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WATCH: Hilarious 'umpires' analyse Proteas in Cardiff

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Sim Leech (left) and Gary Gifford (Lloyd Burnard).
Sim Leech (left) and Gary Gifford (Lloyd Burnard).

Cardiff - The good news is that the sun is out at Sophia Gardens in Cardiff ahead of South Africa's crucial World Cup clash against Afghanistan on Saturday.

There are still many clouds around and the threat of rain remains, but the South Africans who have made their way to the ground will definitely be treated to some cricket. 

Sport24 spent some time outside the stadium watching a few fans make their way through the gates, but it was these two 'umpires' who were commanding the most attention. 

Sim Leech and Gary Gifford are two English actors who work for the Bread and Butter Theatre company. 

Appointed by the ICC, the pair has been asked to 'perform' at 16 Cricket World Cup matches. 

Dressed up as umpires, the duo goes by the name of 'Umpires Strike Back' and they are tasked with 'interviewing' and chatting to spectators around the stadium. 

"Sometimes, when we're not dressed up as umpires, we do a lot of stunt doubles for George Clooney and the likes," Gifford said.

"He's quite big on Tom Cruise," he added, pointing towards Leech.

Armed with a microphone connected to absolutely nothing, a cricket ball and a curiously placed piece of sandpaper, the umpires were stealing the show on Saturday morning as fans stopped to get a closer look at the show. 

Breaking out of character for a while, Gifford said he had been incredibly impressed by South African supporters.  

"What has been wonderful has been finding out the different 'isms' from different nations," he said.

"South Africa has big support here and a lot of families. It's a great atmosphere and South Africa has great fans."

"They're big drinkers as well ... they drank The Oval dry the other day," Leech added. 

@LloydBurnard is in England covering the 2019 Cricket World Cup for Sport24 ...   

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