Report compliments of Working Words:
Kearsney 1st X1 beat Westville 1sts in an exciting nail-biter which was clinched by a converted penalty kick with no time left on the clock. It capped an exciting day’s rugby, with a clean sweep for Kearsney’s A teams at all age groups in their fixtures against Westville.
Always a big Highway derby, Westville had made four changes to the team that had lost to Glenwood the previous weekend. Kearsney had lost tighhead prop Matthew Maddock, which gave David Brown the opportunity to play in an unfamiliar position, as he had played lock for the 2nd XV the previous week.
Kearsney received the kick-off and played in Westville’s half. From a Westville lineout, Kearsney gathered the ball and put numerous phases together, which allowed Kearsney flyhalf Tristan Tedder to have a drop goal attempt which was pushed passed the right post.
Kearsney conceded a few penalties early in the game, which allowed Westville to apply pressure on the Kearsney try line, but Kearsney’s defence stood strong as they managed to deny Westville scoring. Kearsney were good on the ground which allowed them a few turnovers. Both teams were asking questions on attack but neither could fully execute and convert the pressure to points.
Inside the Kearsney half, Westville were penalised for not releasing the ball in a tackle. This was an opportunity for Kearsney scrumhalf James Hall to have an attempt at a 62 metre penalty kick (video here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0nTIv-pJZmk), which he successfully converted much to the delight of the spectators and schoolboys.
Just before the end of the first half, Westville applied immense pressure and were awarded a penalty in the Kearsney half. Westville flyhalf Kyan Braithwaite was unsuccessful with his penalty kick. Westville once again were on the Kearsney try line, Kearsney managed to defend their line holding onto the lead of 3-0 at half time.
Within the first five minutes of the second half, Kearsney were penalised just outside their 22 metre for being offside, which gave Braithwaite the opportunity to equalise the score to 3 all.
Westville seemed to have kept the ball up front using their forwards with ‘pick and goes’. Westville gathered the ball off a Kearsney lineout and opted to kick. The hosts then counter-attacked and took play just outside Westville’s 22 metre. The Westville scrumhalf attempted to clear a kick but was charged down by Kearsney flanker Anthony Quenet who managed to score the first try of the match. Tristan Tedder converted taking the score to 10-3.
Westville responded by catching Kearsney off-side just outside the Kearsney 22 and in front of the poles, allowing Braithwaite to take the score to 10-6. Kearsney were caught once again, this time inside their own 22m for being offside from a ruck, which allowed Braithwaite to kick at goal, narrowing the margin to 10-9.
Kearsney lost their lineout ball on a very good attacking field position. Westville kicked the ball which was countered by Kearsney. The home side tried to slide a kick pass their backs which was picked up by Westville’s right wing and took play into the Kearsney 22 metre. Kearsney were penalised once again for being off-side, which allowed Braithwaite to take Westville into the lead 10-12.
With less than two minutes on the clock, Kearsney applied pressure from the kick-off, gathering the ball from the start but unfortunately knocked the ball on. From a Westville put in at the scrum, Westville opted to kick which was counter by Kearsney.
Tristan Tedder gathered the ball and chipped through to regain the ball which was knocked on by Westville and then fielded by another Westville player from an offside position. Kearsney were then awarded a penalty.
With no time left on the clock, Tristan Tedder converted the penalty kick for Kearsney to win the game 13-12.
Preview written before the match
Westville has made four changes for their Highways derby on Botha’s Hill. Former prop turned loose forward Brandon Warner now finds himself moving from no.8 in the secondrow to make way for the return of Teagan Erasmus who sat out the Glenwood game as a result of a concussion. Joshua Murphy gets rewarded for being part of the 2nd XV winning effort by being promoted along with standout Westville player from last week, centre Wayne Smith.
Kearsney has only named one change to their starting line-up that defeated Northwood 19-11. David Brown, a hooker by choice, who played 2nd XV lock last week will be the Kearsney tighthead prop for this big game on Stott Field.
| KEARSNEY | WESTVILLE | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tijde Visser | 1 | Jordan Els |
| 2 | Nicholas Luyt | 2 | Joshua Bailey |
| 3 | David Brown | 3 | Cody Thomas |
| 4 | Khanyisani Xaba | 4 | Sibabalo Qoma |
| 5 | Tristan Dixon | 5 | Brandon Warner |
| 6 | Anthony Quenet | 6 | Joshua Murphy |
| 7 | Jesse Rich | 7 | Adrian Heystek |
| 8 | Patrick Zietkiewicz | 8 | Teagan Erasmus |
| 9 | James Hall | 9 | Garryth Jackson |
| 10 | Tristan Tedder (C) | 10 | Kyan Braithwaite (c.) |
| 11 | Brendan Vorster | 11 | Shane Ball |
| 12 | Sebastian Pau | 12 | Wayne Smith |
| 13 | Kyle Ritchie | 13 | Donovan Pieters |
| 14 | James Tedder | 14 | Bradley Smith |
| 15 | Stefan Harris | 15 | Lindo Buthelezi |
| 16 | Renier Pieterse | ||
| 17 | Shawn Stoltz | ||
| 18 | Yuric Thambiran | ||
| 19 | Nathan Meilhon | ||
| 20 | Ruan Kotze | ||
| 21 | Simiso Phahla | ||
| 22 | Juan Anderson |
@Amalekite: I agree that players cannot always play in their preferred positions, but it is important that coaches settle on positions ASAP to give stability. Understood that injuries play a part. If Bailey is unfit I think it is great that Lee is given an opportunity from the 3rds to come off the bench for the 1sts while on tour. It gives great credibility to the selection process and encourages boys in the lower teams to push harder as you never know when an opportunity will come.
Regarding Pieterse, I also agree that his throwing has improved. When I say it is his one weakness read that as a compliment to the rest of his game. He is a really good player and deserves his place in the 1sts.
@Scrum Doctor: Pieterse’s preferred position is hooker. He has trimmed down which has resulted in extra pace. I think that his throwing in at the lineouts has improved tremendously. Against Kearsney, most of the calls were to 6, which is not an easy one, and he was on target most of the time.
Unfortunately, players cannot always play in their preferred position, especially if there is a surplus of players in that position. It ultimately boils down to what is best for the team.
Good luck to the squad for the Grey PE festival! Go Westville!
Pieterse is another of the Westville obsessions with playing people out of position . Used to be a loose forward . Good ball carrier but lacking a little in set piece accuracy and scrumming . They have also tried to find a home for him at prop with varying degrees of success. In the game against Glenwood he came on briefly as a prop. Rugby is a funny game – two boys will be sitting crying in their cornflakes this morning about not being able to travel to Grey and two others will be ecstatic about their sudden raise to the touring party – guess that’s the way the cookie crumbles ! I applaud the school for taking concussion seriously .
@Pedantic: Lee played in the 3rds. Pieterse was the hooker in 2nds. He is really good in open play. His only weakness is lineout throwing. I had heard he is really fit and one of the quickest forwards in the squad – Competes for pace with most of the backline. His try against Kearsney showed that. It was superb.
@Amalekite: Pieterse & Stoltz would have been going anyway I would imagine as they bench for the 1st team. If Lee is going it will be as backup hooker. That likely means Bailey def out. The question is who will go as cover at prop?
@Amalekite: Was Damon Lee the 2nd team hooker?
Watching the 2nd team match, I was rather impressed with his performance in open play.
We all know the class of Stoltz, but Westville will surely miss the physicality and mental toughness of Thomas, I know he will be hurting and itching to get back onto Stott for KERF.
@Amalekite: @star: These injuries before a tour really suck but hopefully the boys are 100% for KERF and hopefully the replacements rise to the challenge
I have heard that Damon Lee, Pieterse and Stoltz will be going to PE.
@Scrum Doctor: Sorry to hear that but glad that the proper testing is being done. It is reassuring. The boys health must always come first.
@star: I would imagine squads are 22 or 23.
Regarding the 2nd team front row against Kearsney, the 2 U16A props from last year were both in there if I am not mistaken, but switched around. Not quite sure why that was. I also noticed that as the game went on the hooker and one prop switched around. Not sure what the coaches are playing at but there seems to be a lot of front row players switching positions on a weekly basis and this does not help the boys.
@Westers: Don’t confuse passing the computer test with being fit to play – there are a few more steps to go including a checkup with D.r Roberts and am pretty sure both Thomas and Bailey wont be going – too soon after the injury !
@ Westers- I think Buthelezi had concussion from the GW game. I presume Stoltz will replace Thomas and although he did not play tighthead for the 2nds on Saturday I think that is his preferred position. I also wonder how big the squad is as it will have an impact on the 2nd team to play at GW.
@Amalekite: Thanks for the update. I am surprised Bailey has been cleared. He was the one I least expected to be cleared as he came off early from a knock to the head and was complaining of a headache at the time. I hope the powers that be are not taking a chance.
Glad to hear Buthelezi is back. I wasn’t sure why he didn’t play last week.
I hope Thomas has a good recovery. The rest should do him good when they get to KERF. He will be fresher.
@ Pedantic- I hate to be pedantic
but I think your figures for Total points for Kearsney in 2014 of 309 are incorrect. I only got 207. If I am right then the overall deficit( and per game) has more than doubled in the space of 2 years and you have lost a quarter of your open teams. With the emphasis on the A team levels you might be losing out elsewhere . Just the musings of an old man trying to paint the big picture and possibly being a bit contentious. 
@Westers: It would seem that Bailey and Buthelezi have been cleared. Thomas will not be going to Grey PE.
@Westers: sorry – haven’t heard yet
@Buffel: https://www.facebook.com/InvestecInternationalRugbyAcademy/posts/10151943429362186
@Scrum Doctor: & any other Westville bloggers – Any news on the concussion tests? Hoping all is positive.
@Pedantic: Buy a donkey – that is what I was trying to do, Google Earth doesn’t have that resolution on it.
@Buffel: Wasn’t doubting the “lighties” abilities, my OCD compels me ….. turns me into Pedantic’s name
.. move over Frans Steyn …
I think Westville on disputing the Kearsney victory at all guys. They have said well done; have raised concerns over their performance and said wow on many occasions for mammoth kick…time to shhhhhhhhh.
@Pedantic: To put the stories to rest. Has been doing it from 60 regularly at various fields around Durban- All first division grounds. Rovers,Crusaders,Varsity College,Collegians, KP 2 and yes, all at 10m above Sea level. Longest recorded-64m at Varsity College.
Good luck to him. The hours put in have been crazy,from a grade 3 boy at DPHS till now.
@Gungets Tuft: Using Google Maps classic (not the new junk) – you can clearly see the poles and field markings, it’s a bit difficult to zoom in enough for accurate measurement though.
Using the maps measuring tools it would seem that Stott is indeed 100 metres from try line to try line. I also measured from the poles to the 10 Metres and it was 60.x metres.
Seems young Hall can indeed slot kicks in excess of 60M!
@star: I think your perceptions may be wrong – Kearsney’s performance against Westville in 2012 yielded very similair results overall.In fact, 2014 results are an improvement for Kearsney on 2012 if you consider that there were fewer staggers and the clean sweep for A teams.
For a school that has an annual intake of around the same number of students that Westville take in on scholarships alone, I don’t think KC Old Boys need to worry too much
@old timer: Must admit having the same thought. There was a video posted a while ago about a junior school kid kicking a goal from over 60m. The field was measured short. I tried to do a google earth measure of the KC field but the markings on Earth are not clear enough to measure. 62m is monster at close to sea level. I think there was a north easterly blowing, would that have helped?
Damn iPhone and fat fingers – my grammar seems like I was drunk; am not though
Good observation on the rugby field length. My guy in in 16 broke the school 400m record standing for over 35 years or more. Only to find the holder complained and they had to take the award and all correspondence back at the track was found to be 6m shorter than 400m. Who’s to say it was right 40 years ago ;)
Also guys quick observation; Westville had a guy running the line; I think a physio or similar yet he seemed uneccessarily standing in filed of play and esp at Kearsney line outs where he seemed about a meter from our thrower and instructing his jeers how or where to go up as he throw? For interests; surely you can’t be that close or near the touch line? Keen to know. Still I think the game was a cracker and the ville be bleak – sorry guys. Good lick at Grey PE and hope all KZN sides back each other
@ Oldschool- The emails have been flooding in although they have been strangely respectful.
I am using your performance 2 years ago as a basis of comparison and will look carefully at how House and Hilton perform as your explanation should cover them as well.
It seems to me the 3 ” privates” are adopting different strategies which regard to their rugby development paths. Kearsney are definitely the most aggressive when it comes to primary intake( to the extent that some large state schools can get taken out at the last minute).We also have stories of the Uber mother punting the cause at some primary schools. Hilton seem to have selective target strategies higher up the food chain and even dabbled in incentives for coaches ect. House are the ones that have been the most consistent and backed their internal structures to bring players through, While they have had bad years they have also excelled well above their so called station (size wise), We will have to see which school in 10 years will be able to look back and feel they took the high road. I feel that Hilton is the one that has not yet found its niche.(good or bad).
@ Playa- please refer to my reasoning above. It is all about emphasis and attitude and how that translates in terms of performance and not just at A team level. That was my reason for the observation about the Kearsney opens as a whole.
@Buffel: I am sure they will comply with best practice as most front row forwards cannot afford to loose any more brain cells . Before anyone gets uptight it a joke and we wish them all a speedy and full recovery before they play again.
@star: with regards to “that kick” and certainly not wanting to take anything away from a very good strike . Has anyone actually measured the length of the field as many school fields are not 100 m long ? Either way a very good kick but balls just don’t fly that far at almost sea level with very little wind to assist . If they do then Frans Steyn better watch out !
@Playa: Yep, under 16 was introduced in 1994 if I’m not mistaken which reduced big schools from 12 open teams to about 8. My dad even played a game for the 13th’s at DHS, the Horseflies. Kearsney has about 600 and Hilton & Michaelhouse about 550 boarders each. Westville must be close to 1350 now…huge intakes of like 280 these days..
@oldschool: hey Old School; how did the 5ths go against Westville?
@star: The introduction of the under 16 age group means that a ‘smaller’ school that could put out 8/9 open teams, will naturally only be capable of only producing 5/6 now…7 if they can get some matrics who are past heir prime and now prefer hockey to rugby. It’s not necessarily a reflection of an emphasis on elite teams.Westville has what, 1200 plus boys, and Kearsney 500?
@star: you say that you were disappointed with the Kearsney opens as a whole ….. and that the old boys should be concerned ….. I say don’t stress my boet … we as old boys are very un concerned …beating a massive school like the Ville in the u14 As the U15As the U16As and the 1sts ….. remember that your open age group is bigger than our entire school and that each one of your A teams is 100% on some form of bursary …..so your rugby depth is huge ….. your concerns should be directed at having to deal with your Kearsney mates having the bragging rights for the next 12 months !!
@Buffel: Thanks Buffel. If the same standards applied at Westville then the hooker, who according to Scrum Doctor was concussed, would definitely be out of the Grey PE tour, possibly with one or two others. A real pity, but better safe than sorry. There is still KERF to come in a few weeks time so depth will be crucial.
Speedy recovery to those involved.
@Westers: very strict guidelines as far as concussion goes and rightly so. No boy’s health worth a game of rugby. A battery of tests and a compulsory stand down. There are boy’s in the wings that can play until the incumbent is well enough.
@Scrum Doctor: I hope both parents and coaches are sensible when it comes to the concussion tests. It will be a sad thing for any boys to miss out on Grey PE tour but their health is the most important thing. Also, the season is only just beginning so they mustn’t risk longer term damage.
I believe KC has a policy that any boys who have concussion, no matter how slight, are stood down for a minimum of 12 days, even if they can pass a concussion test. Maybe one of the KC bloggers can confirm this. It makes very good sense to me.
@star: A record at Kearsney but Goosen kicked a 67m in Bloem. He had a strong tail wind and at altitude. One can view it on youtube.
@ Buffel- was the kick by James some sort of record. Does anyone have stats on this? I for one would be very interested as I have never witnessed anything like it ( and I am an old bugger now)
@ Greenblooded- I am certainly not blaming the ref. To do so would be churlish and undermine the self examination that is required by Westville before their tour. How can you blame the referee for the knock-ons over the line in the first half to the slew of errors at the end to close out the game. I think Westville were quite heavily penalised in the first half for holding on and then later in the game Kearsney were penalised for offside infractions as the pressure came on. That is the swings and round abouts that you quite rightly refer to.
Let me take nothing away from the day and the spectacle that we all enjoyed. I bumped into a client who has no affiliation to either school and he was there purely to enjoy SBR. What an advert? The point I was trying to make ( obviously very poorly) was that despite the great entertainment there is a lot of work still to be done and the boys must keep their feet on the ground. A Grey PE/ Bloem will not squander those type of opportunities and will be far more ruthless in their execution.
I was interested in your comments about Anderson and couldn’t agree more re his preferred position. I think Westville are trying to manufacture positions that are driven by instinct.
Lastly how come you were at the Kearsney game and Beet at GW. I thought the ” gods had gone crazy”.
Hope all the boys come through the tests. The team needs all members fit for a tour like P.E. It is also the best opportunity for them to iron out their issues and get back to winning ways.
Cody Thomas had a storming game for Westville, carrying the ball up a number of times over the gain line. Unfortunately got a kick to the head and is one of the boys going for tests.
Erasmus short of game time but will get better as time goes by.
@GreenBlooded: Lets not blame the ref for this one – Westville had many opportunities to win this game – in fact they should have won by 10 points at least . The discipline is the issue – I watched on two occasions where the ball carrier and his wingmen were perfectly in position for a planned move and the lock bumbled his way in front of the pod , collected the ball, and then promptly lost it . If you don’t have the discipline on your own moves how can you expect not to get punished in general play . The Westville team just refuses to “click” for some reason and I suspect one of the major issues is flyhalf. Let us not forget how physical that game was – the Westville # 2 was concussed early on in the 1st half and should have been pulled earlier, the #3 was out on his feet and left the field . It was also clear that 14 was badly out of it and that could have contributed to his “stupid” decision to play the ball and concede that last penalty. At least 4 or 5 boys will be doing the concussion tests today and that does not bode well for the upcoming tour to PE .
@star: I’m confused. Are you blaming the ref or aren’t you?
It is very easy to nitpick a ref’s performance and I guarantee you that your views and those of a very partisan Kearsney supporter would differ greatly. One of the new buzz-phrases in refereeing circles is that we must “….blow the clear and obvious according to the law…..” – I believe Liebenberg did that well on Saturday. He allowed the game to flow freely, blew the clear and obvious, was consistent with his decisions and allowed a fair contest generally speaking. No doubt you could watch a video and pull him to pieces on the technicalities of some decisions but on a swings and roundabouts basis I doubt that either side can feel aggrieved.
Also – you will seldom witness a spectacle like we witnessed on Saturday without a good referee in the middle.
@star: And you were sitting there, or was it a Kearsney mafia member that told you?
@ Gungets- well if he was sitting with the Kearsney mafia he would have had a front row seat as all the red zone ruck infractions happened there. Of course then I would have to question his impartiality.
@star: I guess my mate was just consistently unlucky then, never near play when the ref got it wrong.
@ Gungets- Not amusing at all. The spectator was able to make a call on an obstruction that happened 2 meters away. The issue I made about the ref was in relation to the ruck situation and unless he was able to transport himself around the field and into the heat of battle very difficult to make a call and pronounce on the ability of the ref. That is also something said spectator did not do.
@star: Nope, was not meant to imply that at all. It was a comment made to me, that the ref for the firsts was good and the ref for the U16A is going to be the next South African to ref a World Cup match.
However, I do find it slightly amusing that that you say an impartial ref is not in a position to comment being too far away but spectators are able to make similar judgements without question.
@beet: will do
@ Gungets- I might have you wrong but is your comment implying that I am unnecessarily criticising the ref. The adverse penalty ratio can simply mean that one side was not as disciplined as the other which was the point I was trying to make. Westers also alluded to the Westville players playing as individuals and isolating themselves hence being penalised for holding on.
I am also not sure how an impartial ref can comment on the ruck situations from afar as that is a dogs breakfast at best. I can however give an example of an ” honest” mistake that happened right in front of me. Westville had kicked through and the Kearsney defender used his wing clearly as obstruction. He was then tackled and Westville were penalised I presume for going off their feet although he seemed to use the crossing signal. Therefore a penalty for Westville became a penalty for Kearsney and instead of attacking the Kearsney line they were defending their own.These are huge momentum swings. If you have the tape you can confirm my facts,It was in the second half. Again refs are human and make mistakes unless of course you belong to the Midlands society. 
@ Buffel- please do find out the ratio and I will eat humble pie with the same grace that I will deliver your case of SABs finest in the event you do the trifecta.
I honestly cannot comment on the at least 4 cases of holding on in the red zone as that is where the Kearsney mafia put up their tents and hold court
You mentioned the Hilton team. I actually bumped into Dahl and his father who were watching . I asked about the SC game and they told me it was a one point affair and it seemed to be a bit of a struggle. I hope they can forge some momentum as House will want revenge for last year and get back to old habits.
@Buffel: If you do a count. Please can you count the redzone penalties for & against separately from the rest and the turnover penalties as well.
Then I’d like you to focus on tackles made, tackles missed, unforced errors…
just a breakdown of the penalty count would be nice.
No jokes
@Gungets Tuft: I thought he was good too. Lots of free kicks.
By my reports a very good ref, with another impartial society ref giving me the reports.
@kcob:Sorry but the truth be told, I think it was the other way round. Am getting a video of the game and will do the count. Can say with a large measure of certainty it was at least 2 to 1 in favour of Westville. Will let you guys know. @star: This is one in my favour towards the trifecta. We have MHS and Hilton to go. Interesting.
At the beginning of the season I said that Hilton would struggle this year and it looks like that may be the case.
See you guys in P.E. A huge task ahead for all the Natal schools. Will be good to support each other for a change.
@beet: mmmm Beet; good comment! These comment should always be backed up. Aaaarg; what’s the point. I’d prefer to let it go. These just turn messy!
@ Beet- it honestly felt like that. Maybe it was because of the number of penalties which Westville conceded in the red zone which were huge momentum swingers.
@star: To understand you, are you saying Kearsney earned 3x as many penalties on the day as Westville? So for instance if Wvl got 6 KC must have had 18?
Well this is going to be an unpopular post. In order for a victory to be well deserved you have to control your own destiny and not rely on “those” unplanned moments or the ill discipline of your opposition. Kearsney scored all of their points on the back of errors by Westville (being the last kick and the charge down against the run of play) as well as that superb 62 meter strike which is not going to happen every game. On the other side Westville butchered 6 chances in the red zone through wrong choices and ill discipline( the penalty count must have been 3 to 1 in favour of Kearsney). Possession must also have been significantly in Westville’s favour.
The Tedder/Hall partnership was at full throttle and I am not sure how much more there is to come.The team also played as a team and gave 100% to the cause. The last 20 minutes however it seemed that Kearsney were hanging on and the relief at the end was palpable. It seems that the KZN sides are meandering at the moment and the true test( ouch) will be when they play outside the province to gage where we are. Kearsney play Grey PE who are rated a top 10 team and of course Westville play Grey Bloem at the Kearsney festival.
I was also disappointed with the Kearsney opens as a whole who were not able to put out a 7th team and whose 6th and 5th teams had to be blown early. In my day the privates always put out 8 teams and some of the toughest matches were down the order. I hope this emphasis on the elite teams and representation is not blurring what SBR is all about. If I was an old boy I would be as concerned about that as I would for a small sponsors insignia on the ” jersey”.
@GreenBlooded: Eeisch, took aerial photos as well, not like it just dribbled over.
It seems as though Westville will have a tough year, i do feel for the boys! they have a clash against Grey College which will even break their confidence further!
Wesvillians – don’t be too harsh on your team. There was a vast improvement over last week – specially on defence. The only problem I saw was that there are some combinations that need time to gel, maybe a boy or 2 playing out of position (I still rate Andersen as a 10 or 12 – he is certainly not a 14). It is early days – give it time. The other problem is discipline – you simply do not concede a silly penalty in front of the sticks with 30s on the clock and 1 point ahead. It was anyone’s game yesterday – but for a bounce here or there the critics might be singing a different song.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0nTIv-pJZmk&feature=share
62m goal kick by James Hall.
@Amalekite:Firstly congrats to KC. Well deserved win. Hall had a blinder and his massive kick to open the scoring proved to be the match winner. They played better as a team.
Westville are playing as a bunch of individuals at the moment. Hence a lot of turnover ball. Many times a Westville player broke away on his own and when tackled, there were three KC players there to effect the turnover, either a steal or a penalty. Option taking was also not the best. The reserve hooker who came on is a fantastic player (scored a great try for the 2nds) but his one weakness is lineout throwing. Westville get a lineout 5m from the KC try line and they opt to throw to the back. Opportunity gone. But they need to persist with this boy as he has so much to offer the team – but not at prop.
Westville coaches seem to be obsessed, through many of the open teams, with playing boys out of position. Hookers playing props and vice versa. Wings playing centres. Scrum halves playing fly halves. Props/locks playing loose forwards. Most of the boys from 1sts to 4ths have been in training since last year so there has been plenty of time to sort this out.
The turning point last year was the final game of KERF when the coaches seemed to get the combinations sorted. Hopefully they can do the same during the Grey PE tournament next week. With the “Second Team” playing in the Bizsport festival at Glenwood next week it will also give the coaches an opportunity to try and settle some combinations for the 2nds and 3rds which should provide solutions when promoting boys in the weeks ahead.
If they cannot sort their teams out before the season starts proper they should in future consider involving more teams in more warm up competitions. They should try to get their 2nds and 3rds into the PN Night series.
Good luck to both groups at their respective festivals during the holidays.
Of the games I saw; it was good to see the attitude on the pitches. Nothing dirty; little or no unwanted foul play that sometimes creeps into these derby games. Westville were good visitors. The main game was unforgiving; tough defense and a typical hammer and tong game. I heard KC have never won against Westville at this at this age group so it was a good win for the one-stripe. Geezers it was a close game.
Good team performance from KC. Though the Wedtville 10 did not give any direction or back line confidence.
Westville 15 looks quite good; no 1 and 7.
Won’t comment on individuals as they all played with so much heart.
Well done to Kearsney. All their teams played with a lot of hunger and “never say die attitude”. Their defending was impressive as well as their counter-rucking.
Westville 1sts improved from last week, but a lot of work still needs to be done. Kicking out of hand and some of the decision making was not great. In tight games like yesterday, you need to take your opportunities and Westville failed on numerous occasions. Kearsney had fewer opportunities, but capitalised each time.
I believe that the team will carry on improving. They must just keep working hard and play for each other.
very poor result for Westville . Fielding the high ball and simple following up a kick seem to be beyond the Westville backs . They simply had no shape on defence or attack and that will not win you games ! Well done Kearsney
What happened to defending in strait lines – Westville’s backs had no shape on either defense or attack for that matter . Line speed was very poor on defense and 11,14 & 15 were simply not in the right places . Some poor options taken at critical points in the game and quite simply that will not win you games against good teams
This was the Tedder show – Westville knew he was going to kick everything and still the back three were constantly out of position. Westville backs are simply not up to the task – where is the line speed on defence ? where is the strait lines when following up a kick ? and more importantly where is any form of creativity on attack . Westville had plenty of good ball – just did not know what to do with it! . It probably would have been an injustice if Westville had sneaked it in the end but just shows you the importance of kicking the ball out when you have to . A poor clearance kick and then giving away a silly penalty and that’s the ball game .
Special mention to Tristan Tedder for his outstanding workrate and the way he handled the pressure. This boy has a man’s head on those shoulders. Well done.
An amazing game with all the boys on the park giving 200%. This time the rugby ball bouncing our way. Mention must go to Quenet and Visser for their never say die attitude. Now for Grey P.E. You boys made us proud today.
Well done Kearsney! Awesome result. The Kearsney team has gees tons of gees.
Great to hear that James Hall had a blinder.
@GreenBlooded: Aaaaaah! Don’t say that
I was repeating to myself “No regrets! No regrets!” All the way home from Glenwood.
Absolute cracker – neither team giving an inch. The whole match was played at a frantic pace with superb defence from both sides. Hall was outstanding and man of the match for me – including a “Francois Steyn” penalty goal from just behind his 10m line. School matches don’t get more frenetic than that!! Game could have gone either way – it just happened to go to Kearsney today.
Well done Kearsney on the fantastic win, and also to their 14A, 15A & 16A sides for their victories too. Look forward to hearing from those who were there.
Wow, just heard KC won, that is fantastic – well done boys
My informer says a superb match at KC ended with KC 13-12, penalty on full time winning it for Kearsney.
@Gungets Tuft: THANKS. WILL GET IT ON Monday MORNING.
@Buffel: You’ve got mail to that Gmail address. let me know, thanks.
@star: He did play there and is a very good ball player as one can appreciate.
Northwood were solid last week but this is the real deal. Westville have been right up there at age group level and now we have an opportunity to get one over them ,but not going to be easy.
It will all depend on how both sides recycle their ball and defend the spaces.
Can’t wait.
@star: A good tactic would be to starve Tedder of ball – easier said than done but I have a good feeling about this game . Watched to boys at training this week and there was a much better vibe than the previous week !
Much better backrow. Still unconvinced on the backline. Will be pleased to be proved wrong. Tedder ghosts into gaps and has great instinct. Could be the difference.
@ Buffel- was Vorster not the scrumhalf for the U16A last year?
This is going to be a close one. Both teams have a point to prove for different reasons. Westville for their loss and lacklustre performance against GW and Kearsney for their points differential against Northwood.
On that note, Northwood were full value who had their forwards to thank for keeping them in the game but Kearsney left a few points on the field with a few missed shots at goal. A true reflection would have been 25-11 which makes it far healthier reading.
IMHO, the forward battle is going to be a more even contest which will let the backs show their metal and give the defences an opportunity to keep their opposition at bay.
The first scrum will be eagerly anticipated as Kearsney have a new tight head in the name of Brown who has played a majority of his rugby at hooker. Up against the import from the E.C. should be interesting as his inclusion hasn’t been warmly received by most Westville supporters on the blog.