Posted on March 23, 2015
Assupol TuksCricket has yet again had a season that will be written up in the record books. After returning from London as the Red Bull Campus Cricket World Champions, they took on the 2014/2015 season and ensured that they defended all their titles successfully.
In December 2014, Assupol TuksCricket beat Maties at the UJ Oval in the final of the USSA ‘A’ Week to become USSA winners for the second year in a row. Murray Coetzee, Ruben Claassen, Sean Nowak, David Mogotlane and Sean Dickson were selected for the SA USSA team. Murray Coetzee was also named player of the tournament.
The 2014/2015 Cricket season saw the start of an exciting new competition, the Varsity Cricket tournament. The inaugural event was held in Potchefstroom in February and the top 8 teams of the USSA ‘A’ Week competed to become the best University cricket team and to represent South Africa at the Red Bull Campus Cricket World Finals in October, this time in India.
Assupol TuksCricket ensured that they reaped the rewards of their hard work and clinical preparation for the week. They became the first ever team to win this competition beating Maties at Senwes Park in the final. TuksCricket won 6 out of their 7 group games to end top of the log and faced UJ in the semi-final. Assupol TuksCricket vice-captain, Aiden Markram, was awarded the player of the tournament scoring 325 runs during the week. Markram finished as the tournament’s second highest run scorer and the batsman with the most half centuries (four) including a 97 in the semi-final against UJ. Markram also claimed 5 wickets during the week.
Heinrich Klaasen, who captained the team at Varsity Cricket, led the Tuks team throughout the week in a very professional way and contributed with an unbeaten 37 runs in the final.
“The tournament was an unbelievable experience for the whole team and the vibe on and off the field was amazing throughout the week,”Klaassen said
He added that the music on the field made it difficult to communicate with the rest of the fielders but it proved that the team that was the most focused, would came out on top.
“The organisers’ hospitality was really good and team members were treated as professionals. For the team to perform in front of the television cameras and show their abilities to the whole country was unbelievable. We can take a lot out of this. Now it is time to go and defend our title in India.”
Assupol Tuks 1, won all three Northerns Cricket Union (NCU) Competitions in the 2014/2015 season. For a third consecutive year, Tuks won the NCU T20 Club Competition after they beat CBCOB in the final by 51 runs. Murray Coetzee, 79 and Blake Schraader, 47 top scored for Tuks and Sean Nowak (4-0-21-2) and Corbin Bosch (4-0-17-2) each took two wickets to secure the victory.
For the sixth consecutive year, Tuks won the NCU Knock-Out Competition. Tuks beat Laudium in the knock out stage and PHSOB in the semi-final to secure their place in the final. The final took place at the Tuks Oval where Tuks beat TUT by 6 wickets. Tuks captain, Aiden Markram scored an incredible 112* to help his team come out victorious.
The biggest accomplishment for Assupol TuksCricket was when Tuks 1 won the NCU Premier League for the fifth consecutive year. Tuks ended top of the Premier League log, only losing two games during the season. As league winners, Assupol TuksCricket qualifies for the Momentum National Club Champs that which take place from 22 – 27 April 2015 in Pretoria. Tuks have successfully won the National Club Championships for the last three years and will compete for their fourth title.
At the end of 2014 Assupol TuksCricket had definitely #EarnedTheirStripes and was awarded the following awards:
2014 has been the most successful season for Assupol TuksCricket in terms of producing players for provincial, franchise and National level etc.
According to Assupol TuksCricket Club Captain, Aiden Markram, it has been a very tough and long season. “We have been a part of many different tournaments. As challenging as it was, our achievements made it very rewarding.”
He said the team’s various tournaments were always changing and that’s where they got it right. “Each player understood his role in the squad and gave 100 percent, regardless of which tournament we were participating in. I think that’s what made the difference for us”.
Pierre de Bruyn, Head of Assupol TuksCricket, said: “As the leading University and club cricket team we are privileged to be in such a great position, it has taken five years of extremely hard work to get here. In such a position the expectations will always be very high, but we thrive on that. The ultimate goal is to be successful on the field, and with that young players’ dreams can come true. We will continue to create an environment of excellence for young cricketers and students.” de Bruyn is very happy with his team’s win at the Varsity Cricket tournament and is looking forward to TuksCricket going to India to represent South Africa and defend their title.
The following Assupol TuksCricket players have been selected to represent various teams at all levels:
Proteas (World Cup Team)
Proteas Women’s Team
South Africa “A” vs England Lions (January-February 2015)
South Africa u19 (Tour to Bangladesh April 2015)
Unlimited Titans (2014/2015 Season)
Northerns Senior Provincial (2014/2015 Season)
SA USSA Team
CSA National Academy
Titans Franchise Colts Team
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