The 55th edition of the cricket festival hosted by Maritzburg College takes place between Saturday 4 and Tuesday 7 October.
The matches to be played by the 18 competing teams take place in Pietermaritzburg as well as Richmond and Eston. It gives the boys a chance to play against schools that they wouldn’t usually encounter. This factor is what makes the festival so appealing to King Edward VII School (KES) captain and SA U19 star Grant Roelofsen.
‘This will be my third Oppenheimer Week, and my goal is to get my first hundred at the festival; it’s still a bit of a monkey on my back,’ the SA U19 wicketkeeper/batsman told The Witness.
‘What I love about Oppenheimer Week is that we get the chance to play against schools that we don’t play against in our general-season fixtures.’
Apart from a range of schools, one coming from as far afield as New Zealand, there are also a number of young players with international experience in action. In addition to Roelofsen, Andile Phehlukwayo (Glenwood), Ndumiso Mvelase (St Johns) and Lwandiswa Zuma (Maritzburg College) have all represented the SA U19 side.
Andile Phehlukwayo, the Glenwood captain, is the biggest name on show. He has recently returned from the Champions League T20 Tournament in India where he represented the Dolphins. After testing his skills against some of the brightest stars on the planet, the Chennai Super Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders, he should be in good touch when this festival kicks off.
Participating teams: Affies, Durban High School (DHS), Glenwood High School, Hudson Park High, Jeppe High School for Boys, Kearsney College, King Edward VII School (KES), KZN Development XI, Maritzburg College, Michaelhouse, Northwood School, Pretoria Boys High School, St Alban’s College, St Andrew’s College, St David’s Marist Inanda, St Charles College, St John’s College, Westlake Boys High (New Zealand).
For those wanting to pop in for an hour or two to watch their favourite school team, please note the hours of play – Session 1: 9h30 to 11h00; Morning tea: 11h00 to 11h15; Session 2: 11h15 to 12h45; Lunch: 12h45 to 13h45; Session 3: 13h45 to 15h15; Afternoon tea: 15h15 to 15h30; Session 4: 15h30 to end of prescribed overs.
Fixtures:
Day 1, Saturday 04 October (50-over):
DHS vs KES (Eston)
Glenwood vs Pretoria Boys High (Richmond)
Kearsney vs St David’s (Collegians)
KZN Development XI vs St Alban’s (PMB Oval)
Maritzburg College vs Affies (Goldstones)
Michaelhouse vs St Andrew’s (Barns)
Northwood vs St John’s (Varsity Oval)
St Charles vs Hudson Park (St Charles Oval)
Westlake vs Jeppe (Varsity 2)
Day 2, Sunday 05 October (50-over)
DHS vs Affies (Collegians)
Glenwood vs St John’s (Varsity 2)
Kearsney vs KES (Varsity Oval)
KZN Development XI vs Hudson Park (Barns)
Maritzburg College vs Jeppe (Goldstones)
Michaelhouse vs St David’s (Eston)
Northwood vs St Andrew’s (PMB Oval)
St Charles vs St Alban’s (Richmond)
Westlake vs Pretoria Boys High (St Charles Oval)
Day 3, Monday 06 October (50-over):
DHS vs St Andrew’s (Varsity 2)
Glenwood vs KES (Collegians)
Kearsney vs St John’s (Eston)
KZN Development XI vs Jeppe (PMB Oval)
Maritzburg College vs Hudson Park (Goldstones)
Michaelhouse vs St Alban’s (Varsity Oval)
Northwood vs Pretoria Boys High (Barns)
St Charles vs St David’s (St Charles Oval)
Westlake vs Affies (Richmond)
Day 4, Tuesday 07 October (T20):
DHS vs St John’s (Goldstones)
Glenwood vs Hudson Park (Eston)
Kearsney vs Affies (Barns)
KZN Development XI vs Pretoria Boys High (Collegians)
Maritzburg College vs St Andrew’s (Richmond)
Michaelhouse vs KES (PMB Oval)
Northwood vs St Alban’s (Varsity 2)
St Charles vs Jeppe (St Charles Oval)
Westlake vs St Davids (Varsity Oval)
Photo: Backpagepix
