It’s not often that a learner born in the heart of one of South Africa’s vulnerable communities gets a shot at participating in a coaching clinic with some of South Africa’s best and brightest sports stars or has the opportunity to play against some of the country’s most formidable school sports teams.
This was the dream come true for 200 preparatory school children from four under-resourced schools that were invited to participate in the Standard Bank HeronBridge Invitational Development Day, and for a number of high-school teams who were invited to play in the festival.
“Development and developing potential are the biggest reasons behind why we initiated the sports festival” said Natasha Marot, project lead of the Standard Bank HeronBridge Invitational. “It is vitally important to us, that we precede the festival with a Development Day that is catered especially to under-resourced children, and it was such a heart-warming experience watching the children play their hearts out and meet some sporting legends while they were at it.”
The morning kicked off with a hockey skills clinic run by Olympic hockey players Lonwabo Owen Mvimbi, Siya Nolutshungu, and Leneal Jackson while former SPAR Protea netball player, Erin Burger, ran a fun, skills-based session for over 150 young aspiring netball players from local communities. All the children were then brought onto the main oval for autographs and story sharing with the sports stalwarts and got to meet SA Rugby Legends Mac Masina, Grant Esterhuizen, Gcobani Bobo, Lawrence Sephaka, Warren Brosnihan, Wynand Olivier, and Henno Mentz who facilitated a rugby clinic thereafter.
A number of sponsors pledged their support for the event, including fibre provider, Vuma, which provided the young sportsmen and sportswomen with t-shirts, and funding for the Development Day.
HeronBridge head of netball and first team coach, Ali Bennett, commented, “The Development Day was a huge hit this year. It was great to see so many young girls given the opportunity to partake in such a memorable event. It was a morning for sharing knowledge, making friends and learning new skills. It was a privilege to be a part of such a successful sporting initiative.”
In an ongoing commitment to developing potential, HeronBridge also invites at least one development team from each sports code, to participate in the Invitational at no cost, and accommodation and transport is provided for those teams that need a bit of extra help. These schools, who form part of the 40 schools playing rugby, netball and hockey in the Invitational have very often showed incredible talent when playing against well-resourced schools, despite having very little equipment and a lack of facilities.
“HeronBridge’s slogan is ‘educating with heart’ and this is something that we take very seriously. In terms of development and outreach, this is a huge part of who we are as a school,” says Marot. “Sponsorships mean so much more than money, especially for a child coming from an under-resourced school, who can now feel seen, valued and worth investing in. Because of sponsors like Vuma, we are able to do so much more than just run a school sports event,” says Natasha Marot.