Cricket South Africa (CSA) has heard with sadness of the passing of veteran administrator William Kriel.
Mr. Kriel was a former president and an honorary life member of the famous St. Augustine’s Cricket Club in Cape Town. Together with Paul Saville he led the club through the difficult times of the 1970s and 1980s and was a club delegate to the Western Province Cricket Board, serving on numerous committees.
Their leadership played a major part in ensuring St. Augustine championed the cause of democracy and continued to produce outstanding cricketers, following in the tradition of its most famous cricketing son, Basil d’Oliveira, with their most recent international being Paul Adams.
“He served the club in virtually every position and his principled leadership meant a great deal,” commented CSA vice-president Beresford Williams, who is a life member of the St. Augustine club. “He also made a big contribution to the game of rugby and as a school principal he did a lot of good work among young people generally.
“He was a great mentor to me in my own development as an administrator,” he added.
“This is a huge loss to cricket generally and to the community in which he lived,” commented CSA Acting CEO Dr. Jacques Faul.
“He gave a lifetime of service to the game that he loved and he would always give willingly of his time, his knowledge and his experiences to others. On behalf of the CSA family I extend deepest condolences to his family, friends and colleagues at this difficult time.”
He is survived by his wife Beaulh, his three sons, his daughter and his grandchildren.
