Cape Town Northern Suburbs’ school Durbanville may be confined to Premier B-league status in their own Western Province provincial setup but right now at the start of the 2021 season they are regarded as a star on the rise on the national stage. This is due to two very convincing start of season wins at the Noord-Suid festival in Pretoria.
The big wins were made possible by some stand up and deliver backline performances by boys bracketed as being amongst the best in their positions on display at the tournament.
Durbanville do not feature on this website’s list of Top 50 schools over the last decade or so (found towards the bottom of the page). Watch this space though. Over the next few years they are expected to climb the rankings and claim a place on that list in spite of the limited opportunities presented to them in WP.
When the school signed up veteran coach Hans Coetzee to head up the operations at the start of 2020, it was publicised as a high paying post. It immediate lead to the conclusion that Durbies have bucks to spend on rugby.
If there is one way to catapult up the ladder really quickly in schoolboy rugby, its money! Yeah money can pay for a good coach or a few good coaches to strength the high performance across the age groups, but that approach will only get a school so far. The real fuel is in giving a coach quality players to work with. If you don’t have them, you can acquire them by making good, better or the best offers.
Durbies have acquired some really good backs to compliment their existing home grown talents. This was their run-on backline for the 85-8 win against Marais Viljoen on 28/04/2021:
| # | NAME OF 2021 1ST xv PLAYER | A/G | HIGH SCHOOL IN 2019 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9 | Jared Williams | u18 | HTS Middelburg |
| 10 | Herschelle Goodman | u19 | Monument |
| 11 | Levandre Horne | u19 | Noordheuwel |
| 12 | Duncan Steenkamp | u18 | Montana (Pta) |
| 13 | Iwaan Bloys | u18 | Durbanville |
| 14 | Naldo Klein | u17 | Durbanville |
| 15 | Khirwin Erasmus | u18 | HTS Middelburg |
But before deciding to cast judgement, ask what became of the Durbies u14A backline of 2017- the ones that should have been groomed by their coaches to represent the school’s 1st XV in 2021. Well have a look at this list which includes top achievers who have been SARU EPD listed players and who have even lined up provincial junior contracts for 2022:
| # | NAME OF 2017 u14A PLAYER | HIGH SCHOOL IN 2021 |
|---|---|---|
| 9 | Michael Koch | Paarl Gim |
| 10 | Compion van Ludwig | HJS Paarl BH |
| 11 | Jade Filane | Durbanville |
| 12 | Hanno Wessels | HJS Paarl BH |
| 13 | Dillon Oppelt | Garsfontein/Swartland |
| 14 | Iwaan Bloys | Durbanville |
| 15 | Daren Brown | Durbanville |
So yes Durbies have acquired some useful players who are reshaping their fortunes in 2021 but along the five-year journey, they have also waved goodbye to some serious talent. Talent that has transferred to well-known high schools where most are or have made big A-team contributions.
@beet: Yes. Also un the u/17 EPD sqaud. Amazing rugby player as well.
@PlattelandMan: I think he is u17 still so only arrived at Durbanville in 2018.
Thurlon Williams of Boys High was also in Durbanville. Interestingly enough he is also the cousin of Jared Williams.