21 Nov 24.
The Grey Rugby Festival 2025 is still in the fixture planning phase. The table below contains provisional fixtures from earlier in the week.
Grey traditionally alternates its festival dates between the start of the school holidays and the holiday period around the annual public holidays from 27 April to 1 May. In 2025, the festival will take place at the start of the holidays, overlapping with the high-profile NMI Toyota Noord-Suid tournament instead of the Absa Wildeklawer event.
As a result, Johannesburg’s leading boys’ schools, Jeppe and KES—regular participants at the Grey Easter Rugby Festival—have opted for the challenges of Noord-Suid in Stellenbosch. St John’s College are also out as they will tour the Eastern Cape earlier in the month of March 2025.
Among the Eastern Province schools, Brandwag and St Andrew’s College are notably absent. SAC has home fixtures against Bishops and Michaelhouse planned for the same period, while other local schools like Framesby and Nico Malan have committed to Noord-Suid as well.
On the positive side, Grey has attracted an impressive contingent from KwaZulu-Natal, with no fewer than seven tier-one rugby schools from the Sharks region set to participate. Only Glenwood and Maritzburg College will be missing from the line-up.
There’s also a much-anticipated return for Selborne College from East London. Of course, when discussing rugby in a national context, few names in schoolboy rugby carry as much weight as Bishops. They are certain to be a major drawcard on matchday two!
The Herald’s Neale Emslie is one the best sports writers in the country. With AI’s help, here is a version of his Day-1 report:
A Dramatic Draw at Grey’s Rugby Fest
On the opening day of Grey’s grand fest,
A thrilling tale that would not rest,
As Michaelhouse, with hearts aglow,
Snatched a draw in the final blow.
Trailing five points, with time running thin,
They fought back hard, refused to give in,
Penalties piled, the clock ticking away,
And Rourke O’Sullivan found his way.
Out wide he sprinted, a try to score,
A stunning move, the crowd did roar.
Alex Jankowitz then took his shot,
But alas, the conversion just was not.
The game was tied, 28-all it stood,
A dramatic end, for the greater good.
Grey’s hopes dashed, their fans in shock,
For Michaelhouse had stolen the clock.
On Kolisi Field, the rugby was fine,
DHS’ Carolus made the try line shine.
Through Kingswood’s defence, he danced with ease,
A hat-trick of tries, bringing fans to their knees.
Kearsney’s clash was tight and fierce,
With Pretoria Boys’ left to pierce.
A try late on, the score did shift,
Kearsney claimed the win, a last-minute gift.
Queen’s and St Stithians also did fight,
A 13-13 draw to start the night.
But the day belonged to Michaelhouse’s might,
With their late rally, a thrilling sight.
Grey’s flyhalf, Kemp, with a tap and kick,
Thought the game was over—what a trick!
But the ref ruled play should still go on,
And Michaelhouse, with grit, came on strong.
Grey had led, with tries and flair,
Yet Michaelhouse found a way to dare.
With Aissing’s try, the gap grew small,
Then came the final drama, to end it all.
A win for Grey seemed close in sight,
But Michaelhouse’s courage shone so bright.
The final hooter’s echo, the crowd did cheer,
As both teams left their hearts right here.
A day of drama, of glory and pain,
The festival’s start, not in vain.
For rugby’s not just strength or speed,
But heart and soul, in times of need.
| GREY RUGBY FESTIVAL | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 : Sat 29-Mar-2025 | ||||||
| 08h00 | BOR | Queen’s | 13-13 | St Stithians | LIO | |
| 09h10 | BOR | Dale | 00-24 | Northwood | KZN | |
| 10h25 | BUL | Pretoria BH | 26-28 | Kearsney | KZN | |
| 11h45 | EP | Graeme | 17-27 | Hilton | KZN | |
| 12h55 | EP | Kingswood | 20-41 | Durban HS | KZN | |
| 14h05 | BOR | Selborne | 12-45 | Westville | KZN | |
| 15h25 | EP | Grey HS | 28-28 | Michaelhouse | KZN | |
| 14h05 | KZN | St Charles | 19-15 | Port Rex | BOR | |
| 15h25 | BOR | Hudson Park | 34-15 | Muir | EP | |
| Day 2 : Mon 31-Mar-2025 | ||||||
| 08h00 | KZN | Westville | 28-13 | Dale | BOR | |
| 09h10 | BOR | Selborne | 05-35 | Durban HS | KZN | |
| 10h25 | BOR | Hudson Park | 31-41 | Kearsney | KZN | |
| 11h45 | BUL | Pretoria BH | 14-17 | Queen’s | BOR | |
| 12h55 | EP | Kingswood | 14-33 | Northwood | KZN | |
| 14h05 | WP | Bishops | 26-17 | Michaelhouse | KZN | |
| 15h25 | EP | Grey HS | 20-07 | Hilton | KZN | |
| 11h45 | LIO | St Stithians | vs | Port Rex | BOR | |
| 12h55 | KZN | St Charles | 26-13 | Daniel Pienaar | EP | |
| 14h05 | EP | Muir | vs | Ithembelihle | EP | |
@Meesh N (Comment #62)
Thanks Meesh. The tall Bishops no.12 that made plenty of metres against House was Rynard Gordon not Boytie Fyfer apparently.
I would like to mention Savio Stevens at 10 for Northwood, Myburgh at 13 for Grey and Kearsney’s wing Lwandle Mkhize for his attacking efforts on Saturday which went a long way to securing the win. NW lock Lian Terblanche also made his frame felt in the impressive win against Kingswood.
The
@Meesh N (Comment #62)
The Saints 7…or 8 didn’t impress u?
@Meesh N (Comment #62)
That DHS 15 has got the moves like Jagger! Dancing Queen.
MEESH'S GREY FEST TEAM OF THE FESTIVAL
1. Jeffery Singo (PBHS)
2. Josh Grant (Hilton College)
3. Nicola Salamousas (Michealhouse)
4. Moustapha Gcina (Westville)
5. Johandre van Jaarsveld (Grey)
6. Uzoma Ngcwangu (Bishops)
7. Banele Mashaba (PBHS)
8. Lwandile Simelane (Westville)
9. Jed Mun-Gavin (Northwood)
10. Tristan Kemp (Grey)
11. Lwazi Mbebe (Kearsney College)
12. Zingce Simka (DHS)
13. William Ridl (Michealhouse)
14. Zekethelo Siyaya (Westville)
15. Cilermo Carolus (DHS)
Honourable Mentions:
2. Ayavuya Makula (Northwood)
6. Jeffrey Niland (Queen’s College)
8. Jamie Wimble (Northwood) [couldn’t decide between him & Mashaba]
8. Emmanuel Dankwah (Hilton College)
9. Aya Somhlahlo (Queen’s College)
12. Boytjie Fyfer (Bishops)
13. Jadrian Afrikaner (Westville)
15. Meyer Prinsloo (Grey)
@beet (Comment #59)
My sentiments exactly to the tee! The can certainly go to to Kearsney with their heads up despite the 0-2 record.They showed immense gees in the second half.
@Farmer (Comment #50)
My bad Myburgh at 13. Thanks for the correction. He is a good solid player.
Meyer Prinsloo, I hope he is okay after the knock, really had some memorable moments in Bloem in December as a 12. Not sure if he’s the best distributor but his footwork off both legs is exceptional in tight spaces and would love to see the coaching staff of Grey incorporate more of this into their playing patterns, esp if you have a pack that can control the gainline and generate frontfoot ball. Grey have a line breaker X-factor in Meyer so its up to those who in charge to come up with new designs to use him effectively.
@Playa (Comment #55)
Dale went 90min into this festival without recording a single point. I thought they were on course for some sort of record of nil points for the fest but after halftime they came out more determined that ever before. Tremendous willpower on display. They won’t be happy going back to King (Qonce) 0-2 but if I was a coach or supporter I would be proud that they not only did not submit, they took the battle to Ville in the second half.
@Skywalker (Comment #51)
Yeah that was me. I expected Kingswood to bounce back. Watching Helpies vs Oakdale now and seeing again that Helpies have a lot going in their all-round game, yet Kingswood beat them. However in that match on Monday The Knights forwards were just a different level of good.
@Ryan (Comment #56)
Yeah Ryan. The forwards are going a good job for Grey. Darron Nell is definitely doing good work and comes across as a good guy as well.
GREY PE RUGBY
Yip, very frustrating to see Grey losing boys year on year, often to rival schools. It isn’t new though. It started in 2011 with Jan Serfontein, Daniel Du Plessis was at Grey Junior. The great 2014 1st XV was almost decimated by Bishops who after Grant Khomo week, offered 6 boys bursaries from that u16 year. Thankfully all but one declined and they ended up having a fantastic year in matric. In more recent times, Travis Pfeiffer, etc, have moved to Paul Roos and Paarl Boys. I would love to see a rule in place that prohibits any kind of poaching from rival schools, or even better, from outside your province. Does the WC not already have enough talent? Why do they need to attract kids from the EC?
Regarding Grey backline: There has been an obvious shift in the last 7/8 years away from pro coaches. Think what you will, they improve your rugby program. In the years Grey had Rory Duncan – Brent Janse van Rensberg they were in the top 5/10. Since then, I have noticed a major drop off in skill. The great Grey teams in recent times – 2004, 2008, 2014/2015, 2017 all had good ball players like Curwin Bosch, Keanu Vers, Jeremy Ward, etc. Darren Nel is doing a great job with the forwards, but I’m not so sure we have seen the same in the backs. Grey is already an outstanding all-round school but it has decisions to make. Nothing was lost in the years they had a pro coach for the 1st XV, and they have an opportunity to really get the best out of a very good crop of age-group teams coming through. Last year, the u14,u15 and u16’s were all top 5/10. The tragedy would be losing a couple of those players in the coming years because they see that at 1st XV level they will be at best top 20.
@Palma (Comment #34)
Would have been much closer if Dale had their discipline in check.Well done to Westville on another outstanding performance at the festival.And I agree, that DHS-Westville clash should produce fireworks
@Wyvern (Comment #53)
Thanks, yes agreed. Hope they can continue. All the best for the rest of the season.
@Skywalker (Comment #51)
Really impressed with the NW pack – cohesiveness and precision that didn’t give KC anything (except maybe the first try from a fumble).
@beet (Comment #32)
I agree. There’s a lack.of experience in those decision making positions. Coaches have chosen fancy footwork and flair over experience and good rugby IQ. They have them in their ranks as there are boys who have played provincial rugby at club level in the 2nd, 3rd and 4th teams….
@beet (Comment #47)
Really proud of the NW boys. It was written elsewhere that Kingswood would end their unbeaten run so far, but NW played with great power and precision. I saw they had at least 3 starting players on the bench to begin with so was a bit worried but they have stood up well so far. Well done boys!
KILLIAN 12
Myburgh is the 13 Kiambier( so iets) is 12, if Grey gets a backline coach then they can take any team on.
Bishops were too good to watch. Not the best Platinum Blues team to ever take the field but that classic attacking DNA was very evident almost throughout. It made defending the lines very difficult for House, who are still winless after today. All-in-all a good game to watch. There were times when House looked like they were coming to terms with the job at hand and threatening to overtake Bishops but in the end, the Western Cape team had the answers for MHS’s attempts to overthrow them.
Northwood forwards were outstanding today. Their cohension fantastic. They muscled up and dominated Kingswood. Overall an impressive performance for the Knights. Kingswood tried to the end but at times just did not seem to have answers for the NW pressure put on them.
Well done to Hudson and Port Rex for showing massive heart this festival. Especially Port Rex who one could argue could have beaten both St Charles and St Stithians
Satisfactory victory over PBHS, that was a tough match where both teams were up for it on D. I can’t wait until we have our 3 athletes back and fill in positions 10, 11 and 15.
Queen’s came from 14-7 down to win a very exciting game 17-14, via scoring the last two tries. It was a super battle. Boys High had a golden opportunity to clinch it at the end after managing to progress play from deep within their own half all the way to the QC try line where they were held up after a rolling maul drive off a 5m lineout. QC were naturally ecstatic about the victory.
We seem to have thrown in all our reserves & a few in decision making positions, almost as if we underestimated the boys from Komani. Queens brought out their strongest side & their backs have set the Kolisi alight, I suspect we’ll throw in our starters in the second half & our backs need to buy our forwards some preggos later for keeping them in the game.
We can count ourselves lucky to be tied at half time.
@Farmer (Comment #39)
also cannot help that we’ve seen backline standouts who could have started for Grey High, running on for other schools in recent years
Kearsney and Hudson Park were involved in a typical old style festival game. Open expansive rugby attitudes. Wasn’t always pretty and frustrating sometimes but overall it produced good entertainment. In the end Kearsney wing Lwazi Mbebe felt like the big difference between the two schools as Hudson will look back and rue the times they gave Kearsney the ball in cheap intercept turnovers which proved to be a big points swinger.
REFEREEING
GREY BACKLINE
DHS systematic in the journey to a comprehensive win against Selborne. Simka at 12 was key particularly in the first half. The Selborne boys tried hard but in the forward exchanges it seems like the DHS pack had a noticeable upperbody strength advantage which allowed them to get stop their opponents and get them onto the ground quickly. In the backs the difference in attacking quality was perhaps more evident with DHS having a few who could produce exciting game changing moments while Selborne struggled for contenders for this role.
SELBORNE VS DHS
Complete mismatch, rewind 10 years & these schools were at such contrastingly different points in their rugby history.
Lastly my word is Cilermo Carolus such a good rugby footballer!
@Grasshopper (Comment #33)
I would agree with you there, DHS seem to have become what they complained Glenwood was. I stand to be corrected but Teddy Dlamini who played 1st XV prop for DHS moved there from Glenwood at the end of his grade 11, where he also played 1st XV!
Huge issue with the raiding of the EC, majority of these kids doing well in these KZN schools are somewhere linked with the EC having to leave their families as little boys which cannot be good for their mental health either in the long run.
Because when this rugby thing doesn’t seem to work their worlds come crashing down & we’ve seen these cases of self harm far too commonly of late.
Congrats to DHS on your victory. Selborne attack too one dimensional and tackling is poor. Some big tests coming soon, Jeppe, Affies, Queens. Even Pearson next will be tough. Keep your heads up boys. Palma Virtuti
Westville are a proper side. Their game vs DHS will be massive. well done to Dale who showed a lot of steel today.
@beet (Comment #30)
Rewind 10 years and you would be talking about Glenwood (instead of DHS) and the masses wouldn’t have been moaning about poaching etc, now, nobody cares. DHS raid the Eastern Cape and put the kids into primary schools to feed into the school. Unfortunately Glenwood were the scapegoats.
Dale showed plenty of heart. For the second game at this festival, their commitment to defence had to be commended. They struggled in the setpiece and unlike the old Dale teams that were know for backline flair, this team struggled in this department.
Westville just did not seem focused enough to deliver a big score. They did the basics but didn’t find decision-making or cohesion working too well after that. Outside centre Afrikaner was the pick of their players and had more around him had the same directness and determination, the score might have been doubled.
Good effort from the Dalians, a lot more competitive than the masses expected!
@Palma (Comment #29)
I tend to agree. I think the day will get off to a one-sided start. Westville and DHS should really be at Noord-Suid this year. They are both very strong. Dale did an admirable job of containing Northwood on Saturday, but Westville have serious firepower. At fullback Zekhethelo Siyaya might just be the best player at the Grey Festival this year. He’s on the same level of attack as Grey College’s Lamla Mgedezi is.
Selborne’s pack look to be a decent size but not dominant. DHS are like slow poison up front. They tend to play compact and are very focused on executing the game plans. This really helps their backline where they have very experienced players.
After those two opening games, things should get a lot more exciting. I think Kingswood can end Northwood’s unbeaten run and maybe end KZN’s unbeaten run at the Grey Fest if Kearsney can produce similar for to their PBHS effort.
Michaelhouse desperately needs a win and they didn’t exactly play well against Grey either, so perhaps they are favourites but I say that having not watched Bishops this season so might be in for a surprise.
Hilton also did not play well against Graeme. They will definitely need a better effort to overcome Grey.
It would be quite something if KZN could go through this whole fest undefeated
Day 2 predictions
Westville by a lot
DHS by a lot
Kearsney by 10-15
Pretoria Boys by 5
Northwood by 5-10
Michaelhouse by 15
Grey vs Hilton- too close to call. It will be less than 5 points either way
Didnt see St Charles games, I wonder what did the ref say to the Grey boy when he kicked the ball out thinking its time up? Love the look of the House 15, 17 and 18.
@Kaya 85 (Comment #25)
I’m not shocked really, Queen’s was dominant and I said the other day they are poorly coached so you never know what Queens outfit will pitch up. More poor from Queens than a good performance from Saints.
Kearsney to me showed some excellent form and resilience to surpass Pretoria Boys High who I felt would shut out the game…
Graeme were excellent but as we sensed they couldn’t quite match the physicality of Hilton….the Michaelhouse game against Grey was very enjoyable…that first MH long range try down the left required those off the cuff skills I love to see. Did anyone see St Charles’ win? I missed it but am also happy to see them get a W. KZN schools all looking pretty decent.
St Stithians v Queens result…? Did you guys see that one coming?
Good character shown by Michaelhouse today. They were far from convincing but stuck in there and saved what looked like a lost cause with a draw in a bit of a bizarre ending with a series of events seemingly going against Grey in succession to allow MHS to score the final try and level matters at 28-28. This meant KZN was unbeaten on Day 1 at the Fest.
Grey forwards were dominant from close range but they didn’t have much going on in the backs.
House also struggling for cohesion and their old style running rugby is pretty much dead but they do have good individual players who can step up and make things happen. Fullback Alex Jankowitz (u17) and prop Nicolas Salamousas (u17) are seriously good prospects.
DHS seemed to have the upperhand in the early exchanges however when Kingswood drew level at 15-all shortly after halftime it looked like the pendulum might be swinging as Kingswood seemed to be able to speed up the game and play looser rugby. Then with assistance from their flashy stepping fullback Cilermo Carolus who scored a hat trick, DHS found holes and grew the lead to 34-15 fairly quickly and ended the match as a contest. Both schools added a try end at 41-20.
This seems a far better matched tourno than Noord/Suid, good to see…
Hilton struggled for rhythm in the first half. Graeme never gave up on the fight.
Too good by Kearsney. What an awesome comeback after last weekend against Hilton and even in this game they looked dead and buried when the Candies big/strong/quick 7 had scored his second try make it 26-18 to Boys High. Then Kearsney replied with a very sensible penalty to reduce the gap to a one-score game. The One-Stripe won it with a very flashy try by their Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde wing Lwandle Mkhize who impressed with ball in hand in the first half. Clutch conversion kick by Doan Nel could not be underestimated because with time nearly up, PBHS had a chance to win it with a penalty from a similar spot on the other end and missed.
@beet (Comment #17)
Given that rugby at some schools is like an extra 2 subjects for boys with ambition to play after school, it makes sense to invest in high quality ‘educator’ (for players and coaches).
Still reward teacher coaches and spread them evenly across age groups.
Need good coaches in age groups to establish the basics – much like acedemic curriculum – and then add finishing touches in open groups.
In some respects it felt like Dale had a minor victory in keeping the score to just 24-0 against Northwood. The Knights were dominant. Pack was too strong and this gave the backs clean ball. Stevens (10) and Khumalo (13) had good outings.
I expected Queen’s to record a “W” today. Instead they had to come from behind to earn a draw with Saints.
In a convo with a QC supporter, the topic of pro full-time coach/director of rugby came up.
It is a touchy subject because holding onto good male teachers is vital to a schools overall success, making the extra income they earn from coaching a key component of retaining their services. That said, its becoming harder to disagree that a rugby programme looked after by a full time specialist who knows his stuff and works well with kids, has its benefits
@OUD ANKER (Comment #14)
I have no idea. I suspect PBHS accepted an invite from Grey. Probably a scheduling conflict. Maybe PBHS were not invited since it’s in the Cape this year.
@Skywalker (Comment #13)
Dale has lost two games this season to Brandwag and Nico Malan, two good physical AFrikaans schools. Dale had a very good game against Malan loosing by two points, Dale has a very fast backline and an average pack so they limit their forward play. Kingswood lost to Nico Malan by 10 plus points but then went on to convicingly beat Helpmekaar who are dangerous, Kingswood has a balanced pack and backline but not as strong as last year. My verdict is that Northwood will win both games but need to be alert and not take both these games lightly.
@Tang (Comment #9)
Do you perhaps have information why PBHS is not at North/South this year? No disrespect to the Grey festival, but let’s face it North/South is where the majority of the big dog schools are barking and without entering into a huge debate, I believe PBHS would have been a stronger challenge for the South schools than some of the North schools at North/South….the same applies to DHS/Maritzburg…where are the Natal schools at North/South this year?
2 tough games for Northwood at the festival. Dale and Kingswood. Will be very interesting to see how they go on their first tour of the year.
Any views on Dale and Kingswood?
MY COMMENT WAS TONGUE IN CHEEK.
My comment was meant as a joke. PBHS have not had much to celebrate from a rugby perspective over the last few years. PBHS vs Queens is always a brilliant fixture. As far as I recall, PBHS have played Queens 13 times. PBHS have won five, lost six and there have been two draws.
@RuggaFreak (Comment #10)
I’m not saying that St Stithian’s are strong, as all the Jhb privates (other than St John’s) have dropped a notch in the past few years, as they no longer play KES, Jeppe and Boys High – only one of the three each year. That said, I think that they had a particulary poor game v Queens this year – they probably played all their reserves, as they were on tour. I say that because their results against other E Cape oppo were reasonable – e.g. beat St Andrew’s quite easily (Queens had a narrow win v same), beat Brandwag and had a narrow loss v Hudson Park (like Queens).
@Tang (Comment #9)
Emphasis on tougher, our day 2 game is a good tough one, I wasn’t referring to that game. On day 1 we play Saints again, last year we put a cricket score against them so I see no point in playing them again when we can rather get two heavyweights. If your opinion is that Queen’s isn’t tough then that’s your opinion and we will see, tough good fixture in my eyes.
I HAD EXACTLY THE SAME THOUGHT
I had the same thought for PBHS. Pity they weren’t given tougher opposition.
@Dion (Comment #7)
It will nice to see Grey High have a 2025 season worth of the school’s national rugby status.
Two former top players have the chance to become 1st XV starters at their new schools : Cole Moultrie and generational talent Travis Pheiffer. This is hopefully a recent trend Grey is working hard to end. IMO kids should want to come to Grey and not leave.
Awsuum line up next year….Grey facing 2 tough apponents aswell…gonna be a good one…we should see a few of Grey u16 players from this year taking the step up to 1st team 🙏🙏🙏🙏💯
It seems like Dale will be at the Grey Festival so some fixtures will probably need to change.
Also Kearsney plays their Methodist brother school St Stithians in an annual interschools derby so the two won’t want a game in Gqeberha
This is a great lineup. I love the mostly EC vs KZN matchups.
I wish Queen’s was given a tougher fixture list.
@Skywalker (Comment #1)
Northwood are at Grey, KES and Wildeklawer!
I think Grey is the best placed of the three on the calendar as its at the start of the main school holiday. The other two holidays are short breaks during the term.
Based on how the terms work out in 2026, there is a change that the Grey Fest and Wildeklawer may overlap again, forcing NW to make a choice.
Great to see Selborne back. Two tough games but I’m sure the boys will be up for it. Absolutely ecstatic for Port Rex. Expecting Rex to be decent next year as well with most of the players from this year being u17
Wow so many KZN teams. I question whether Northwood needs 2 festivals though, with KES and now this one. Hopefully we have the depth to cover this and now let our domestic season slip.