped to just 13 degrees once the sun started setting.

My route took me from the Bakgatla gate at the top of the park, a Familiar Chat giving me the familiar greeting to the Pilanesberg as it flew into a tree and began flicking its tail, and was focused on the Dithabeneng Drive and the Acacia shrubs and thickets that characterise that route and prove very attractive to birds.

As is often the case in winter, the best birding happens when you chance upon a bird party – a flock of foraging birds comprised of mixed species. I had just turned on to the Dithabaneng Drive from the Moruleng link road when I hit one of these bird parties.

A pair of Marico Flycatchers on either side of the road were the initial birds spotted, but some non-breeding Southern Masked Weavers were also hopping about, there was a Forktailed Drongo aloofly surveying proceedings higher up on the trees and the obligatory Blackeyed Bulbuls were noisily jerking around the leaves.

And then two long-tailed birds went darting into the undergrowth. Closer inspection revealed the superb colours of the beautiful Violeteared Waxbill – the blue, chestnut, violet and red contrasting spectacularly with the general drab colours of thornveld in winter.

The Dithabaneng Dam was the next stop, but it was rather dry with just a couple of muddy pools left. A pair of Blacksmith Plover and a Forktailed Drongo playing sentinel was all that was left in terms of birdlife.

Still, the Dithabaneng Drive was providing enough to keep one interested: Chestnutvented Tit Babbler, Rattling Cisticola and Sabota Lark on the bushes, while a Kalahari Scrub Robin was perched in the open and singing away cheerfully.

The Malatse Dam is also off the Dithabaneng Drive, and here at least there was more activity with African Spoonbill, Whitebreasted Cormorant, Yellowbilled Duck, Threebanded Plover and Egyptian Goose on or next to the water. The hide at Malatse is east-facing so it is an ideal spot in the afternoon, as peaceful and tranquil as can be. The dead trees rising out of the shallows complete the scenic picture and also provide useful perches for birds, with a few Rock Pigeon using them as a stopover on this occasion.

Pearlbreasted Swallows and Grey Hornbill were also hanging around in the vicinity of the dam on the way back to the Dithabaneng Drive, where a Cape Bunting was being unusually secretive lurking in the thickets and not scratching around on the open ground as it normally does.

The Salty Springs are patches of water that run between Dithabaneng Drive, the eastern border of the park and Manyane camp, and they often throw up interesting sightings; today there were Blackwinged Stilt foraging and Blue Wildebeest had come to drink.

With a bit of time in hand, I veered off back west along the Potokwane Road, where another bird was hiding in a tree instead of being in its typical place on the ground – a Groundscraper Thrush. Perhaps something had scared it up there.

 

Map

 

Sightings list

Familiar Chat

Cinnamonbreasted Rock Bunting

Grey Lourie

Natal Francolin

Blackeyed Bulbul

Southern Yellowbilled Hornbill

African Elephant

Lilacbreasted Roller

Giraffe

Redbilled Oxpecker

Blacksmith Plover

Forktailed Drongo

Marico Flycatcher

Southern Masked Weaver

Violeteared Waxbill

Chestnutvented Titbabbler

Rattling Cisticola

Sabota Lark

Impala

Kalahari Scrub Robin

Plains Zebra

Cape Turtle Dove

Greater Kudu

Crested Francolin

African Spoonbill

Whitebreasted Cormorant

Rock Pigeon

Yellowbilled Duck

Threebanded Plover

Egyptian Goose

Pearlbreasted Swallow

Grey Hornbill

Crowned Plover

Crested Barbet

Cape Bunting

Blackwinged Stilt

Blue Wildebeest

Laughing Dove

Longtailed Shrike

Groundscraper Thrush

 

Mapungubwe National Park is renowned for its hostile rocky terrain and hardy baobabs, but at 6.25pm on January 25, the sun is setting and casting its rays over a tropical wetland, reflecting off the water and illuminating the drowned Fever Trees in a magical light.

Through this idyllic setting, two small waterfowl come cruising towards the Maloutswa Pan Hide, easing their way through the vegetation on the water’s surface.

Soon the distinctive small white faces, chestnut breasts and dark green upperparts of the Pygmy Goose became clear – a Lifer and just as I had imagined seeing the most beautiful and exotic of our ducks, and a rather scarce tropical visitor at that.

The illustrations of them in the bird guides have always enthralled me with their beautiful colours, and in real life the Pygmy Goose is even cuter with their bright yellow beaks, drifting serenely through the water lilies.

Maloutswa Pan is a superb spot for birding and typical birds seen are Giant and Pied kingfishers, Threebanded Plover, African Pied Wagtail, Blackwinged Stilt, Diederik Cuckoo, Swainson’s Francolin, Whitefaced Duck, Redbilled Buffalo Weaver, Greenbacked Heron, Egyptian Goose, Wood Sandpiper, African Jacana, Sacred Ibis and Blacksmith Plover.

Numerous other species come and go and on this occasion, a Lanner Falcon was flying along the pan and Abdim’s Stork also flew past, while African Mourning Dove were in one of the dead trees. A male was approaching a female all bowing and cooing and currowling … only for the female to simply fly off! Ah, the perils of courtship.

A large herd of Elephant were making their daily late-afternoon trek from Maloutswa towards the Limpopo River, while a Greybacked Camaroptera was chirping away in an Umbrella Thorn at the hide. The Hadeda Ibis which had loudly announced my arrival had begun to settle down.

Mapungubwe NP is divided into eastern and western sections and Maloutswa is in the western portion, on the Limpopo River floodplain. There is another interesting body of water in the eastern section, a little dam close to the park’s main entrance, and there, along with a Common Sandpiper, was a Common Moorhen.

At first I thought it was a family of Common Moorhen because there were smaller ones with it … Closer inspection, however, revealed a mostly yellow bill, rather than red, and I had a second Lifer, the Lesser Moorhen! Again, it was a fantastic sighting, with the Common Moorhen alongside for comparison.

The brilliant waterbirding in this otherwise dry, hostile environment doesn’t stop there. Between the western and eastern portions of the park lie the Den Staat Wetlands, situated on a private farm but apparently now open to people staying in the park.

The large retention dams with varying levels of water are packed with birds and my late afternoon visit provided African Spoonbill, Ruff, Marsh Sandpiper, African Darter and Fulvous Duck on the water, while the rank vegetation around the dams had Yellowcrowned Bishop just chizzling away, Bluecheeked Bee-Eater, a prowling Burchell’s Coucal, Blackshouldered Kite and Steppe Buzzard.

My visit to Mapungubwe coincided with the place going to seed. But in a good way as the grass had grown to over a metre high in some places, higher than the 4×4’s bonnet and laden with seed.

It soon became apparent that there were quails in there but, as they would fly out for one or two seconds and then disappear into the grass again, identifying them was a near-impossible task. Even in short grass, I would mark the spot where one landed, walk there and find nothing! My best guess, based on the white spots on dark brown I saw when I had a brief glance, was Harlequin Quail.

The frustration of the quails notwithstanding, driving through the Acacia woodland with its lush understorey was extremely rewarding. Wattled Starling were busy and conspicuous, as a Kori Bustard marched sternly through the veld. Less obvious were the Lesser Masked Weaver unobtrusively working its way through the canopy of trees and a Eurasian Golden Oriole silently moving through the same area.

A Booted Eagle came flying out of the woodland, with its distinctive chevron on a dark rump, while Redbilled Helmetshrike, European Cuckoo, Melba Finch, Southern Pied Babbler and Purple Roller were also delightful sightings. A Rattling Cisticola was high up on top of one of the Acacias.

The more open country also held some large flocks of Redbilled Quelea, such a common bird but the breeding males are still so beautiful with their bright pink facial wash and black mask. White Stork and Tawny Eagle were soaring overhead and Whitecrowned Shrike, Common Scimitarbill, Namaqua Dove and Longtailed Starling were also present.

As the sun was setting, a pair of African Hawk Eagle were sitting on a fence (used to keep Elephant out of a regenerating area of woodland), with one descending into the grass next to a big herd of Impala. Ground Hornbill were nearby too.

The Mapungubwe campsite is in the western section and one of the best I have ever had the pleasure of staying in. Mazhou is situated in the dense riverine forest of the Limpopo floodplain and birding is excellent, while various animals also pass through at close quarters.

A pair of Woodland Kingfisher were nesting in a tree at my particular site, with a pair of Crested Barbet in the same tree, in a hole higher up. But they were flying to and from an adjacent tree, so perhaps they had two nests in close proximity, or maybe their trips to the other tree were to divert attention away from their nest?

The delightful White Helmetshrike were visitors to my campsite, one of them struggling to swallow a large caterpillar, while a female Whitebellied Sunbird easily dispatched a spider it caught high in the canopy. A Bearded Woodpecker was also chattering away and easily seen from my chair as was a European Marsh Warbler on my final morning.

When night had just fallen, a Barred Owl flew into a tree above my ‘lounge’; then I heard a ‘chit chit chit’ and the adorable Lesser Bushbaby passed through, leaping acrobatically from tree-to-tree.

From camp it is a short drive to the Limpopo River banks and its huge riverine trees, with Grey Hornbill, Yellowbellied Bulbul and Speckled Mousebird all enjoying the fruiting figs. A Yellowbilled Stork and Bateleur were soaring overhead, while a Nile Monitor pretended to be a log on the side of the road.

Soon the distinctive calls of the African Fish Eagle were heard from overhead, the archetypal riverine raptor also soaring as the temperature reached 36°, the sort of heat that encouraged a Steenbok to go lie under a bush.

For real heat, however, exploring the eastern section, hot, dry and rugged Baobab country with jagged sandstone buttresses, will get you sweating.

Klipspringer, standing motionless like statues, adorn the weathered rocks, while it was so hot (39°) that a Giraffe was lying down under a Baobab chewing on his lunch with his buddy the Blue Wildebeest. It was a very peaceful scene until a biting fly seemingly jabbed the Wildebeest, leading to a typically comical reaction as the Gnu went tearing off in the direction of Zimbabwe.

The Giraffe and the Wildebeest were a slightly odd couple, but there were more regular pairs around like the Black Eagles soaring over a koppie and, at a pan deep in the Mopane in the Kanniedood area, Redheaded Finch amongst a host of queleas. Redbilled Teal were on the water and the surrounding area also held Longtailed Paradise Whydah, Cut-Throat Finch, European Roller and Pale Chanting Goshawk.

Other interesting birds on the “dry” side of Mapungubwe are Monotonous, Sabota and Flappet Larks and Black Kite.

The eastern portion of Mapungubwe also has frontage on to the Limpopo River, with a brilliant treetop boardwalk providing Meyer’s Parrot, given away by its screeching calls before it flew into a tree cavity, meaning it was probably nesting given the time of day. A Marabou Stork was also circling overhead, while beautiful bushveld birds such as the Broadbilled Roller, Brubru, Plumcoloured Starling and Goliath Heron are also present.

Other birds seen in the rich gallery forest were Jacobin Cuckoo, Tropical Boubou and Steelblue Widowfinch.

Even the farm roads around Mapungubwe are great for birding with Chestnutbacked Sparrowlark, Whitebrowed Sparrow Weaver, Amur Falcon and African Cuckoo on the dirt road through the agricultural lands and Pearlbreasted Swallow in amongst the European Swallows and Carmine Bee-Eaters all over the telephone wires. Blackchested Snake Eagle also often uses these perches.

 

Sightings list

Laughing Dove

Whitecrowned Shrike

Natal Francolin

Longtailed Starling

Woodland Kingfisher

Redbilled Hornbill

Vervet Monkey

Crested Barbet

Redeyed Dove

Tree Squirrel

Whitebacked Vulture

Spotted Flycatcher

Forktailed Drongo

Tawny Eagle

Redbilled Quelea

Whitefronted Bee-Eater

Blue Waxbill

Redbacked Shrike

Southern Greyheaded Sparrow

Common Scimitarbill

Namaqua Dove

Blue Wildebeest

Impala

Waterbuck

Plains Zebra

Redbilled Oxpecker

Warthog

Lilacbreasted Roller

Emeraldspotted Wood Dove

White Helmetshrike

Bushbuck

Whitebellied Sunbird

Cape Turtle Dove

Bearded Woodpecker

European Swallow

Carmine Bee-Eater

Boulenger’s Garter Snake

Chacma Baboon

Southern Masked Weaver

Redbilled Helmetshrike

Crowned Plover

Elephant

Cattle Egret

Rattling Cisticola

Greybacked Camaroptera

Hadeda Ibis

Whitefaced Duck

African Mourning Dove

Redbilled Buffalo Weaver

Greenbacked Heron

Egyptian Goose

Wood Sandpiper

African Jacana

Nile Crocodile

Abdim’s Stork

Sacred Ibis

Blacksmith Plover

African Hawk Eagle

Ground Hornbill

Barred Owl

Jameson’s Firefinch

Whitebrowed Scrub Robin

Jacobin Cuckoo

Grey Hornbill

Yellowbellied Bulbul

Speckled Mousebird

Tropical Boubou

Blackeyed Bulbul

Cardinal Woodpecker

Steelblue Widowfinch

Blackbacked Puffback

Whitewinged Widow

Southern Yellowbilled Hornbill

Yellowbilled Stork

Nile Monitor

Bateleur

Grey Heron

Redbilled Woodhoopoe

Dabchick

Hamerkop

African Fish Eagle

Wattled Starling

Steenbok

Kori Bustard

Slender Mongoose

Longbilled Crombec

Lesser Masked Weaver

Eurasian Golden Oriole

Banded Mongoose

Harlequin Quail

White Stork

Booted Eagle

European Cuckoo

Melba Finch

Purple Roller

Fantailed Cisticola

Lanner Falcon

Giant Kingfisher

Pied Kingfisher

Threebanded Plover

African Pied Wagtail

Blackwinged Stilt

Diederik Cuckoo

Pygmy Goose

Swainson’s Francolin

Lesser Bushbaby

Whitebrowed Sparrow Weaver

Chestnutbacked Sparrowlark

Amur Falcon

Pearlbreasted Swallow

African Cuckoo

Yellowthroated Sparrow

Monotonous Lark

Sabota Lark

Marsh Terrapin

Klipspringer

Cinnamonbreasted Rock Bunting

Rock Dassie

Tawnyflanked Prinia

Broadbilled Roller

Meyer’s Parrot

Southern Black Flycatcher

Brubru

Plumcoloured Starling

Wiretailed Swallow

Goliath Heron

Marabou Stork

Redwinged Starling

Flappet Lark

Giraffe

Black Eagle

Black Kite

Gemsbok

Redheaded Finch

Redbilled Teal

Longtailed Paradise Whydah

Cut-Throat Finch

European Roller

Goldenbreasted Bunting

Pale Chanting Goshawk

Helmeted Guineafowl

Common Moorhen

Lesser Moorhen

Common Sandpiper

Grey Lourie

Blackchested Snake Eagle

African Spoonbill

Ruff

Marsh Sandpiper

African Darter

Fulvous Duck

Yellowcrowned Bishop

Bluecheeked Bee-Eater

Burchell’s Coucal

Blackshouldered Kite

Steppe Buzzard

Southern Pied Babbler

European Marsh Warbler