Feature photo: Guests of honour, Gene Schlebusch (nee Firth) and Jonathan Firth, at the post-match presentation and awards ceremony.
Final Report (2023) – The Leading Edge
By Wayne Bosch & Hilton Toro
The recently concluded Somerset College cricket festival and the John Firth u/12 tournaments provided the players in our program with the wonderful opportunity to play cricket against some of the best clubs and schools in the Helderberg basin and the wider Cape Town cricket community. It has been very rewarding to see how much these players have developed—both personally and in terms of their skill over the last few months.
The various teams played some entertaining cricket and a few individuals certainly put their hands up for others to take note of their potential. The u/13 team were dominant against most of their opponents, losing just one game before winning the inaugural Brian Cordery trophy which we hope will become an annual fixture between the two teams for years to come. The u/11 and 12 teams had some mixed results but did well to hold their own against some strong and in some cases, more fancied opposition. We played a very entertaining brand of cricket and managed to keep spectators on the edge of their seats, at times blowing them away with our individual brilliance, in the field in particular.
Results aside, it was the huge improvement in their skill level, the very evident growth in confidence and self-esteem and the camaraderie between the players that once again proved the importance of giving these kids these opportunities to grow and develop. They will certainly add more value to their respective schools teams in the new cricket season that has just begun and will certainly walk taller as members of their respective schools and communities.
Sponsorships
Our players certainly looked the part not only in the way that they played but also their appearance. We were very fortunate to have Mazi Investment sponsoring our playing kit again this year. We are sincerely grateful for their continued support and look forward to an ongoing partnership with them, one that will hopefully grow with time. We are also very grateful to Ramble Bags who sponsored our teams with backpacks again this year. We also hope for their continued support and trust that we will also grow our partnership with them. Tour operators Lankester White Safaris – for sponsoring all batting and helmet covers that made our boys and girls look neater in their kit. Bundu Bashers Sports Travel – For the supply of the amazing coaches kit bags.
Click Learning for the educational reading programme—an NGO that helps under-serviced primary schools in South Africa improve foundational literacy, numeracy and digital skills through the deployment of relevant online programmes.
The Cordery family — The Brian Cordery trophy is named in memory of the late father of our Chaplain who passed away in July. The Cordery family made a heartfelt decision to dedicate the funds collected in lieu of flowers to The Leading Edge, a decision rooted in Brian’s lifelong passion for cricket. This act of generosity from the Cordery family not only pays tribute to a devoted cricket enthusiast but also aligns with The Leading Edge’s mission to make a positive impact in the community.
Last, but not least, to the Firth Group for content management, media liaison and business development support.
The Leading Edge extends special thanks to all our sponsors and private benefactors.
- Ramble Bags — Tog bags
- Bundu Bashers Sports Travel – Coaches kit bags
- Mazi Asset Management — all players’ and coaches’ clothing
- Lankester White Safaris — all batting and helmet covers
- Click Learning — for the educational reading programme for the kids
- The Cordery family — named in memory of the late Brian Cordery, father of our school Chaplain, Patrick Cordery. Brian Cordery passed away in July 2023. The Cordery family made a heartfelt decision to donate funds to The Leading Edge—a decision rooted in Brian’s lifelong passion for cricket.
- The Firth Group — Content management, media liaison and business development support
- All private donors/benefactors
A big and hearty THANK YOU!
Clicks Reading Programme
We are excited that our boys and girls were introduced to the Clicks reading program. This program will be part of our programmes going forward. Heidi Hudson-Bennett a teacher at Somerset College will assist us in running the program.
Coaching Development
Our program and activities certainly adds a great deal of value to the development of our players and also the coaches. One of our coaches, Waylinn Bosch recently obtained her CSA accredited, Level 1 coaching qualification. She is one of only a few female coaches in our region and certainly a passionate and promising young coach. She is currently playing and captaining the UWC ladies 1st team and we wish her all the best with her coaching career.
It has been another wonderful year of creating opportunities for the players in our program but also a sad year since we have lost our founding partner John Firth. He encouraged us to dream big and at one stage mentioned how his dreams/ambitions can be bigger than his own capabilities, but that it wouldn’t stop him from dreaming. He will forever be remembered by The Leading Edge team and it was quite touching when the organisers of the u/12 tournament decided to name the tournament in his honour. He contributed so much to the development of cricket and it was only fitting that his contributions were acknowledged and rewarded in such a way.
We look forward to hopefully playing more matches against touring teams in the weeks and months ahead as we plan towards another year/season where we hope to take things to another level on all fronts. Thank you to everyone who played a part in our successful 2023 season. We hope for bigger things to come in the year ahead and trust that you will continue to support our initiatives and plans.
John Firth U12 Tournament
We are excited to be hosting our annual U12 Cricket Tournament. The Local organising team thought it would be best to name the 2023 Tournament as the John Firth Tournament to dedicate his life and passion for cricket in our community.
The John Firth u12 T20 tournament took place at Somerset College from 7 to 9 October 2023. Eight teams from across the Western Cape played matches against each other, with the team ending on the most points, being crowned as the winners.
The participating teams were: All Rounders Academy, Green Point CC, Leading Edge, Ottomans CC, Primrose CC, Solomon Makhosana, Somerset Strikers, Somerset West CC. The focus of the tournament is to provide development opportunities to young cricketers, with an emphasis on sportsmanship. The final match between Green Point CC and Ottomans CC was a riveting affair, with Ottomans chasing 115 runs to win, and only getting the winning run on the last ball! Ottomans CC were the Tournament winners, followed by Green Point CC in second place, and Solomon Makhosana in third place. The top awards were won by: Callum Kleye from Ottomans (Player of the tournament), Hlumelo Noliroto (Best batsman), Uthmaan Davids from Primrose (Best Batsman), Blaze Soma from Leading Edge (Sportsmanship)
Be a donor / benefactor
Your financial support (or in-kind) will help The Leading Edge to go a long way to make the dreams of these young cricketers come true.
Should you wish to know how you can make a donation and become a supporter of The Leading Edge Sports Foundation’s development programmes, please don’t hold back on contacting our Director of Operations, Mr Hilton Toro.