| EASTER RUGBY FESTIVALS 2025 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 : Sat 29-Mar-2025 | |||||||
| 08h45 | BOL | Overberg | vs | Kirkwood | EP | Oakdale Festival | |
| 08h45 | BOL | Montagu | vs | Sentraal | FS | Oakdale Festival | |
| 09h55 | BOR | Ooskus Gim | vs | Wagpos | LEO | Oakdale Festival | |
| 09h55 | BOL | Hermanus | vs | Oosterlig | VAL | Oakdale Festival | |
| 11h05 | BOL | Hugenote | vs | Lichtenburg | LEO | Oakdale Festival | |
| 11h05 | BOL | Augsburg | vs | Westering | EP | Oakdale Festival | |
| 12h15 | WP | Strand | vs | Kempton Park | VAL | Oakdale Festival | |
| 12h15 | GRQ | Upington | vs | Die Anker | VAL | Oakdale Festival | |
| 14h00 | BOL | Swartland | vs | Pietersburg | LIM | Oakdale Festival | |
| 14h00 | SWD | Langenhoven Gim | vs | Zwartkop | BUL | Oakdale Festival | |
| 15h10 | EP | Graaff-Reinet VS | vs | Merensky | LIM | Oakdale Festival | |
| 15h10 | BOL | Robertson | vs | Oudtshoorn | SWD | Oakdale Festival | |
| 16h20 | EP | Brandwag (EP) | vs | Middelburg | PUM | Oakdale Festival | |
| 16h20 | BOL | Bredasdorp | vs | Potch Gim | LEO | Oakdale Festival | |
| 18h00 | BOL | Charlie Hofmeyr | vs | Vryburg | LEO | Oakdale Festival | |
| 19h10 | SWD | Oakdale XV | vs | Labori | BOL | Oakdale Festival | |
@Kantman (Comment #15)
Stem oor 2011, 2012 en 2013. MAAR, 2014 en 2015 SA u20’s het meer Bokke opgelewer die afgelope 15 jaar – 9 elk, waarvan sommiges oorvleuel. Die naaste aan hulle is 2017 met 7, en daarna word dit geleidelik minder.
Iewers op hierdie blog het @Beet ‘n artikel met die SA skolespanne, wat ek dink teruggaan tot 2000 of daar rond. Dis eintlik skrikwekkend watse klein persentasie dit vandaar maak tot by Springbok, wat ‘n storie op sy eie vertel.
@tzavosky (Comment #11)
Die drie, Eben, PSTD en Kolbe het binne 80km van mekaar groot geword. Was deel van die 2011, 2012 en 2013 SA U20 spanne – heel moontlik ons beste drie jaar van U20 rugby met baie van daai manne wat dubbel RWC wenners geword het.
@BereFan (Comment #8)
Hey Berefan
We are living in changing times and now more than ever before, the greater amount of money in SBR is seeing to it that boys who would have starred at smaller/poorer/lower profile schools and gone on to do great things after school, are offered sponsored opportunities to attend bigger/richer/higher profile schools.
This does not entirely account for the trend you have mentioned but is a significant contributor.
I still feel that although there are physical attributes you need to do well in rugby after school there is also a mental strength character associated with success that boys develop along the path to manhood, that smaller/poorer/lower profile schools are just as capable of helping to shape. Sometimes they do an even better job at it than big schools do.
@Vleis (Comment #10)
Agree
I believe young players can develop problems with early recognition if they do not have the right and honest support. And being missed makes players just more determined.
I salute all the coaches of the schools that put the effort in – would love to hear more about the smaller school coaches though.
@tzavosky (Comment #11)
Nice! Het gemis dat die 3 manne wat genomineer is van die ligte skole is. Dankie
Interessant hoe die kommentare uitgedraai het!
Oakdale is ‘n heerlike plek vir “festival” rugby, ek was een jaar daar. Fantastiese terrein, geriewe en ‘n mooi plek, met ‘n formaat waarvolgens skole min of meer teen hulle porture speel, ongeag hoe groot of klein.
As ek so vinnig na die deelnemende skole kyk, is daar 3 wat Saterdag verteenwoordiging in die Bokspan teen Wallis het – Hugenote Wellington, Potch Gim en Upington. En die beginspan vir Saterdag het 8 verteenwoordigers van die “mindere ligte”, met nog 3 op die bank.
EN, al 3 ons benoemdes vir Internasionale Speler van die Jaar kom uit hierdie geledere van mindere ligte – moes eintlik 4 gewees het as WR nie so bevooroordeeld teenoor stutte was nie (Ox Nche)!
@Kantman (Comment #7)
Aaah ok, you are correct then. Apologies.
.
I agree with your reply to BereFan too. Top CW teams are mostly selected from a few top schools per province. There are some “rational” reasons for this – e.g. a) short preparation time means picking combinations; b) the coaches know how said players will perform in high pressure, top quality games, whereas a chap dominating against weaker opposition is an unknown factor; c) the coaches have seen much more of the players from top schools; etc, etc, etc. Of course, there are also some unfair reasons too – e.g. a) “horse-trading” between the coaches; b) bias towards the top schools as the coaches mostly come from said schools; c) instructions from the union, etc, etc.
.
However, after school, the players from weaker rugby schools have a much better chance of overcoming all the above disadvantages, as they train with the squad, coaches, etc on a daily basis…so potential biases can be overcome. That’s why junior tournaments like Varsity Cup, Young Guns, u19/20/21 provincial tournaments are so important. It’s also why healthy club leagues/competitions are vital too. Making SA Schools and CW is a big tailwind, but players from weaker schools can overcome their headwinds with determination and hard work – esp. as many superstars drop out when life gets tougher after school.
@BereFan (Comment #8)
Ai ou BereFan – confirmation bias much?
Jy het reply dat ek net 2 name noem en die rede is dat dit skaars gebeur.
Toe lys ek vir jou die name om te wys dit is nie skaars nie.
Nou wil jy he ek moet gaan kyk na SA junior spanne “om te sien of iemand dit maak”.
40% van spelers wat vanaf 2018 debuut gemaak het kom van buite die groot naam skole.
En daar is baie van hulle wat netsoveel of meer spelers gelewer het as die skool wat jy ondersteun.
@Kantman (Comment #3)
Selfs al is dit vanaf 2018 het die spelers wat hulle eerste wedstryde van daar af gespeel het almal n gemiddelde ouderdom van tenminste 25 gehad wat beteken hulle is nou al in hulle 30’s. Hulle is nog deel van die generasie waar dit nog glad nie so n groot ding was nie. Gaan kyk na die laaste 7 jaar se SA skole spanne en junior springbok spanne. Ek se weereens, dis nie great of reg nie maar dis hoe dit is.
@Vleis (Comment #6)
Sorry, I should have been more specific.
Those numbers are for debutants since 2018.
Bongi made his debut in 2016?
@Kantman (Comment #3)
Ahem…two from St Alban’s as Jason Jenkins (Head Boy of 2013) played his lone test for the Bokke in 2018.
@Kantman (Comment #1)
100% Kantman. This festival hosted by Oakdale has been a winner on so many levels.
It’s well organised, its great for the local economy, the strength-vs-strength format which is allowed to flourish because they attract schools from all around SA and don’t have the headaches of in-season interschools fixture duplication, a team of the tournament with benefits.
Importantly a lot of festivals that don’t necessarily get mainstream coverage contribute to keeping the culture of rugby strong in SA while providing kids with a character-building experience. I recall feedback from the Tony Stoops Rugby Festival and how much it meant to the kids to be able to play festival rugby, an opportunity they would otherwise have been denied.
Rugby has proven many times over that the senior star players come from all over, not just the big well-known schools and there are a lot of late developers. The worry is that our junior systems for school leavers are under pressure and cannot spread the net as wide as in the past.
A player I enjoyed watching so much this past Currie Cup season was Renzo du Plessis from Ben Vorster in Tzaneen. And to think a few years after he matriculated, a few promising players left BV for other pastures. I have no doubt finances played a part in the decisions made but from a rugby perspective, being an SBR super achiever at any respectable school, rich/poor/big/small, tends to get a player noticed.
@Kantman (Comment #3)
2 van Glenwood
1 DHS
2 Affies
1 Garsfontein
2 Paarl Gim
1 Boland Landbou
5 HJS
4 PRG
ens.
@BereFan (Comment #2)
Onlangse Bokke vanaf 2018:
2 van Linden
1 Potch Gim
1 Pietersburg
1 Wonderboom
1 Paulus Joubert
1 Transvalia
1 Upington
1 Florida
2 Dale
1 Ntabankulu
1 Montagu
1 Brackenfell
1 Bekker
2 Tygerberg
1 Klerksdorp
1 St Albans
1 Louis Botha
1 De Vos Malan
1 Jim Mvabasa
@Kantman (Comment #1)
Alhoewel ek met jou saam stem dat n mens dit kan maak, jy noem 2 voorbeelde waarvan 1 n sa skole speler was wat almal verbaas het. Hoekom? Want dit gebeur skaars. Ongelukkig in vandag se tyd maak jou skool saak of ons dit nou wil aanvaar of nie dis nie lekker nie maar dis nou so. Adapt or get left behind.
Hierdie is bes moontlik een van die belangrikste toernooie van die jaar. Fantasties om te sien dat Oakdale elke jaar geleentheid bied vir die kleiner skole om hulle jaar af te skop.
Anders as wat Ruggas skryf kan jy ver kom uiteindelik uit een van hierdie skole.
Swartland met sy World Player of the Year, Charlies met sy SA Skole losskakel.