St David’s leans on team-first approach for success
St David’s Marist Inanda has several provincial and national team players. However, none of them is allowed to bring their representative kit to training for the school’s 1st XI.
When they turn up, everyone should be in St David’s gear. That practice is a reminder that they are part of a team that pulls together.
“I think is very important for us to understand that while we are incredibly proud of our provincial players, the rest are, in their own right, very decent cricketers who contribute massively to the success of the team,” Jeff Levin, the St David’s coach, explained.
From their very first Schools SA20 fixture, the boys from Rivonia Road have hunted as a pack in the field, chasing the ball in twos, backing each other up to cover throws, and communicating concisely when running between the wickets. They’ve carried that mindset throughout their campaign.
“We try and keep the unit as tight as possible. The boys know that we have a decent squad and that there are always those wanting a place within. So, every minute must be treasured,” Levin said.
A lot of credit for the collaborative culture in the St David’s team goes to their captain, Samrat Basu. He’s developed a close working relationship with his vice-captain, Kamogelo Phiri, and they feed off each other’s ideas. They’re also not shy to include some of the senior team members’ ideas in their decision-making. This has engendered a sense of ownership in the direction of results.
“They train hard and need to trust themselves to execute as that’s what got them into this group in the first place,” Levin said.
St David’s will kick off the final leg of the Schools SA20 tournament with a fixture against the Cricket South Africa Hub team on the D Field at Tuks at 14:00 on Wednesday.
They’ll carry their team-first mindset into that tie. Their primary focus will be on executing their plans as a unit.
