Construction on new Madibaz cricket clubhouse starts
The modern facility, rising where the old one was condemned after flood damage, promises upgraded amenities, panoramic field views, and space for community engagement — all in time to support SA's hosting of the 2027 ICC Cricket World Cup.
'We can't wait, St George's [in Gqeberha] will get some of the games, so we are trying to really work on our facilities so that we may be a preferred training ground,' the university's sport manager for cricket and martial arts, Sipho Sibande, said this week.
Madibaz Cricket Club has been a fertile field to grow provincial and national talent.
Proteas batter Tristan Stubbs, who this week is playing at Lords in London, has come through the Madibaz ranks, as have Anrich Nortjé, Simon Harmer, Pite van Biljon, Edward Moore, Justin Kemp, Robin Peterson, Sisanda Magala and Lutho Sipamla.
Then there are former Madibaz cricket club coaches like Baakier Abrahams, who is part of the Proteas Women's coaching staff, and Runeshan Moodley, who is the strength and conditioning coach for the Proteas men's squad.
Both Abrahams and Moodley are alumni and played cricket as students before growing their career paths in their respective fields.
And there is more talent emerging.
'We have a young group now and are really looking forward to seeing them come through,' Sibande said, citing student Jason Raubenheimer, who already plays for the Warriors, and all-rounder Ethan Frosler, who recently graduated but still plays for Madibaz.
Sibande said the new clubhouse would not only benefit senior players and spectators, but also the broader community, including schoolchildren.
'There are so many opportunities to get schools involved here, they are key stakeholders and we'd like to show the learners our facilities.'
The university's infrastructure services and space optimisation senior director, Melvin Syce, said the replacement of the old cricket clubhouse was prompted after heavy flooding eroded the soil under the foundations.
It became structurally unsafe, and as a result, the structure had to be condemned.
In response, the University allocated R11m for the reconstruction of the dilapidated facility.
The contractor is now on site, carrying out the rebuild, which is expected to be completed by December 2025.
Syce said the new structure would serve more than one purpose.
'We will have a high-quality venue that will be able to generate income for the university.
'Parts of the structure will be constructed in cross-laminated timber (CLT), and this alternative construction method will be studied by our built environment students.'
ISSO deputy director for projects and planning, Graham Gouws, expanded on the design.
'The clubhouse area will have glazed walls that will provide panoramic views of the field, and the change room areas are going to be much larger, catering for the modern era,' Gouws said.
The new clubhouse will face the A field and be accessed by other cricket fields as well. A small addition will create a rugby club house, which will face B rugby field.
Phase One consists of the cricket club house, and the rugby clubhouse will be added in Phase Two in the future as budget permits.
Gouws said the structure was based on current design trends and aimed to meet the needs of Madibaz Sport.
Sibande said having a clubhouse again would be 'massive' for the university's cricket programme.
'We are all about the culture of brotherhood and sisterhood, and a clubhouse plays a huge role.
'In the past, we used to host provincial games, and not having a clubhouse meant the club really lost out, because you need change rooms and ablution facilities. For the students, it was also a safe space to study before practice.'
In the intervening years, players and visitors have had to use the ablution facilities at the university's tennis club — but not for much longer. — Nelson Mandela University
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Maverick
3 hours ago
- Daily Maverick
Springbok Women pull off their ‘best performance' in final World Cup warm-up against Black Ferns XV
South Africa head into the Women's Rugby World Cup brimming with confidence after a brilliant 41-24 win against Black Ferns XV. The Springbok Women wrapped up their Rugby World Cup preparations with a magnificent, morale-boosting 41-24 victory over the Black Ferns XV. Two maul tries, an opportunistic try off an opposition error, a counter-attack try, a pair of pick-and-go tries and set-play tries off the back of solid lineouts. South Africa's win over New Zealand's second side had it all, it was little wonder then that head coach Swys de Bruin recognised the performance as one of the best since he started his tenure a year ago. 'I think we are now close to where we wanted to be a few weeks out from the Rugby World Cup,' De Bruin said after the match. 'The team really played well and executed the tweaks we made very well, and that delivered not only a winning result, but also a boost of confidence to the squad and management. 'We worked hard to get to this point, and I can honestly say this was one of the best performances we had since I joined the squad just over a year ago.' Blueprint While last week's performance (which they lost 34-26 against the same opposition) was built on grit and domination from the forward pack, this time South Africa's aggression upfront was paired with silky ball handling. And the gel weaving the two elements together? None other than scrumhalf Nadine Roos, who has been shifted around the backline across the last 12 months, but looks to have found the position that suits the team best and gets the most out of their best player. 'I was not happy about my performance last weekend and on Monday I said to myself that I will prepare to play the best game I can and assist my team the best way I can,' an inspired Roos said after the match. 'I decided that no one was going to get past me today and no one did, so I am very happy that we could pull off the win and that I could contribute towards that. It also allows the team to have Byrhandré Dolf at fullback who, with her eye for a counter-attack, fleet-feet and scrumcap donned head, is akin to Cheslin Kolbe or Kurt-Lee Arendse in the Springbok men's side. 'The coaches are happy that we got our combinations and spine right and we can go to the World Cup 99% sure of what we need to do to have the best performance ever,' De Bruin said. 'We needed this win and the way we did it, was an extra boost.' The other member of the backline spine is Libbie Janse van Rensburg who played a starring role at flyhalf and even dotted down with a try of her own. The power from the pack was not sacrificed with No 8 Aseze Hele particularly brutal on defence and thunderous with ball in hand, providing the side with go-forward. Holding firm The Bok Women started like a house on fire with pacey winger Ayanda Malinga breaking the duck with an opportunistic try. The side added three more in the first half while conceding two to take a 24-12 lead into the sheds. The Black Ferns XV threatened a comeback with the scores on 24-19 early in the second half. But the Springbok Women just continued to pull away, adding another 17 points to their total in the second half while only conceding one more try in the same period. The team now has a template for how they want to execute at the Women's Rugby World Cup with their first match against Brazil on 24 August. 'We needed this performance, we now have the knowledge and the belief that we are on the right track and will go to the Rugby World Cup in a good mental and physical space,' stand-in skipper and tighthead prop Babalwa Latsha said. 'We know the disappointment from last week when we did not execute and the joys of the win this week when we did,' she said. 'And this memory of winning is ideal going to the Rugby World Cup.' It's not perfect yet. The Springbok Women's defence offered soft shoulders at times and were occasionally outfoxed by a Black Ferns side who had slick operators across their side as well. Outside centre Kelsey Teneti, who is a sevens star as well, was a standout again after being awarded as player of the match last week and capped off her performance with a brilliant individual try. But South Africa held-firm and didn't allow the Black Ferns XV a proper sniff into the match.
The Herald
7 hours ago
- The Herald
Boys from Bloem dismantle Grey High in clinical display
Grey College delivered a masterclass in precision rugby to blow away Gqeberha rivals Grey High 48-10 on a windy Kolisi Field in their King Price Derby Series schools rugby clash on Saturday. The home team may have been disappointed with their lack of accuracy at times, but that cannot detract from the ruthlessly clinical performance of Grey College, who swept in for six tries in the first half to lead 38-0 at the break. As committed as College were on defence, so were they lethal on attack, typified by their third try when the Gqeberha team were camped in their opponents' 22. The Bloem team were quick to sense an opportunity for a counter-ruck, which won them the ball, and it was sent to outstanding fullback Lamla Mgedezi, who went on a thrilling 70-metre run for a try. While Grey High had their chances early on, they struggled to break down the visiting defence. In contrast, Grey College wasted no time in seizing their opportunities as they showed with two tries from a powerful maul in the first 16 minutes. It was no surprise that, when the home team infringed twice in succession, Grey College kicked for touch and then drove their way over for Xander Smit to score their first try and Alexi Tyropolis to cross over a bit later in similar circumstances. The magical Mgedezi then showed his influence before powerful centre Ethan Adams proved unstoppable on the left flank as Grey College went on the attack again. Smit registered his second try after another driving maul and the visitors showed their confidence and attacking skill when they won an opposing line-out on the halfway line with the clock showing time up for halftime. Instead of kicking the ball safely into touch, Grey College launched another offensive and as they spread the ball wide, Mgedezi sent a deft back-of-the-hand pass for wing Benjamin van den Berg to sprint over for the first of his two tries. It looked ominous for the Grey High team at the break, but to their credit, they stayed in the fight until the end, in fact scoring three tries to the two of their opponents in the second half. The first came in the 44th minute when a slick backline move saw centre Bradley Myburgh bamboozle the College defence to score near the poles. Later on, lively wing Noah Mbizi was on hand to score two outstanding tries as he showed great commitment and pace to dodge his way through the visiting defence. Those were negated somewhat by Grey College's strong running, with centre O'Ryan Klein always in the thick of things, which saw them cross for further tries by Van den Berg and left wing Thristan Maree. Grey High enjoyed one of their best rugby years in terms of overall performance, with nine wins in the 20 matches. The Herald
The Herald
7 hours ago
- The Herald
'We are not going to feel sorry for ourselves' — Sharks skipper Nick Hatton after humiliation by the Bulls
Captain Nama Xaba was also pleased with the performance, though he remained rooted in reality. 'We always want to strive for perfection but it is unrealistic to get there. Tonight's performance was excellent. We managed the first 20 according to plan and the mid-40. It took us forward. I'm proud of the guys.' Xaba pointed to the breakdown as an area for improvement. 'They put us under pressure there. The set piece was good. I can't complain about much. A week is a long time in rugby and we have to look to build on this.' For the Sharks it was another day to forget. 'We can't feel sorry for ourselves,' said downcast captain Nick Hatton. 'That was tough to take. Credit to the Bulls, They dominated the game. We got a tough lesson. 'A lot of the young guys showed some fight towards the end. We were outdone physically which was disappointing for us that we didn't stand up physically. 'It is a privilege to wear this jersey and we are not doing it justice at the moment. We are going to pick ourselves up. We are not going to feel sorry for ourselves and do what we need to do and stay in the fight. All we can promise is that we'll keep on fighting,' Hatton added.
