LEFT ARM OVER
NEIL MANTHORP: Slouching towards the Wanderers to be born
It is, of course, the players who will most quickly persuade fans to buy tickets and form an affinity with the new teams
It will be years before the Mzansi Super League starts delivering the revenue needed by Cricket SA but before then it needs to be nurtured with the attention to detail usually reserved for infants in intensive care. Giving the teams random names disassociated with the host cities was a high-risk strategy asking a lot of the local populations — form a bond and a loyalty in a couple of weeks to a brand just created. The cricket loving people of Centurion have turned out in better numbers than anywhere else to watch the Titans in domestic cricket but now they are being asked to switch their loyalty to the Tshwane Spartans for a month. In Cape Town supporters of the Cobras — a brand which took many years to gain traction — will now be followers of Cape Town Blitz. Jozi Stars and the Nelson Mandela Bay Giants will operate out of the Wanderers and St George’s Park while visitors to Kingsmead will, at least, be able to relate to Durban Heat, at least off the field. A name that does seem ap...
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