Tough start to cricket season

THE Castle Premier League will kick off officially this weekend with the uThungulu team travelling to Durban to take on the Berea Rovers Cricket Club at Berea Rovers 1 on Sunday.

This will be a difficult opening for the sub-union side who will find their opponents on this occasion a tough nut to crack.

They have just recently amalgamated with Durban Collegians hoping not only to strengthen their team, but increase the numbers they will have available to fulfil their obligations.

This will not reduce the teams participating in the Premier League as Collegians have just recently been dropped to the Challenge League for finishing bottom of the log at the conclusion of the 2011/12 season.

Collegians were not a very strong team during that season, so it looks it was difficult for both teams to find enough players, to complete first and second teams for the opening round on 29 September.

The uThungulu sub-union team will be away for the first three round of the competition.

After the Berea Rovers clash, they will take on Topham on the 6th of October and then Chatsworth United on the 13th.

Both these matches will be played at the Kingsmead oval.

They will then entertain Southern Natal in their first home fixture at Addison Park on Sunday 20 October.

Southern Natal are new comers to the Premier League and will no doubt be looking to stomp their mark in this competition.

In a trial match held at Addison Park last Tuesday, the uThungulu selectors have come up with the following players to represent the sub-union in the opening round of the Castle Premier League Competition.

Eugene Zwart (captain), Jason Redinger, Thula Ngema, Otto Rode, Ruan van Rensburg, Trevor Kietzman, Angus Kramer, Neil Jordan, Karl Marais, Jonty van den Berg and Ryan Smith.