If you could invest Big Money into SA Cricket...

[pie_chucker]

Originally Posted by Wanderer

SA rugby won the Rugby World Cup in '96. And they have a very good chance of doing so again this year. SA football is nowhere NEAR winning anything anytime soon. But its only in cricket that everybody jumps onto the quota bandwagon...

I only mentioned cricket as i have a couple of South African friends who are constantly complaining that SA never play their strongest team (also this is a cricket board ). Looking in as an outsider it does appear that the team SA put out is never the strongest that they could put out.

Originally Posted by Wanderer

Who said they're not? Do you know the history of "non-white" cricket in South Africa?

Sorry, I never meant to say that they werent interested. What I meant was to speed up the development of "non white" players and avoid the loss of them. It seems to me that their must be millions of non white players in SA and i would imagine that from this a fair few must be talented, some very talented. Are these players being developed or are they drifting away from the game? Thats what I was getting at, I apologise if I'm wrong but from the outside looking in their doesnt seem to be too many non white players coming through the provincial system.

Originally Posted by Wanderer

I agree. And I do believe that that is something that will finally get a serious look-at, especially seeing where the next WC is going to be held. For way too long SA cricket has relied on a pace attack (Proteas have had some VERY good pace bowlers in the past).

Yes, the one weak link SA have had since their readmission is the lack of a quality spin bowler!

Originally Posted by Wanderer

Change does not come overnight. And that is all I have to say about that now...

Thats true, IMO though I dont think the quota system is the best way to do it.....

[Wanderer]

Originally Posted by pie_chucker

I only mentioned cricket as i have a couple of South African friends who are constantly complaining that SA never play their strongest team (also this is a cricket board ).

Are these friends all white by chance? Yes, this is a cricket board and this a cricket discussion. But I felt I had to put the rugby and soccer status down as comparisons. (football is the no 1 sport in SA, followed closely by cricket and rugby). Do your SAfrican friends ever "complain constantly" about the status of SA rugby and football's "quota's"? Just asking.

Originally Posted by pie_chucker

IMO though I dont think the quota system is the best way to do it.....

No, probably not. But by all means, please give us something else in its place. Everyone and their grandma's seem to feel that the quota system is NOT the way to go, but I dont see anyone offering anything else in its place. Typical.

And pleaseDON't say "abolish the quota system" willy-nilly. If that happens, SA sport will still be lily-white for at least 2 decades to come. That is not representative of the majority of people who want to play sport. Remember, it is only 12 years ago that apartheid was abolished. Non-whites never had the facilities (training, schooling, coaching etc) that whites had. In fact, they were TOTALLY marginalised as far as sport and a great many other things were concerned...That "deficit" cannot be wiped out overnight.

No, I dont like the quota system, because I am also suffering because of it...But at least I understand why its necessary for now, and I also hope and pray that very soon SA cricket will be represented by the best available team. I am not running to the country of my grandparents' birth and complain to everyone who want to listen...

[pie_chucker]

Originally Posted by Wanderer

Are these friends all white by chance? Yes, this is a cricket board and this a cricket discussion. But I felt I had to put the rugby and soccer status down as comparisons. (football is the no 1 sport in SA, followed closely by cricket and rugby). Do your SAfrican friends ever "complain constantly" about the status of SA rugby and football's "quota's"? Just asking.

Yes they are white and do bemoan quotas in Rugby.
Correct me if I'm wrong here (i probably am ) but again from the outside it appears that football is the game the majority of non whites want to play and cricket and rugby are "white" sports .

Originally Posted by Wanderer

And please Don't say "abolish the quota system" willy-nilly. If that happens, SA sport will still be lily-white for at least 2 decades to come. That is not representative of the majority of people who want to play sport. Remember, it is only 12 years ago that apartheid was abolished. Non-whites never had the facilities (training, schooling, coaching etc) that whites had. In fact, they were TOTALLY marginalised as far as sport and a great many other things were concerned...That "deficit" cannot be wiped out overnight.

No, I dont like the quota system, because I am also suffering because of it...But at least I understand why its necessary for now, and I also hope and pray that very soon SA cricket will be represented by the best available team. I am not running to the country of my grandparents' birth and complain to everyone who want to listen...

I can see what you are saying and i agree that all white SA sport would be a massive backward step. Thats why IMO more should be done to encourage the non whites (for all sports) and give them the coaching, schooling etc to make it at the top level on merit. The biggest problem with the quotas are that most of the players brought on through the system arent good enough and probably never will be.

Unfortunately after all those years of Apartheid it will probably take the same number of years to undo all of the marginalisation in SA sport .

I'll admit I'm not clever enough to give a total solution to the problem.

I do wonder what happens to all of the talented non whites who play rugby and cricket? How do they progress through the system. Or like I've suggested earlier do the majority of non whites not want to play cricket and rugby but football....