By: Uakutura Kambaekua
Ashburton Kwata Cricket Development Programme, under the auspices of Cricket Namibia, has directed its attention on earthing untapped talents from rural areas in Kunene North through the Ashburton Cricket program roadshow.
They are en route to engaging various schools in the Opuwo areas on cricket.
The programme was launched two years ago and has been the leading developmental cricket program under the 92 Associate member countries to sustain cricket’s development at the grassroots level.
The program’s regional development officer in the Kunene region Wilhelm Tuhafeni said that the initial purpose of the roadshow, which took place last week, was to expand the game to rural areas and provide a platform for more raw talented players to surface.
“We came from Outjo to embark on a roadshow where we are trying to roll out the Ashburton Kwata cricket program that caters to younger kids and mainly focuses on primary schools. 35 teachers from 15 schools participated in the program in Opuwo. The turnout was good,” he said.
Tuhafeni told The Villager that the program commenced with introductions.
Tuhafeni also stated that once the introduction and coaching skills training is concluded, the scouting of talents will commence, focusing on kids between the ages of 11 and 13 from Omakange, Opuwo and Otjimuhaka. These will then be placed in advance programs and go on trials with other players from all over the region.
According to Tuhafeni, Ashburton Kwata cricket as a professional program has always strived to care for the players and thus will cater for players’ accommodation, transport and meals while giving them exposure.
“Not everybody has the means or resources to be where they are supposed to be in those specific events. The distance and location of schools should not be a discouragement. We are ready to assist,” charged Tuhafeni.
Since its inception in the region nine years ago, the cricket program has been very active with various activities, including the biggest girls’ tournament in the country last year, which was hosted in Outjo, comprising 12 teams for the under 13 to the under 19.
Tuhafeni urged those who took part in the workshop to pursue a career in cricket, noting that as a sport, cricket can be a lucrative and fulfilling career through hard work and dedication, just like any other sports code.
“If you can’t be a coach, you can be an administrator where you manage these kids and make sure things run well. I am just encouraging everyone, especially in Opuwo, to partake. We started off with Khorixas and Kamanjab three years ago, and then we wanted to roll it out further north. We do these workshops, not for the sake of doing them but to motivate teachers to be able to coach their kids at their respective schools. We don’t need to do these if we are not doing it with teachers. I am encouraging the teachers to keep the program active,” advised Tuhafeni.
Moreover, he said that the program does not have an age restriction policy for hopeful individuals who prefer cricket as a career, adding that those who are already above the active epoch should rather focus on administration or coaching, referring to those above the ages of 35.
Tuhafeni, whose duties are to ensure that every school is covered with the sport and is running smoothly, mentioned that the ongoing Ashburton program will also select school committee members from different schools, including one teacher, for contact purposes.
“We ensure that every school is covered with the sports and is running smoothly, and then we select school committee members from different schools where we have a teacher from every school for contacts purposes,” said Tuhafeni.
