Cape Town – Western Cape cricket this week mourned the passing of Terry Eksteen (72), a universally respected former club-chairman who played a pivotal role in the development and expansion of Alma cricket.

A memorial service for Eksteen, chairman of Alma cricket club for more than three decades, will be held at 15:00 on Friday the 4th of September 2015 at St Thomas church, 61 Campground Rd, Rondebosch (adjacent to the front gates of Bishops).

His wake will follow at Rondebosch (formerly Alma ) Cricket Club, 13 Croft Road, Rondebosch.

The committee and members of Rondebosch Cricket Club hailed the former club supremo, who passed away peacefully after a brave battle with cancer.

The committee remembered him as a stalwart of Alma (now Rondebosch) Cricket Club, a legend among the cricketing fraternity worldwide, a consummate gentleman and a dear friend.

Eksteen received a Presidential award from Western Cape Cricket in 2013 for his excellence as administrator and selfless service to the game over more than four decades. He was a central figure at Alma Cricket Club and later Alma-Marist.

Eksteen, who once held a world record for the fastest double century in second league cricket (for Alma against WPCC), was not only known for his destructive middle-order batting, but also for his astute leadership that spanned several decades, said Beresford Williams, president of Western Province Cricket Association (WPCA)

Nabeal Dien, chief executive of WPCA, said: “We were deeply saddened to learn of Terry Eksteen’s death. He was a remarkable man and we are well aware of the difference he made in the lives of many people at Rondebosch Cricket Club. His dedication and selfless service to cricket over the many years will not be forgotten,” he added.

Simon Foxcroft, chairman of Rondebosch Cricket Club, said Eksteen was a superb cricketer who played Nuffield-cricket and featured in the same first-team at school-level as the legendary Graeme Pollock (Gray High in Port Elizabeth).

As a hockey player, he was a brilliant central forward and higher honours could have beckoned with a bit of luck.