from The Tribune May 01 2000 (thanks Sarah)
After the pain and drama of the recent weeks there's nothing better than a
good old fashioned wedding to bring back the sparkle to the cricket team and the
country. And the bonus is that there will be two weddings in two weeks.
The first peal of wedding bells will be heard in Durban this Saturday for Shaun
Pollock, caretaker captain of the national squad and beautiful blonde Patricia
"Trish" Lauderdale, 27, a former beauty queen, who is an MTN public
relations officer.
A week after the 25-year-old fast bowler marries his sweetheart of 20 months,
his room-mate on tour, fondly known as "Zulu", Lance Klusener, will
marry the just as beautiful Isabelle, also of Durban.
Most of the team's players are expected to attend both Durban weddings, although
the details are being kept a secret. Beleaguered former captain Hansie Cronje
has been invited to both weddings, but Pollock said on Saturday that Cronje
would not be attending his wedding as he had a long-standing prior engagement,
just as several other players had.
Klusener said, during the recent tour in India: "I am more afraid of my
wedding day than of every fast bowler in the world who has ever played against
me."
Pollock and Klusener were two of South Africa's heroes in the recent series
played by South Africa against world champions Australia, captained by Steve
Waugh, which South Africa won 2-1.
Pollock and Tricia spoke to the Tribune on Saturday about their wedding,
although the cricketing hero was not give too many details because of an
arrangement with a magazine.
"I know people are interested, but I really want to keep my private life
private," he said, adding that there would be 150 guests at the wedding.
"Obviously, there will be a few cricket personalities there as well as some
of my old school friends," said Pollock, who captained a team at Northwood
Junior School.
"Thank goodness Tricia has been able to do a lot of the organization for
the wedding when I have not been around."
Tricia did not just win his heart, "she stole it," he confided.
The couple have known each other for years, and began their relationship by
sending messages to each other on their cellphones, Tricia said.
Said his future wife: "His reputation preceded him. People told me he was a
nice guy."
While she has a string of beauty titles to her credit- she won her first
national contest when she was five and four million TV viewers watched her when
she was a finalist in the l993 Miss South African competition - she played down
her beauty queen days.
"It is such a long time ago. Now I am concentrating on my career," she
said.
Tricia, who sports a large diamond ring, said she enjoyed cricket and "was
very proud" of Pollock.
She would be wearing an "elegant, very simple dress" and they would be
honeymooning in Mauritius for two weeks.
Pollock was already something of a cook, she said, and they had been busy
renovating their future home for some time.
Pollock was still hammering and finishing off last-minute jobs on Saturday,
while Tricia was getting ready for the future Mrs Klusener's kitchen tea. Later,
friends surprised her by holding a kitchen tea for her.
Then she looked at her watch. It was 4pm.
"This time next week, we will be married," she beamed.