CRICKET
Kearsney College won the toss and bowled first on a track which promised to flatten out later in the day due to the hot conditions expected throughout the day.
In over 30-degree heat Kearsney’s attack toiled manfully and eventually bowled St Charles out for 218. Yeni was the pick of the bowlers with his 3/63, knocking over the top order batters. Bishop also weighed in with 2/19. Pick of St Charles’ batters was Zuma with a well-played 61 and Sunguro with 45.
Kearsney fancied their chances of running down the total with their arsenal of in-form batters. They got off to a bright start of 38/0 in 6 overs, before an unexpected lightning storm interrupted play and put an end to further proceedings for the day.
It was a sad end to an incredible season from the Kearsney outfit, having lost only 7 games in the 38 games played this year.
Although the team’s success was a collective effort with significant contributions from all the players throughout the season, two players had outstanding seasons, spearheading the team’s excellent results.
Captain Hayden Bishop ended the season on 1 428 runs and set a new Kearsney record, and Ross Coetzee finished the season with 59 wickets and 739 runs. These were remarkable results considering Kearsney has played some of the best cricketing schools in South Africa and Zimbabwe.
The new season kicks off in early January when Kearsney hosts the Ihlobo 1st Team Cricket Festival, with eight teams doing battle from as far afield as Zimbabwe.
BASKETBALL
Kearsney hosted the number 1 ranked basketball team in the country, St Charles College on Saturday, in a game which was played outside due to Kearsney writing examinations in their Sportzone. As both teams usually play indoors, the conditions were not ideal for either team.
St Charles took a slim 12-9 lead at the end of the first quarter, with neither team shooting particularly well. Both teams scored freely in the second quarter with the defenses not proving too difficult to overcome. Despite Kearsney giving a big push, they could not erase the gap, going into half-time 26-30 down.
Kearsney fought hard in the third quarter and closed the gap to one point. The conditions of playing in the wind and 37-degree heat took their toll on the Kearsney team which wilted visibly, allowing St Charles to pull ahead and emerge deserving 48-59 winners.
Top performers
Kearsney: Reabetswe Sithole 10 points; Connor Grenfell, Sinqobile Buthelezi, Luke Emmanuel 6 points
St Charles: James Wutcherer 19 points; Tait Hendricks, Jesse Mwesigwa 14 point
WATER POLO
Kearsney’s U16A water polo team enjoyed a comfortable victory over St Charles 1st team.
GOLF
Kearsney Grade 10 golfer Matthew Gouws won the recent Zululand Closed championships held at Richards Bay Golf Club.
PROVINCIAL COLOURS
Grade 8 pupil Harry Hughes has been awarded KZN colours for Clay Target Shooting. He will represent the province at the Chairman’s Cup in Polokwane in the NSSA Skeet discipline of clay target shooting.
Sports report compiled by Sue Miles from Working Words
