Schools SA20 Profile – FG Botha – St Andrew’s School
Two half-centuries against Grey College in the Schools SA20 Provincial and Regional Finals and a memorable century against Hoërskool Waterkloof are just some of the achievements on the CV of St Andrew’s School‘s talented all-rounder FG Botha in the 2024/25 season.
Follow FG Botha and the Schools SA20 playoffs live on SuperSport Schools – (www.supersportschools.com)
Coming in to bat at number three for Saints, Botha has been an immense figure in the batting lineup for the Bloemfontein school.
The 17-year-old all-rounder, with 80 1st XI caps to his name, has a mature head on his shoulders and regularly wins big moments and matches for his side, either with the bat or the ball.
As a youngster from Kroonstad, Botha started his cricketing journey with Riaan Cronje at Rima Sports, in Kroonstad, at the age of five.
(Sidenote: Riaan’s son, Ruan Cronje, was a key performer for St Andrew’s when they won the national T20 title in 2018 with a side that was captained by future ITEC Knights wicketkeeper/batsman Garnett Tarr and also included future Proteas’ fast bowler Gerald Coetzee).
This laid the foundation for Botha to be selected for the u12 and u13 Free State sides some years later. This, however, was only the beginning of a flourishing career that lay ahead.
Since his move to high school, he’s grown in stature. That was underlined by his selection as the Best All-rounder and Batsman of the CSA u16 Boys Week in December 2024. Those achievements resulted in him playing in the u19 Cubs Week in January, where he represented the runners-up, the Western Legends.
“I owe a lot to coaches AJ van Wyk and Gregg Hobson, as well as Mr Cronje, for helping me reach these heights so early on in my cricketing journey. I’m also tremendously thankful towards my parents who always gave me the opportunities to do what I love,” Botha said.
Apart from his success with the bat, Botha has also played a major part in the Saints’ bowling lineup. His sharp leg spin has seen him capture an astonishing 20 wickets in nine Schools SA20 matches, which is the most by any St Andrew’s bowler in the competition.
With ambitions to make the SA Schools side at the end of the year, and to throw his name in the hat as a rookie pick in the SA20, Botha is focused on raising the bar. Good luck to anyone coming up against him at Tuks from 12 March in the Schools SA20’s inaugural National Finals.
