Cape Dreams News from in and around the Cape
THABANG MAZIBUKO
April 2021 – Betway’s recent partnership with the Gary Kirsten Foundation will soon produce a new and exciting generation of community-based cricket coaches in Khayelitsha and surrounding areas.
This was the expert opinion of #BetwayCares Skills Hub ambassador and Proteas legend, Makhaya Ntini, who was speaking from the two-day cricket workshop held in partnership with the Gary Kirsten Foundation in Khayelitsha on 30 and 31 March. The event forms part of Betway’s ongoing nationwide community sport development programme.
Ntini, alongside fellow Proteas legend, Gary Kirsten ,were among the invited guests in the two-day workshop that saw 20 coaches from Khayelitsha and surrounding townships kick starting an exciting career in the field of coaching through the foundation’s online coaching course tool, CoachingEd.
Sharing his thoughts with the next generation of coaches, the former fast-bowler emphasised the importance of aspiring cricketers having access to qualified coaches in communities, adding that the coaches were in fact the backbone of growing the sport and producing talent for the country.
“It is no secret that communities such as Khayelitsha are fertile ground for breeding exciting Cricket talent. For such talent to be produced at an even higher and consistent rate, it is crucial that communities have trained and qualified coaches who are able to identify and nurture talent,” Ntini said.
“Coaches form the backbone of cricket development. For this reason, we must ensure that the people entrusted with developing this talent are trained and qualified to do so and thanks to Betway, we have taken the first step through the #BetwayCares Skills Hub,” he added.
The workshop was the second edition of an ongoing #BetwayCares Skills Hub programme, following a successful Sport Administration workshop for Gauteng women in February.
Sharing his thoughts on the progress made by the programme, Betway South Africa’s Marketing Manager, David Rachidi said the brand was pleased with how the first two editions of the #BetwayCares Skills Hubs have went, saying that the new direction taken by the brand is proving to be very effective.
“Betway’s proud commitment to being a brand that cares continues to stretch across the lengths and breaths of the country. We are encouraged by the number of lives the #BetwayCares Skills Hub programme has positively affected in just a matter of two months. This bodes well with our brand identity of making a positive change in the communities that we operate in,” said Rachidi.
The next edition of the #BetwayCares Skills Hub will take place during the month of April in Limpopo, with netball and basketball being the key focus areas. Details on this will be officially announced in due course by the brand.