Lightbearers: Kimberley Sporting Legends weekend exceeds expectations

Around two weeks ago, the DFA featured a story about how the Kimberley Sporting Legends Trust was, at the time, gearing up for a special celebration aimed at honouring the province’s rich cricketing history and the players who helped shape it.

At the time, the Trust’s chairperson, Godfrey Erlank, expressed pride in the committee’s efforts to bring the weekend to life, saying, “This event is about recognising the extraordinary contributions of individuals who built the game of cricket in this province.” 

Erlank added that this year’s celebration would focus on two significant teams: the South African Coloured team of 1967, and the Griqualand West side that made history by winning the Booley Cup in East London in 1988, the only team from the province ever to do so.

More than expected

The good news is that the event took place this past weekend. The great news, however, is that – according to the attendees – it far exceeded expectations.

What added significance to the celebration is that it wasn’t simply a shallow awards evening with nostalgic speeches being made and certificates being dished out. Rather, it was an organised, structured, energetic weekend of celebration and appreciation.

The weekend started off on Friday, October 31, at the KEW Bowls Club, where old friendships were renewed. Teammates, arriving from all over South Africa, had not seen each other for decades, but now had the opportunity to share and reminisce about their cricketing stories during what was a purer, simpler time. 

The value of having what had for a while been a foggy memory brought into sharp focus by a teammate who had been on the field that day proved to be priceless for many former players.

Symbolic recognition

To add to the priceless nostalgia, each of the cricketers from yesteryear received a commemorative tie and lapel badge. A gesture that assured them: “You were and are still appreciated for what you did for the sport and for society.”

It didn’t end there, though. The Saturday morning started with a visit to the Kimberley Cricket Oval, where interviews were done and photos taken. 

One of the highlights of the weekend for these cricketers, who played during, would you believe, the last century, was when they met the current players of the Northern Cape Heat squad with their coach, Mduzi Mabatha. 

What will prove to be a very historic group photo was taken: the NC Heat team with the Legends of yesteryear. 

Testing the energy and resilience of the former players, the informal tour around Kimberley then continued with a visit to Sol Plaatje University; a powerful symbolic moment, because at one time, community sport blended the elements of sport, community, education and the upliftment of a society that at the time was being downtrodden. 

Education, community, and sport were powerful tools to navigate through those dark, difficult times.

Gala event: a meaningful gathering

The curtain was drawn on a fantastic weekend on the evening of Saturday, November 1, where approximately 100 cricketing legends and a group of Griqualand West players from yesteryear were honoured at a glittering gala event at Elizabeth Conradie School. 

An impressive line-up of speakers – men with hearts attuned to the upliftment of society – addressed the guests of honour. The chairperson of the Kimberley Sporting Legends Trust organising committee, Mr Godfrey Erlank, Prof David Jacobs, Mr Mark Fredericks and Mr Rihan Richards, President of CSA, all shared insights and anecdotes with their heroes and colleagues. 

It was at the Gala Event that one especially powerful message was shared with all in attendance. But the message was not audible; it was visual.

The lights in the venue were switched off, plunging the venue into blackness, symbolic of hopeless despair. Then a single candle was lit; that light was shared with one person, then those two shared it with another two, and within a short time, the entire hall was bright again, illuminating the glint of hope in the eyes of attendees.

Mark Fredericks, one of the speakers, shared the meaning of the symbolism with the DFA: “Everyone, you see, had a candle, which means that everyone has the potential to spread and share some light. But each person there had the choice to have their candle lit or not, and once it was lit, they could decide whether they wanted to share the light or not. This speaks to our individual ability to change or influence society … or not.”

But the evening was not all about nostalgia; the entertainment for the evening included a comedy interlude by Mr Dennis Roro, who is the great-grandson of the legendary Frank Roro, and DJ Norman Khojane made sure that feet kept tapping. 

Following the weekend of celebrations, Mr Erlank was quick to acknowledge everyone who made the event possible. “I want to express sincere thanks and appreciation to the committee for all their hard work in making the weekend such a resounding success,” he said.

“A big thank you to all our generous sponsors in making this event possible.”

Messages of thanks and congratulations

Some attendees were blown away by the impact of the event. This is obvious when one reads their comments sent after the weekend.

Professor David Jacobs wrote: “Much of the credit must go to (the Kimberley Sporting Legends Trust) for assembling a good group of speakers, your excellent management of those speakers allowing the audience to receive a powerful and well integrated message, summarized excellently in Johnny Mallet's message to you. 

“The performance of any speaker is also dependent on how well the event at which she/he speaks is organised. Kudos to you and your organising committee for this, too. Kimberley is not only my community of origin it is also the community I call home. Words cannot therefore express how honored I am to have been invited to speak. 

“Good luck to Trust in the journey ahead. It is an essential one because it will ensure that future generations of South Africans and the world will know that the Kimberley community did not bow down to the empire but vanquished it in the name of freedom and justice for all.”

Another son of Kimberley, Gary Steyn, was similarly impressed in his message of thanks. 

“Thank you for a special and memorable weekend,” Steyn wrote. “Your efforts are truly appreciated. Your wide recognition of those present was a great, warm gesture and of course the recognition of some of the standout performers was spot on. 

“With hindsight, imagine Lloyd (Louw) not getting that recognition. Yas (Yassiem Snyders) is a legend throughout the country and Ronnie (Engelbrecht) is one of our own. 

“Also, how blessed and privileged we are to show our respect and gratitude to Messrs. Summers, Fredericks, Williams, Jacobs and other seniors. 

“To the Booley Cup winners, I am so proud of you and have always enjoyed watching you and indeed playing alongside you. I hope your long wait for recognition was worth the wait. 

“Your programme and speakers were excellent. Listening to the Professor was a highlight for me. Reconnecting with friends I have not seen for decades was just so special for both my wife and I. 

“The weekend itself was worth so much to me but I know that the ambition is to do more. My best wishes in these endeavors. Thank you again. You exceeded any expectations I had by far.”