October 2023 update – Oloff Bergh has been appointed as the head of sport at Diamantveld in Kimberley.
After 12-years for first class service to Boland Landbou, Oloff Bergh, a highly respected coach and one of the nicest guys you can ever hope to meet, will be involved in his last rugby match as an employee of the school when they travel to meet the ever-improving young Oakdale team on the Eike on 19 August 2023. He will join Paarl Boys’ High at the start of the fourth term of 2023.
Boland Landbou are flying at the moment. They have won their last five in a row. This included wins over Winelands powerhouses Paarl Boys’ High (26-22) away at Brugstraat and Paul Roos Gymnasium (28-12). They also beat the highly regarded Bishops and Wynberg teams as part of the streak. Paarl Gymnasium was their last defeat and only loss on Paardeberg this season. The score in that match was 15-19 at a stage, with BL looking like they had a sniff before Gim continued to produce the goods in a strong performance while BL lost shape and composure, ending at 19-36. Nevertheless second place in the Winelands is still an awesome achievement.
Head Coach Philip Molnar stated that the super form in term three came down to the following:
- A firm understanding of the plan ahead.
- Focusing on the process and not the outcome.
- Our focus this term was on each “momentum” of what is needed to get the outcome we want and not just saying we want to win but actually working for each “momentum” and making sure we are mentally and physically right to win the small momentums.
- Our culture in the group is also unbelievable and each player plays for his teammates.
He also had much praise for God’s hand.
Boland Landbou and Oakdale’s records for 2023
Oloff Bergh
Oloff started at Boland Landbou in June 2011 as the Sports Organizer and a year later he was appointed Head Coach of the u19A team. His appointment came well into the season with just four matches including the all-important Interschools against Oakdale left in a year, which happened to be a very special one for Boland Landbou, as they celebrated their 50th anniversary year.
It wasn’t easy as a new member of staff coming in so late during the season, but he enjoyed the backing of the senior management of the school. Winning that 2012 interschools by 38-19 proved to be a very special and lasting memory for Oloff.
After that he was involved in another seven Interschools as Head Coach, ending with a head-to-head record of five wins and three losses against their formidable Landbouskool rivals from Riversdale.
The best result was undoubtedly in 2018 when Oakdale had beaten Paarl Boishaai the week before. As a result the Farmers from Windmeul had been written off before kickoff but went on to record a 56-19 victory, a record score that will be hard to beat.
Oloff Bergh:
“A true story that nobody know and I only remembered it when our acting headmaster at the time Cobus van Coller told me after the game…do you remember what you said last night at our team talk? I said, no! What? And he said that you told the boys don’t be surprise if you lead by 30 points at half time and it really happened, we were 32-0 up at half time. I was just so confident because we were so well prepared.”
That 2018 team was a special group of players that included Sebastian de Klerk, the 2022 Currie Cup player of the year.
Then in 2019, BL managed to beat Oakdale on their own turf, the first time since 2007, which obviously was huge. That run-on team contained one Canan Moodie, the current Springbok wing who is set to feature at the Rugby World Cup 2023 in France.
In 2020 and 2021 there was no Interschools because of Covid.
Oloff resigned as Head Coach in 2021, paving the way for a youngster, old boy Philip Molnar to be appointed as his replacement. He however maintained his role as Head of Rugby and is extremely proud of what the school has achieved during the past 10 years and especially the 2023 season. BL have improved dramatically in many areas of their game from u14 to u19 level.
Another old boy Marnitz Jacobs who is described as one of the best talent scouts in SA, plays a huge role in the improved, current success.
Although Philip and his assistants Albertus Buckle, Schoeman Du Preez and Marlyn Williams are a relatively young and inexperienced coaching team at u19A level, they complement each other very well, working well as a team and are reaping the rewards because they have a massive workrate and will go the extra mile for their players.
BL’s conditioning under the guidance of Johan van Rooyen has also improved tremendously and the results are very evident.
Oloff:
“Boland Landbou has been good to me and I leave the school with fond memories.
My boys grew up on the farm and as a family we had unbelievably times here.
After 12 years it is time for someone else to come in and make a difference and hopefully a positive one.
I am proud to once again be joining Paarl Boys High.
When I left Boishaai in 2007 I was still very young. Now 16 years later I go back their more experienced and hopefully a bit wiser.
I will definitely try to make a positive contribution to an already fantastic institution”
Great read, thanks