Walters sees great things ahead for Border brigade

Border stand-in captain Martin Walters believes that the team is moving in the right direction despite a long and testing season about to come to an end with their final matches this weekend.

Border play against KwaZulu-Natal Coastal in their final Sunfoil three-day match of the season starting tomorrow and then end off their season with a CSA Provincial one-day cup match against the same opponent on Sunday, knowing that they will not be in any of the finals and thus will end the season without silverware.

“I feel the team is moving forward in the right direction,” said Walters.

“At the start of the season we lost a number of senior players who had been with us for years, so we knew from the start that it was going to be a rebuilding phase because it is quite tough to replace experienced players.

“We knew it was going to be a challenging season with youngsters coming into the side, having to fill big boots and almost learn roles you only learn later on once you get a bit of experience.”

For Walters he was almost thrust to the forefront of the Border challenge after long-serving captain Abongile Sodumo retired before the start of the season and then new Border captain Jerry Nqolo was snapped up by the Warriors and he has ended up playing a substantial role for the franchise side over the season.

Walters was thus given the task of standing in over the season and has acquitted himself well in the role while also keeping his performances at a high level throughout.

“It was a huge surprise when I had to step in as Jerry had been assigned captaincy but we did know he was probably going to play a larger role for the Warriors this season,” admitted Walters.

“I had captained the Western Province side when I was still in Cape Town, so it wasn't unknown territory to me, but in regards to captaining a new team it brought a new challenge, which was exciting.”

In the eight matches he has played in the three-day competition so far Walters comfortably leads the Border batting averages with 55.90 and has struck three half centuries and two centuries, the latest coming in the past match against KZN Inland where he hit his highest score of the season of 117no.

“I have had one of my most consistent performing seasons and I think it has come from the added responsibility,” said Walters.

“I have had to almost show the youngsters how to approach an innings and how to grind it out and it certainly has brought out the better side of my game this season.”

However in all Border have had a roller-coaster season where they have shown their potential at times while also slipping up at others and they will want to take these experiences into next season.

“It has been a very up and down season where we have tried to learn and get something out of every game whether it was a loss, a draw or even a win,” said Walters.

“We are looking forward to our final games against KZN Coastal and they always send out a strong side, so it will again be a really good learning curve, particularly in the three-day match and we want to finish on a good note.”

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