The Proteas travelled to
Northdene Primary School today for the 3rdmatch of the 2016/17 KFC
Mini-Cricket Kids vs Proteas Tour. They
took a 2-0 series lead into the game, giving them the opportunity to wrap-up
the 4 match series with a win against Northedene’s KFC Mini-Cricket team. The kids however were more than up for the
task and with guidance from all-star coach and former Proteas speedster Mfuneko
Ngam, they managed to keep themselves alive in the Tour with an easy victory
over the Proteas.
The kids won the toss in front of
a massive home crowd and elected to bowl.
The Proteas got off to a slow start, struggling against the pace of the
Northdene opening bowlers. Connor
Johnstone was one of the stars for the kids, often foxing his Proteas opponents
with his lethal leg spin and sharp fielding. Khaya Zondo attempted to up the
run rate, hitting a massive 6 over the commentary box but in the end they could
only string together 47 runs in their 8 overs.
Nathan Moore and Nathan Geel
opened the batting for the kids and piled on the runs fast with Proteas bowler
Lungi Ngidi going to the boundary on multiple occasions. Vernon Philander managed to slow the run rate
for a short period but in the end it wasn’t enough. The kids put on one of the great performances
in the Tour’s 4-year history, cruising to victory with 8 balls to spare.
Ngam was excited by the result
and proud of his charges. “The KFC Mini-Cricket kids were brilliant today with
both bat and ball. We had a clear game
plan which they executed with precision against the world’s top ODI team,” said
Ngam. We now have everything to play for
next week in the Eastern Cape. We will
use this victory as momentum going into the game and I’m sure the kids will
have what it takes to level up the series,” he added.
Njabula Mbanjwa was named man of
the match on the day. The Proteas batsman struggled with his pinpoint bowling
accuracy and lightning speed and only managed 2 runs off his bowling spell.
Proteas bowler, Vernon Philander
was impressed by the level of talent in the Northdene KFC Mini-Cricket
ranks. “The KFC Mini-Cricket kids played
a great game today and put us under pressure from ball 1. They have some really skilled kids in their
team – it’s great to see such gifted young players coming through in Kwa-Zulu
Natal. If today was anything to go by,
we will have a tough task on our hands come the final game next week,” said
Philander.
The KFC Mini-Cricket Kids vs
Proteas Tour moves next to the Eastern Cape where the kids from Zamaxolo Junior
Secondary School will have the chance to level the series when they take on the
Proteas on the famous Khaya Majola Oval in Mthatha.
Mike Middleton, Chief Marketing
Officer for KFC South Africa concluded, “The KFC Mini-Cricket Kids vs Proteas
Tour never fails to entertain – after last season’s 2-2 draw, we are once again
heading for an exciting finish! Coach
Ngam remains unbeaten in the history of the Tour and has done a stellar job
assisting us in getting many kids active and closer to their heroes over the
past four years. I can’t wait to see
what will happen at the Khaya Majola Oval next week.”
KFC Mini-Cricket is played by
over 114,000 kids who are coached by nearly 9000 volunteer coaches.
To get your child involved in KFC
Mini-Cricket or to volunteer as a coach visit www.kfcminicricket.co.za
{ENDS}
Media Contact
Shawn Belluigi
Email: shawn@intunecom.co.za
About the KFC Mini-Cricket Kids v
Proteas Tour
For the third
year KFC will run a national competition where KFC Mini-Cricket kids will stand
the chance to play against the Proteas in the KFC Mini-Cricket Kids vs Proteas
Tour
Kids can enter online (www.kfcminicricket.co.za)
or via USSD (*120*7535#)
The winners will
be rewarded with a prize handover, a training session and a game against the
Proteas, all assisted by one of the three KFC Mini_Cricket coaches, Graeme
Smith, Neil McKenzie and Mfuneko Ngam.
The runners-up
will be given the opportunity to participate as ball boys and girls at a
televised Ram Slam T20 Challenge match in their area
Three third
place winners will be drawn, each of whom will be awarded with 25 KFC
Mini-Cricket sets for their school.
About KFC Mini-Cricket
KFC
Mini-Cricket provides a platform for kids in South Africa to have fun and get
active
KFC
Mini-Cricket is the largest grassroots development sports programme in South
Africa and is also an essential building block for learning cricketing basics
and entrenching a love for the game.
There are currently over 110
000 kids from over 4 900 schools active in the KFC Mini-Cricket programme
who are coached by over 8000 volunteers
KFC
has sponsored KFC Mini-Cricket since 2010 and in the 2012/13 cricket season KFC
became the title sponsor of the KFC T20 Internationals and an associate sponsor
of the Ram Slam T20 Challenge.
KFC
has recently renewed its Mini-Cricket sponsorship for a further 10 years,
taking the partnership through to 2025
Log on to www.kfcminicricket.co.za or contact CSA
at (011) 880 2810 for more info on KFC Mini-Cricket
