Switch Schools SA20 Player Profile – Corbin Tidbury (Graeme College)
Most coaches would have delayed Corbin Tidbury‘s 1st XI debut by a few matches, having watched the 14-year-old in action against lower teams only. If pushed, a cautious coach might have batted him at six or seven before considering moving him up the order to his natural position, at four.
However, Odwa Xonxa, the Graeme College 1st XI coach, wasn’t “most coaches”. He had seen enough young cricketers to recognise a prodigious talent when it crossed his path.
“He had more time on the ball than his agemates and even the older kids,” Xonxa recalled.
“I remember throwing at him from up close and at a decent pace in one of our first sessions. He had shots that gave him full access to the field,” he explained.
The teenager began his career in the kitchen of his family’s farmhouse, where his father, Aubrey, threw plastic balls to young Corbin and his older brother, Aidan. From there, they progressed to playing in the lounge.
Most parents think their children are uniquely talented. Almost all of them are wrong. Aubrey belongs to the minority that recognised an unusual talent in his son.
When the lounge grew too small for the boys, he constructed an outdoor net for them. boys. Aidan, who is four years older than Corbin, did most of the bowling, which prepared his younger brother for playing in older age groups when he joined Aidan at Lilyfontein School in East London.
“It was great having both brothers playing many games together at Lilyfontein. I think the four-year age gap has assisted Corbin in facing some pace at an earlier age,” Aubrey said.
Corbin Tidbury’s development was helped by the presence of Freddy “Andy” Wong, his maternal grandfather. Wong, whom Aubrey described as a formidable cricketer in his youth, enjoyed a successful school career with the De La Salle School (now Port Rex Technical High School) 1st XI from 1962 to 1964 before he joined the Hamiltons (Hams) Cricket Club.
Wong poured his cricket knowledge into the talented youngster, while his brother Terry, another former De La Salle star, who also played for the Hams and Bohemians cricket clubs, filled in the gaps. Aubrey also mentioned Jason Niemand and Daniel Swift, the Lilyfontein 1st XI coach, as people who had a significant impact on Corbin’s early development.
Their combined efforts meant that he arrived at Graeme College a few steps ahead of other players of his age. Xonxa, who believes that if a player is good enough, then they must be old enough, soon integrated him into the 1st XI.
Playing up is easy when one has a big frame. Tidbury, though, isn’t bigger or more imposing than his peers. However, that wasn’t a problem. He held his own against older and bigger players.
He contributed 21 from 19 balls in his debut match at Graeme. The next two games brought him back-to-back centuries. Those outstanding performances persuaded Xonxa that the 14-year-old was good enough to represent the Eastern Province u16A team.
At the 2024 CSA u16 National Week, he demonstrated his all-round ability, including a safe pair of hands, which brought him nine catches. He kept wicket in a few matches and pulled off four stumpings, too. He was given eight overs to bowl and picked up 1/21, while he added 48 runs with the bat to help the province win the national title.
Facing Zimbabwe’s Peterhouse in a Makhanda Cricket Festival match in January 2024, a month after the u16 National Week, Tidbury was on course to become one of the youngest Graeme College players to earn a place on the institution’s Suttie’s Springbok Skin, an honour granted to 1st XI players when they register their maiden centuries. He had 95 runs to his name.
Then, he edged a ball to the wicketkeeper. The edge was so faint that Tidbury was the only one who had heard the knick clearly. The Peterhouse wicketkeeper appealed half-heartedly. Tidbury didn’t wait for the umpire to decide whether he was out or not. He walked.
His father, Aubrey, described that moment as being worth more than 200 runs or better than any awards his sons could win at a match.
“I have always spoken about that as one of my proudest moments,” he admitted. “It is a gentleman’s game, and I have drummed it into my boys from a young age that if you know you nicked the ball, you walk.
“I have never tolerated bad sportsmanship and have constantly reminded my boys to be humble and try to be a good example to others.”
Growth is not linear, so it was not surprising that despite his undeniable talent and tirelessness in the nets, Tidbury produced mixed results in the middle in 2025. Still, he stood head and shoulders above his peers.
At the end of the year, he returned to the u16 National Week and left there with the Batter of the Tournament and All-rounder of the Tournament awards.
Instead of heading home, though, he set off for Bloemfontein to join the CSA Invitational XI at the Khaya Majola Week. There, he played a prominent role for the Invitational side, helping them to claim four victories in five matches, while their last game was rained out.
Tidbury, who has a rigorous self-imposed training schedule of four days a week, not including the net sessions he has with his brother, Aidan, is focused on continued growth.
His big dream is to be as good as Aiden Markram. However, for the moment, his focus is squarely on helping Graeme College go as far as they possibly can at the Switch Schools SA20 Volume Two Final Showdown.
