The first time Snamile Mthembu watched a cricket game on television, she thought it was one of the most boring sports. 

Everything changed the day it was Mthembu who made desperate dives to stop the ball from going over the ropes. Who, with the bat in hand, is scoring runs? Or as a bowler is trying to outsmart batters. 

The 20-year-old has turned out to be quite good at it. Mthembu captained the TuksCricket women’s team this past season to contest the finals in the Northerns 35 over-league and the Northerns T20 Tournament. The fact that Irene Villagers won both finals does not faze her.

"We gave a good account of ourselves in both games. In the end, that is what playing cricket is about."

Mthembu contributed with bat and ball for Tuks, scoring runs and taking hattricks. She is so casual when talking about taking hattricks that it can't be helped to ask whether she meant she had one hat trick to her name.

The captain laughs before saying, "I took quite a few hattricks."

Her heroics did not go unnoticed. She ended up being Tuks Women’s Cricketer of the Year.

Snamile (aka Sneezy) played an integral role for the Tuks Women's side as a senior player and team leader. Her willingness to learn allowed her to lead from the front through a rocky but successful season for the team. Despite having a fantastic season with bat and ball, the highlight of her season was when she put her hand up to keep when both specialized wicketkeepers were unavailable. She did an excellent job. This is how her praises were sung during the awards ceremony.

According to Mthembu, she started playing cricket in Grade 8 at Jeppe High School for Girls.

"I immediately fell in love with the game. I love the teamwork and the energy that comes with playing cricket. At the same time, it is complicated and exciting. It is an individual sport, but you can only succeed with the help of your teammates.

"I love to field, but my strength as a player is my batting abilities."

As to her hattricks, Mthembu said her secret is sticking to the basics and keeping things simple. Captaincy is, for her, all about gaining the trust of every player. 

"I want the players to know we got each other's backs when we stepped onto the field."