A cricket-crazy pensioner whose boyhood dreams of playing for South Africa were crushed by apartheid is helping poor township children realise theirs by mentoring them after school.
Instead of whiling away his golden years in a rocking chair on the stoep of his neat Nolukhanyo home, energetic 76-year-old Gladman Xali spends his afternoons in the Bathurst veld working with 90 talented Tiger Titans players.
Involved with the Titans since it was started by 14-year-old Ross McCreath in 2007, Xali took over the reins when the farmer’s son left to study at university years later.
“People are very poor here. There is not much for youngsters to do after school.
“Cricket is my way of helping them keep out of trouble, to stay away from crime and taverns.”
A talented player in his youth, Xali learnt how to bowl by helping a local farmer fine tune his batting at the local cricket ground.
“I started playing cricket after watching all-white teams playing games at the Bathurst Cricket Club.
“Me and my friends made a wood bat and played with a tennis ball.”
He said he improved in leaps and bounds when he started bowling to farmer Ramsay Forward during the week after school.
“There was nobody around to bowl so us township kids would do it. He would bat and we would bowl and field the balls.”
According to Xali it was “unusual” in the 1950s for a white farmer to train with black kids.
“He is the reason why I love the game so much.”
Sent off to Cape Town’s Langa High School in the early 1960s, Xali recalled how he made the first team and played a once-off game against white pupils at Bishops College.
“It was 1963 and you could not play any white teams back then … the Bishops rector bent the rules and halfway through the game the police arrived to stop us.”
When they left, the game continued and even though the township team lost, Xali said he was so happy he bowled a son of the legendary Jack Cheetham.
“It was the first and last time I played a white school. I always wanted to play for South Africa but that incident made me realise it was impossible.”
After working his whole adult life at South African Breweries in Cape Town – playing in the company cricket team over weekends until he was 60 years old – Xali retired to Bathurst and became involved with the Titans.
Club manager Anne “Mama Tiger” McCreath said Xali was a community asset.
“Gladman is a wonderful mentor, a true gentleman and a very good influence on the boys.”
The positive influence the club and Xali have on marginalised youth was recognised internationally when Prince Edward invited founder Ross McCreath to a President’s Awards gala dinner in the UK a few years ago.
Later Prince Edward visited Grahamstown and even bowled a ball during a Titans exhibition match.
“Gladman was umpiring and even though Prince Edward bowled a beautiful ball, he shouted ‘wide’.” — davidm@dispatch.co.za
Pensioner relives his passion with youth
Instead of whiling away his golden years in a rocking chair on the stoep of his neat Nolukhanyo home, energetic 76-year-old Gladman Xali spends his afternoons in the Bathurst veld working with 90 talented Tiger Titans players.
Involved with the Titans since it was started by 14-year-old Ross McCreath in 2007, Xali took over the reins when the farmer’s son left to study at university years later.
“People are very poor here. There is not much for youngsters to do after school.
“Cricket is my way of helping them keep out of trouble, to stay away from crime and taverns.”
A talented player in his youth, Xali learnt how to bowl by helping a local farmer fine tune his batting at the local cricket ground.
“I started playing cricket after watching all-white teams playing games at the Bathurst Cricket Club.
“Me and my friends made a wood bat and played with a tennis ball.”
He said he improved in leaps and bounds when he started bowling to farmer Ramsay Forward during the week after school.
“There was nobody around to bowl so us township kids would do it. He would bat and we would bowl and field the balls.”
According to Xali it was “unusual” in the 1950s for a white farmer to train with black kids.
“He is the reason why I love the game so much.”
Sent off to Cape Town’s Langa High School in the early 1960s, Xali recalled how he made the first team and played a once-off game against white pupils at Bishops College.
“It was 1963 and you could not play any white teams back then … the Bishops rector bent the rules and halfway through the game the police arrived to stop us.”
When they left, the game continued and even though the township team lost, Xali said he was so happy he bowled a son of the legendary Jack Cheetham.
“It was the first and last time I played a white school. I always wanted to play for South Africa but that incident made me realise it was impossible.”
After working his whole adult life at South African Breweries in Cape Town – playing in the company cricket team over weekends until he was 60 years old – Xali retired to Bathurst and became involved with the Titans.
Club manager Anne “Mama Tiger” McCreath said Xali was a community asset.
“Gladman is a wonderful mentor, a true gentleman and a very good influence on the boys.”
The positive influence the club and Xali have on marginalised youth was recognised internationally when Prince Edward invited founder Ross McCreath to a President’s Awards gala dinner in the UK a few years ago.
Later Prince Edward visited Grahamstown and even bowled a ball during a Titans exhibition match.
“Gladman was umpiring and even though Prince Edward bowled a beautiful ball, he shouted ‘wide’.” — davidm@dispatch.co.za
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