Things are looking up for Outeniqua. After Covid, they have had to make do with 13 matches per season. For 2025 they could be up to 16 games.
| OUTENIQUA | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sat.08Mar | EP | Nico Malan | A | – | – | – | |
| 2 | Sat.15Mar | WP | Boland Landbou | A | – | – | – | Oesfees |
| 3 | Fri.21Mar | TBA | TBA | F | – | – | – | Wynberg Festival |
| 4 | Fri.28Mar | BUL | Menlopark | H | – | – | – | NMI Toyota Noord Suid |
| 5 | Mon.31Mar | GRF | Welkom Gim | H | – | – | – | NMI Toyota Noord Suid |
| 6 | Sat.12Apr | FS | Grey College | H | – | – | – | |
| 7 | Sat.26Apr | EP | Pearson | A | – | – | – | |
| 8 | Thu.01May | TBA | TBA | H | – | – | – | ABSA Wildeklawer |
| 9 | Sat.03May | TBA | TBA | H | – | – | – | ABSA Wildeklawer |
| 10 | Sat.17May | WP | Brackenfell | H | – | – | – | |
| 11 | Sat.24May | EP | Framesby | H | – | – | – | |
| 12 | Sat.07Jun | SWD | Oakdale | H | – | – | – | |
| 13 | Sat.26Jul | WP | Stellenberg | H | – | – | – | |
| 14 | Sat.02Aug | BOL | Worcester Gim | H | – | – | – | |
| 15 | Sat.09Aug | WP | Durbanville | A | – | – | – | |
| 16 | Sat.16Aug | BOL | Drostdy | H | – | – | – | |
@buitestaander (Comment #14)
I have. Unfortunately, SAHO is far from a credible source, and extremely unscientific as political sites tend to be. They actually use people like Patric Mellet (Camissa history) as they prefer ideology to science. I co-authored a book, soon to be printed, with our greatest marine historian and marine archaeologist on the Nostra/Nossa de los Milagros (1686), and in the process was a witness of the late Dr Dan Sleigh destroying Mellet’s day dreams. Yet SAHO prefers Mellet’s daydreams to Dr Sleigh’s independently verifiable facts. I think the best SAHO did was to let Prof David Welsh write pieces on Shepstonism. Compare the SAHO piece you refer to, to the 1960 Cottesloe Declaration stats 1953-1960 (Alan Paton, ZK Matthews etc. attended), Mafu Solomon Rakometsi: The Transformation of Black School Education in South Africa, 1950-1994:A Historical Perspective, Ph.D. thesis, University of the Free State, 2008.
C. Nwaila, Black English and Education in South Africa, PhD thesis, University of Pretoria, 1997.
South African Democracy Trust: The Road to Democracy in South Africa, Unisa Press, 2004 et seq., Volume 2, Chapter 7, Part 1, The Soweto Uprising, Sifiso Mxolosi Ndlovu.
SAHO are jokers, should be jailed.
@Deon (Comment #13)
SAHO (South African History Online): The History of Education: 1658 to present. Worth a read.
@buitestaander (Comment #11)
The SA schools with formal names (a few earlier schools existed but had no formal names) are among those with the most beautiful histories, namely Amersfoort Skool (1658) and Meermin Skool (1766).
@buitestaander (Comment #11)
Some schools can ignore it all they want.,or dislike the idea as Dr Sigi mentioned, or adopt the scientific approach she and the WCOD do. Personal truths vs objective truths (Earth is a sphere, not flat, it is true whether you believe it or not). Dr Sigi, The WCOD, The Centre, the Museum etc. take their work serious and I respect them for that, as I respect you and your well thought through approach too (I am very careful as to not sound belligerent on the SBR blog)
SACS in fact adopted much of Dr Sigi’s work. For long they referred to themselves as the oldest school in SA, until they were reminded of LS Gedenkskool, Bontebok skool etc. Now they refer to themselves as the oldest high school. Better, but technically incorrect.
Dr Ockert (Ockie) van Wyk (RIP Great Soul), father of WP hooker/captain Johan van Wyk, who wrote his PhD thesis on the history of Paul Roos, once mentioned PRG is technically considerably older than 1866-2024, but the school decided it would be too intrusive to right away just change everything. I am sure they will reconsider in the future.
@Deon (Comment #10)
Deon
I am not a historian. All I know, it that in general schools are proud of their history. Outeniqua would rather prefer to be known as the oldest high school in SA, than being 101 years old. When schools reach milestones, like Outeniqua did last year, and the Paarl and Stellenbosch high schools who all turned 150 during the last decade, they do lots of research and normally even publish books to commemorate the occasion. I doubt that all of them would be wrong. Dr Sigi’s article is well known, and still schools prefer to ignore it. However, it is all a bit technical and more a matter of interest than anything else. Perhaps someone of Outeniqua can assist on why they regard themselves as 101 years old.
@buitestaander (Comment #9)
I do not find it important enough to think about it, but now that you mention it, in the bizarre event this has to be decided in a court, I will put my money on Dr Sigi and the museum. Remember, there were many forced name and language of instruction changes after 1806, which were later reversed.
She applies a very scientific method….
“I prefer to use primary sources such as the Educational Statistics as contained in the Government Blue Books, Inspection Reports, and the Education Gazettes. And so, because I have learnt how to, for example, make the link between when a church school became a public school, I sometimes find that schools are older than they think.
“Some schools welcome the new research; most are reluctant to accept new information that forces them to rethink their school’s history and they prefer to stay with the status quo.”
So, no, SACS is not the oldest high school in SA
Deon’s reference to Outeniqua as being the oldest high or secondary school in SA is questionable. George as a town was only founded in 1811. It is very unlikely to have a high school up and running only a year later. The source that Deon uses as reference, is well known. In general, and in all practical terms, SACS is regarded as the oldest high school in SA. Outeniqua only celebrated their centenary in 2023.
@Kantman (Comment #5)
Yeah it is unfortunate though. I was thinking “if” Bishops are keen to reduce their Winelands commitments going forward, it could represent a window of opportunity for Outeniqua to step into the fold and get back at least one Winelands game.
Another pity is still no interaction between Outeniqua and Grey High which would be an awesome rugby interschools.
Pity we hardly ever play Outeniqua. Establishment of excellence in one of the most beautiful spots in the World.
Outeniqua is also the oldest high school in SA still in existence, significantly older than SACS etc. according to the method applied by (now Dr) Ms. Sigi Howes, the principal and primary researcher for the Centre for Conservation Education in Wynberg, and still considerably younger than LR Schmidt Morawiese Primêre Skool in Genadendal/Caledon (1738).
https://www.news24.com/Life/this-list-with-200-of-south-africas-oldest-schools-may-surprise-you-20180409
The WP schools have extremely full programs with no Saturdays available for any additional fixtures like Outeniqua. Recently Stellenberg was added to their WP fixtures. They can also not fit Drostdy into their annual fixture lists any more.
The Paarl and Stellenbosch schools also field almost 30 teams. Outeniqua can not match that. Nor can they accommodate those schools in hockey.
@beet (Comment #4)
I doubt those interschools fixtures will return (understanding that as all teams playing). For Gim that would also include netball and hockey and I think that gap has grown too wide.
There are games at age group A level rugby teams played regularly at festivals.
The suggestion to classify as North makes sense then for u19 tournaments. I anyway think that the North/South division is unclear. Might as well have a few neutrals that can swing around to ensure competitive games.
@Farmer (Comment #3)
I think the good thing is NM and Pearson are working hard on their rugby so they will hopefully profit from the Outeniqua interschools experience.
Framesby heading into that quiet before the storm period. Koshuis on the way. That will surely be a game-changer in the efforts to match their hunger to do well.
But Outeniqua is the sort of school that has been there, done that, no intros required. People know who they are. They need the high profile interactions that came with Gim and HJS interschools Saturdays
MOVING THE EP WAY
Outeniqua is an overall Top 10 rugby school between 2010 and 2023. They deserve to have the chance to test their abilities against the best in the West on a regular basis.
Hopefully some of the GIM/HJS/PRG games return in 2026. Either that or the Kwaggas must declare themselves as a North school for Noord-Suid and Wildeklawer
sad to see no games against gim/hjs/prg- due to one sided refereeing?