South Africa is a nation that
celebrates and is passionate about sport, yet thousands of children have
limited access to playing sport they are passionate about. Sport is more than
just a game, it allows young boys and girls to engage in teamwork, discipline,
tolerance and the value of fair play.
Claire Terblanche, Head Coach:
Western Province Women and Girls Pipeline,
sat to discuss the beauty of grassroot development and what it
potentially means for a budding cricketer in an age of pursuing a healthy mind,
body and psyche.
Before Terblanche became a
respected cricket coach, she watched from the side-lines as a little girl until
she took it upon herself to go for that she wanted, bowling and batting in the
streets of her neighbourhood. She says, “I was drawn to cricket because of the
contention between opponents, the possibility to establish friendships,
travelling to places I have never been to and meeting new people. I hold the
game of cricket in high regard as it taught me lessons about life that helped
me navigate through the good and the misfortunes that life had handed me.”
When asked about her love for
coaching Terblanche said, “Everything I did revolved around cricket and the
progression into this role was a natural one for me. My passion for helping
people grow helps me maintain my desire to be in an environment I really
enjoy.”
Terblanche reiterates that
effective coaching cannot be achieved without functional development at a
grassroot level. “It allows for the holistic growth of kids. It allows for them
to enjoy the game, develop faster and retain what the kid has learnt through
the beautiful game. Subsequently, as they mature as players who are open to
learning and the fun related to learning, even at pro-level.”
KFC Mini-Cricket provides
several inclinations for development including:
Physical development
The reality is that the current
breed of players are well built and tall, even at a mini-cricket level it seems
the kids have a sturdy physique in early development. Coaches need to monitor
the kids closely as childhood growth spurts can cause varying difficulties when
players are still so young. Another element to consider for grassroot
development physique is the approach of their coaching drills at practice and
on match day as all the kids want to do, is play. In principle, the more the
kids get outside to run around and play in a safe environment, the healthier
their bodies will be for the next stage of the cricket pipeline.
Intellectual development
In the early stages of
development, coaches need to use the cricket language more often when on the
field. The language needs to be instilled at the grassroot development level as
there’s opportunity to make this engaging and helps retain the kid’s attention
while learning about the beautiful game. The more coaches speak the cricket
language the easier it becomes for players to develop their own frame of
reference; this will ensure that they take their ownership within their own
space and establish their own approach in their pursuit of playing cricket
either professionally or socially.
Emotional development
The reality is that kids at any
level of the pipeline need to be nurtured alongside being coached about the
skills involved in cricket. Additionally, trust between player and coach goes a
long way to connecting emotionally as there are more factors that could affect
the development of a player which are not related to their physical or mental
wellbeing. Coaches need to create a space that can allow for players to express
themselves in all human facets. Sensitivity to their non-verbal cues such as
their body language should be taken seriously to mitigate the emotional expression
and development at an early age.
Terblanche was asked why she
supports KFC Mini-Cricket Provincial Festivals, she said “ Besides giving back
to the community of cricket, taking the WP Senior Women to spend time with
budding cricketers is a brilliant way to help kids understand the game of
cricket and a lovely opportunity to encourage kids to immerse themselves in
making friends, even with their provincial heroes. It is a good initiative to
socialise kids and allow for the programme to impact them in one way or
another.”
The KFC Mini-Cricket programme
remains one of the largest national grassroots development programme in South
Africa and offers kids with the critical building blocks for learning
cricketing basics and entrenching a love for the game. The programme allows
volunteer coaches at schools to offer a cricket sporting programme, even with
basic fields and facilities.
