The first of two Cricket South Africa (CSA) Under-19 Talent Acceleration Programme (TAP) camps got underway at the Powerade Centre of Excellence in Pretoria today.
Under the guidance of national U19 Head Coach Shukri Conrad and his team, a group of 22 players that fall under the inland regions – the Momentum Multiply Titans, the Imperial Lions and VKB Knights – will spend the weekend together working on various aspects of the game. The first camp runs from 23-26 October.
Focus will then shift to the coastal regions with 22 players that come from the Warriors, the Cape Cobras and the Hollywoodbets Dolphins gathering in Port Elizabeth from 27-29 October.
The camps form an important phase of the under-19 development pipeline with the aim of upskilling those that are attending and work on further identifying their strengths and to help improve them.
“This is the first camp after the Under-19 World Cup that was hosted by South Africa earlier this year and we are now essentially looking towards the next World Cup in 2022,” SA U19 coach Conrad said.
“It’s both about talent identification, upskilling of the boys and looking towards who will be eligible for that World Cup scheduled for the West Indies.”
Conrad, who was appointed to the role last month, also pointed out that the camp was one of many opportunities for players to impress, adding that those not attending would still have other chances to showcase their talent to his selection team.
“Players that are not part of this camp are by no means excluded from our plans,” he added. “There’s obviously still Cubs Week and many other platforms and competitions where those that are not part of these camps will have opportunities to impress us.
“This is by no means a cut and dried affair, there’s a long way to go and this is just one of the steps on that journey. However, these camps will certainly give me a head start in my planning. Especially with me being new in the role, I’ve just taken over and I’m looking forward to it.”
The squad for the U19 Inland TAP Camp is: Michael Copeland (Imperial Lions), Zack Momberg (Imperial Lions), Ronan Herman (Imperial Lions), Caleb Seleka (Imperial Lions), Simo Potelwa (Imperial Lions), Richard Seletsane (Imperial Lions), Lethabo Gulwa (Imperial Lions), Rico Fryer (Imperial Lions), Tshepo Staffa (Imperial Lions), Liam Alder (Imperial Lions), Katime Valentine (Momentum Multiply Titans), Khayalethu Nyamethe (Momentum Multiply Titans), Hardus Coetser (Momentum Multiply Titans), Dewald Brevis (Momentum Multiply Titans), Nathan Steyn (Momentum Multiply Titans), Kyle Welman (Momentum Multiply Titans), SW Kemp (Momentum Multiply Titans), Ryan Maxl (Momentum Multiply Titans), Christian Daniels (Momentum Multiply Titans), Jabulani Nkosi (Momentum Multiply Titans), Reuben du Toit (Momentum Multiply Titans), Nkanyiso Mkhize (Momentum Multiply Titans).
The squad for the U19 Coastal TAP Camp is: Nicholas Keevy (Warriors), Jade Smith (Warriors), Adam du Plessis (Warriors), George van Heerden (Warriors), Ayabonga Tongo (Warriors), Thorne Eli (Warriors), Ethan Frosler (Warriors), Joshua Stevenson (Warriors), Matt Fourie (Warriors), Bonga Shezi (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Slade von Staden (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Chad Laycock (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Andile Semelane (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Tristan Naiker (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Luke Benkenstein (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Nick Hatton (Dolphins), Ethan Cunningham (Cape Cobras), Asakhe Tsaka (Cape Cobras), Nathan Jacobs (Cape Cobras), Kamvalethu Feni (Cape Cobras), Dewald Grove (Cape Cobras), Michael Levitt (Cape Cobras).
