zim cricket´s talent pool shut down!

[butchering lee]

private schools, have been deemed racist due to the fees.

private schools in zim have gone up 75% in the last year (inflation is at 800%) and have, since easter, been shut down until they lower costs. the govt. line is that this action has been taken so they offer possibilities of entrance to more than just the economical elite (which, of course, includes the entire white schooling "population" - making them racist).

[It´s been suggested that ministers are tired of having to pay increasingly expensive fees for their kids].

this may seem to be a far cry from cricket but as almost all zim´s cricket talent is nutured in these schools it is a unfortunate - to say the least.

the ZCU is unlikely to back down (they may, but i doubt it), though the chances are schools will lower their fees to continue working. the problem with this is that, with this sort of inflation, they soon won´t be able to afford "the best" in coaches, facilities etc...especially if the old-boy network fades.

So, is it the end for zim cricket?

[butchering lee]

well, my school was not amoung those closed - what a shame!! (that was a school worthy of shutting )

[CJ D]

That depends on the cricket cluns and the support that they receiev from the community - if no clubs hav coaching programes then cricket in Zim will die, if there is a lot of focus on youngsters by the clubs then it will survive - in Britain very few state schools now play cricket (it is to long and teachers will not give up a weekend day to run a team), but English cricket is not yet dead (obviously we have private schools that play but this is not enough to feed 18 FC teams) as more and more clubs have recognised that youth coaching is the way to ensure future prosperity (people will argue about the nymber of clubs that have folded in the last twenty years - this is very sad especially the number of lovely village clubs, however there are clubs near me that have hoards of youngsters running over their grounds every Saturday morning and they are feeding all the other clubs for miles around).

[butchering lee]

interesting !!

well, i guess that is good news - i know clubs do support promising youth. i hope they do enough to keep the game alive in zim

[butchering lee]

Originally Posted by CJ D

That depends on the cricket clubs and the support that they receieve from the community - if no clubs hav coaching programes then cricket in Zim will die, if there is a lot of focus on youngsters by the clubs then it will survive

i´m not sure how much support an impoverished community would be willing to give? also, as long as the current crisis continues sponserships and TV deals are slowly closing doors which really is a big source of income. they could get by with donations, i know cricinfo donated a fair bit of money not long ago but not sure who would be willing to finance the team.

[butchering lee]

Two Australians arrested at Bulawayo test match

author/source:Reuters
published:Sun 16-May-2004

They were charged with 'waving an inflammatory placard in a public place'. They had displayed a banner reading, 'Charles Dempsey eat your heart out'