Border say no

to hiring Kepler

By Telford Vice

EAST LONDON -- Does Kepler Wessels have any chance of being appointed Border's next cricket coach, or of playing for his Eastern Cape neighbours?

"Absolutely not," came the immediate response from the general manager of the Border Cricket Board (BCB), Reunert Bauser, when asked the question that has been buzzing between East London and Port Elizabeth and back.

Wessels was effectively fired by the Eastern Province Cricket Board (EPCB) last week in a development that shocked the cricket world, and with Border in the market for a new coach speculation has raged that the former South African captain would play or coach -- perhaps both -- at Buffalo Park next summer.

But Bauser was adamant: "We've never had discussions with Kepler Wessels and we don't envisage having discussions with him."

A list of possible candidates for the job seems to have been drawn up, but Bauser stuck to the official line of the BCB "investigating several options" and that "there are some we are talking to".

The decision is to be made by the end of the month, as the Border players were keen to know before they dispersed for the winter who would be in charge next season.

There have been suggestions that Border could follow the route taken by Natal. Last winter, Frans Cronje was appointed coach at Kingsmead despite the fact that he had not coached at provincial level. However, playing affairs director Graham Ford -- the key backstage man in Natal's success in recent seasons -- still has much to do with the team.

With Stephen Jones now senior cricket manager, Border have the scope to move in a similar direction.

It seems Wessels' immense stature became a problem at St George's Park as he was at the centre of almost every facet of EP cricket, from team selection to pitch preparation

The appointment of former Middlesex and England batsman Graham Barlow as EP's new coach brought matters to a head, as Barlow felt he would not have appropriate control of the team if Wessels was still involved.

l The Border B teams to play Gauteng B in Bowl fixtures at Buffalo Park starting on Thursday is:

For three-day match: George Hammond, Greg King, Craig Wilson, Ian Mitchell, Cassie van der Merwe (capt), Lefty Ngece, Francois Klopper, Brenden Fourie, Shaun Fourie, Burton Forbes, Tulani Ngxoweni. 12th-man: Justin Lotter.