Sporting Action - Teenage Professionals and The School Sports Renaissance

"After all, World Cups are won 10 years before they are played”

By Koketso Mamabolo

One of summer’s newest attractions, the Betway SA20 tournament, came to an end this month offering a great sideshow to the geopolitical theatrics on display. The finals, featuring one of cricket’s biggest names, Proteas fast-bowler Kagiso Rabada, saw MI Cape Town break their playoff curse in the competition’s third rendition, culminating in a win over two time champions, Sunrisers Eastern Cape, on a Saturday evening on the highveld.

SA20 features six franchises backed by Indian Premier League (IPL) team owners, with former Proteas captain Graeme Smith running the show as league commissioner. The competition has quickly found a place for itself on the global calendar, tapping into the blockbuster appeal of the IPL attracting big names and creating an all-round experience for fans. The action unfolds with live music, DJs and kids entertainment offering a vibrant backdrop.

Taking lessons from how the four major American sports (basketball, baseball, ice hockey and American football) operate, SA20 implemented a system where teams can pick from a pool of young, inexperienced players in a “draft”. The Rookie Draft, which began in season 2 of the competition, has already produced a potential star of the future in Paarl Royals left-handed batsmen Lhuan-dre Pretorius. The 18 year old, who starred for the SA U19 side in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup last year, held on home soil, finished as the highest run-scorer with former Proteas spin-bowler Chris Morris comparing him to Quinton de Kock, considered by some to be one of the greatest players of his generation.

Lhuan-dre could very well find himself at the T20 World Cup next year with another teenage star, Kwena Maphaka, who became the country’s youngest test debutant last year at 18 years and 271 days old. A member of the matric class of 2024 who has already played in all three formats for the national side, Kwena honed his skills at St Stithians College in Johannesburg, where Lhuan-dre also spent time before completing school at Cornwall Hill College.

Both are products of a school sports system which has produced South African icons, from track stars to swimming royalty. In an effort to bolster the pipeline — which does tend to favour pupils from elite, traditional sporting powerhouse schools, like St Stithians — SuperSport has been plowing its extensive resources into school sports.

The success of the “Classic Clash” broadcasts of old schools rugby rivalries - which gave birth to “Premier Interschools” broadcasts at the heart of winter sports - has developed into SuperSport Schools, a fully-dedicated channel and streaming platform which in 2024 offered viewers over 60 000 games covering a range of sports and age groups.

Following the milestone of one million app users in September last year, SuperSport Schools is set to reach millions more through a private-public partnership with SABC Sport which has seen the channel added to the SABC Plus streaming platform. “We are proud to be part of this life-changing partnership that extends beyond the fulfilment of SABC’s mandate, by offering South Africans from all walks of life a platform that nurtures young talent and provides unparalleled opportunities for personal and professional development,” said SABC Group Chief Executive Officer, Nomsa Chabeli, in a statement announcing the groundbreaking partnership.

SuperSport CEO Rendani Ramovha emphasised the importance of promoting community engagement through the partnership, strengthening bonds between schools and the communities that surround them. “We want to encourage participation in sports at a grassroots level and reignite interest in sports across all schools in the country,” stated Rendani. “Both SuperSport and the SABC share a common vision of providing young athletes with a platform to shine and inspiring future generations of sportsmen and women.”

From these tests of skill, teamwork and coaching will emerge the next Tatjana Smiths and Siya Kolisi. As Thandolwethu Bakumeni, Head of Supersport Schools, said: “After all, World Cups are won 10 years before they are played.”

What's On In March

Cricket

ICC Champions Trophy: Proteas Men - 1 March

Champions Trophy: Semi-final 1 (TBC) - 4 March

Champions Trophy: Semi-final 2 (TBC) - 5 March

Champions Trophy: Final (TBC) - 9 March

Football

African World Cup Qualifiers: Bafana Bafana vs Lesotho - 17 March

Benin vs Bafana Bafana - 24 March

UEFA Nations League: Italy vs Germany - 21 March

Netherlands vs Spain - 21 March

Rugby

United Rugby Championship: Lions vs Sharks - 1 March

Bulls vs Stormers - 1 March

Six Nations:

Ireland vs France - 8 March

England vs Italy - 9 March

Italy vs Ireland - 15 March

France vs Scotland - 15 March

Golf

Investec South African Open Championship: 27 February - 3 March

Joburg Open: 6 - 10 March

Betway Big Easy Tour Final: 12 - 15 March

The Courier Guy Playoff Series - Serengeti Invitational: 20 - 24 March

Source: SA20 | News 18 | Club Cricket | IOL | News24 | Daily Maverick | SABC