One of the highlights of the KZN school rugby season is the Westville – Maritzburg College interschools day. It’s fair to say that neither school is enjoying a prosperous 1st XV year but that won’t distract from what is bound to be wonderful day filled with plenty of well-matched age group contests on Westville’s fields.
Westville prepared for this game, coming off their first regular season win of 2016. They beat Northwood 48-10 in convincing fashion last Friday. This match was an opportunity missed for Northwood. It was a dull Friday with not than many Westville home supporters in attendance to back an injury plagued team that had just lost to Pretoria Boys’ High the weekend before. However Northwood has blow hot and cold this season and if/when they do play to their true potential they can be a handful for most schools. Even in this match, which turned out to be one of their “colds”, there were patches where one could see the Knights’ ability. It turned out to be 70-minute session owed by the Westville tight -5 who scrummed well and were even more destructive at lineout time, not to mention their contributions in the loose which include a handful of nice carries as well. Special mention must go to lock Barnard who was outstanding. Apart from the setpiece domination, the Westville team who are without several key players showed a lot more structure in just about everything they did . There was urgency, linebreaks, good support play, better ball protection to help retention and a growing confidence as the match went on. In spite of the success, the feeling is that Westville still has to up their game a couple of notches if they want to match College this Saturday. Certainly defence is going to be a key area of commitment if they hope to entertain any thoughts of two wins in a row. However if they can win the amount of ball they did against Northwood and play with that same level of cohesion on attack, they should manufacture a few chances. The match is expected to be quicker and more intense.
College will arrive at Westville coming off a disappointing 31-14 defeat to Kearsney on Goldstones. A frustratingly poor first half performance saw the Red Black White trailing 21-0 at the break, leaving themselves with far too much to do in the second 35-minutes to rescue the match. College had their chances in the first half but the rolling maul that had served them so well in 2015 couldn’t get the better of Kearsney from 5-metres out on two occasions. Losing leader by example Glover to injury early on did not help their cause. The biggest eye-sore though was the rearranged College backline with Reed at flyhalf, Williamson at outside centre and Van Blerk on the left wing which just did not settle. A College try in the first half might have been a game changer, as it certainly would have put the hosts in striking distance : as it stood they closed the gap to 14-26 at one stage during the second half. The second half score was 14-10 to the home team in the end but it doesn’t tell the true story of how College dominated territory and also possession. A big difference was where Kearsney’s defence made the College boys work overtime to turn possession into points, Kearsney crisp handling, speed of execution and the precision of their attacks, seem to make light work of breaching their opponents D-lines whenever the One-Stripes put their foot down. Kearsney lost talented flyhalf Ritchie to a shoulder injury during the match otherwise the Maroons seemed to use up all their bad luck prior to kickoff. Their 1st XV bus broke down en route to Maritzburg and before that the late withdrawal of centre Watts resulted in one of the KZN players of the 2016 season, no.8 Erlich having to shift to 13, where he adapted well and linking skills once again proved useful. Erlich’s move meant that hooker Richardson slotted in at no.8, where he produced a player of the match performance with some incredible power carries that broke tackles and generated go-forward. Promoted hooker Cherry even earned a tick by helping to grow the score when he retrieved an attempted College chip kick, raced down field and at the critical moment had the presence of mind to look around and make a top class try assisting pass to his lock Weaver who was in clear space. It was outstanding victory for Kearsney on the famous KZN ground where they had found wins hardest to come in their KZN interschools history. Deserving a mention as well is Kearsney’s consistant flank Croshaw who was outstanding in all the little contributions he made. For College Mjara’s second half appearance was a boost and the likes of Truter, Khanyile and Reintges all gave good accounts of themselves.
College will definitely want a huge improvement in the backline form and more of a killer instinct on Bowdens’ tomorrow. With DHS and Hilton to follow, it might be a case of one step at a time but certainly there is opportunity to end the term with three wins on the trot, starting at Westville.
@GreenBlooded: I agree with this in principle…but I’m reality it is not possible.Or let me rather say….if have a problem with Dale hiring Robbie Fleck as 1st team coach but would see nothing wrong with him getting the job at Bishops.Having an old boy who isn’t a teacher as a coach addreses a lot of the writer’s concerns
@The Scout: It is difficult to see a style developing with the only real shining lights being the u16a and 2nd xv. It is suicide to change your u14,15,16,2nd and 1st xv coaches in 1 off season. I honestly cannot say I have seen a Ville type of game plan.
…..
There is very little video analysis at 1st xv level. I would tell you to come and see for yourself but only 2 games left and I suspect it will go the same way. I understand that changes at this level will take 2-3 years to start bearing fruits but after the 1st season you would have started seeing some direction….. I do not see any. I am maybe critical towards the coaching structure or setups but they have buggered up a season that was supposed to be a above average season for boys who were ranked 6th at u16 level. I do not think you can blame just one coach but at this level you cannot afford to try and do everything alone and it is evident that at first team level there is no cohesion between the coaches and supporting staff. You tell me where they coach other than at school level or Google it
@the Westville bloggers: I see there’s been a lot of complaining about coaching at 1st team level, what’s coaching like at 2nd, 3rd, 16A, 15A and 14A levels? Is there a Westville style of playing rugby or does every coach does his own thing? Are these coaches involved in club rugby at all?
@h2o: I promise I will behave. I do not want to unduly pull something in the sprint to the green finish line.
We must tell Spear that there are pills he can take for premature engagement.
@ McCulleys- some serious staggers going on in the lower teams such as Westville U14 Fs playing your Ds and the Bs not getting a game What is up doc?
Interesting
http://schools.sarugbymag.co.za/schools-mustnt-hire-professional-coaches/
@h2o: It’s a long drive from Walkerville to Waxies, especially with your sister!
@star: Sterretjie…. you have gone through the whole season without picking up a injury, don’t mess that up now…. I suggest you contact Speartackle and ask him what went wrong…. I suspect early engagement with hinging causing the injury in the 1st half.
@Playa: You are not alone there brother
@ McCulley’s- we will have to call it the ” Battle in the Basement” as opposed to the ” Thriller in Manila” or the” Rumble in the Jungle” Last year the boys served up for the OBs a clean sweep over K. I entreat them to aim high again.
@star: I wish my I had an Umhlanga yummie mummy as my reason
@star: There is a lot being said from the WBH bloggers about coaching. When I watched the Kearsney game, I thought Wville would improve and end with an above average season. Their interlinking passes and ability to run into space and change the point of attack was very good, although they seemed to lack support players and eventually possession was turned over. I thought their pack was certainly big and mobile enough to compete in most instances. The fact that they seem to have regressed the way they have and not improved over the season certainly suggests a lack of coaching. I wasn’t a fan of the previous regime, as I thought there were many years when the talent was there (certainly from quality u16 sides moving into open) and yet they were not able to dominate entirely in years when I thought they should have. Saturday will be a big game, both sides fighting for reputation and an improved end to the season. The House A sides have also been relatively competitive this year.
@h2o: can’t agree more with you on that… what a great kid. I think he is def a 10, but 15 he can def do as well. Great skills for both..
@Redblackwhite: and he is a great kid…. a pity College has used him where ever they needed a McGyver. Wing, Fullback, Fly, Centre……. I believe 15 is his position and had they stuck with him there he would have been destined for higher recognition…. a true utility back…
What a superb kick from Ruben van Blerk. That boy has amazing talent and skills. What an awesome rugby game between College and Ville.
@McCulleys Workshop: Never been known to turn down a cold one. The boets/boys will most probably be in toe so might be a bit daunting.
The whole Westville SBR team were at Waxies this last Saturday to greet Spear who was a no show. Apparently he had picked up an Umhlanga yummie mummie virus. He and Playa are coupled at the tote for disappearing acts.
@ Gungets- Thanks- it just looked a bit amateur from where I was sitting on the far side of the field. When confidence is down you just do not seem to be ” in the moment”.
Tony is unfortunately injured and out for the season which has been a huge loss. Another big loss as Rhino pointed out was the center Boulle. I suppose you have to accept these things and move forward( provided there is a learning curve involved.)
@star: I think most of the Westville guys were still dropping back, Muller was up quickly and well supported. Must confess to screaming “take the kick, what the hell are you doing” as he took the tap, I’ll happily eat the humble pie, as I had to when Van Blerk wellied that penalty from 1/2 way.
What’s happened to Tonny?
@star: Howzit Star, you up for a beer at Waxies on Saturday?
@Rhino_67: Also what happened with that quick tap which resulted in a try for College. Did we turn our backs and presume that they were going for poles? Too many soft points I am afraid.
@Rhino_67: I agree re the center going to ground too easily and getting isolated. What also concerned me was the areas where this was happening? After we went in the lead by a point , we conceded 4 penalties on the trot because of the above in the wrong part of the field. Game over.
@Gungets Tuft: this was the same ref that blew the Westville/Kearsney match at the start of the season. Far to pedantic and it seems its more about himself than the game. He handed out a lot of set piece penalties clearly not knowing how to call it. One moment it was College tighthead scrumming in, then next scrum exact same scenario and we have the Westville Looshead being ping’d. This must have been so frustrating for the boys. I have to agree with H2O though in that Westville fell apart at the seams. No exit strategy and a lot of poor kicking to touch when we did kick. Westville No. 12 takes the ball up, gets scragged and there is no one rucking the College defenders. Instead, they are getting ready for the next phase. More an indication of a poorly prepared side than anything else. Must say we missed Boulle at centre. He brings another dimension to the Westville attack but is also really solid on defence. I also though substitution was not carefully thought through either. We ended up with two big strong flanks that weren’t effective at breakdown even if it was just to slow the college ball down. We need to make changes to the lineup that are going to add value and not because we want to give the substitute a run.
@h2o: Perhaps. I thought the loose work today was never allowed to develop because the ref just blew it to pieces. Very poor use of the advantage laws, in my mind anyway, resulted in a match that never really flowed. Maybe the boys made too many errors but I just feel that the ref was way too keen to blow, I can’t remember pages going past about 4 or 5
@Gungets Tuft: GT Agree but the issue at hand is once they dont immediately get across the advantage line they start to panic and then force things to happen…. no patience in recycling. The problem is at practisr ball goes from lineout to centre ball down scrummy to wing where tight 5 are waiting because that is where they are told to wait…. we lost the breakpoints …. slow ball… little commitment from defence at ruck so more defenders in 10/12 channel… easy defence…. no exit strategies in red zone how many times did ville try and run in 25 …
where Van Blerk punted it to the corners and selecting which to counter….
@h2o: I thought the Ville backs were better in the second half. In the first they were all over each other, seemed like little communication. In the second they seemed better, talking to each other and some decent breaks. If your kicker had his boots on from the start it might have been a different game.
Your lower teams were very good, especially the U14. U16 also had a pretty good day.
27-16 to college. Ville clueless in 2nd half. Trying to run from own try line. No options a poorly coached side with no vision.
Westville down 10-15 1/2 time to many basic mistakes. 3 missed penalties penalties notgoing out…..
@Randy: I hear you, wouldn’t be anything new to have parents on here politicking for their boys. This kid might be different, it’s a daily legit question that he’s in the CW squad but playing 2nds, hence my reference to playing patterns etc.
I’m a hockey dad but I had my moan last year about my “adopted” son not being considered above 6th best in KZN last year. Yesterday the same boy started for the Sharks U19 in a friendly against the Cheetahs, scored a try in a losing effort, but he’s there. I wonder where the 5 that were placed ahead of him are?
Perhaps ou Beet did have a write up about “where they went”, I haven’t been paying attention.
@Gungets Tuft:
Not at all, dont know him! Must be a reason why 1 player is being asked about!
You decide for yourself?
@h2o: Good luck too, it will be a close one. Jeepers, that is like a Bok brains trust under one roof. Hopefully you can influence Alistair to pick a decent squad today.
@RugbyFan12345: i belive 3 games were cancelled so would have been close to that…..goodluck with School today we have a small SBR gathering at Waxys to watch your game…. Spear struck with bronchitis….. he was warned these natal chicks are dangerous…… boertjie,star,rhino 67 and one or two more….so much or little rugby knowledge at 1 location is unheard of
@Randy: not at all . Just happened to watch the CW trials and PBHS game earlier this year. Don’t know the lytie personally
@h2o: only 5 years ago 28 teams was not unheard of, dwindling numbers playing.
Interesting to see 23 teams in action with 8th team and 5 in each age group…… not often that you see more than 20 in kzn…… if College can sort their backline out ot is going to be a long day at Bowdens for Westville…. if Ville pack dominate then visa versa. …
@Randy: Cynical much
Mbatha had a very good set of CW trials and is in the KZN CW squad, so clearly he’s got something. Hooker being so key it’s perhaps difficult to draft him into the 1st team patterns.
@RugbyFan12345:
Family or friends son?
Perhaps College can give their young hooker in Grade 11 F.Mbatha a run tomorrow for the first team game against Westville tomorrow . He’s played good rugby thus far in the College 2nd team and excited to see him get a run .
Should be a cracker. Wonder what the team list s look like and if either side are further hampered by injury. Think the earlier game at Dhs will also be good .
@star: Northwood are just not in the same league when it comes to rugby right now. Fighting a long legacy of poor rugby structures and professionalism. Crazy for a school of its size and with decent sport and quite strong hockey in particular…but a lot of ground to make up still.
Its such a catch 22 now, because you have to get results to attract talent and attract money and investment for further growth etc, but you need the talent and coaches to get the results. But they working harder as far as I know. Your 1st teams needs to perform to inspire the boys and help attract talent for rugby in general, but development has to happen from the grassroots at the same time.
As Westville have shown, along with Kearsney, Glenwood etc – you need depth and strength coming through from u14. Those boys need to play together for 5 years. You cant throw together a 1st team in Grade 11 and hope they will outperform such schools. You are now magnets for talented boys wanting to succeed in sport, and Northwood have to keep working to do the same.
DHS bought this great team now in action at 1st team level, but as far as i can tell their u14 and u15 age groups are very weak. They going to fall into the same trap in 2 years. While hopefully Northwood starts to see a bit more traction.
@Skywalker: What was your take on the overall results against Westville. I watched a few of the lower teams where it was blown early( 60-0) barely into the 2nd half. I genuinely felt for your boys as that must have been very disheartening. I agree with Greenman that in order to turn things around you cannot just have the odd good team. DHS for example in their U16s had only 2 teams playing against Westville and their B team lost by almost 50 against Westville’s C team How will that translate in 2 years time.
I wonder how many of the front line players that missed out against Northwood will be back in action on Saturday.
I think it was Ruggerfan that pointed out that in the 1980’s there were 550 SBR games being played on any given Saturday and that this is now down to around 200. While a lot of schools have fallen by the wayside, the big three also seem to have reduced their active teams. I noted that the Westville U16Fs have already played College winning 36-27. I now see that the U16E game has been cancelled for Saturday meaning that 2 full teams will be missing out in a particular age group. Is there some sort of pandemic that I am unaware of? GW has also on occasion only put out 20 teams with the current U15s only ever having had 4 teams . Is this possibly the pull of professionalism towards the elite teams and a disregard for the majority of the boys who just want to mix it up on a Saturday morning. Balance here is so important.
Interesting thoughts on Northwood – a clear problem has been defence it seems more than anything it seems. Letting in 40-50 points a game – even when they are scoring 25 themselves.
Still a long long road for the Knights. More pain coming this weekend against Hilton who as luck would have it are having one of their best seasons in a while.
Should be a good game indeed! Both are hurting a bit and College will be out to make up for last weekend. Westville have been surprisingly poor and will also have a point to prove at home.
The hockey will also be a cracking fixture. Westville 1st team only managed a draw against Northwood (2:2) at home, so they will need to up their game if they want to challenge the College 1st team.