Symcox quits the commentary box

Pat Symcox, the former South Africa offspinner, has announced he will quit as a TV commentator after the South Africa-India series at the end of the year.

Symcox told The Wisden Cricketer (South Africa) that pay and the inability to be allowed to speak his mind were the major reasons for his decision.

"I spent 138 days being involved in cricket last year," he explained. "And if you're doing that, you really can't do justice to anything else. And if you're going to spend that amount of time working, then you've got to be paid accordingly ... and unfortunately SuperSport don't. And coupled to that, there are issues which need to be talked about in South African cricket, and you've got to be prepared sometimes to call a spade a shovel - and again SuperSport don't fit into that category at the moment. So it was time for me to move on."

Symcox will devote his time to his own estate agency which sells property along the KwaZulu-Natal South Coast, and his collection of over 2000 cricket books.

And will he miss the game? "My family is one of 10 South African families who've played first-class cricket over three generations," he said. "So cricket runs deep with us ... but like I say, it's time to move on now.

"I've left SuperSport. I will be working for ESPN on India's tour of South Africa later this year, but viewers in South Africa won't hear me, unfortunately. And after that, I won't be involved in cricket any more. That's it from me."

BAFANA BAFANA TO TAKE ON THE PHAROAHS IN THE NELSON MANDELA CHALLENGE

The South African Football Association today announced that an International Friendly Charity match between the Senior National Teams of South Africa and Egypt will take place at Griffin Park, Brentford in London. The game is scheduled for Wednesday 15th November 2006, at 20h00. This match is to honour His Excellency, Nelson Mandela, in support of the “Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund”.

Egypt, the current African Champions are expected to provide tough opposition for South Africa, hosts of the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ - the first African country to do so. Having met seven times since South Africa’s re-admission in 1992, South Africa leads the winning stakes 4 - 3. Bafana Bafana’s wins were: 2–0 in 1995; 2-1 in 1998; 1-0 in 2001; 2-1 in 2006. Egypt has won the following matches: 1-0 in 1996 (the only country to defeat South Africa during the Africa Cup of Nations that was eventually won by Bafana Bafana); 2-0 in 1998; 2-1 in 2003. All these matches have been tightly contested affairs and the expectation is for the same to happen in the forthcoming match.

Co-Coaches Khabo Zondo and Pitso Mosimane announced a Team that includes top international players like the captain, Aaron Mokoena of Blackburn Rovers in England; Siyabonga Nomvete, based in Aalborg, Denmark; Sibusiso Zuma and Steven Pienaar play in Germany for Arminia Bielefeld and Borussia Dortmund respectively, etc. These players have been mixed with local-based players like: Rowen Fernandez of Kaizer Chiefs; Siphiwe Tshabalala of Free State Stars; Ricardo Katza of Supersport United; Mlungisi Gumbi of Golden Arrows, etc. A new call-up for Matthew Pattison who plays for Newcastle United in England has been made.

Egypt is expected to also bring an equally formidable squad capable of maintaining their mantle as Champions of Africa.

Proceeds from this match will be donated to the worthy cause of the Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund as it has been done in the past.

According to the Chief Executive Officer of the Nelson Mandela Children’s Fund, Sibongile Mkhabela, “The staging of the annual Nelson Mandela Challenge match represents our proud association with the South African Football Association (SAFA) in bringing awareness to the work we do on behalf of children and youth, both in the sporting fraternity and the general public locally and internationally.

As the standing beneficiary of the Tournament, National Teams that have featured against our National Team, Bafana Bafana, have not only brought cheer to soccer-loving spectators but also assisted to use the good game as a tool to spread the message of goodwill in as far as children’s well being and youth development is concerned.

The acceptance by the Pharaohs of Egypt to pit their skills against South Africa’s Bafana Bafana fits well within the spirit of renaissance that is sweeping the continent. And staging the tournament in London, featuring two teams from the continent, helps to extend this message of goodwill as well as raise global awareness of the organisation’s development objectives.

Better than Pietersen

"I've got a very good mate who is a better player than me. He's called Grant Rowley" - Kevin Pietersen, October 2006.

That is the start of a shocking article from the BBC about just how the denied quota system in South African cricket is changing the game. I am not saying that it is making it any better or worse, but the fact that South Africa are not the 2nd best team in the world anymore might just be a result.

Read the article on a player and probably plenty more, who are better than Kevin and still din't get regular starts...

Le Tour Route 2007

Tour de France organisers hope they have a thriller on their hands after unveiling the route map for next year's cycling showpiece event on Thursday.

Tour director Christian Prudhomme, who takes over from the departing Jean-Marie Leblanc, has designed his first Tour de France route, the only legacy from Leblanc being the departure from London on July 7 at the start of a 3,500-km race.

"For the first time in 20 years, the last mountain stage will finish at the summit," he told reporters.

"And the stage comes after a rest day, when riders never know how they will feel. The yellow jersey holder better not be in a bad day at that point of the race.

"After the Alps, nothing will be done. We will have the answer later as the difficulties will crescendo in the Pyrenees with the summit finish at the Col de l'Aubisque," said Prudhomme.

"It is going to be the toughest stage of the Tour."

Prudhomme denied the 2007 Tour de France would be tougher than last year's, even though it features six mountain stages instead of five.

"There are more moutain stages but no more first or second category passes. Actually, there will be 21 of them to last year's 22," he said.

Prudhomme said he hoped doping would not rear its head next year but admitted that it was a problem whenever money and medals were on offer.

American Floyd Landis tested positive for an excessive amount of the male hormone testosterone on his way to victory after an incredible comeback last year.

Landis, who remains determined to prove his innocence at an American Arbitration Association hearing early next year, will be stripped of his title and banned for two years if his appeal fails.

One notable change from previous tours was the scrapping of the traditional transfer day taking the riders closer to the mountains at the end of the first week.

The first individual time trial will be staged at the end of the second week in Albi, and there will be no team time trial like last year.

The opening 8-km prologue in London will start on Whitehall, near Trafalgar Square, and finish on The Mall.

A day later, the riders will travel out of London through the city's financial district to Kent and finish the stage in the historic cathedral city of Canterbury.

After leaving England, the 2007 Tour will pay Belgium a brief visit before heading to Burgundy and then the Alps, where the first rest day will be taken in Tignes.

The riders will then head for the Pyrenees with fhe final and potentially decisive time trial will be held on July 28, the penultimate day of the Tour, over 55 km between Cognac and Angouleme.

The traditional run in to the Champs Elysees will start outside Paris in Marcoussis, home of the national rugby team's training camp, in recognition of the 2007 World Cup being held in France later in the year.

We Spending How Much????

The South African government plans to spend 15 billion rands (C$2.2 billion) on new stadiums and related infrastructure for the 2010 World Cup.

Finance Minister Trevor Manuel told parliament Wednesday that preparations for the tournament - the first to be held in Africa - were one of the country's top spending priorities for the next three years.

"The hosting of the 2010 FIFA World Cup provides South Africa and the region with a one-in-a-generation opportunity to showcase our land and our hospitality in a sporting festival that knows no bounds," Manuel said while presenting his medium term budget to 2009-10.

"Hosting this event will require the effort of all South Africans," Manuel told parliament, with a delegation from FIFA in the gallery.

Hoping to ease fears by foreign tourists about the rampant rate of violent crime and theft, Manuel promised to boost spending on the criminal justice system and recruit an additional 10,000 police officers by 2010 to increase their physical presence on the streets.




The government hopes the World Cup will leave a lasting legacy for South Africa by pumping billions into the economy and create hundreds of thousands of desperately needed new jobs, and in particular jump start its struggling transport system.

The transport ministry has started upgrading the nation's airports _ including construction of a new one in the coastal city of Durban _ to cope with the anticipated 450,000 foreign tourists expected to flood into the country.

It is spending 5 billion rands (C$745 million) to improve the railway network and nearly 8 billion rands (C$1.2 billion) to modernize the fleet of aging and often dangerous minibus taxis which form the backbone of the transport system.

Manuel said of the additional 15 billion rand spending on the World Cup, 8.4 billion rands (C$1.3 billion) was to build or upgrade 10 stadiums and the rest for infrastructure around the stadiums.

The budget announcement coincided with a two-day seminar organized by FIFA for local organizers, business representatives and corporate sponsors.

"This is a good day for South Africa and a good day for the 2010 World Cup," FIFA spokesman Markus Siegler said.

Danny Jordaan, the head of the organizing committee, said the 8.4 billion rands pledged for stadiums exceeded budget estimates of 8.3 billion rands.

"All of the funding has been secured," Jordaan said.

Manuel's announcement on additional spending had been eagerly awaited by cities hosting matches. Cape Town, in particular, has been reluctant to press ahead with the new 68,000-seat stadium before getting central government commitment on funding.

In his budget announcement, Manuel did not break down the allocation between cities.

Johannesburg representative Sibongile Mazibuko said that cities would start stadium construction as planned in January.

Johannesburg is set to host the opening match and the final, while Cape Town and Durban are due to host semifinal matches. The other venues are Port Elizabeth, Pretoria, Nelspruit, Bloemfontein, Polokwane and Rustenberg.

Jordaan dismissed concerns that South Africa was behind schedule and wouldn't be ready on time.

He said that South Africa, which was kicked out of FIFA in 1976 because of its apartheid policies and its separate soccer associations for different races, had met FIFA demands for readmission in 1992 by scrapping racial segregation laws and ending decades of injustice.

That, he said, was a far tougher task than organizing the World Cup.

"If we can liberate our country, why can't we build our stadiums?" Jordaan said.

Hunter goes to Barloworld

South African-sponsored professional continental cycling team, Team Barloworld, today confirmed that Robert Hunter, South Africa’s most talented export to the European cycling circuit, will join the team from 2007.

The 29-year old Robbie Hunter is rated as one of the world’s top sprinters and will bring more than just his seven years experience into the team. Hunters’ impressive 29 victories are testament to his superb achievements, while his most notable achievements include having competed in the world’s most prestigious races with five appearances in the Tour de France, once in the Giro d’Italia and three times in the Tour of Spain where he won two stages and both the points and sprints jerseys.

“A combination of team work and individual excellence defines what Team Barloworld and Barloworld are all about. This is the team and company’s brand philosophy and a rider like Robbie Hunter obviously fits this philosophy perfectly because he can contribute on both fronts. We are thrilled to have this world class rider joining our team. We need experienced riders in our team if we are to continue to take on the best in the cycling world, said Chris Fisher, Head of Corporate Marketing, Barloworld.

Says Robbie Hunter, “I’ve always wanted to ride for a South African-sponsored team and Team Barloworld have certainly proven to their critics that they are a competitive team who are entrenching themselves in the international cycling circuit.”

“I’m looking forward to joining the team and taking direction from the highly respected Claudio Corti and his management team.”

The Godfather of SA Soccer speaks out over 2010

The mounting doubts regarding South Africa's ability to stage a successful World Cup in 2010 were based on inherent world-wide suspicions regarding Africa's ability to "do things right."

This was the view expressed on Wednesday by Local Organising Committee (LOC) chairman Irvin Khoza at a media briefing in Johannesburg, prior to a workshop with Fifa officials later in the week and the release of the escalating tournament budget in excess of R12 billion that is due to be announced by Minister of Finance Trevor Manuel in parliament next week.

"It is our paramount challenge to prove the sceptics and detractors wrong," added Khoza, who with LOC CEO Danny Jordaan proclaimed everything was on track for the world's greatest individual sports event.

Answering concerns expressed by Fifa president Sepp Blatter recently that while all the plans, organising and financing of the World Cup seemed to be in order, he was a little perturbed that "no picks and shovels were yet operating on the ground", Jordaan said the planning phase was an enormous project in itself.

"But everything is running as planned," said Khoza. "Work on the five new World Cup stadiums is scheduled to start at the beginning of next year and the time tables for completion are well within the time periods required by Fifa."

Regarding the festering issue of rampant crime affecting the World Cup, Jordaan said this was "not a soccer problem, but a problem for every South African.

"And," he added, "it is something that has to be tackled now, not in 2010. At the same time, South Africa has staged 11 major international events in the past decade or so and there have been no serious incidents."

Khoza revealed that the LOC had recommended the 2010 World Cup be staged during the June-July period, but a final decision on dates had still to be taken by Fifa -- and weather factors, particularly in regard to areas like Cape Town, could be a consideration.

Khoza, who is also chairman of South Africa's internal professional organisation, The Premier Soccer League, said the problem of ground availability for domestic and international competition in South Africa prior to the World Cup has been examined.

"Five of the World Cup stadiums are new constructions and will therefore not affect the present situation," he added, "and we believe we will be able to cope without the use of FNB Stadium, Ellis Park, Bloemfontein Stadium, Loftus and the Royal Bafokeng Palace for a limited period."