Author: asawula

The year 2025 is turning out to be a big one for some of South Africa’s leading school hockey players.

Apart from treating spectators to thrilling clashes, scoring outrageous goals, and impressing every weekend, some players have taken it up a notch and are achieving rare feats for their schools.

Just last week, Paul Roos Gimnasium captain, Christo Swanepoel, celebrated playing his 100th game for the school.

Earlier this month, SA u17 star Jehan Abrahams, from Wynberg Girls’ High, also reached the milestone during the All Girls’ Festival in Cape Town.

Fast forward to this week, and a player that will join them in the centurion club is DSG Makhanda’s Abigail Holderness.

Holderness, who is one of the country’s most exciting players, will achieve the feat when leading her side out against Queenstown Girls’ High, at home, on Saturday, at 10:40.

Speaking to SuperSport Schools Plus ahead of the game, she said, “I am feeling excited to play. Any opportunity to play for the girls in green is such an honour.

“I am starting to realise that I am coming to the end of my hockey journey at DSG, so I am grateful for all the opportunities I have had, for the friends, and the fun memories I have.”

Holderness has played an integral role for DSG over the past three years since making her debut in 2022.

Back then, she was in grade nine and first donned the green and white at the Saints Easter Festival. She hasn’t looked back and reached her 50th cap last year against Eunice High School at the Greg Beling Festival, in East London.

“I always really looked up to the first-team hockey girls and always dreamed of playing for DSG since I was a young girl. My first ever game was when I was in grade nine. I was called up to play in the St Stithians Festival. This was a dream come true for me.

“I have loved the culture, my teammates, and being able to improve as a player. It is hard to believe that this chapter has gone so quickly.”

The skipper who always leads by the example she sets, has quite the hockey CV, having represented Easter Province in all age groups and pulled on the green and gold for the SA u17 team last year.

Along the way, she’s also made memories with her sister, Lucy, who reached her 50th cap for DSG along with Jessica Stevens, Mia Jenner, Jocelyn Appel, Megan Plumbridge, and Catherine Bowker, against Pearson High School last week.

She’ll share her 100th cap with Lucy on Saturday morning, and watching along will be her family, head coach Geowynne Gamiet, and others who have helped her achieve the milestone.

“I have loved everything about my hockey journey at DSG. Some of my favourite moments have been playing with my sister, playing high-level schoolgirl hockey, and making new friends.

“I have also really enjoyed the input from my coaches – from Mrs Hibbert in u9, to Mr Gamiet in the first team. I am looking forward to giving it my all in the games to come,” she concluded.

FIXTURES

Saturday, 17 May

10:30 – Woodridge College vs Alexander Road
10:40 – DSG Makhanda vs Queenstown Girls’ High
11:45 – Collegiate Girls’ High vs Kingswood College
13:55 – DSG Makhanda vs Hudson Park

The Paarl Girls’ High first-team hockey side will be out to maintain their winning run when they host La Rochelle Girls’ High School in a Paarl Derby on Friday evening.

On a weekend that’ll see the two rivals do battle in various sporting codes, the first-team hockey fixture, scheduled for 18:00, promises to be one of the highlights.

The sides will enter the clash in contrasting form. Girls’ High will be the more confident outfit after recording a solid 3-0 win over Somerset College last week.

La Rochelle, meanwhile, suffered a closely-contested 0-1 loss against Springfield Convent School on home turf.

Against Somerset, Halle Williams found the back of the net twice for Girls’ High before Charlotte Louw completed the scoring.

That win added to a mixed bag of results recorded by coach Marc Landman’s side so far this season. Before the Somerset triumph, they drew 1-1 with Springfield, llost 0-2 against Oranje, and secured a top-10 finish at the All Girls’ Festival.

They will fancy their chances against a young La Rochelle outfit and will also use the clash as preparation for their last two matches of the term, tough outings against Rhenish Girls’ High and HMS Bloemhof, respectively.

Speaking of Rhenish and Bloemhof, the Stellenbosch powers will also be in action on Friday night.

Rhenish was held to a 1-1 draw by Herschel Girls School last week. They head to Cape Town to face a dangerous St Cyprian’s School team that defeated Parel Vallei 5-2 in their most recent match.

Bloemhof, meanwhile, will take on Reddam House Constantia at home. They’re looking to bounce back after suffering a narrow 1-2 defeat against Paarl Gimnasium last time out.

One of the matches to keep an eye out for in Cape Town, though, will be the meeting between Herschel and Springfield.

Dubbed the “Herschfield Derby“, the sides will reignite their rivalry, and it’s Springfield who will have the home-ground advantage.

Led by coach Ziyaad Ismail, the girls from St John’s Road will be confident after their victory against La Rochelle a week ago, which was decided by a goal from Jenna Kalis.

They’ll be wary, though, of a Herschel side that’s found its rhythm and mojo and has played some fine hockey in recent weeks.

Herschel is one of the few teams that has managed to combat Rhenish this season, and that will boost their confidence. Besides a solid defence, they are strong up front, and they’ll look to last week’s goal scorer, Anna Sherren, to produce her A-game once again.

In other matches around the province, Parel Vallei hosts Somerset College, while Curro Durbanville tackles Westerford High School.

Durbanville has a meeting with DF Malan, and Stellenberg faces Wynberg Girls’ High in a league match.

FIXTURES

Friday, 16 May

16:00 – Curro Durbanville vs Westerford High
17:30 – HMS Bloemhof vs Reddam House Constantia
18:00 – Paarl Girls’ High vs La Rochelle
18:30 – Parel Vallei vs Somerset College
18:30 – Durbanville vs DF Malan
19:15 – St Cyprian’s School vs Rhenish
19:20 – Springfield Convent School vs Herschel Girls School

Saturday, 17 May

10:00 – Stellenberg vs Wynberg Girls’ High

While the Boland powerhouses, Paul Roos Gimnasium and Paarl Gimnasium, will enjoy a rest this weekend, many of the Western Cape’s top hockey teams will be in action on Friday night.

After some scintillating derby action last week, this weekend’s action should be filled with fireworks, based on a mouth-watering fixture list.

Parel Vallei, which was scheduled to face Reddam House Constantia last week, had that clash postponed, but they will return to action against Somerset College on Friday at 19:45.

Coach Michael van Rensburg‘s side last did duty at the Standard Bank Hibbert Shield earlier this month, where they showed off their pedigree against a tough field.

The boys from Somerset West have compiled a strong record thus far and are proving to the hockey community that they’re a team to be reckoned with.

Apart from their 1-4 loss against an outstanding South African College High School (SACS) team, PV has held their own and has regularly captured the spotlight with their eye-pleasing performances.

Captained by JP van der Walt, the boys in blue and white have several standout players who have been raising their hands for provincial selection.

Stephan Malan, Luca Jordan, and, of course, Luka Meets are some of the players one can expect to cause trouble for Somerset College on Friday afternoon.

Van der Walt, and others, including Liyema Jijana and Sashin Pillay, will be keen to make statements with the Boland u18A side for the SASHOC National Week yet to be finalised.

In Somerset College, they’ll go up against a side that’s struggled to find form this season and is desperate for a win.

While that clash takes place in Somerset West, Rondebosch Boys’ High will make the short trip to the Brewery AstroTurf to take on SACS.

‘Bosch and SACS have been the standout teams in the southern suburbs so far this season, with Bishops and Wynberg still trying to find their feet, but rounding into form.

Last weekend, Rondebosch, led by coach Waseem Domingo, defeated Stellenberg High 5-2, while the week before that they beat Paarl Boys’ High 5-1. That was an impressive result against a team that has put together a solid season.

‘Bosch is a team that’s flown under the radar, and they’ll be confident they can take on a high-flying SACS side that posted a 4-1 win over Bishops last week.

In other matches, Wynberg Boys’ High will welcome Paarl Boys’ High to the Astro of Dreams, while Bishops tackles Stellenberg in a league fixture.

Worcester Gimnasium, celebrating their annual reunion, faces Robertson High, while Outeniqua takes on Langenhoven Gimnasium. Curro Durbanville meets Westerford, while the only match on Saturday features Reddam House Constantia in action against DF Malan.

FIXTURES

Friday, 16 May

17:15 – Curro Durbanville vs Westerford High School
19:00 – Wynberg Boys’ High vs Paarl Boys’ High
19:00 – Bishops vs Stellenberg
19:20 – Worcester Gimnasium vs Robertson High
19:45 – Parel Vallei vs Somerset College
20:00 – SACS vs Rondebosch

Saturday, 17 May

10:10 – Reddam House Constantia vs DF Malan

Helpmekaar Kollege‘s first-team hockey side will enter the Aitken Cup with a statement to make and a point to prove following a comprehensive 5-0 victory over Hoërskool Noordheuwel on the past weekend.

In that clash against their rivals, the Helpies dominated ball possession, controlled the tempo of the game, and used their chances to full effect.

That big win was a much-needed confidence booster heading into the Aitken Cup, which takes place from 16 to 18 May at the University of Johannesburg, Wits University, King Edward VII, and St John’s College.

Led by coach Bryan Longbottom, and captained by Juandré Verwey, Helpmekaar will face St John’s College, Noordheuwel, and Northcliff High School in Pool C.

They’ve produced a mixed bag of results this season, but a tournament of the magnitude of the Aitken Cup gives them an opportunity to right their wrongs, said Verwey.

“We’ve had an up-and-down season so far, with a slow start at the Independent Schools Festival and a few disappointing results, especially at KES Fest,” he told SuperSport Schools Plus.

“We would’ve liked to get the momentum going earlier. But the important thing is to stay positive with Aitken and Noordvaal coming up.”

Under coach Longbottom, who is also the school’s Director of Hockey, the Helpies’ programme has gone from strength to strength in recent years.

They’ve pulled off some impressive results and shocks, and their captain had been a part of that journey. An experienced campaigner, he has played over 85 matches for Helpmekaar.

He shared the recipe that’s made them a teams not to be underestimated in Gauteng: “I think the most important thing is that the guys in charge are passionate about hockey and about the school,” he explained.

“In previous years, we didn’t see as much effort put into hockey from directors and coaches.”

Verwey will be assisted with the leadership duties this weekend by Etienne Scott and Henno Steyn.

He said they’ll be taking the tournament one step at a time: “We’re breaking it down into group stages and playoffs. The first objective is to secure our spot in the top eight, then we reassess and go from there.”

Helpmekaar’s campaign begins on Thursday at 16:00 when they face St John’s College at King Edward VII.

TEAM

Ilan Van Wyk, Dian Prinsloo, Alec Brink, Kyle Swanepoel, Alexander Turner, Daniël Roos Henno Steyn (vc), Etienne Scott (vc), Nicholas Hutton, Juandré Verwey (c), Tiaan Van der Merwe, Rogan Van den Berg, Eben van Graan, Kevin Van Zyl, Ewald Haasbroek, Sebastian Kloek, Jean Lubbe, Keanu Nel.

Helpmekaar Fixtures at the Aitken Cup

Thursday, 15 May

16:00 – Helpmekaar vs St John’s College

Friday, 16 May

12:00 – Helpmekaar vs Northcliff
18:00 – Helpmekaar vs Noordheuwel

There was jubilation, excitement, and thrills when the St Stithians College first-team hockey side won the prestigious Aitken Cup in 2023.

Playing at home, in front of a jam-packed crowd, Saints defeated Jeppe High School for Boys 4-2 on penalties after their clash had ended tied at 2-2.

It was a momentous occasion, not only for the players and school but also for the alumni, parents, and the Saints’ community, who had last witnessed their side claim the trophy in 1975.

After 48 years, they had broken that drought. However, St Stithians was not about to rest on their laurels. They wanted to go back-to-back in 2024.

They were drawn in a tricky pool and were done in by a slow start to the tournament, which dampened their chances of progressing to the knockout stages.

As a result, Saints finished ninth, behind Helpmekaar College, St Benedict’s College, and Trinity House Park Randpark Ridge, while Jeppe won the title after beating Parktown Boys’ High in the final.

This year, Saints is hungry to make a statement and to prove that they are one of the top teams in the country.

Led by coaches Miguel da Graca and Pat Owgan, the Saints Knights have put together a strong season, despite falling to a narrow 3-4 defeat to a high-flying Jeppe team in their season opener.

St Stithians has run rampant since that loss and they dominated at their home festival, the Saints Fest, going unbeaten before finishing an impressive fifth at the Standard Bank Hibbert Shield.

A player who has been crucial to their early-season success is forward Aidan Blatch. The lanky striker, who owns a powerful shot and vicious drag flick, has been their talisman all season long, finding the back of the net with relative ease and causing headaches for many teams.

He scored an insane hat-trick against Hilton College at Saints Fest before introducing himself as one of the players to watch at the Hibbert Shield.

His performances in Gqeberha helped Saints record an emphatic 5-2 win over Grey College in the playoff for fifth-place.

“I feel like Hibbert was nice, even though we didn’t play the type of hockey we wanted to play,” Blatch told SuperSport Schools Plus.

“I think we started very slowly, and that put us on the back foot, but we played very well, especially the last few games.”

Blatch was involved with the Saints’ team in 2024 and also represented Southern Gauteng at the SASHOC National Week in Bloemfontein.

It wasn’t one of his better seasons, though, as he struggled to find form and rhythm. He revealed how he changed his fortunes: “I’m very happy with how I’m playing now. It’’ way better than what it was last year,” he opened up.

“Last year, I lacked confidence. I was getting frustrated and mentally I wasn’t switched on, and this year, I’ve fixed that.

“I’ve also worked on my flicking a lot, and I’ve improved in that area. I’m just glad that I’m stepping up and helping the team this season.”

While Blatch is grabbing the headlines week in and out, his performances and the types of goals he scores wouldn’t be possible without the help of his teammates.

Jason Joiner, who is age only 16, has been distributing some juicy balls from the back, and they’ve remained solid in defence, with Dihian Naidoo and Angelo Dimitriadis playing well.

Skipper Liam O’Flaherty, along with Thomas Robinson and Dylan Burger, has also scored some fine goals and, from time to time, they make Blatch look good.

“Look, I think my teammates have been really good,” Blatch said with enthusiasm.

“I’ve been impressed with our defence so far this season. We conceded minimal goals, and that stepped up everyone’s mindset. They’ve given me the ball in the right areas, and they make it easy for me to play.”

After impressing in their Easter festival, Saints would also have received a big boost from their performance at the Hibbert Shield, while facing the toughest lineup at any event this season. Now, they’re eager to capture the Aitken Cup. Blatch believes they’re in the form of their lives and Saints could go on and win the whole thing.

“Our team goal is definitely aiming to win Aitken. I think we are one of the best teams in Johannesburg, and we have a good chance of winning it,” he reckoned.

St Stithians has been drawn in Pool A with Jeppe, HeronBridge College and Trinity Park.

TEAM:

Joshua Smith, Dihian Naidoo, Jason Joiner, Angelo Dimitriadis, Matthew Douglas, Ross Mountford, Liam O’Flaherty, Thomas Robinson, Dylan Burger, Aidan Blatch, Thomas Venter, Simon Meiring, Thomas Becker, Thomas Collins, Sebastien Pousson, Gofaone Msagala. 

Saints Fixtures at Aitken Cup

Thursday, 15 May @Wits AstroTurf

15:00 – St Stithians vs Heronbridge College

Friday, 16 May @Wits AstroTurf

07:30 – St Stithians vs Jeppe High School for Boys
15:00 – St Stithians vs Trinity Park

St John’s College first-team hockey captain, Owethu Sishuba, is relishing the chance to lead his side out when they do battle at the Aitken Cup this weekend.

The prestigious tournament, which pits Johannesburg’s top sides against each other, runs from 16 to 18 May at the University of the Witwatersrand, with some matches also taking place at King Edward VII (KES).

Playing in the A-section of the tournament, St John’s will set their sights on going two steps further after they took home bronze in last year’s event.

They have been drawn in Pool C with Helpmekaar Kollege, Northcliff High School, and Hoërskool Noordheuwel.

“It’s exciting times for us as a team, and at Aitken, we want to compete with the best of the best and to be considered as such,” Sishuba told SuperSport Schools Plus.

“In terms of our goals, we want to take the competition game by game and keep on improving as we progress. The aim is to yield positive results for the team and the school.”

The task of doing well at Aitken will be more felt by coaches Gilbert De Villiers and Anthony Woodhouse, who are on a mission to take this St John’s outfit to the next level.

They’ve had a decent run so far this year and produced some good performances at the Nomads Hockey Festival in March.

Their last outing, though, was a disappointing 0-3 loss against St Andrew’s School, in Bloemfontein. Despite that defeat, Sishuba said he’s pleased with the progress the team is making.

“That loss to St Andrews was hard, but, as always, I and the team are eager to get back onto the Astro and to prove ourselves. Our season has been good in that we’ve built on the foundations laid last year by our coach, Mr De Villiers, in his first year.

“With that said, there is still a lot that we can improve on, and more importantly, there are still a lot more opportunities to do so.”

The Blues, as they are known, will enter the tournament as one of the underdogs, with Jeppe High School for Boys, St Stithians College, and KES the leading contenders in the eyes of many.

Sishuba, however, isn’t too concerned about outside noise and wants his side to focus on the job and improve on last year’s outing.

“For us, this tournament is the pinnacle of schoolboy hockey, and after just falling short last year, being in an Aitken final and winning it is the goal this season.

“You can expect us to play hard and play for the badge. No matter the result, our boys have been trained to play with grit and play until the end.

“We don’t play for ourselves. We play for the badge, so I think when you have a mindset like that, it’ll be hard for teams to break us down,” he concluded.

St John’s will open their challenge against Helpmekaar Kollege on Thursday, at 16:00, at KES.

St John’s fixtures for the Aitken Cup

Thursday, 15 April @KES

16:00 – St John’s vs Helpmekaar Kollege

Friday, 16 May @Wits

10:30 – St John’s vs Hoërskool Noordheuwel.
16:30 – St John’s vs Northcliff

TEAM

Owethu Sishuba (c), Siza Gule (vc), Connor Cooper (vc), Kamogelo Thobejane, Andrew Turck, Dylan Viljoen, Daniel Chemaly, Max Pitman, Michael Stubbs, Ben Nagel, Tapiwa Mutetwa, Connor Mackenzie, Alec Loveland, Motheo Mparutsa, Scott Bray, Alan McFerren, Khanya Lebina, Kevin Van Vught.

Schoolgirls’ hockey action returned with a bang in the Western Cape on the weekend, with three top sides, Rhenish Girls’ High School, Paarl Gimnasium, and Hoër Meisieskool Bloemhof, all taking to the turf.

Much was expected from Rhenish and Bloemhof, who fell short in the All Girls’ Festival a week prior, while Paarl Gim was brimming with confidence after their Belgotex Sport Girls Hockey Challenge triumph.

The Gim girls, coached by Danelle van Zyl, made the short trip to Stellenbosch to face Bloemhof in an eagerly anticipated clash

It was a tough and tightly contested affair between the rivals, but the final result favoured the girls in green and gold, who came away with a 2-1 victory.

Imke Koegelenberg scored a tap-in goal early on, before Anya Swanepoel, who has caused havoc from penalty corners this season, sealed the win with a penalty stroke late in the game.

Paarl Gim will have a bye this coming weekend before returning to action against Parel Vallei.

While Gim enjoyed their victory, Rhenish was held to a 1-1 draw by Herschel Girls School on home turf.

Coach Chris Gerber’s side dominated most of the match and created multiple opportunities, but they failed to take advantage of them. 

Pippa Viljoen’s strike for Rhenish was cancelled out by a reply from Anna Sherren, and there was nothing to separate the sides when the final whistle sounded.

Meanwhile, Paarl Girls’ High recorded a comfortable 3-0 win over Somerset College. Coach Marc Landman‘s side took the victory on the back of Halle Williams’ brace and a goal from Charlotte Louw.

Springfield Convent School was the other big winner on the weekend after they defeated La Rochelle, in Paarl. Jenna Kalis found the back of the net, scoring the all-important only goal of the contest for the Cape Town school. The victory will boost Springfield’s confidence ahead of a meeting with Herschel this coming weekend.

St Cyprian’s School continued their strong season with a 5-2 win over Parel Vallei, while Fairmont High was held to a 2-2 draw by DF Malan. In Mossel Bay, Hoërskool Outeniqua pulled off an impressive 3-2 win over Hoërskool Punt.

RESULTS

Rhenish 1-1 Herschel
Springfield Convent School 1-0 La Rochelle
Hoërskool Outeniqua 3-2 Hoërskool Punt
Rustenburg Girls’ High 0-0 Durbanville
Paarl Girls’ High 3-0 Somerset College
Fairmont High 2-2 DF Malan
Paarl Gimnasium 2-1 Bloemhof
St Cyprian’s School 5-2 Parel Vallei

The term “Baker Ball” is one that hockey enthusiasts, parents, and Paul Roos Gimnasium (PRG) supporters have become accustomed to in Stellenbosch over the past year or so.

It describes the type of hockey PRG head coach and Director of Hockey, Michael Baker, wants his side to play.

It might sound complicated, but Baker himself would argue otherwise and tell you that his style of play is based around good defence, moving the ball quickly, having players who can run fast, pressing teams, and capitalising when opportunities are created.

That style of play was in motion on Friday night when they rolled to a dominant 6-2 victory over Paarl Gimnasium at the Maties AstroTurf.

It was a masterclass by the boys from Stellenbosch, who entered the game after claiming bronze at the Hibbert Shield, in Gqeberha, the week before.

Paarl Gim also has a strong side this year and they took home silver at the Hibbert Shield, so it was a showdown between two of the top sides in the country.

The occasion held extra significance for the home side, who made a guard of honour for their skipper, Christo Swanepoel, to celebrate his 100-plus games for the school.

He achieved the milestone at the Hibbert Shield against Maritzburg College, but, back at home, a special jersey handover was shared in front of his schoolmates, parents, and spectators.

Then, it was on to the game and Paarl Gim made a good start, with Ryan van der Merwe opening the scoring in the first chukka.

While it gave the visitors the lead, that goal also sparked Paul Roos to life and they quickly replied with two goals of their own, through Ruan Strauss and Caleb Cilliers, to take a 2-1 lead into the half-time break.

PRG kicked into gear in the third chukka, and when Seth Paterson and Callum van Oudtshoorn linked up to put Cilliers on goal, the home team looked well in control of the contest.

Gim has a never-say-die attitude, though, and they pulled one back through Stefan Wiehahn, who struck from the top of the D.

With a slim one-goal lead, Paul Roos lifted their intensity in the fourth chukka and that brought about rich rewards.

Van Oudtshoorn, who was a key conduit between the backs and forwards throughout the game, finally got his name onto the score sheet, and Charlie Boucher followed suit to make it 5-2.

That goal was especially meaningful. It was Boucher’s first in two-and-a-half years after he was ruled out of action because of a serious injury when he was playing u14 hockey.

Appropriately, Paul Roos skipper Christo Swanepoel completed the goal-scoring to seal an emphatic 6-2 win for the home side.

“It was a weird week in the build-up because I felt we didn’t do much wrong at Hibbert. I thought my boys played well,” coach Baker told SuperSport Schools Plus after the game.

“We just played against a really good team in the semis and lost to them in shootouts. But with the energy and chats going around, we were all of a sudden underdogs against Gim, so it wasn’t hard to find motivation.”

While PRG might’ve lent more on individual brilliance in the past, the 2025 side’s calling card is their teamwork, and that’s something that had pleased Baker.

“I’m proud of my boys because that performance represents how hard they work and how good they can be on their day,” he said.

“Again, we are getting some good results, and no one can pinpoint which individuals stand out for us because we truly are playing well as a unit. Just super proud of my boys.”

PRG will next shift their focus to Paarl Boys’ High, a much-improved team, who suffered a close 2-3 loss against Grey College on the weekend.

Paarl Gim, meanwhile, has a bye before returning to face Parel Vallei later this month.

CLICK HERE TO VIEW OTHER BOYS’ RESULTS FROM THE WESTERN CAPE.

A week after scoring four goals in the final of the Hibbert Shield, Reece Theunis netted a hat-trick to continue his fine form and help South African College High School (SACS) to a 4-1 victory over Bishops at the Woodlands AstroTurf, in Cape Town.

The southern suburbs showdown was one of the standout treats on a tasty menu of Hyundai Friday Nite Lights matches, and both sides put on a show for the spectators on a chilly and cold evening.

SACS entered the clash with their tails up after winning the Hibbert Shield and then thumping Stellenberg High School 9-0 in a midweek clash.

Bishops, meanwhile, was still recovering from their 13th-place finish in Gqeberha, but they had a plan in place to combat their rivals’ dangerous attack.

That plan, which was laid out by head coach Ryan Julius during the week, was in full motion in the first chukka as the hosts kept SACS scoreless.

Bishops, instead, had a golden opportunity to snatch the lead when Litha Mbiko found himself in space against the run of play, but his shot went wide of the mark.

That missed chance came back to haunt the home side in the second chukka when Theunis struck twice within the space of six minutes.

For the opener, he picked the ball up inside the circle, turned, with no defenders in sight, and slammed it into the back of the net. The forward soon doubled his tally, which meant SACS took a 2-0 lead into the break.

Bishops was still in the game, though, and they took it to SACS in the second half.

Despite not scoring in the third chukka, they became more assertive in attack and showed fight. Then, in the fourth quarter, they were awarded a penalty corner and James Robb-Quinlan fired a thunderbolt past Ethan October to pull one back for his side.

Instead of piling on the pressure after scoring, though, the hosts allowed SACS to take control of the game, and when Theunis completed his hat-trick, the result looked done and dusted. Mohlodi Maseko linked up with Litha Kraai for a fourth goal to complete the scoring.

It was a strong showing from a young Bishops team, and coach Julius will be pleased with what he saw as they continue to rebuild.

Meanwhile, Rondebosch Boys’ High was at home to Stellenberg and posted a 5-2 win. Martin Barnard netted twice, while Daniel Fisher, Tom Gordon, and Ben Hartman added their names to the scoresheet.

Fairmont High School put together a comfortable 3-0 win over DF Malan in their backyard, while Hoërskool Durbanville put five past Reddam House Durbanville, who scored once.

In Mossel Bay, Hoërskool Outeniqua played to a 2-2 draw with Hoërskool Punt.

Grey College edged out Paarl Boys’ High 3-2, and Paul Roos Gimnasium ran rampant, scoring seven against Paarl Gimnasium in Stellenbosch, with the Hibbert Shield finalists mustering two goals in reply.

RESULTS

Hoërskool Outeniqua 2-2 Hoërskool Punt
Hoërskool Durbanville 5-1 Reddam House Durbanville
SACS 4-1 Bishops
Paul Roos Gimnasium 7-2 Paarl Gimnasium
Rondebosch Boys’ High 5-2 Stellenberg High School
Grey College 3-2 Paarl Boys’ High
Fairmont High School 3-0 DF Malan