Who is Hilton Moreeng — head coach of the Proteas women’s team?

The South African Proteas women’s team are on a roll at the Cricket World Cup in New Zealand. They have won four games in a row, against Bangladesh, Pakistan, defending champions England, and most recently, hosts New Zealand.

Sune Luus’ outfit are on the verge of reaching the playoffs. They’re next up against favourites Australia, on Tuesday.

Leading the side is Hilton Moreeng, who has been coach of the Proteas women’s team since 2012, and turning them into one of the most competitive team’s in the game.

Here are a few facts you may not know about him.

First class career

While Moreeng, 44, was born in Kimberley, he played all his domestic cricket for Free State.

He was a wicket-keeper and right-handed batsman and made his debut in 2001 in what was then the SuperSport Series.

Moreeng struggled to score runs and after three matches was replaced in the side by future Proteas player Morne van Wyk.

Moreeng though would make it back into first class cricket, six years later, during the 2007/8 season. In six first class matches he scored 34 runs and in three List A matches he managed just 19 runs.

His last match was on November 8, 2007.

Coaching

After retiring from playing, he took up coaching and quickly gained a Level III coaching certificate. In 2012, after getting to grips with the tutoring side of the game, Moreeng was appointed coach of the national Proteas women’s side.

He has been in charge ever since, taking the Proteas women to second place in the ICC rankings list for ODI cricket and fifth for T20 cricket.

World Cup

Speaking to the media prior to the team’s first outing at the World Cup, Moreeng was in upbeat mood, despite the team not performing flashy in two warm-up games.

“Players needed the time in the middle and we are happy with what we have seen,” he said. “We had a chance to rotate the squad and give everyone a chance, to get used to conditions. The feedback has been good.”

He added: “We have a lot of cricketers now playing around the world and who watch a lot of cricket, and also us, the coaching staff, sit and watch games to see what is new and what the other teams are doing. We try to get as much information as possible so that we don’t get any surprises in the middle.”

Back-up

Of course, it is not only one person who takes charge of matters behind the scenes; there is a large management group working with the playing squad every day.

Former Free State bowler Dillon du Preez is assistant coach, while Sedibu Mohlaba is the team manager.

Abram Ramoadi (performance analyst), Tshegofatso Gaetsewe (team doctor), Molebatsi Theletsane (physiotherapist), Zane Webster (strength and conditioning coach), and Kruger van Wyk (wicket-keeping and fielding consultant) are also involved in on-field activity.

Zahid Shaik (close protection officer), Happiness Mesi (logistics officer/team masseurs) and Lita Gqirana (media manager) deal with matters slightly away from the action.