Trial match team
| Bulls u18 |
to play Valke u18 | ||||||
| 1 | PR | Jeffrey Singo | 1 of 2 Pretoria BH | 1 | |||
| 2 | HK | Bauke Swart | 1 of 10 Affies | 2 | |||
| 3 | PR | Luan vd Berg | 1 of 5 Garsfontein | 3 | |||
| 4 | LK | Daniel Malakiya | 1 of 1 Heronbridge | 4 | |||
| 5 | LK | Christian de Wet | 2 of 10 Affies | 5 | |||
| 6 | LF | Thabiso Mbembele | 1 of 2 St Alban’s | 6 | |||
| 7 | LF | Elwin Jv Vuuren | 3 of 10 Affies | 7 | |||
| 8 | LF | Stefan McDonald | 4 of 10 Affies | 8 | |||
| 9 | SH | Zirk Meyer | 5 of 10 Affies | 9 | |||
| 10 | FH | Ruben Groenewald | 6 of 10 Affies | 10 | |||
| 11 | WG | Junaide Stuart | 2 of 5 Garsfontein | 11 | |||
| 12 | CT | Dylan Stumke | 1 of 2 Menlopark | 12 | |||
| 13 | CT | Leskin Samuels | 2 of 2 Menlopark | 13 | |||
| 14 | WG | Thabiso Simelane | 2 of 2 St Alban’s | 14 | |||
| 15 | UB | Junaide Pasensie | 3 of 5 Garsfontein | 15 | |||
| 16 | HK | Okuhle Hini | 1 of 1 Overkruin | 16 | |||
| 17 | PR | Raol Kruger | 7 of 10 Affies | 17 | |||
| 18 | PR | Deon Botes | 8 of 10 Affies | 18 | |||
| 19 | LK | Akin Akinbola | 2 of 2 Pretoria BH | 19 | |||
| 20 | LF | Luan Potgieter | 9 of 10 Affies | 20 | |||
| 21 | LF | Marko Kok | 1 of 1 Waterkloof | 21 | |||
| 22 | WG | Yuvrah George | 4 of 5 Garsfontein | 22 | |||
| 23 | OB | Drewyn Baron | 5 of 5 Garsfontein | 23 | |||
| 24 | OB | Lamond Baaitjies | 10 of 10 Affies | 24 |
@Meesh N (Comment #30)
This really is great news!
Keep it up! Hopefully in 2-3 years then!
@Djou (Comment #29)
Our junior teams are well on their way to doing that the 14As & 16As are unanimously ranked in the top 10 & 15 respectively & our 16As have somehow turned up this year after underwhelming u14 & 15 seasons.
Affies & Garsies need some pressure at the top.
Hopefully the program is in full swing by the time it’s my reunion!
@Meesh N (Comment #28)
I must have misunderstood you then. That saying, I really hope Pretoria Boys become a big threat to all schools again – soon!
@Djou (Comment #27)
By no means is me saying that the two teams having a gap means the 2nd side is a poor one, but rather it shows the individual quality the Garsies 1st side usually has. One could argue that player for player Garsies has had the best individuals of any 1st side in Pretoria in the past 10 years.
About the pre season games the two schools play, when I played Garsies in a pre season match the guys were no more than a squad of 25 let alone 35! But I am good mates with a couple Garsies old boys so no bad blood haha, unlike Menlo!
Not sure as to the improvements that have been made by Garsies 3rds & 2nd sides over the years, have only kept up with their 1st & 16A sides for the past few years, but I will say though that Garsies 2nds are not beating the Candies. Though the Candies make it tough for me to defend them, it seems I’ll come into this comment section with more bragging rights in 2-3 years time!
@Meesh N (Comment #25)
@Vleis (Comment #26)
No sloppy thinking at all Vleis!
Meesh N – a few points you may not be aware of.
Garsies’ 1st and 2nd teams beat Affies 1st and 2nd teams in 2022 and 2023.
Mees N, you may not be aware of this – just because Garsies don’t use injuries as excuses like other schools do – but for purposes of giving you the correct info: just this past Saturday Garsies beat Menlo at Menlo with 8 first choice 1st team players out due to injury, also meaning that 8 3rd team boys played for the 2nd team and so on.
The normally 2nd team players stepped up and were worthy replacements.
Further, you call scores such as 44-21 lucky wins for Garsies – and bearing in mind that Garsies in many instances did not even take conversion kicks.
The matches between Garsies and Pretoria Boys were intended to be warm-ups – so Garsies gave opportunities to up to 35 boys in these matches as it served as trials. Both schools agreed that scores were not important and in some years they did not kick for poles after tries were scored.
This should tell you that the gap between Garsies’ 1st and 2nd teams is not as huge as you think.
@Meesh N (Comment #25)
Yes, I agree that including Garsie’s 2nd team was sloppy thinking on my side.
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I moved to CT four years ago so have only seen StA play a couple of times in the past six seasons. Thus, I’ll take your word as correct re a dearth of high quality players. Normally, you can expect a few high quality players at the private schools via: a) parents who place a v high premium on academics, and b) scholarships. Now that the seasons of most private schools have been watered down, I suspect that the latter is in decline.
@Vleis (Comment #23)
Surely the 2nd team comment is wishful thinking or you’re just pulling my leg haha, considering Garsies has had a full Pre Season fixture with PBHS in 2019,2020,2022,2023 & 2024 & even then their 1st side didn’t win convincingly so surely I’d like to think we would put at least 15+ points on their 2nd side especially considering how contrasting the talent gap usually is between their 1sts & 2nds are. In 2020 & 2023 Garsies were lucky to come away with a victory, Affies on the other hand though I would say you have a compelling case!
I think it being 70+ points was an abberation but the hiding itself wasn’t & was in fact inevitable.
5+ years ago Albans always typically had 1 or 2 clear cut SA schools calibre players but of late it just hasn’t been the case, but I do hope the boys can prove me wrong.
@beet (Comment #21)
I do agree that the performances of teams shouldn’t entirely effect a player’s chances of making a provincial side should they be good enough, I mentioned that because for as long as I can remember the Bulls are the one union that seemed to buy into that when it came to selection. ie. Waterkloof & PBHS boys weren’t as prevelant in Craven Week squads in the late 2010s until about 2022 when the school’s programs weren’t doing as well, the same way Menlopark boys were a mainstay in that period but now seem lucky to have more than 1 after the previous two seasons they had.
With that being said, this does look like a solid side that can expect to be playing in the main game of Craven Week though I feel WP of course & the Sharks are the two favourites.
Who knows maybe a Wp vs Wp XV final will finally happen after the close call in 2019!
@Meesh N (Comment #17)
Yes, on the one hand, it does seem strange that StA have had so many CW & AW reps in recent years when their form is worse than it was some five plus years ago, when they had very little reps. To be honest, it also seems strange that PBHS has two reps when I’d bet that they couldn’t beat Affies’ or Garsies’ 2nd teams.
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On the other hand, sometimes a poorly performing team can still have a few very high quality players. I remember a StA team losing by some 90 points v Jeppe despite containing: one future Bok; one SA Schools player and two future URC players, etc. Also, PBHS beat Saints by a similar margin to StA…so maybe Saturday was an aberration?
@Snelvuur (Comment #15)
Yeah Talent Sithole is a go-getter type player. A bit unorthodox. He’s an asset to Jeppe and improved a lot since 2024. I’m not sure he’s what the SAS selectors are looking for.
This weekend Booise vs Goosen on the Jan Kriel might be a worthwhile head-to-head. Also think that Sherwin Buys is still in the running, esp if the selectors see a bit of Grant Williams in him.
@Meesh N (Comment #17)
I think this happens in a few regions. There have been times in the past when I felt the same way about Grey High and Maritzburg College — that a boy had to be an exceptional white player to get selected while the system was close to overdependent on the same schools’ POCs to get to the targets. I also think KZN has benefited from a few Lions-region boys from private schools moving to schools in the province and finding they had a much better shot at Craven Week selection.
I also wanted to say that we’re all guilty, at times, of playing the numbers game — linking the success of a season to the number of Craven Week representatives a school produces. But it doesn’t always work that way. Ideally, it should come down to picking the best players, regardless of their school or how well their team has performed.
@Meesh N (Comment #17)
Does anyone know who the selectors are and from which schools?
@Asterix (Comment #18)
Okay thanks for letting me know, that is at least motivating & reassuring!
@Meesh N (Comment #17)
Tyler Mason was included in the u18B team squad for yesterday
It honestly baffles me how a St Albans team that lost by nearly 80 points against Boys High just last week has the same number of representatives as them? Even if transformation was the reason as to why some of the lads were chosen, PBHS has players of colour in those same positions who are surely good enough if not better? Is it perhaps also a thing of the union wanting widespread representation across different schools in the region rather than it being across just 3 or 4 schools?
Another thing i’ve noticed with the BBRU is how in recent years they’ve viewed PBHS as a school that can provide them with good players of colour who get to play high quality rugby week in & week with a decent program. It’s something of which I can’t fault as a strategy by the union, but I feel leads to selectors often unfairly overlooking some of the white boys playing good rugby at the school. This year I feel boys like Tyler Mason & Rickus Wessels could’ve put their hands up for selection, I can think of 2023 when candies captain Jason van der Merwe couldn’t make a single Bulls u18 side yet in 2024 he was playing in the Bulls u19 side in the u19 Currie Cup final.
Will we see any changes any time soon? Just food for thought.
Ek sal vir Henry Hannibal altyd bo n Louis Koen kies.
@beet (Comment #14)
I thought Sithole from Jeppe is also one to watch. Injects a lot of energy and enterprise into Jeppe’s game.
@TheGoose (Comment #13)
The big question is who do you back to be the other scrumhalf in the SAS main team???
@4×4 (Comment #10)
My selection for SAS #9 is Jayden Brits from BL
@4×4 (Comment #10)
No love for Boland Landbou’s Jayden Brits then
@agter_die_pale_pa (Comment #2)
I could not help but see in the Bulls B team – another scrumhalf who is a joy to watch – Derick Kuhn
Zirk is SA Skole materiaal…dit is tusen hom en De Villiers! En die Nr 6 van St Albans moet fenominaal wees om Potgieter uit die begin span te hou!
@Bungee (Comment #8)
Dis nogal ‘n indictment vir die res van die 9s in Pretoria…
@Snelvuur (Comment #7)
Check Beet se comment #1
Verbeel ek my, of is Yuvrah George in die span hierbo as die back-up skrumskakel? Speel hy nie vleuel vir Garsies nie?
@beet (Comment #5)
No problem – the world has returned to it’s axis… 10 Affies in a Bulls team… world order has been restored!
@PietPompies (Comment #3)
Ooops. Sorry. Fixed now. Thank you.
@PietPompies (Comment #3)
Pretoria Oos sal nie herstel van daardie chaos nie!
@beet (Comment #1)
I know we’re known as Gapsfontein, but you’re pushing the boundaries a little here – if we managed to nab Ruben Groenewald and Luan Potgieter mid-season from Affies as your team sheet above suggests, we’ll never be forgiven!
@beet (Comment #1)
Gustav Schaffner from Menlo is a warrior. The amount of work he does on the field is astonishing, making turnovers and is a trojan on defense. It’s like playing with two openside flanks.
There is a nice video out there about Zirk and his road to recovery from a bad injury to get to this fitness level where he can compete for an CW and even a SAS place.
For today’s game, Gustav Schaffner from Menlo will be the backup 9 but the Bulls have plans to head to Craven Week in Middelburg with just one scrumhalf in their 23 player squad
But will only go with one scrummie for Craven Week