A rare item of good news to light up the Dolphins' otherwise wretched season is that Dale Benkenstein will make a comeback next week after three months out of the game.
Benkenstein played in the MTN Domestic Championship but was forced to have surgery to the spur at the back of his left heel at the beginning of November 2006.
He will be available for the last two SuperSport Series matches, as well as the Pro20 competition. His long-term absence, however, has had a devastating effect on the team who are second from the bottom in the SuperSport Series log.
During his recovery, Benkenstein has helped out at the nets and worked with the players. He knows only too well, however, the negative impact on a team when experienced players are not available, or cannot be replaced.
"I remember, 10 years ago, being given a head start to my career by players of the calibre of Clive Rice and Malcolm Marshall, as well as guys like Peter Rawson and Neville Wright. It was almost a comfort playing with them because their presence allowed you to relax and just play. Instead of being a main strike bowler or a key batsman at the age of 21, you knew there were three or four other really experienced guys in the team who bore the main responsibility."
Benkenstein said the Dolphins had been suffering from the wrong balance of youth and experience.
"It's all very well to say that players are getting experience, but it's important for the youngsters to win while they are learning. It's not a great experience to lose all the time."
Now 32, Benkenstein has been a key player - as captain, middle-order batsman, bowler and fielder - for the Dolphins for many years and, if anything, he is playing better cricket now than at any time in his career. In this context, Benkenstein laughs at some pundits' suggestions that fellow-Dolphin Shaun Pollock should think of retiring.
"People shouldn't tell him what to do. They should ask him what he wants to do. The guy's taken the eighth most wickets in Test history. He's a legend.
"You can imagine what kind of influence he has, not only on players in the national side, but everyone in domestic first-class cricket, watching how he goes about his business. He is the kind of role model you want to stay in the game for as long as possible. As a young player, you want to play alongside him because he teaches you so much so quickly."
Benkenstein said it wasn't the coach a young player really learned from, but a senior professional who was more likely to come up with the right response in a tense situation, providing the perfect learning experience for a youngster.
Benkenstein believes that the benefit of experience is something that the Australians have exploited better than anyone.
"The South Africans, on the other hand, seem to be always looking for a young star instead of understanding that experience is such a huge part of the game."