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Street Cred – Sporting Chance Street Cricket Final – 1 December

nats — Wed, 01 Dec 2010 08:37:05 +0000

The streets of Nyanga were abuzz when 11 teams from disadvantaged communities throughout the Western Cape competed for the coveted Sporting Chance Street Cricket Champions’ Trophy on Wednesday 1 December.

For the past five weeks more than 3000 young learners from 11 regions including Mitchell’s Plain, Manenberg, Gugulethu, Langa, Ocean View, Masipumelele, Elsies River, Khayelitsha and Macassar have taken to the streets, to compete in the 2010 Sporting Chance Street Cricket League.

The Sporting Chance Street Cricket League, in association with Disney, Grand West CSI and the HCI Foundation, is in its seventh successful season and according to event organiser Brad Bing of Sporting Chance, the youth sports development agency that launched the street cricket league in 2003, the initiative has enjoyed unprecedented success since its humble beginnings as a pilot project in Langa.

Western Cape Minister of Cultural Affairs and Sport, Dr Ivan Meyer, who attended the finals, applauded the initiative. “Projects like this show children the value of sport whilst bringing communities and cultures together. Sports development is very important to the Western Cape and initiatives like this really add value to our communities,” said Dr Meyer.

Bing concurs. “The communities are filled with sports mad children and the street cricket league allows them to be actively involved in cricket and the enjoyment that goes with it, in their very own neighbourhoods.”

Regional cricket clubs and sports organisations in association with Sporting Chance organise children under 11 into street teams of ten. At least two members of each team must be girls and all must have attended school throughout the year prior to the start of the tournament – all part of Sporting Chance’s philosophy of getting as many children irrespective of race, gender or social class, off the streets and into the sporting environment.

“They don’t like cricket, they love it,” jokes Bing, who also adds that the tournament is more than ‘just a game’. “Up to a certain age, all boys and girls should ideally be exposed to sport and research has shown that you develop your habits by the age of 12,” says Bing. “If you’re not playing sport or leading an active and healthy lifestyle by then, the chances are that sport and being physically active will not feature in your adult lifestyle.”

Heidi Abrahams of GrandWest CSI adds. “By introducing children to an active lifestyle we aim to provide them with healthy alternatives to drugs and crime,” says Abrahams. “We want to get children playing in the annual street cricket tournament and encourage them to enjoy the fun of sport and avoid the temptations of drugs and crime that plague our youth of today.”

“The children in these communities face various challenges,” says Disney’s Amanda D’halluin. “This tournament gives them an opportunity to be part of a team and belong to something – all children want that sense of ‘belonging’ and if we can provide them with valuable programmes and projects, perhaps we can lessen the weight of their challenging environments.”

For more information on the matches contact Brad Bing on 021 683 7299 or events@sportingchance.co.za or visit www.sportingchance.co.za.

Sporting Chance Kia Street Soccer on ETV

admin — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 12:46:39 +0000

Sporting Chance with the support of 2010 FIFA World Cup™ partner KIA Motors as the title sponsor, will be involved in the Street Soccer project that will make a difference to thousands of South African children’s lives as they begin to “live the dream of 2010”!

Through the Kia Charity and Care program thousands of disadvantaged children around South Africa will be given the opportunity to participate in the Kia Street Soccer league as well as accompanying health and education programmes. Marketing Manager Vinola Pillay says, “Together with Sporting Chance we hope to achieve several things, firstly, we want to emphasise to children the value of sport and physical activity in building a bright future. Furthermore, we want to use sport and the FIFA World Cup™ as a vehicle for building self-esteem and educating children about the importance of health and nutrition. More importantly through these programmes we also want to provide opportunities for sporting achievement and personal development for as many children as possible”.

Street Cricket Final Heating Up

Rob Peters — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 19:48:45 +0000

: Gibbs mentors young Nyanga children on the streets

Six weeks of entertaining street cricket has culminated into one big day at this year’s Sporting Chance Street Cricket Championship Finals taking place on Thursday 26^th November 2009, where all the winning regional teams will battle it out for the coveted trophy.

The program kicked off on 16 October and saw more than 3000 young children from disadvantaged communities participate in five weeks of round-robin fixtures followed by the regional finals.

Not only did the program introduce children under the ages of 11 to the game of cricket, but also gave them the opportunity to meet one of South Africa’s favourite cricketing heros – Herschelle Gibbs.

Summoned from the school classroom as a 16-year-old to make his first-class debut in 1990, Gibbs has loved the game of cricket where he has played in every test nation cricketing country around the world, and enjoys putting back into the game he loves so dearly.

“I have played and enjoyed all levels of the game, but there is no greater joy and satisfaction than seeing the absolute passion these children have in playing cricket” said Gibbs.

“there is no doubt that we have hidden talent on our doorsteps here in the Cape, and with good coaching and mentoring there is no reason why these children cant make it all the way to the top.”

The Street Cricket initiative which is in its sixth succesfull season, was played by children from Gugulethu, Khayelitsha, Kewzi, Nyanga, Langa, Elsies River, Langa, Atlantis, Mannenberg, Mitchells Plain, Ocean View, and Masipumelele in Cape Town.

Brad Bing, MD of Sporting Chance who started the first street cricket league in 2003 says the initiative has enjoyed unprecedented success since it humble beginnings as a pilot project in Langa.

“This year we’ve continued with our successful strategy of 15 teams, as we’ve noticed that the emerging communities are filled with sport mad children” said Bing.

Whilst many dignitaries are expected at the final on the eve of the ODI between South Africa and England, many of Cape Town’s professional players encourage all children to play outdoors.

Robin Peterson, another Proteas player who has recently joined the Cape Cobras, started his game on the streets of Port Elizabeth.

“I have many friends still today who I met whilst playing street cricket” said Peterson. “I love this format of the game and continue to play it whenever I get a chance,” he continue.

STREET CRICKET WELL ON ITS WAY !!

Rob Peters — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 08:31:10 +0000

With summer setting in nicely Friday was the perfect Cape Town day for Street Cricket. The league which is now in its 3^rd week is proving to be the highlight of the week in each community with parents, uncles, aunties, grandparents, etc, all coming out to watch these young cricket players compete for the Street Cricket league trophy. With the regions being so spread out I managed to get to Elsies River and Nyanga on Friday. I started off in Elsies River by Avonwood sports complex were the teams compete amongst the court yards hitting the balls high into the flats where their loyal supporters sit and watch. The competition in Elsies is fierce and all the children are playing hard to get into their regional finals.

After Elsies I headed to the township of Nyanga where the talent was in abundance as their coaches have insisted on extra training for their teams once a week. Nyanga Street Cricket is coordinated by the passionate Mxo Tywaku who has organized a fantastic league with they help from his dedicated coaches. Nyanga are playing hard to keep the Street Cricket Trophy which they won convincingly last year. With new young talent that is coming through I reckon they will field a great team in the finals in Langa.

I have received great feedback from all coordinators in each region. Cyril Pelston the coordinator in Manenberg informed me” After three weeks of street cricket matches, there is so much excitement in the Manenberg community. Street cricket has become part of the culture of our community and helps to add value and growth in communities”.

I wish all the teams luck for the upcoming week and look forward to some more Street Cricket this Friday.

Street Cricket action comes alive again!

Rob Peters — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 14:17:42 +0000

The annual Sporting Chance Street Cricket league got off to a great start last Friday 16^th October with the Cape Town weather playing in our favour. The league takes place on the streets of the various communities in and around Cape Town and will involve 12 regions: Khayelitsha, Kwezi, Atlantis, Nyanga, Langa, Gugulethu, Elsies River, Mitchell’s Plain, Manenberg, Ocean View, Masiphumelele and Lwandle.

Each league has 250 participants and coaches and will involve boys and girls under the age of 11. It runs for 7 weeks and encourages kids to get involved in sport as an alternative to getting involved with gangs and drugs which plague many of these communities especially between the dangerous hours of 14h00 till 18h00.

A big thank you must go to our loyal sponsors Disney Enterprises, City of Cape Town, our numerous private donors with media partners Good Hope FM and Super Sport Lets Play also getting involved in the action. The support from the sponsors allows the league to happen each year and for Sporting Chance to employ a league co-ordinator and 20 coaches in each region.

The Street Cricket league regional finals will take place on Friday 20^th November in the various regions to find the regional finalist who will join the other regional finalists at the annual Street Cricket final in Langa on Thursday 26^th November – the home of Street Cricket.

For more information about the league details, please contact Sporting Chance on 021 683 7299

TWO WEEK COUNTDOWN TO STREET CRICKET FINALS – 2008 Pinnacle Point Street Cricket League

admin — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 17:56:31 +0000

More than three thousand seven hundred children from disadvantaged communities in the Western and Southern Cape have taken to the streets in recent weeks to compete in the 2008 Pinnacle Point Street Cricket League, in association with Disney, ABSA, the City of Cape Town, Lets Play and Good Hope fm, which kicked off on Friday 10^th October and culminates in the overall finals on Friday 21^st November.

Since the kick off teams from 15 regions have been playing weekly, and after some fierce competition will be playing against one another in regional finals this week on 14^th November at 15h00. The top team from each league will then participate in the Street Cricket finals in Langa from 15h00 to 19h00 on Friday 21^st November, competing for the coveted Pinnacle Point Street Cricket Champions’ Trophy.

The initiative, which is in its fifth successful season, has introduced children from Gugulethu, Khayelitsha, Kwezi, Nyanga, Langa, Elsies River, Manenberg, Mitchells Plain, Ocean View and Masipumelele in Cape Town, Lwandle in Strand, Atlantis, and Kwa Nonqaba, D’almeida and Civic Park in Mossel Bay, to the game of cricket over a gruelling six-week period.

Brad Bing, MD of youth sports development agency Sporting Chance – who started the first street cricket league in 2003, says the initiative has enjoyed unprecedented success since its humble beginnings as a pilot project in Langa.

“This year we’ve included four new areas in the Western Cape taking the total number of regions up to 15. The emerging communities are filled with sport mad children and the street cricket league allows them to be actively involved in cricket and the enjoyment that goes with it in their very own neighbourhoods”, says Bing.

Regional cricket clubs and sports organisations in association with Sporting Chance organise children under 11 years old into street teams of ten. At least two members of each team must be girls and all the children must have attended school throughout the year and belong to a sport organisation or club prior to the start of the tournament – all part of Sporting Chance’s philosophy of getting as many children irrespective of race, gender or social class, off the streets, educated and into a sporting environment.

Streets in the various communities serve as the pitches, and are closed off for the matches once a week (Friday afternoon in Cape Town and Sunday afternoon in Mossel Bay), spectators are welcome.

The initiative enjoys the backing of the National Department of Health, the Department of Cultural Affairs and Sport, Education and Community Safety, and associate sponsors include Disney, Absa, the City of Cape Town, Lets Play and Good Hope fm.

For more information on the matches contact Brad Bing on 021 683 7299 or brad@sportingchance.co.za or visit www.sportingchance.co.za.