Giyani village to host local games
In an effort to develop one of the country's indigenous games, the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture has started a provincial league for rural people's popular pastime, ncuva or moruba.
LIMPOPO – Caxton Chauke, Provincial Coordinator, said twelve teams will compete in a league event to be hosted in Nkomo village, outside Giyani, on Saturday.
“During a league event, two teams play ten games against each other. The team that wins the majority of games collects three points. Each team gets one point if they play to a draw,” he explained.
He said the league is composed of the best moruba clubs from all the five districts, namely Vhembe, Mopani, Capricorn, Sekhukhune, and Waterberg.
“So far, it is the only indigenous game in the province that has its own official league,” he said, adding that the league is receiving support from local municipalities and business people in the form of financial sponsorships, as well as mobile and permanent boards.
Ncuva/moruba, which is basically a strategy board game requiring problem-solving skills, is one of the eight games that are promoted as indigenous sports by the Scientific and Industrial Research’s National Product Development Centre (SIRDC) and the South African Sports Commission (SASC).
The other seven are dibeke, khokho, diketo, intonga, kgati, morabaraba and jukskei.
Limpopo is expected to host the national finals of the Indigenous Games tournament at the Ngoako Ramatlhodi Stadium in Seshego, outside Polokwane, in September this year.
As part of showcasing the indigenous games to the world, South Africa participated in the World Indigenous Games in Korea in 2008, Luthuania in 2012 and Indonesia in 2016. Plans are also on the table to register the games as Olympic sport events.
Participation in indigenous games emphasises physical development, skills training and maintenance, reinforcement of community values and interaction between communities.
These games are also part of the national strategy to optimise the country’s cultural heritage and values by instilling a sense of pride in its cultural games.
