If Paarl Gim and with it the Paarl Interskole spectacle did not exist, one could make a compelling case that Paul Roos versus Paarl Boys’ High would stand as the premier schoolboy rugby derby in the country and possibly the biggest in the world. The fixture carries history, talent density and competitive weight in abundance. Yet it has, in some ways, been absorbed into the background schoolboy rugby’s broader hierarchy — not because it lacks relevance, but because it does not carry the same traditional “main rivalry” branding that elevates certain fixtures into folklore status.
Even so, it remains a consistent highlight on the annual calendar. It is a derby that, more often than not, reflects form rather than narrative. Unlike contests that can descend into volatility or emotional distortion, Paul Roos versus Paarl Boys’ High tends to reward clarity of structure, execution under pressure, and the ability to impose a game model over 70 minutes. The scoreboard usually tells the story without much ambiguity, with decisive margins more common than last-minute drama. In fact, the last time the two schools were separated by a single score was in 2014 — a telling statistic in a fixture that otherwise tends to stretch into clearer separations.
That brings the conversation into 2026 and the question of current balance: who arrives as the form side?
On recent evidence, Paul Roos present as the more consistent and system-driven outfit. There is a recognisable continuity to their approach — structured phase play, defensive organisation, and a preference for controlling territory and tempo rather than chasing chaos. There is a recognised identity in all their game this season. That stability has value in a fixture of this nature, where emotional surges are less decisive than disciplined execution.
Paarl Boys’ High, by contrast, remain a more unpredictable proposition. Their ceiling is undeniable. When their forward platform is dominant and their physical rhythm aligned, they are capable of overwhelming opponents and turning matches into one-sided contests like they did against Stellenberg in an impressive 29-7 victory a weekend ago. However, that same profile comes with variance. In games where cohesion breaks down or the game becomes fragmented, they can appear one-dimensional — easier to read and contain, and they find it more difficult to sustain momentum across phases.
This contrast defines the 2026 narrative: one side built on consistency and structure, the other on power and peaks.
In a fixture that so often follows the direction of the “form team,” that distinction becomes critical. Paul Roos’ steadiness gives them a higher base level week to week, while Paarl Boys’ High showed they have the capacity to elevate above anyone when their game clicks. The tension therefore lies in which version of Boishaai arrives at Markotter Field in Stellenbosch on Saturday, 23 May 2026 — and whether Paul Roos can prevent the game from ever becoming a contest of pure physical momentum.
Recent history and margins
Home team Paul Roos first
| DATE | EVENT | MARGIN | ||||
| 20 Jul 2013 | Paul Roos | 20 | 21 | Paarl BH | Paarl BH | 1 |
| 07 Jun 2014 | Paul Roos | 17 | 13 | Paarl BH | Paul Roos | 4 |
| 20 Jun 2015 | Paul Roos | 10 | 29 | Paarl BH | Paarl BH | 19 |
| 28 May 2016 | Paul Roos | 03 | 28 | Paarl BH | Paul Roos | 25 |
| 27 May 2017 | Paul Roos | 09 | 21 | Paarl BH | Paarl BH | 12 |
| 19 May 2018 | Paul Roos | 44 | 08 | Paarl BH | Paul Roos | 36 |
| 25 May 2019 | Paul Roos | 16 | 29 | Paarl BH | Paarl BH | 13 |
| 21 May 2022 | Paul Roos | 15 | 35 | Paarl BH | Paul Roos | 20 |
| 27 May 2023 | Paul Roos | 35 | 17 | Paarl BH | Paarl BH | 18 |
| 20 Apr 2024 | Paul Roos | 25 | 10 | Paarl BH | Paul Roos | 15 |
| 24 May 2025 | Paul Roos | 26 | 36 | Paarl BH | Paarl BH | 10 |
@Snelvuur (Comment #26)
Behalwe die gelykop het PRG skoonskip met die hokkie gemaak.
Goeie dag vir PRG gister. 3/4 A-spanne gewen en 21/30 wedstryde op die dag, met twee gelykop uitslae. Die rugbyprogram is op ‘n goeie plek.
PRG 28-HJS 22
Mooi manne. Wel gedaan Paul Roos. Dankie HJS en al die HJS Old Boys vir nog ‘n fantastiese game wat soos altyd, in uitstekende gees gespeel is.
Jy kan nie klas en tradisie koop nie…….
@Trots HJS (Tandem) (Comment #23)
Ek het vanoggende die meeste A veld games gekyk. PRG se spanne is baie goed afgerig. Die u16A span se hantering was uitstaande teen n goeie Boishaai span. Corne Uys moet krediet kry met wat hy vermag.paul Roos se spelers is net fisies groter as Boishaai wat weereens gewys dat hul nooit weggaan nie. Dis n Paarl se ding. PRG teen Gim gaan massive wees.
@OomPB (Comment #22) Paul Roos het Boishaai out-coach en was takties beter.
Krediet aan HJS wat tot die einde geveg het. PRG net hlgroter en starkers op die dag.
U15A PRG 34-5 HJS
u16A PRG 45-20 HJS Stoffels en de Villiers uitstekend.
BOISHAAI BESLIS DIE GUNSTELING HIER.
Hokkie 3 elk
@Bungee (Comment #6)
PRG is nooit n favorite teen die Paarl se skole nie. Hokkie ja, maar rugby nee.
@buitestaander (Comment #15) Laat my dink aan die ou gesegde; lies, damn lies, statistics
Laat my dink aan Zimbabwe wat nog nooit ‘n reeks teen die All Blacks verloor het nie. 1949. Eerste toets Bulawayo Rhodesia wen 10-8. Tweede toets in Salisbury. 3-3.
@OudAffie (Comment #9)
Laaste opmerking oor die onderwerp : van al die skole teen wie Gim drie of meer wedstryde gespeel het oor die geskiedenis heen, het net twee van hulle meer wedstryde teen Gim gewen as verloor – Selborne en GCB.
GCB is na vanjaar nog ‘n kortkop voor : 9/7.
@OudAffie (Comment #9)
Wat ook interessant was, is dat PRG baie meer wedstryde teen HJS gespeel het as teen Gim.
Daardie rekords was ‘n skatkis van data oor meer as ‘n honderd jaar.
@OudAffie (Comment #9) So 2 jaar gelede die baie volledige rekords van NextgenXV nagegaan (wat nie meer beskikbaar is nie). Toe was dit Gim 41, PRG 25
@boerboel (Comment #10) Gerugte gehoor van manne in die wynland wie skielik n nuwe blou pakkie moes kry.
@Bungee (Comment #6)
wie is gekoop?
@beet (Comment #2)
Dankie Beet, maar sekerlik moet iemand weet. Ek het self die skole ge-epos en ‘n vae antwoord gekry. Wat is die historiese rekord tussen PRG en PG en PRG en HJS. Van die begin af, die heel eerste wedstryd, nie skat or raai nie, presies???? Ek kan nie glo niemand weet nie, hulle speel elke jaar mekaar, en is meer as 100 jaar oud, so die ‘head to head’ moet baie meer wedstryde wees.
@Mate (Comment #7)
Solank hulle net nie weer gedink het dat stellenberg spelers inkoop nie. Ek is self ‘n pa daar en geen speler in daardie 1ste span is op enige stadium ingekoop nie, trouens meeste, moontlik almal, is reeds van Graad 8 af daar.
@Bungee (Comment #6)
Ek verstaan nou nie, het op sosiale media gelees van HJS ondersteuners wat Stellenberg s’n vreeslik aangevat het oor kopery. Dit het naderhand woes gegaan.
Nie geweet HJS koop ook
@Trots HJS (Tandem) (Comment #4) Ek weet ook nie by watse bus oomPB uitval nie. PRG definitief nog favourites vir die game, maar HJS se onlangse aankope maak die laer spanne baie meer interessant
HJS die mees onderskatte span vanjaar. Jy dink jy het die oorhand maar as jy opkyk dan sien jy hulle loop voor met 10 punte
@OomPB (Comment #3)
@beet very good article.
@OomPB : Home ground advantage plays big role in outcomes of this nature. My guest a 70%- 30% probability in favour of Paul Roos.
Boishaai die groot gunsteling na laas week se oorwinning oor Stellenberg.
@OudAffie (Comment #1)
Someone sent me a stat for this derby
In the last 49 years Paarl Boys High 31 wins, Paul Roos 17 wins. Just one draw in 2002. I don’t think that class ever gets invited back for respective Old Boys functions.
@ anyone:
What is the head to head between Paul Roos, Paarl Gim and Paarl Boishaai respectively between one another since their fixtures started? I have asked this before but only the stats for the Paarl interschools have been posted. And not the last decade, since the start?