When the 1st team cricketers arrive at Mitchell Field ahead of their matches, they generally seek out Mr Mishack Ngcongwane to ask him how the pitch is playing. He has been working on that wicket for 11 years now – and on cricket pitches for twice that time – and he's pretty confident that he can read the conditions and pass on good advice.
"I can tell them that the Rice Field wicket is consistent and the bounce stays true there all game long, while Mitchell is more variable and, on a Saturday, it tends to keep low after 2pm," he said.
That sort of knowledge is hard-earned and Mishack has been on quite a journey. He was working as a gardener in Alberton for the parents of Patrick Maroney, Cricket South Africa's Convenor of Selectors, when Patrick introduced him to the game and got him involved at the Alberton Cricket Club and at Hoërskool Marais Viljoen, where Patrick was the director of sport.
"Mr Jean le Maitre, the club manager at Alberton, taught me a lot about pitch preparation," Mishack said. "He sent me on a course with Chris Scott at the Wanderers too.
"I spent three or four years in Alberton, before Justin Sammons came there with a Pridwin team to play a game there and liked my pitch so much that he got me to go to Pridwin."
Sammons was the cricket professional at St John's in the late 2010s and after Mishack was there for four years, he persuaded him to move across to St John's in 2015.
"There was work to do here at first," Mishack said. "The pitch was cracked and low, and we repaired that. Over the years since then I think we have turned it into a good batting wicket that also gives some help to the bowlers, which is what a cricket surface should be."
Mishack singles out some players who have left an impression on him. They include JP King, Joe MacRobert and the current captain, Nkosana Sibiya. "All the players have always been respectful to me, and I often get thank yous from them for the work I do. That's been important to me," he said.
Director of cricket, Mr Adi Norris, says Mishack adds great value to cricket at the College. "He is conscientious and a master of his craft," he said, "but more importantly, his courteous and cheerful nature rubs off on everyone. We are fortunate to have him on board."
As we enter a new year, we look forward to watching our cricket teams showcase their skills on the Ngcongwane-prepared pitches at St John's.
