Author: mbloem

Klein Nederburg roared to a 40-17 win over their rivals, New Orleans, in their Paarl Derby at the Faure Street Stadium, on Saturday.

After five defeats in succession, it was Klein Nederburg’s second win over New Orleans on the trot.

Thanks to the good quality ball won by their dominant pack, Klein Nederburg doubled up New Orleans, crossing for six tries to three.

In Malmesbury, the third time was the charm as Hoërskool Swartland, the losers of their first two matches of the third term, fought back from a 3-5 halftime deficit to run in three second half tries and beat Hoërskool Punt 25-15.

Competing at the breakdown with ferocious spirit, the hosts enjoyed the lions’ share of the possession in the second half, which led to them creating attacking opportunity after attacking opportunity.

Punt mustered three tries themselves, but they gave away costly penalties under pressure from the Swartland forwards.

Flyhalf De Wet van Aswegen led with the boot for the home team, landing two conversions and two penalties, which proved to be one of the big differences in the match.

Next Saturday, Swartland will set their sights on another win when they host Hoërskool Hugenote.

Scorers

Swartland 25 (3) – Tries: Christian Cupido, Daniel Walters, Langley Timotheus. Conversions: De Wet van Aswagen (2). Penalties: De Wet van Aswagen (2); Punt 15 (5) – N/A.

Klein Nederburg 40 – N/A; New Orleans 17 – Tries: Rameez Collins, Le Marc Muller, Wayman Adonis. Conversions: Royston Arendse.

Other Results

U19 – Swartland II 19 Punt II 8.

U16 – Swartland A 20 Punt A 0, Swartland B 7 Punt B 5.

U15 – Swartland A 42 Punt A 0, Swartland B 36 Punt B 0.

U14 – Swartland A 3 Punt A 7, Swartland B 38 Punt B 10.

On Saturday, in Somerset West, Parel Vallei had some questions to answer. Would their match against an in-form Melkbosstrand be full of hard lessons, or would they take another step forward in their evolution?

The Bulldogs‘ 27-6 victory provided a very clear answer.

After a competitive first half against Wynberg Boys’ High a week earlier, Parel Vallei was overwhelmed in the second half, going from 13-21 down at the break to 13-59 down at the end of the game. On Saturday, they bounced back with a strong all-round team performance.

The visitors mustered only six points off the boot of flyhalf Joel Maree.

Meanwhile, Parel Vallei crossed for five tries from five different players. It was a morale-boosting victory for the Bulldogs following the travails of the previous weekend, and it sets them up nicely for their last match of the season, at home, against Gqeberha’s Pearson High.

Tygerberg High returned to winning ways with a 29-12 victory over Strand, in Parow, to the delight of an ecstatic home crowd.

The visitors were unable to get their game flowing against the Tigers, who found their rhythm after a few bumpy outings in the third term.

Next Saturday, Tygerberg travels to Brackenfell, while Strand will be on the road at Milnerton High.

Scorers

Parel Vallei 27 – Tries: Diaan du Toit, Brad Brown, Chris de Jager, Johan van Zyl, Noah Enyang. Conversions: Shudley Rhoda; Melkbosstrand 6 – Penalties: Joel Maree (2).

Tygerberg 29 – N/A; Strand 12 – Tries: Dewald Barnard, Schalk Beukes. Conversion: Jayden Steenkamp.

Other Results

U19 – Tygerberg II 17 Strand II 10, Tygerberg III 17 Strand III 17.

U16 – Tygerberg A 5 Strand A 8, Tygerberg B 14 Strand B 17.

U15 – Tygerberg A 7 Strand A 15, Tygerberg B 0 Strand B 19, Tygerberg C 5 Strand C 34.

U14 – Tygerberg A 21 Strand A 5, Tygerberg B 10 Strand B 34, Tygerberg C 14 Strand C 7.

The underdogs Boland Landbou defeated the hosts, Oakdale Landbou, 34-27 in Saturday’s Farmers Derby at Riverdal.

In defence of the home team, they were without five stars who were on duty for the SA u18 and SA u18A teams in the International Series.

When they met in 2024, Oakdale won 21-13 away from home. The Paarl visitors, though, truly deserved the cheers they received from their supporters when the fulltime whistle blew.

Boland Landbou’s flyhalf and captain, Pieter Bergh, playing without his halfback partner, SA u18 scrumhalf Jayden Brits, delivered an outstanding performance. In addition to his quick distribution of the ball, he knocked over three conversions and a cheeky drop goal to help his team to the win.

It was, however, Jadon Ocks, on the wing who was named the “King of the Match“. In a spectacular game, he went over for a try and did yeoman work on defence, keeping Boland Landbou’s defence secure on the left wing while also competing effectively as an extra flank at the touchline breakdowns.

Replacing five outstanding players proved to be a mountain too high for Oakdale to climb, but they gave it a good shot. While their set-piece was mostly solid, it lacked the domination that it had exhibited all season.

In the backline, flyhalf CT Vosloo really stood up for his side, scoring a try, a penalty and two conversions. Unfortunately for him, it wasn’t enough to overcome a fierce effort from the visitors.

Despite the loss, Oakdale can look back on a phenomenal campaign, which included handing Paarl Boys’ High their only loss, and a win over Paul Roos Gimnasium last weekend.

Much like Paarl Gim last weekend, the Riversdal outfit was frustrated to end a brilliant season with a loss to a derby rival. Meanwhile, like Boishaai, the underdogs in black ended their season on a high note, their morale boosted by a memorable win.

Scorers

Boland Landbou 34 (12) – Tries: Jeandré le Roux, Gehano van Bo, Jadon Ocks, Kody Nell, Diwan Schoeman. Conversions: Pieter Bergh (3). Drop Goal: Pieter Bergh; Oakdale Landbou 27 (12) – Tries: Adrian Smith, Anrich Scheffer, Sine Mdlankomo, CT Vosloo. Conversions: CT Vosloo (2). Penalties: CT Vosloo.

Results

U19 – Oakdale II 26 Boland II 17, Oakdale III 17 Boland III 12, Oakdale IV 20 Boland IV 3, Oakdale V 36 Boland V 10, Oakdale VI 14 Boland VI 21, Oakdale VII 66 Boland VII 12.

U16 – Oakdale A 10 Boland A 27, Oakdale B 10 Boland B 0, Oakdale C 10 Boland C 33, Oakdale D 7 Boland D 26.

U15 – Oakdale A 7 Boland A 14, Oakdale B 24 Boland B 7, Oakdale C 12 Boland C 7, Oakdale D 8 Boland D 3, Oakdale E 7 Boland E 10.

U14 – Oakdale A 22 Boland A 12, Oakdale B 29 Boland B 5, Oakdale C 12 Boland C 12, Oakdale D 36 Boland D 5, Oakdale E 5 Boland E 43.

For a second week in succession, the Faure Street Stadium is going to be abuzz with a Paarl derby, and this time it’s New Orleans against Klein Nederburg, with Saturday’s kick-off at 16:00.

The teams have a decades-long rivalry which has helped the rivals to strengthen their rugby programmes through the generations.

In recent years, New Orleans had become increasingly dominant in the tie. However, after five defeats in succession against their rivals, Klein Nederburg picked up a 5-0 win last year.

Breaking the New Orleans spell in 2024 has only served to dish up further intrigue for this year’s showdown.

Hoërskool Swartland hosts Hoërskool Punt on Saturday at 13:20 in Malmesbury. So far this term, the hosts have lost both their Saturday games, but not by much. They went down 20-25 to Strand and then 20-31 to Hopefield. Punt, meanwhile, earned themselves a whopping 51-7 victory over Oudtshoorn.

The visitors will be a serious threat in all facets of the game when they step onto the A Field on Saturday. They’re playing good, flowing rugby.

Swartland has produced some good periods of play in their recent matches. Their goal will be to sustain those.

A strong start would go a long way towards helping their cause as they chase a victory. If Punt builds up early momentum, Swartland could be in trouble.

Will “third time’s a charm” be the case for Swartland this weekend?

Teams:

New Orleans vs Klein Nederburg at 16:00 in Paarl. 

New Orleans: N/A.

Klein Nederburg: N/A.

Swartland vs Punt at 13:20 in Malmesbury.

Swartland: 15 Skylar Claasen, 14 Enrico Louw, 13 Justin Vermeulen, 12 Daniel Walters, 11 Zaidell Pauhus, 10 De Wet van Aswagen, 9 Dimitrios Boutsikaris, 8 Wessel Neethling, 7 Christian Cupido, 6 James Joubert, 5 Martin Neethling, 4 Jaco van Zyl, 3 Melchior Botha, 2 Langley Timothens, 1 Lamin Bah.

Punt: N/A.

On Saturday, Hoërskool Tygerberg welcomes Hoërskool Strand to Parow for a 12:25 clash. The visitors were beaten 29-24 by an electric DF Malan last Saturday, while Tygerberg fell to a 29-44 loss against Melkbosstrand.

Tygerberg was unable to make their momentum count against Melkbosstrand and that will be a point of focus on Saturday.

If they can play their natural game and establish some early flow, they could challenge Strand, but the visitors have enjoyed, by far, the better season.

Tygerberg, though, has had two weeks to prepare for Strand’s visit. Have they made good use of the extra preparation time? Their execution on Saturday will reveal the answer to that question.

Strand will be confident of victory. If they can withstand the initial assault, then they might be able to take over proceedings in the second half, as they have done in recent matches. The boot of scrumhalf Jayden Steenkamp will also be essential to the visitors’ hopes. He is a calm presence in the side and a trusty kicker when the game is tight.

Milnerton lost 32-36 against Bishops last weekend. They’ll be aiming for a change of fortune when they tackle Stellenberg at 12:30 on Saturday.

It will be a tough challenge. The Jade Brigade enjoyed a hard-earned 18-10 victory over Boland Landbou in their most recent outing.

Milnerton has a bulldozer in centre, captain Morgan Lodewyk. He’s been a brawny but skilful operator, who has troubled opposing backlines all season, frequently creating line breaks and finishing off attacking moves behind the whitewash.

As was seen in their game against Outeniqua two Saturdays ago, Stellies can be stretched and worn down. Lodewyk and company will view that Outeniqua game as a tutorial.

When going through the middle isn’t an option, the boys in blue have a dangerous creative runner in fullback Chadlin Sellidon. He’s got dancing feet and is also an accurate striker off the kicking tee.

Stellies will have to make do without their SA u18 A flyhalf, Ethan van Biljon, who will turn out against Ireland on Friday in Durbanville. That’s a big loss for the Jade Brigade, but they have the depth to remain competitive despite missing their general at number 10.

Milnerton struggled to slow down the Bishops’ lineout mauls, and that is surely an area that Stellenberg will target on Saturday.

Teams:

Tygerberg vs Strand at 12:25 in Parow. 

Tygerberg: N/A.

Strand: 15 Ashton Mitchell, 14 Marquin Smith, 13 Kealan Milton, 12 Lyle Julies, 11 Kyle Steyn, 10 Justin Phillips, 9 Jaydan Steenkamp, 8 Rohan Bezuidenhout, 7 Chrismar Prinsloo, 6 Schalk Beukes, 5 Keagan Coetzee, 4 Joshua Lourens, 3 Timothy van den Bergh, 2 Ruben Paanakker, 1 Christopher Els.

Milnerton vs Stellenberg at 12:30 in Cape Town. 

Milnerton: 15 Chadwin Sellidon, 14 Leo Weber, 13 Sebastien Stroobants, 12 Morgan Lodewyk, 11 Litha Tasana, 10 Zaide Vigeland, 9 Andrew Kansley, 8 Jeremy Armstrong, 7 Joshua Vomberg, 6 Briint Davids, 5 Kgaugelo Mokgobu, 4 Xavier Wolmarans, 3 Dane van der Merwe, 2 Divine Ambrose, 1 Chadley Davis.

Stellenberg: 15 Armand Potgieter, 14 Jason O’ Brien, 13 Luka Tonitz, 12 Daniel Mongie, 11 Christian Arendse, 10 Eben Rademan, 9 Daniel Steffan, 8 Yanos Molnar, 7 Ryan Jones, 6 Regardt Rademeyer, 5 Carlo Brink, 4 Ernst van der Merwe, 3 Jano van Deventer, 2 Liam Joubert, Christiaan Jansen van Rensburg (Captain).

Hoërskool Durbanville hosts Outeniqua on Saturday at 12:50. Two Saturdays ago, Durbanville defeated Brackenfell 45-21, but they’ll be in for a stiffer challenge from the Kwaggas this weekend.

The George school will be full of confidence after overrunning Worcester Gimnasium 45-13 in their most recent outing, thanks to their forward dominance.

To counter the visitors, Durbies will look to their work-horse flanks, Zay-Winn Januarie and Ethan Swartz, to disrupt the opposition attack by making a nuisance of themselves at the breakdowns. Both are also strong ball carriers and scored two each against Brackenfell.

The Kwaggas have a silky-smooth attack. Flyhalf Virgil Pockpas is equally dangerous with the ball in hand and with his boot. He has a deep range of moves which he’ll use to search for cracks in the home side’s defence.

His fellow halfback, scrumhalf Cee-Jay Arends, also knows a thing or two about getting his teammates over the try-line.

Both sides like to play at speed and a game filled with exciting tries would not be a surprise.

Meanwhile In Somerset West, Parel Vallei (PV) takes on the challenge of Melkbosstrand at 12:30. Last weekend, the Bulldogs were outplayed at home, going down 13-59 to Wynberg Boys’ High.

Melkbosstrand won last weekend, scoring a 44-29 win over Tygerberg.

PV is a side on the up, and they will have taken lessons from their Wynberg game in which they trailed only 13-21 at halftime. Melkbosstrand will need to be wary of the backlash the local boys will be focused on dishing out.

The visitors have an athletic backline, with plenty of pace, but they’ll need their forwards to supply good quality ball.

In short, Parel Vallei is in for another tough challenge this weekend. It’s an opportunity, though, for them to show off their evolution. Will they have to learn further lessons, or will they take another step forward?

Teams:

Durbanville vs Outeniqua at 12:50 in Durbanville.

Durbanville: 15 Cole Carls, 14 Michael Shaw, 13 Lourens Rademeyr, 12 Farrel-Leigh Dido, 11 Kyle Doyle, 10 Kyle Albertus, 9 Lorenzo Brogneri, 8 Adrian Freemantle, 7 Tiaan Kearns, 6 Zay-Winn Januarie, 5 Ethan Swartz, 4 Ruan Vosloo, 3 Ruan van Wyk, 2 Juan Smit (Captain), 1 Eli Pedro.

Outeniqua: 15 Jade Peterson, 14 Grant Savage, 13 Schalk van der Merwe 12 Reshaan Damans, 11 Devino Bernardo, 10 Virgil Pockpas, 9 Cee-Jay Arends, 8 Henru Nell (Captain), 7 Bradley Steel, 6 Ruan van Rensburg, 5 Samuel Augustyn, 4 Favian Swart, 3 Zacary Meyer, 2 Luhan van der Sandt, 1 Matthew Prins.

Parel Vallei vs Melkbosstrand at 12:30 in Somerset West. 

Parel Vallei: 15 Shudley Rhoda, 14 Johan van Zyl, 13 Noah Enyang, 12 Tihan van der Colff, 11 Cayde Lucas, 10 Stefhan Niemann, 9 Michael Kent, 8 Bradley Brown, 7 Chris de Jager, 6 Marce Els, 5 James Paxton, 4 Renato Tosi, 3 Cayden Rautenbach, 2 Diaan du Toit, 1 Herman Diedericks.

Melkbosstrand: 15 Waydon Afrikaner, 14 Cole Japhta, 13 Sean Cooper, 12 Arno Visser, 11 Craig Solomons, 10 Joel Maree, 9 Nico Mpoemelang, 8 Ntsika Mtokwana, 7 Zandrich Nel, 6 Samuel Arendse, 5 Melkis Wakazadi, 4 Nico Ndou, 3 Caleb Williams, 2 Deyondre Andrews, 1 Darius Prinsloo.

This Saturday sees a Farmers’ Derby taking place at 12:30, when Boland Landbou tackles a formidable Oakdale Landbou side on “Die Eike“, in Riversdal.

Last weekend, Boland Landbou lost 10-18 to a resilient Stellenberg side. It was a frustrating game for the visitors, not only because it was a loss, but because it was their lowest scoring game of the season.

This weekend, the Paarl farmers will be without their SA u18 scrumhalf, Jayden Brits, who will be on duty in the International Series, which kicks off at Hoërskool Durbanville on Friday, with SA u18 facing France and SA u18A taking on Ireland. That means they’ll have to lean on the boot and playmaking of their flyhalf and captain, Pieter Bergh, even more than usual.

Bergh possesses a good kicking game and Oakdale will need to be aware of their positional play. He’s adept at nailing 50-22 kicks if opposing back threes are out of position.

Oakdale heads into the King Price Derby Series match off a thrilling 21-17 win over Paul Roos Gimnaium. They’ve been in top form this season, one of the most exciting teams in the country, and they’ve been especially lethal at set-pieces. However, that success has left them without SA u18 prop Kai Pratt and eighthman Jacobus de Villiers, and SA u18A lock Diaan Augustyn for Saturday’s showdown. Can they still pull off their set-piece antics without them?

They’ve been so inventive with their lineout moves this season that there’s a chance Springboks’ head coach, Rassie Erasmus, might borrow a move or two for the men in Green and Gold in the forthcoming rugby championship. He previously used set piece moves taken from the Paul Roos U14B side in the recent two-test series against Italy.

Last year, when they met in Paarl, Oakdale claimed a 21-13 victory over Boland Landbou. The difference between the sides might end up being bigger this year, although the players who are missing because of international duty could tilt the balance.

Also, last weekend, the Paarl Derby showed that anything is possible in a derby clash.

Teams:

Oakdale Landbou vs Boland Landbou at 12:30 in Riversdal.

Oakdale Landbou: 15 Mark-Hein Fourie, 14 Myburgh Eksteen, 13 Anrich Scheffer, 12 Andrè van der Merwe, 11 Lee-Winn Pretorius, 10 CT Vosloo, 9 Jandrian Goosen, 8 Lohan Gerber, 7 Adrian Smith, 6 Jannes Snyman (Captain), 5 Liam van den Berg, 4 Rico Ferreira, 3 Francois le Roux, 2 Sine Mdlankomo, 1 Kyle Burger.

Boland Landbou: 15 Gehano van Bo, 14 Aleit Stander, 13 Jason Ocks, 12 Blake de Kock, 11 Jadon Ocks, 10 Pieter Bergh (Captain), 9 Diwan Schoeman, 8 Jacques Retief, 7 Kody Nell, 6 Juan Visage, 5 Jeandrè le Roux, 4 Stephan Griesel, 3 Derico Messina, 2 Wikus Coetzee, 1 Diwan Grobbelaar.

After a few tough losses against difficult opposition in recent matches, SACS found their rhythm and delivered a high-tempo game to defeat Brackenfell 43-25 on the Memorial A-Field on Saturday.

The hosts’ running rugby, which was best exemplified by centre Daniel Grant and wing Josh Gorgens, was a joy to watch, and they both crossed for braces.

It took SACS 15 minutes to open the scoring, and the first points came after they had sucked in the opposition defence at a breakdown just five metres from the visitors’ goal line. When Max Bester sent the ball out wide, Grant rounded the Brackenfell defence, thanks to a three-man overlap.

Momentum was with the home team and by halftime they had opened up a 24-6 advantage.

Brackenfell adapted to the game too late. Their first points came from number eight, Wade Fortuin, who dotted down after a maul from five metres out with 10 minutes to play. They did well to add another two tries before the end of the game, but SACS had long ago ensured their victory.

Next up, on 16 August, SACS visits Rondebosch.

In Ceres, Charlie Hofmeyr hosted Hermanus, and they turned it on for their home fans.

A strong team effort brought Charlies five tries from five different players, while flyhalf Jay Jay Janse and wing Keenan Nathan shared the kicking duties, tacking on 10 points and seven points respectively, to see their side to a 42-27 win.

A good day for the locals began with a fantastic try in the 12th minute. From 10 metres out, scrumhalf Phillip Boshoff feathered a pinpoint cross-kick over the opposition defence and wing Ainsley Prinsloo ran straight onto the ball, collected, and dotted down in the corner.

Charlie Hofmeyr dominated at the breakdown and in the aerial battles, which helped them build up a 25-10 lead after the first 35 minutes.

In the second half, the coastal visitors found their rhythm, putting up much tougher resistance. Within five minutes of the restart, they had twice breeched Charlies’ defences.

Their first five-pointer, scored in the first minute, came from an especially eye-catching period of play. A rip in a tackle jarred the ball loose and Hermanus pounced on the loose ball. Then, scrumhalf Christable Nutt nudged a box kick out wide where wing Elia Stevens claimed the ball off the bounce and ran through for a superb try.

Stung by those quick tries, Charlie Hofmeyr reasserted themselves and made sure of the victory by outscoring Hermanus 17-3 over the last half-hour of the contest.

It was a fun match of rugby, which appeared to be played on instinct a lot of the time. Somewhat chaotic in appearance, it made for very enjoyable spectating.

Scorers

SACS 43 (24) – Tries: Daniel Grant (2), Josh Gorgens (2), Quewinn Lackay, Max Bester, Siphokhanyo Dyanti. Conversions: Mikey Skeeles (3), Rob Boyes; Brackenfell 25 (6) – Tries: Wade Fortuin, Ruan van Tonder, Yibonge Malote. Conversions: Junior Louw, Jean Oosthuizen. Penalties: Junior Louw (2).

Charlie Hofmeyr 42 (25) – Tries: Ainsley Pedro, Keagan Kelly, Ivan Hanekom, Keenan Nathan, Phillip Boshoff. Conversions: Jay Jay Janse (2), Keenan Nathan (2). Penalties: Jay Jay Janse (2), Keenan Nathan; Hermanus 27 (10) – Tries: Jared Hunter (2), Gideon Scheepers, Elia Stevens. Conversions: Giano Da Kosta (2). Penalty: Giano Da Kosta.

Other Results

U19 – SACS II 33 Brackenfell II 14; Charlie Hofmeyr II 5 Hermanus II 10, Charlie Hofmeyr III 3 Hermanus III 5.

U16 – SACS A 89 Brackenfell A 0; Charlie Hofmeyr A 80 Hermanus A 3, Charlie Hofmeyr B 21 Hermanus B 14.

U15 – SACS A 50 Brackenfell A 0; Charlie Hofmeyr A 12 Hermanus A 22, Charlie Hofmeyr B 10 Hermanus B 19.

U14 – SACS A 73 Brackenfell A 0; Charlie Hofmeyr A 24 Hermanus A 28, Charlie Hofmeyr B 0 Hermanus B 47.

Two tries and two conversions from flyhalf Ethan Bester helped DF Malan secure a narrow 29-24 victory over Strand on Saturday.

Last weekend, the visitors edged out Swartland 25-20 when their scrumhalf Jayden Steenkamp landed two key penalty kicks. The roles were reversed in Bellville, with Strand feeling what it was like to come out on the wrong end of the result in a tough match because of the opposition’s halfback.

Just three minutes into the match, the hosts opened the scoring. After passing the ball out wide from a breakdown on the halfway line, wing Diaan Loucas cut inside before being tackled. But he picked out Bester with an offload to his left before he hit the deck. Bester collected and ran in for five.

The rest of the half was a back-and-forth affair between the evenly contested sides with the home team just 12-5 ahead at the break.

In the second half, Strand tried some enterprising variations. They tried passing the ball back and forth between the centres, then tried wrap-around moves.

Ultimately, a 42nd minute pass from the base of the ruck to flyhalf Justin Phillips, down the blindside, led to a line break and a try from the flyhalf. To quote Renaissance polymath, Leonardo Da Vinci: “Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.”

When Strand kept it simple and looked after the basics, they were able to get the better of the DF Malan defence at times.

The home side, though, was resilient and well-coordinated, and they kept possession for long spells of play. That cohesion helped them to withstand the Strand assault and was a key factor in DF Malan coming away with a well-deserved victory.

Meanwhile Hopefield travelled to Malmesbury to play Swartland. Thanks to a hat-trick from lock Nieken Lubbe, the visitors left with a 31-20 victory.

The home side’s flyhalf De Wet van Aswegen enjoyed a good game. He slotted two penalties and two conversions, and his distribution got Swartland’s backline moving at speed, although they couldn’t conjure up quite enough finishes.

The visitors, meanwhile, were clinical when they made 22-metre entries, whether their attack came from open play, or set-pieces. That was the difference between the sides.

It was a second win on the trot in the third term for Hopefield, who cruised to a 46-6 win over Hoërskool Labori on the previous weekend.

For Swartland, it was another frustrating loss after a competitive showing. They’ll aim for their first win of the term when they host Hoërskool Punt next Saturday.

Scorers

DF Malan 29 (12) – Tries: Eben Bester (2), Chris de Jager, Ruan Krugel, Johan Pieterse. Conversions: Eben Bester (2); Strand 24 (5) – Tries: Ruan Bezuidenhout, Justin Phillips, Jayden Steenkamp, Josh Lourens. Conversions: Jayden Steenkamp (2).

Swartland 20 (12) – Tries: Dimitrios Boutsikaris, Melchoir Botha. Conversions: De Wet van Aswegen (2). Penalties: De Wet van Aswegen (2); Hopefield 31 (14) – Tries: Nieken Lubbe (3), Rowan Beaton. Conversions: Jordan Loubser (4). Penalties: Jordan Loubser.

Other Results 

U19 – DF Malan II 26 Strand II 36, DF Malan III 20 Strand III 17; Swartland II 12 Hopefield II 17.

U16 – DF Malan A 17 Strand A 29, DF Malan B 21 Strand B 28; Swartland A 14 Hopefield A 3.

U15 – DF Malan A 3 Strand A 35, DF Malan B 0 Strand B 88; Swartland A 24 Hopefield A 27.

U14 – DF Malan A 7 Strand A 32; Swartland A 20 Hopefield A 22.

The visitors, Bishops – thanks to a hat-trick of tries from their captain Daniel van den Heever – withstood a strong challenge from Milnerton High to win a high-scoring thriller 42-36 on Saturday.

Early on, the hosts snatched the lead, scoring through their captain, centre Morgan Lodewyk, and fullback Chadlin Sellidon, two of their most influential players.

Last season, Milnerton fought back from 10-28 down to score a shock 31-28 win on the Piley Rees, and they appeared to be on course for back-to-back wins over Bishops when they went into the halftime break 31-21 to the good.

Bishops, though, has finished matches strongly throughout the season and that ability to push it hard until the final whistle brought coach Sam Mofokeng his first win with the team in his second match in charge.

Next Saturday, Milnerton faces a stern examination from Stellenberg. Bishops, meanwhile, will prepare for a southern suburbs’ derby against Wynberg on 16 August.

On the Garden route, Outeniqua hosted Worcester Gimnasium in George on Saturday and raced away to a comfortable 45-13 win.

The Kwaggas are renowned for their silky backline skills, but their forwards dominated the game on this occasion, with five of their seven tries going to members of the pack.

Despite being forced to play off of the backfoot, Worcester had their moments. A chip-and-chase from wing Leagon Brooks almost resulted in a try, but when he was brought down only two metres short of the line, fullback Darren Murphy picked up and sniped through the opposition forward pack for an entertaining five-pointer.

Those moments, though, were few and far between for the visitors. Outeniqua dominated all facets of the contest and was 14 points clear at halftime, leading 24-10.

In the second half, the Kwaggas continued to create chances, and that brought them some fine scores, especially a try in the 53rd minute try.

They played themselves to within five metres of the Worcester Gim try line by hitting the ball up through a series of phases. Then, some misdirection from Cee-Jay Arends brought Outeniqua points. Picking up from the back of a ruck, the scrumhalf took a couple of steps sideways before finding prop, Zacary Meyer, with an inside ball. He burst through a gap and the home side increased their total by five points.

Despite the 32-point defeat, Worcester did not have a particularly bad game on defence. They didn’t miss many tackles, but they struggled to prevent the Kwaggas’ forwards from getting over the gain line. They also lost the battle at the breakdown and, too often, overcommitted, which resulted in a lot of space for Outeniqua to exploit.

Scorers

Bishops 42 (21) – Tries: Daniel van den Heever (3), Cole Robyntjies, Max Marr, Boytjie Fyfer. Conversions: Eljaron Geduld (6); Milnerton 36 (31) – Tries: Leo Weber (2), Morgan Lodewyk, Chadlin Sellidon, Zaide Vigeland, Lincoln Corner. Conversions: Chadlin Sellidon (3).

Outeniqua 45 (24) – Tries: Matthew Prins, Keenan Myners, Zacary Meyer, Aldo Gouws, Sirr Lourens, Grant Savage, Hayden Luiters. Conversions: Virgil Pockpas (4), Tyron Marias (no.22); Worcester Gim 13 (10) – Tries: Darren Murphy, Leagon Brooks. Penalty: Lohenzel Tshabatau.

Other Results

U19 – Milnerton II 10 Bishops II 42, Milnerton III 7 Bishops III 49; Outeniqua II 72 Worcester Gim II 5, Outeniqua IV 10 Worcester Gim III 10.

U16 – Milnerton A 10 Bishops A 45, Milnerton B 0 Bishops B 52; Outeniqua A 60 Worcester Gim A 26, Outeniqua B 26 Worcester Gim B 7.

U15 – Milnerton A 15 Bishops A 14, Milnerton B 0 Bishops B 22, Milnerton C 7 Bishops C 45; Outeniqua A 53 Worcester Gim A 7, Outeniqua B 25 Worcester Gim B 17.

U14 – Milnerton A 5 Bishops A 15, Milnerton B 0 Bishops B 22, Milnerton C 0 Bishops C 36; Outeniqua A 50 Worcester Gim A 7, Outeniqua B 38 Worcester Gim B 5.