It is a great pleasure to announce that Bakers Biscuits are in the 19th year of sponsoring the Mini Cricket and Coaches Academy cricket development programmes.

The Bakers Biscuits sponsorship started out at the small amount of R50 000 in 1982 and it now stands at R13 million. The success of the programmes is the motivating factor behind the sponsorship – knowing that it makes a positive difference to thousands of people on a daily basis is what keeps Bakers Biscuits involved in cricket development.

The success of the programmes has manifested in many ways and a few examples include:

• 50% of all provincial cricket teams are currently made up of Bakers Mini Cricket Graduates,
• over 30 000 coaches have graduated from the Bakers Coaches Academy,
• and about 90 000 children take part in Bakers Mini Cricket every year.

These changes have certainly formed a positive bond between Bakers Biscuits and consumers; however, the main objective of this sponsorship has always been and still remains; to teach the children of South Africa the joy of playing together so that they can work together.

Together the United Cricket Board of South Africa and Bakers Biscuits, through the mini cricket and coaches academy programmes, continue to teach thousands of children and adults from all communities the joy of playing and teaching sport, the real value of teamwork and to learn self-confidence.

Now that is what I call giving the South African nation a real sporting chance!

© United Cricket Board of South Africa