Author: Stephen Kisbey-Green

Makhanda (Grahamstown) is situated in an area surrounded by natural beauty, and while many residents and nature lovers want to experience the wonders of the Eastern Cape, they are not always aware of what is most affordable or on offer. The Eastern Cape Parks and Tourism Agency (ECPTA), however, is a great place to look for information on Nature and Game Reserves around Makhanda and throughout the province. The Great Fish River Nature Reserve is one of the many parks run by the ECPTA. The park is packed with engaging and exciting activities and experiences for families, hikers, birders, animal…

On Wednesday 13 March, the NV Cewu’s Head of Department for Senior Phase, Thulani Wana, travelled with the Eastern Province Athletics team to Germiston, Gauteng, as the coach of the boys U10-U13 section. Of the team from the Eastern Cape, 21 athletes are from the Sarah Baartman District team that competed in the provincial champs between 1-2 March, which was also coached by Wana. “Its huge,” said Wana on his selection to coach the provincial side. “To coach Sarah Baartman district firstly, at the provincial games, it was out of this world.”, he said.  “But now to coach the whole…

The 2019 Mayoral Cup came to an end on Saturday 9 March, with both the Makana and Ndlambe competitions seeing exciting finals to their season-opening competition. The Brumbies First Team took on Old Collegians in the Makana final at the Oval, while the Trying Stars faced off against Klipfontein. As a curtain raiser for the main match in Makhanda (Grahamstown), Lily Whites First team clashed with Easterns Firsts in the Third Place Playoff match at the Oval. It was a welcome challenge for all spectators and players alike to play in severely wet and rainy conditions. Both teams found it…

Nobody will complain about how the 115th edition of the annual Kenrich Pineapple Cricket Tournament came to a close, with rain on the final two days of the tournament to bring much needed relief to the drought-ridden area. Both the A and B sections of the tournament had joint winners decided by the net run rate system, with only the C section having an out-and-out winner at the end of the week. Rhodes Shrews were promoted to the B section after winning all of the games that they were able to play throughout the week. They started the week off…

The Gift of the Givers were given a helping hand themselves on Tuesday 12 March, when Isuzu Motors South Africa donated two water trucks to the organisation for their use in managing the water shortage in Makhanda (Grahamstown). The two trucks will be supplied by the newly-sunk boreholes that the Gift of the Givers have been drilling over the past two weeks, and will distribute water to a number of different water tanks stationed at various different locations around the town. The locations of these tanks will be finalised soon. Once the tanks are in place, members of the community…

Makana Traffic Chief Coenraad Hanekom has advised local drivers whose licences will soon expire to renew them at least a month in advance. Hanekom spoke to Grocott’s Mail this week, as the Department of Transport struggles to catch up on a massive backlog of licence card printing. Drivers can expect to wait a number of months before receiving their new licence cards. A trade dispute between the national department and Driving Licence Card Account (DLCA) in July 2018 resulted in a severe backlog in the printing and issuing of driver’s licences. Minister of Transport Blade Nzimande said in a mid-January 2019…

It was a landmark race for the 2019 Makana Brick Nite Race, as it not only marked the 20th running of the race, but was also used to celebrate the 25th birthday of major sponsor, Makana Brick. Hundreds of runners came through to take part in the fun 8km race, starting and finishing at Graeme College on Wednesday 6 March. With the scorching heat earlier in the day, reaching upwards of 40C at one point, it was feared by the organisers that the turnout would not be as big as in recent years. “We normally have in the region of…

The Lakhenathi United Football Club, founded January 2019 by co-founders Unati Snam and Mandelake Klaas, has grown to 35-45 players between the ages of seven and 17. The successful expansion and growth of the club has brought the attention of local sponsors, including KFC Eastern Cape, who handed over a number of playing kits to the club on Wednesday 20 February. “This project was born out of seeing these kids being idle after school and not doing much,” said Snam. “So we thought of a plan where we can get these kids together in one place, especially after school. Most of…

The much-awaited opening of the Sarah Baartman District Academy of Sport, a subsection of the Eastern Cape Academy of Sport (ECAS), took place on Tuesday 26 February, at the Indoor Sports Centre in Joza. The District Academy of Sport will look to identify elite athletes in the Sarah Baartman district, and provide them with advanced training. The ceremony started off with a celebration of the various sporting achievements of the people of Makhanda (Grahamstown), including highlighting the 125 year anniversary of the Lily Whites Rugby Club, celebrating National Boxing Champion Mziwoxolo Ndwayana, and pointing out the large number of sign…

Another year of university rugby kicks off on Monday 18 February, with the start of the 2019 FNB Varsity Shield tournament coming on Monday 18 February. This will be the third year in a row that Rhodes University will be participating in the competition, having won their promotion/relegation match against the University of Zululand at the end of 2018. Rhodes has had a run of bad luck in the competition since their first year in 2017. They have finished at the bottom of the table in both seasons up until now, having failed to secure a single win in last…