Grogper Cup: Kearsney 63 St Stithians 19 & Michaelhouse 52 St John’s 10
KZN already had an unassailable Grogper Cup lead coming into this weekend, so this turned out to be salt in the wounds stuff. Gauteng English medium private schools St Stithians and St John’s have not beaten their annual fixture KZN private school counterparts for a while now and the margin of defeats have been fairly large in recent years. Hopefully the 1st XV playing fields are evened up in the years to come by the GEMS becoming stronger rather than the KZN teams experiencing a dip.
The Kearsney game was on the box. Kearsney’s execution was good and this made for attractive attacks, good tries and allowed many players to stand out. From Saints’ side there were one or two things that went to according to plan but the match was mainly characterised by vital missed tackles, a noticeable lack of defensive pressure being applied on the home team as well as an inability by Saints to make any kind of inroads as a result of their pack being on the small side. The end result a massive defeat.
George Campbell 20 Clifton 29
Even though both schools are at the bottom of the unofficial KZN Top Schools table, this was actually a really important game. The winners would earn the right to play against Kearsney 1st XV in 2015 while the losers would be relegated to a 2nd XV fixture. IMHO it’s a daft idea to play a decider like this one season in advance and really the two schools should have tried to organise their next match early in the 2015 season and allowed that to be the Kearsney decider.
Anyway there’s a relaxing feel about Campbell’s home ground probably because it’s such a big flat green and open area. This openness also means there’s often wind at the ground and I would have expected that after all these years, the wind factor which makes accurate passing a nightmare at times, would have been mastered by the Campbell boys and become a serious home field advantage for them. Not the case. Campbell more often than not seems to struggle more with their passing game than their opposition do. It is something they need to address urgently because it’s killing some of their best options on attack. During this game when Campbell got the ball safely into the hands of players out wide, they hurt Clifton badly. Clifton were guilty of not closing down the Campbell speedsters and making use of this room and some awesome hard side-stepping, Campbell opened up the defence in one-on-one challenges to produce several memorable runs in the first half. Amongst the standouts were Nzimandle (20&14) who was in sensational form, Mamba (13) and the Campbell fullback, who was the finisher of a play started 75m out started when Nzimandle carved up the D. Special mention must also go to Campbell captain Dunnett (8) who worked hard all game long.
The Campbell halftime team-talk should have been about getting the ball into the hands of these dangerous players in wider positions, however instead Campbell made a couple of poor decision to play the ball close to the forwards, where Clifton were then able to prey on their mistakes. And it was a scrappy game of many mistakes. Yet full marks must go to Clifton, a team with limited attacking options who managed to score 29 points. They showed more of an appetite for continuity and playing the game in the right half of the field. They also made more of their chances count from redzone pressure. Again their ballcarrier Nxumalo was noticeable for his contribution. Clifton has high hopes for promising 2.03m u17 lock Evans, who was a menace on Campbell throw-ins as at 2-jumper. Given the windy conditions, I’m not sure why Evans was not the go-to player for every Clifton lineout. This would have guaranteed the visitors far more ball possession. Even so the best player on the park was Clifton no.7 Vosloo. This boy has so much promise and if he had been playing for one of the top tier-1 schools I’m sure many local followers of SBR would be rating him as a possible Craven player for 2015. He has heart and boy can he carry a ball over the advantage line. He not only gives Clifton go-forward, in this game he also came up with 2 important tries from powerful carries.
The scoring went 3-0, 3-5, 10-5, 10-10, 10-15, 15-15, 22-15, 29-15, 29-20. So Campbell scored 4 tries but kicking let them down as well. It might not have been the best quality match but it was entertaining and if anything it proved that Clifton deserved their first ever 1st XV vs 1st XV game against Kearsney this year because they beat Campbell at Campbell in 2014.
DHS 31 St Charles 6
The margin of victory of this match came as a huge surprise as I was expecting this game to be fairly close. I’d watched St Charles take Voortrekker to the cleaners a few weeks back and they looked very good on the ball during that game. Their forwards and backs combined well with the likes of Anderson (8), Mingay (10), Cox (13) and especially Dlamini (15) enjoying good games that day. However this time around on Van Heerden’s Field, they weren’t given the time or space to do anything meaningful, such was the form of the DHS defence. DHS themselves had been really unlucky to lose at Hilton a few weeks ago, after dominating the first half in that game and eventually going down 15-18 due to a long-range penalty kicked over by Hilton’s Blewett (13) at the death. DHS however showed that they are a form team at the moment and one to be reckoned with by beating Northwood 11-6 last weekend. Most of the damage in this SCC game was done in the first half. DHS fullback Peter was outstanding. He beat the man in front of him time and time again using some good footwork and pace. It’s a pity he wasn’t able to show off these skills at KZN trials over the last couple of weeks. The opening try was scored by School’s Ntuli (8) not long after Peter was held up in-goal. When Mingay could not hold onto a rocket pass, DHS flyhalf Le Roux van Zyl capitalised with a kick ahead and follow up that handed him an opportunist try. Later on van Zyl gave one of those trademark perfectly delayed short passes to Buthelezi, which put the inside centre into a small hole and he finished from there. So three tries in a half that ended 21-6. Ntuli scored a second try from a carry started close to the line in the second half to add to an earlier penalty, allowing DHS to complete a comprehensive and well-deserved 31-6 victory.
Maritzburg College 37 Hilton 5
It was College’s 151st Reunion Day and the day was also used to raise funds for Hilton Old Boy Ryan Walker, a former Sharks player who has the same condition as Joost van der Westhuizen.
College was totally dominant for most of the match and Hilton can be thankful that the Red, Black, White lacked killer instinct, which in turn kept the score respectable. The small College halfbacks Matt Seba and Mac van der Linde were afforded plenty of time and opportunity and seemed to feature a lot during the game. Centre Marcel Coetzee enjoyed a good afternoon. The College pack was supreme. Powerful ball-running flank Renard le Roux has been Mr Consistency for College this season, making him one of the best KZN players around in 2014. His outstanding efforts earned him a hat trick of tries.
Hilton supporters have to be worried at the moment. There just does not seem to be a spark in their team. They did not look like they arrived at College with any sort of game plan and even when College took the foot off the pedal, Hilton just did not seem to have the structures in place to mount any sort of fight-back. With depth issues, injuries are not helping their cause either. For Hilton ahead lies a tough finish to the term albeit home games, the opponents are Glenwood, Westville and Michaelhouse, with a potentially tricky away game against Port Natal in the mix. The coaching staff are going to have to work extra hard to lift the spirits of players and instill more confidence in their offence otherwise it looks like Hilton will be dragging themselves over the finish line instead of offering signs that the team has improved during the course of the what was always going to be a difficult season.
Northwood 31 Port Natal 6 (Report by Northwood)
On a windy afternoon Northwood took to their home ground versus Port-Natal. Northwood Knights vs. White Knights.
The game kicked off and within 2 minutes Northwood had worked a try crashing through anything that was in their path. It was looking positive from the get go for the home side and Port-Natal seemed to be in for a long afternoon. Northwood seemed dangerous out wide yet still seemed to keep the ball tight a phase or 2 too many at times. With the wind at their backs the Northwood boys were camping nicely in the half of the White Knights and sitting pretty with a 15-3 lead at the break.
Porties came out firing with well-worked moves, bringing in their speedster number 11 (Karel Terblanche #14) into the game which lifted their spirits. The game then swung back into Northwood’s favor with a try through some good phase play. Some poor effort to get back on side gifted Porties another 3 points making the score 23-6 in the Knights favour. A converted try at the end by Northwood under the poles saw the final whistle go with Northwood winning the game 30-6.
Special mention to try scorers Ngoni Chidoma (1), Greg Slater (4), David Weersma (12 but playing flyhalf) and Durran Krummeck (9). Sassa Makhanya (12) as always adding the extras with his boot.
I watched this game and it was tricky to get flowing rugby because of the wind. I agree that the Northwood centres looked up to the task though. The big Northwood forwards were very strong over the tackled ball, which gave them a platform and from redzone opportunities, their upperbody strength made them very difficult to stop. Porties struggled to assert themselves and they really needed more emphasis around kick returns with the likes of Terblanche and Gaffley running support lines off lifewire fullback Gresse who seemed to have the most chances and spaces in which to launch attacks after fielding kicks.
Monument 30 Glenwood 19 (report by Mike Vowles of Glenwood)
This weekend saw Glenwood travel up to Monument Hoërskool, a game which formed part of the annual Mutual & Federal Inter-schools derby.
Much was expected of this game as both teams have had their position in the top 10 rankings firmly cemented this year.
The game got off to a high tempo start with Glenwood seeming to win the opening exchanges.
A few minutes after kick off a scrum was awarded to the visitors 5 meters from the Monument try-line. Glenwood’s 8th man, Jaco Coetzee, picked up from the base and went hard at the line out-sprinting the cover defence. He crossed over the try line to open his teams’ account as Curtis Jonas did the rest and converted to extend the lead to 7-0.
Monument was quick to respond when they were awarded a penalty inside the Glenwood 22m line just on the 10 minute mark. Monument tapped and set-up a rolling maul which they drove over the try-line and scored to even up the game at 7-7.
The Monument forwards slowly started to take control of the game as they dominated the set piece and much of the breakdown. Their possession advantage was given just reward as they slotted 2 long range penalties to extend the lead to 13-7.
Glenwood responded just before the stroke of half time as they attacked wide from a right hand scrum and scored a great try through some enterprising backline play. The conversion was unsuccessful as the teams went into the half with Monument leading 13-12.
Much of the 2nd half saw Monument continue their forward dominance as they slowly began to make inroads into the Glenwood defence. A try by their inside centre just on the 45 minute mark and another by their 8th man on the 52nd minute mark was enough to seal a win for the home team. Poor defence and lapses in concentration cost the Glenwood side that have prided themselves on solid defence this year. With 20 minutes to go Monument led 30-12.
Glenwood showed great character to come back late in the game and were rewarded with a try by Sphamandla Ngcobo, their outside centre, as he completed a line break from deep within his teams own half.
The try was converted by Jonas as the final whistle went. Monument walked away victorious on the day with the end score sitting at 30-19.
@Gungets Tuft: Couldn’t help but notice that when the DHS U14A, U15A and U16A teams played, their were very few parents of players in those teams watching, as most players were from out of town. Not a healthy situation.
@coach10: A mercenary approach, but I suppose little option in order to be competitive. Representative of the times, but a pity as that sense of community deminishes and they are unlikely to “give back” as much as home grown boys.
Similarly its somewhat sad that we see very few of our own (KZN schooled) playing for the Sharks compared to the old days when we enjoyed a closer affiliation and could identify with players that represented our province.
Yes they are from KZN Midlands and some are from the Eastern Cape. Unfortunately a lot of the boys in DHS are not rugby playing boys and not from a rugby playing culture but more from a cricket playing culture, and that is why DHS has produce the most international cricket players of any school in South Africa by a distance, and the boys in the Durban area who does play rugby get recruited by the private schools, Glenwood and Westville but that scenario might change in future. Biggest problem currently though is that DHS does not have enough boys playing rugby but the new principal Mr Erasmus I believe will improve that aspect.
@coach10: Didn’t last years U14 have about 10 boys from outside KZN?
@HORSEFLY NO.1: Can you perhaps recall a teacher or headmaster at DHS with the surname Schultz? I think I met him, but I cannot recall at whet KZN school he worked.
The last two games will have a very big impact on where those A sides rank in kzn come the end of the season.
Durban based primary schools and from outside Durban as well. The current first team might just cause an upset on Saterday against Kearsney. 15 and 8 are very good but 6 and 7 is a big reason for the success they had over the past three weeks. 10 also had a good game against St Charles. debt in all agegroups an issue.
@coach10: Have noticed the favorable results. Are the players being sourced from DPHS and other local schools?
@coach10: You’re gonna get Ou Jordaan worked up
A sleeping giant is busy to get back to the position they were at long time ago. The DHS under 14, 15 and 16 A sides only lost to Glenwood in the Kzn matches this year. The under 14 side play with pace, the under 15 side is most properly one of the best coached sides in KZN and the under 16 side play with a lot of heart and passion and are motivated by the one player that died in 2013. If the current under 15 side can stay together and can grow as players this team can compete for a top 10 position in 2017. For the next four years expect a competitive DHS.
GO DHS!!!!!
@meadows: I’m not sure how large the school is but I’d guess that the high school has about 180 boys – so three times smaller than Michaelhouse. I think that there are only four rugby teams in the high school.
Of course, being a new school means that it could be growing at a fair rate. However, it is a private school, so I don’t see it getting to the size of House (even) in the near term future because that would mean some 1,100 pupils given that it is co-ed….and the competition amongst private schools is fierce in Gauteng.
@Vleis: How big is the school if they are at that level? i can’t imagine that their rugby is developing appropriately playing weak opposition every week. Ambition is all good and well but as most smaller schools (like Michaelhouse) will attest to it is very difficult to be competitive every year without the depth of numbers. A weak year exacerbated by a few injuries and you will struggle.
@Ballie: @meadows: These boys are english speaking imports from Dale (primarily) and Queens. There are only a handful of english speaking schools in Pretoria and the two main ones (Boys High and St Alban’s) either refuse to accept imports, or do so with far less gusto than Southdowns.
Hopefully the boys are happy at Southdowns, but one thing is certain, they are playing low quality opposition – e.g. Michaelhouse 4th team level. Beet said that perhaps the school (which is quite new) is trying to leapfrog into the upper tiers of rugby, so maybe in five years more people will all have heard of them?
@Vleis: what is the attraction at Southdowns / reason behind this?
@Vleis: i was so intrigued that I had a quick peek at the Bulls sides for the provincial weeks and i see that there are 2 in the CW side and more surprisingly 4 in the GK side. I must admit to being mystified.
@Vleis: That is odd and i would venture highly unusual in today’s landscape. Are these not provincial recruits that have been brought in by the province and placed there for whatever reason? I must say that I have never heard of Southdowns.
@meadows: You have a point, but then there are consistently many Bulls CW, AW and GK players at a school called Southdowns, which plays tier 4 rugby – i.e. the tier below Hillcrest, etc.
@beet: A Rathbone would only be at a bigger school if he was noticed and induced to move which I think is becoming increasingly difficult as the gap between the “tier 1” schools and the others widens.
Perhaps a 2m U15 lock or 100kg+ prop may still catch the eye but it is very hard to stand out as an outside back if you are shipping 50pts every week. The gap is increasingly, IMO, exacerbated by the semi professional set ups at some of the top schools nowadays and the impact that has on skills development and conditioning. I’m afraid that if you are not in the system at a competitive rugby school and ideally involved in the HP structures your likelihood of playing at GK or Craven week and eventually being contracted to play senior rugby is diminishing each year.
@beet: good call- has all the skills to go all the way.
@RBugger: Yikes nothing like a 15-year old example.
Today a Rathbone would probably be at a big school.
There is a fullback at Voortrekker – Juan Luyke. He was at main trials but did not get picked for a KZN team. He’s the sort of player who should give rugby a full go after school. He has many attributes that could still see him making it to the pros one day – size, speed, ball skills
@Seabass @Beet: You can certainly be noticed, just ask Clyde Rathbone – Kingsway Pupil, coed school not very good at rugby.
But he was exceptional and simply dominated at trials back in 99
@seabass: If a clean sweep first round on you?
@beet: Cool! Thanks again for the excellent coverage you give the Clifton games. It is much appreciated and creates an awareness of Clifton rugby amongst the rugby community which is invaluable to our growth and development. Yes, we play Treverton away with an 11:30am kick off. Beerfassel for a late lunch looks like a dead cert…
@seabass: Okay I now understand where you are coming from on this point.
When do you play St Charles? And is Clifton still playing Treverton this weekend?
@Roger:
@beet: Thanks beet. That 13 is talented, hands down. He can go far. I will leave the 8 discussion as requested. I’ve seen a handful of games of that Goodson fella, I just had to question. Brave young man.
@seabass: Should be a cracker of a game… Looking forward to it.
@beet: sure beet I understood that just didn’t want a current or prospective parent reading your report and thinking that a move to a tier 1 school would enhance their boys chances of playing for a kzn side. Done a lot in the last couple of years to ensure that is not the case. Look out for your invite to our compulsory at home against st Charles…
@Roger: The school is situated in a housing estate in Centurion next to Irene.
Sutherland is another all English school that plays rugby in Pretoria. They would struggle against any traditional Afrikaans school.
@Vleis: Yes it’s a new school with tons of money, so I’ve heard.
The puzzling thing for me has been what is their motive. I can understand why a top tier school competing against the best to be the best in their region would see the benefit of pumping money into school rugby but for a small co-ed pvt school like Southdowns that had the posh sport of equestrian on their home page the last time I looked, rugby hardly seems like a viable marketing tool.
Someone put forward a theory that they are ambition rugbywise and big things always have little starts.
With regards to the RU subsidising school fees, I don’t think this happens anywhere in SA to be honest. RU’s just don’t have that kind of money to spend. They have talent scouts and networks. I think they are prepared to partner with schools to find players and in some instances they offer prospective players pocket money but I doubt they will ever be in a position to pay school fees and boarding. That sort of money is ploughed at an increasing rate into senior player contracts, especially with the lucrative GBP, Euro and Yen becoming more and more of a temptation to local players in their prime. So it’s the schools themselves or the old boys or generous 3rd parties that fund the acquired players.
@Roger: I think that the school is on a housing estate in Centurion. I went there about six years ago for a soccer tournament and was quite impressed with the place.
@Vleis: you beat me to it – where the hell are Southdowns anyway?
@beet: the problem for the Bulls is that the English schools in PTA that are decent at Rugger are limited to Pta Boys High and St Albans and neither school buy into this recruiting story (as far as I know) so the Bull’s options are limited for a recruit who wants an English speaking school to attend.
@beet: The Southdowns situation is definitely very strange. To put it into perspective, the teams that Southdowns play against would lose by 50 points to Kloof and Hillcrest.
I think that it is due to a combination of a few factors such as:
1. There are very few English schools to choose from in Pretoria.
2. The biggest English school (Boys High) do not accept such ‘recruits’. This policy may change soon though.
3. Apparently Southdowns offer fantastic scholarships in addition to what is already being subsidised by the Bulls. This is what I’m told anyway.
4. Now that a few boys have made the move, it is easier for others to follow in their footsteps, etc.
@pongola: It’s a pity the game was not at Vories home ground in PMB so that we could make a proper comparison. I’m sure quite a few points get lost by the traveling team in the 240km between Pmb and Vryheid
On a slightly different note earlier this year I made contact with a Southdowns (near Pretoria) rugby official. The idea was to find out from him how they prep boys for CW, AW and GK. Southdowns is basically one of the biggest talented SBR player “recruiting” (sometimes called “poaching”) schools in SA at the moment. As a very small English medium private school they acquire boys of colour from the Eastern Cape who go on to represent the Bulls. The thing is that Southdowns is so small it only had about 3-4 rugby teams when last I checked. These teams compete in the small schools section of the Beeldtrofee and their other fixtures are against other schools who are not known for their rugby achievements. So I was interested to find out how the talented boys were able to make that huge step up from playing interschools games at a level that did not adequately test their abilities to the fullest extent to playing at provincial weeks where the intensity and speed is far greater and where their opponents are their equals in talent, skills and strength. The correspondence didn’t get far as the official seemed annoyed with my line of questioning. From a friend I was later able to find out that at least one of their school players attends courses at the Bulls once a week. I presume this service is provided to all their recruited players in order to keep them sharp and on track to performing well at the age-group youth weeks.
@Playa: The College 13 is u19. He played his first game for College 1sts as an u16 in 2011, so this is his 4th year of experiencing 1st XV rugby.
It’s best not to get into the no.8 discussion again because there are strong feelings about him being overlooked. One thing is for sure, the College style of play brings out the best in him and I think through his praised leadership he brings out the best in his teammates. Apparently he has also had to play with a pinched nerve in the lower back, so lots of courage there.
@seabass: That’s exactly how it has to be put – “misconstrued notions” because the way I intended it “local followers” incorporates more than just the handful of KZN selectors or those in the rugby profession, it’s teachers, coaches, parents, relatives, old boys and even school kids as well who have a keen interest in KZN SBR and an opinion on who the best players are – basically people like myself with no influence other than an opinion. Many of us local followers are linked to top Tier 1 schools and would never have seen a Clifton game at all but via regular annual inter-schools would have seen what the other big schools have to offer in the flank position and would have drawn conclusions from there who the favourites for 2015 ought to be. So I’m saying here’s a kid who would have got that recognition if he played rugby in that circle.
The proof of what I’m saying is on this website. I put up a list of KZN CW hopefuls a few weeks ago. I don’t recall much contesting over who was left out. The list didn’t include a prop from Greytown or a centre from Dundee and it most certainly did not have the name of a Voortrekker no.8 who actually went on to make KZN Schools this year.
All of the above said, there is no getting away from the reality that the chances of being selected for CW from a smaller KZN school is a lot more difficult esp. if a player is not a PDI. No opinion here. That is as close to fact as you get.
@Playa: easy fella
Grogper stands at KZN 1 cup and GEMS 1 cup. Lets see what transpires next year? I cant see any KZN schools beating Jeppe over the next two years and KES will be up there again too – just need Boys High to start pulling their weight again!
pionier beat voortrekker pmb 71-0
I was very impressed by the College half back combination…small men doing big things.The College 13 and 8 must have had shocker trials or the okes picked in front of them for CW are extra special.
On a side note – Make the Grogper Cup competitive, bring in the Afrikaans schools
Vosloo played half a club season for me last year ,before a bad leg injury ended his season. Fantastic rugby player, tough on the field. Plays with loads of heart and a very respectful polite kid off the field! Hopefully he gets higher honours!
@seabass: Good to hear regarding Vosloo, he deserves the opportunity and pleasing that you believe that players from the smaller / lower schools can be noticed.
@McCulleys Workshop: had an inkling…
my comments were aimed at dispelling any misconstrued notions which could have emanated from Beet’s report on our match, particularly, with regard to players with potential not being noticed by the larger rugby fraternity. 
Glad your son is at Clifton, I have 2 sons there and a 3rd which has left already.
@seabass: No disrespect to Clifton, at all, I have a son there, but rather a poke at the nefarious activities in our school community and union.
@Ballie: Vosloo had a poor trial due to a serious shoulder injury and, basically, running himself into the ground on the Saturday before the North Durban trials. He is as good a ball carrier as anyone in the province with serious speed at his disposal. Despite beet’s apprehension, the Kzn selectors are already asking about him and the rugby programme we run will give him the best possible opportunity of playing at the 2015 CW. No need to be at another school…
@Ballie: Has Fynn not approached him with a contract for an extra year at Glenwood?
George Campbell – Clifton well wrapped up. As you say the GC backs looked deadly on attack. Not sizable players, but able to step and cut through the Clifton defence with relative ease, – but did not get enough ball.
Clifton 7 (R Vosloo) once again the stand out player. I’m not sure what transpired at the North Durban Trials, but he should at least have progressed to the 2nd round. The system clearly flawed. Hopefully he gains enough of a solid reputation for at least one of the selectors to wake up and take notice next year.