Author: wilouw

Die tweede jaarlikse Izintaba Potchefstroom Gimnasium-Krieketfees speel oor die volgende vier dae in Potchefstroom af, waar 18 spanne van regoor die land saamkom om mekaar die stryd aan te sê in die grootse 50 beurt-witbalkriekettoernooi vir skole in Suid Afrika.

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Die spanne is:

Potchefstroom Gimnasium: Marnu Cronje, Tommie Botha, Caiden Seleka, Ewald Kruger, James Wood, Zavier van Rensburg, Righardt Joubert, Phillip du Plessis, Christian Viljoen, Stefan Fourie, Ruan Lotz, Margeo Joubert, Jonathan Eybers.

Affies Uitnodiging: Antonie Fourie, Arne Prinsloo, Divan de Vries, Rivan Ras, Dylan Koegelenberg, Henre Smith, Janro de Bruin, Ronan Cilliers, Rylan Seymore, SF Vermeulen, William Burgess, Zirk Meyer.

Boland Landbou: Stefan Conradie, Marius du Plessis, Lyle Lewis, Ben la Grange, Lohann Louw, Francois Prins, Henre Swart, Jeanro Minnaar, Tiaan Ryke, Rynard van der Schyff, Jan Albert van Niekerk. Janco Visagie.

Hoërskool Brackenfell: Jeandre Limby, De Wet Willemse, Teagan Welff, Dawson Lombard, Aidan Barnardo, Jean Oosthuizen, Keanan Rheeder, Luke Hattingh, Antonio Jasson, Franco Kitching, Brett Smith, Nicholas Geldenhuys.

Hoërskool Durbanville: Jan Kriel, Pierre du Toit, Henry Venter, Divan Bosman, Elandre Pienaar, Tobie Roelofse, Xander van Aarde, Calla du Toit, Hugo Bredell, Jaco van Eeden, Albertyn du Bois, Liam Kirsten.

Dr EG Jansen: JP van Staden, Henri Coetzee, Jean Novellie, Rico Crouse, Liam Green, Jazz Jones, Andre Pretorius, James van der Merwe, Jaco Engelbrecht, Egan Pretorius, Jayden Marcus, Dale Slabbert, Zander Lubbe.

Glenwood: Rehaan Jhungbathur, Isa Mohamed, Leighton Bosman, Kenzo Mchunu, Hercelle Oosthuizen, Ntando Vezi, Braigen Yunni, Devarsh Govender, Suhael Sogan, Akhil Maharaj, Zi Gumede, Jordan Steyn, Akshay Brijmohan.

Helpmekaar: Hannu Marais, Daylan Greyling, Juandre Verwey, Kevin Oliver, Anthony Stone, Aiden Pretorius, Jean Lubbe, Dihan Janse van Rensburg, Zander Neethling, Henno Steyn, Christo Lombaard, Stefan Lottering, Juwan Wessels.

Hans Moore: Marno Grobler, Slade Mowbray, Xavier Coetzee, Kenan Shaw, Jaco Smit, Warren Minnaar, Adrian Watson, Zander Swart, Adam Kruger, Ettiene Smith, Henre Eveleigh, Sahil Parbhoo, Marthinus van Vreeden.

Hoërskool Klerksdorp: Brink von Willigh, Winton Abrahams, Brendan Mathyse, Benrie Fourie, Donavin Payne, Morne Lotter, Stephan Janse van Rensburg, Raykie van Rooyen, Mohammed Bulbulia, Tumelo Macumi, Dandre Slabbert.

Monument: Waldo Greyling, JD Landsberg, Ibrahim Haffeljee, Caleb dos Santos, Tshepo Mlambo, Innocent Ramerafe, Antoni van Niekerk, Rieghardt Prinsloo, Johan Zeedijk, Riyan Driver, Werner Durrheim, Nicholas van der Colff, Joshua McCoy.

Marais Viljoen: Tian du Toit, Aldre Huyzers, Cayden Ramage, Declan Botes, Jaden Govender, Connor Meistre, Jordan Baijnath, Ryan Montanus, Abdullah Tadwala, Tristan Thom, Ruben Kruger.

Northwood: Connor Leclezio, Anay Valjee, Alistair Duncan, Tuswa Pheta, Tayur Devjee, Matthew van Zyl, Nathan Maher, Jordan Matthews, Ben Cilliers, Luke Allen, Pride Buthelezi, Matthew Norton, Ross McGlashan, Kagan McMeekin.

Hoërskool Rustenburg: Hendré Robinson, Henré Viljoen, Reagan Smook, Jandré Lottering, Logan Rossouw, Nathan Rossouw, Wesley Bruwer, Marnus de Witt, Henno Smith, Callie Fryer, Tristan van der Linde, Thian Labuschagne.

Stellenberg: Roux Wasserman, Mortie Viljen, Yiva Dwaleni, Arno Koen, Kyle van Santen, Wilhelm Smet, JJ Rothman, Ryan Jones, Jan-Jak Alberts, Michael Amoedo, Lohann Pretorius, Liam Fourie.

Hoërskool Trio: Thuto Kekane, Myburg Jacobs, Jeandre Vosloo, WJ van Niekerk, Dylan Young, WJ van Niekerk, Aaron Kriek, Herman Kleynhans, JP Botha, Louis Boahoff, Henrico van der Merwe.

Voortrekker (Bethlehem): Wean Claasen, JD van Dyk, Cecil Parsons, Andre Heunis, Joel Coetzee, Craig Mann, Wian Fourie, Hendrik Jansen van Rensburg, Christiaan van der Sandt, Thys Parsons, Theo van Wyk, Handre Fourie, Juan Theunissen.

Westville Boys’ High: Thomas Jee, Armaan Ramsaran, Bhasjar Sewlal, Seth Simpson, Luke Maxwell, Sekou Shangase, Chad van Breda, Ammaar Hendricks, Brandon Wild, Heath Stott, Yusuf Karodia, Roxton Payne Ronav Pillay.

 

Free State has been crowned champions in Bloemfontein after defeating the Sharks in a final that lived up to all of the drama and excitement of the 2023 Interprovincial Sevens Tournament.

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The Free State team, made up of mostly Grey College players who would have been at ease on their home turf, saved their best performance of the tournament for the final to beat the Sharks by a single point, 15-14.

The Sharks looked set to reclaim the trophy they won in 2019 after having been forced to hand it over to Eastern Province last year.

The boys from the KZN moved through the group stages unbeaten, seeing away with an exciting Boland team by 26-19 and scoring 91 unanswered points in their next two games against the Limpopo Blue Bulls and the Griffons Invitational team.

Free State struck early in the final though, with Junior Titoti, from Fichardtpark, drawing the first blood and Grey College’s Philip Mclaren following up with another try to give the hosts a 10-0 lead.

Mathew Fick reduced the deficit to three points just before halftime when he scored a brilliant individual try from his own half.

The Sharks were smelling blood in the second half and had the locals under pressure, but Grey College’s Ruben Cilliers scored to give the Free State a much-needed buffer.

The visitors kept asking questions of the Free State defence until the Westville Boys’ High flyer, Zekhethelo Siyaya, finally got over to get the Sharks to within a single point with about 30 seconds left to play.

The Free State boys managed to control the ball from the kickoff though and saw out a big victory to claim the sevens bragging rights for the next year.

Mclaren was phenomenal in the final, and his captain Liam Santos and their hot-stepping teammate, Alzeadon Felix, who are both also from Grey, were among the standouts in the Free State team throughout the tournament.

The road to the final was less glamorous for the champions, they were caught out by Griquas in the pool stages by 20-12. The Griquas also held the Blue Bulls to a 17-all draw and missed out on qualifying for the Cup quarter-finals on points difference alone.

Boland made the Free State sweat in the semi-finals.

Last year’s runners-up from the Boland played brilliantly to keep the hosts busy in the penultimate round, coming up just short by 12-10.

The Lions cut the Blue Bulls’ campaign for the cup short in the quarter-finals but were no match for the Sharks in the semis.

The team from Pretoria went on to win the Plate by beating Eastern Province comfortably by 31-5 and the Lions finished third overall after finishing on a high against Boland by 26-10.

The matchups and rivalries were equally exciting right through the rankings.

Even in the playoffs for third place in the Shield divisions, the Falcons beat the Free State Invitational team in an epic rematch of their battle during the group stages, with the Falcons increasing their margin over the Free State second team to 38-17 after their pool match was decided by only two points.

All the results:

Pool Stages

Pool A: Eastern Province 17, Leopards 14; Golden Lions 36, Namibia 5;  Golden Lions 33, Eastern Province 12; Leopards 17, Namibia 7; Eastern Province 40, Namibia 12; Golden Lions 42, Leopards 19.

Pool B: Sharks 26, Boland 19; Limpopo Blue Bulls 33, Griffons Invitational 19; Boland 45, Griffons Invitational 0; Sharks 45, Limpopo Blue Bulls 0; Boland 31, Limpopo Blue Bulls 10; Sharks 46, Griffons Invitational 0.

Pool C: SWD 41, Falcons 0; Free State Invitational 17, Griffons 7; Griffons 19, SWD 12; Falcons 19, Free State Invitational 17; SWD 24, Free State Invitational 18; Griffons 31, Falcons 12.

Pool D: Free State 26, Blue Bulls 14; Pumas 19, Griquas 12; Blue Bulls 31, Pumas 12; Griquas 20, Free State 12; Blue Bulls 17, Griquas 17; Free State 29, Pumas 12.

Quarter-finals

Bowl: Pumas 27, Leopards 0; Griquas 45, Namibia 22; Limpopo Blue Bulls 38, Falcons 17; Griffons Invitational 33, Free State Invitational 14.

Cup: Golden Lions 19, Blue Bulls 14; Free State 22, Eastern Province 0; Sharks 17, Griffons 0; Boland 33, SWD 5.

Semi-finals

Shield: Leopards 24, Falcons 10; Namibia 5, Free State Invitational 0.

Bowl: Limpopo Blue Bulls 12, Pumas 10; Griquas 22, Griffons Invitational 17.

Plate: Blue Bulls 38, Griffons 12; Eastern Province 26, SWD 7.

Cup: Sharks 31, Golden Lions 14; Free State 12, Boland 10.

Finals

Shield: Leopards 31, Namibia 19; (Third place) Falcons 38, Free State Invitational 17.

Bowl: Limpopo Blue Bulls 43, Griquas 7. (Third place) Pumas 33, Griffons Invitational 5.

Plate: Blue Bulls 31, Eastern Province 5; (Third place) SWD 21, Griffons 17.

Cup: Free State 15, Sharks 14; (Third place) Golden Lions 26, Boland 10.

The local teams still have the upper hand after the third day of the Cape Schools Festival.

Grey High from Gqeberha and St Andrews from Bloemfontein are the only two visiting teams who managed to get a victory on the third day.

This year’s hosts, Paul Roos Gimnasium, kept their unbeaten record at the festival alive with a victory against Pearson and Diocesan College, Rondebosch Boys’ High, Wynberg Boys’ High, SACS and Somerset College also added another win to their campaigns.

After coming up short against Selborne on the second day, Parel Vallei returned to winning ways against Union.

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Diocesan College scored 327/7 in 50 overs, with James Robb-Quinlan and Calum Daniels both achieving centuries and Stan Stavely-Alexander getting to 51.

Robb-Quinlan scored 133 from 107 deliveries, with nine huge sixes along the way and Daniels got to his 101 off 105 balls with 13 boundaries.

They then bowled Selborne College for 72 to send a message to the rest of the competition with another big 255-run victory. This comes after the Bishops boys also saw away with Queen’s College on the second day by 187 runs.

Payton Leigh took four wickets, conceding only nine runs and Tiaan Louw wreaked havoc among the openers, getting a hattrick for Diocesan College.

Selborne was the only visiting team that won on day two when they beat Parel Vallei, but the boys from East London were no match for Bishops on the third day.

Despite another strong innings by Pearson‘s captain, Jayden Groenewald, to get to 53, Paul Roos Gimnasium had no trouble chasing down the 146 total, with Josh Jordaan adding 55 as they cruised to a comprehensive victory by eight wickets.

Rondebosch Boys’ High continued with their strong batting form, putting up 254 against Graeme College which they were able to follow up with three braces by Jordan Neill (2/14), Declan Gillespie (2/17) and Raeeq Daniels 2/25 to dismiss the visitors in 40 overs, leaving them 79 runs short.

Litha Kraai had a five-wicket haul for only 13 runs in SACS‘s victory over Dale College. The SACS boys got all 10 of the visiting batsmen out for only 61, a total they managed to chase down with six wickets left.

The visiting Grey High, from Gqeberha, saw away with Paarl Gimnasium with a whopping 146 runs.

Michael Molenaar‘s 75 helped the Grey boys to a 270/7 total, but it was the fast bowling of Ben Ristow that shook the Gimmies, taking four wickets to help his team bounce back after their narrow nine-run loss to Wynberg Boys’ High on the second day.

At the same time, Paarl Boys’ High were putting up a valiant effort against St Andrews from Bloemfontein but came up tantalizingly close, losing by six runs.

It was a game for the bowlers, with Boishaai’s Christiaan Bourbon-Leftley taking three wickets as they bowled out the boys from Bloemfontein for 155.

Saints’ JC Young and Schalk Liebenberg showed they could repeat the trick, taking it even further. Young took 5 wickets for only 19 runs and his captain, Liebenberg, took four more for 38.

Somerset College is the only team with three victories at the event so far, having won the only match that took place on the first day when they beat Outeniqua and then following up with more success on day two against Dale College.

They continued building on their momentum with another impressive showing against Queen’s College.

Dion Claassens dismissed four Queens batsmen to help contain the visitors to a chaseable 135.

Mbasa Thomas then made the boys from Somerset sweat, taking six wickets for only 39, but his teammates were unable to apply the same pressure and the locals made it three from three at this year’s event.

Summarised Scorecards (Day 3, 50 Overs):

Diocesan College 327/7 (James Robb-Quinlan 133, Calum Daniels 101, Stan Stavely-Alexander 51, Extras 28; Thomas Marais 2/44, Yolisa Qoboshiyane 2/50); Selborne College 72 (Jacques van der Merwe 27, Hayden McKay 21; Payton Leigh 4/9, Tiaan Louw 3/28). Diocesan College won by 255 runs.

Pearson 146 (Jayden Groenewald 53, Owen Reineke-Barnard 25; Callum Appollis 4/25, Dian Winkel 3/25); Paul Roos Gimnasium 147/2 (Josh Jordaan 55, Cormey van der Watt 38*, Luca Plekker 33; Esa Gangat 1/27). Paul Roos Gimnasium won by eight wickets.

Rondebosch Boys’ High 254 (Declan Gillespie 50, Jordan Neill 42, Extras 32, Daniel Bosman 25, Noah Heath 24, Daniel Cooke 20; Kevin Geldenhuys 3/64, AJ Jeggels 2/36); Graeme College 175 (Extras 33, Athandile Feni 29, Rhys Wiblin 24, Ethan Beyleveld 22; Jordan Neill 2/14, Declan Gillespie 2/17, Raeeq Daniels 2/25). Rondebosch Boys’ High won by 79 runs.

Dale College 61 (Gavin Walton 19; Litha Kraai 5/13, Hamish Anderson 2/12, Fayaad Davids 2/18); SACS 64/4 (Joshua Wyngaard 37; Hlumelo Ntlola 22/3). SACS won by six wickets.

Grey High 270/7 (Michael Molenaar 75, Corby van Heerden 43; Adriaan Louw 2/41); Paarl Gimnasium 124 (Charles King 43*, Marinus Daling 34; Ben Ristow 4/30). Grey High won by 146 runs.

Outeniqua 87 (Zander Nel 41; Paul James 3/7); Wynberg Boys’ High 89/2 (Paul James 46*, Storme van Rooyen 29*; Trent Huisamen 2/23). Wynberg Boys’ High won by eight wickets.

Union High 95 (Extras 21, Makuhanye de Beer 16; Henry Jones 3/20, Josua Smit 2/9, Jameel Ismail 2/20, Christopher Hughes 2/22); Parel Vallei 96/5 (Extras 47, Marco Karsten 18*; Shaakir Kazi 2/33). Parel Vallei won by five wickets.

St Andrews 155 (Naude Botha 36, Jordan van der Bergh 31; Christiaan Bourbon-Leftley 3/34); Paarl Boys’ High 149 (Johan Wege 52; JC Young 5/19; Schalk Liebenberg 4/38). St Andrews won by 6 runs.

Queen’s College 135 (Akho Ngesi 55, Ryan Denston 28; Dion Claassens 4/29, Massimo Kontopirakis 2/18, Thomas Parsons 2/28); Somerset College 137/7 (Chad Ayford 28, Antonio de Souza 26; Mbasa Thomas 6/39). Somerset College won by three wickets.

 

 

The Hoërskool Punt cricket team finished off their annual tournament on a high on Tuesday, beating the visiting Worcester Gimnasium in a T20 by six wickets.

The visitors had presented themselves well at the festival, with wins over Tygerberg and Curro Mossel Bay on their first two outings.

Christopher Ley set the pace, scoring 47 runs for Worcester, but the hosts’ bowling attack prevented them from building any real momentum.

Heinrich Gericke, Ian van der Westhuysen and MC Barnard took two wickets each and contained their opponents well to keep them at 101.

Ricus van Rooyen then launched an all-out attack, scoring 44 to help Punt chase down the total for a well-deserved win to cap off their festival.

Ley was one of the standouts for the Gimmies at the tournament, apart from his batting display, he also took five wickets against Tygerberg in their thrilling encounter to help his team dismiss the squad from Cape Town with only five runs to spare.

The hosts’ first game against Marlow fell victim to the weather, as did most of the scheduled matchups on Friday, but the action continued on Saturday when Hoërskool Punt came up short against an invitational team from Paarl Boys’ High.

In a game where the bowlers on both sides struggled to maintain control, Dian Havenga stood out for Boishaai, taking three wickets for 25 and Umar Kajee did well for Hoërskool Punt to also get three dismissals, although it came at more of a cost.

Daniel Bakkes scored a massive 124 for Charlie Hofmeyr which his bowlers, Keahan Alexander (3/27) and Reagan Davids (3/36) could back up as they beat Dirkie Uys by 181 runs.

D’Neill du Toit wreaked havoc under the batsmen from Sentraal as DF Malan beat the boys from Bloemfontein by 8 wickets. Du Toit dismissed four Sentraal batsmen and conceded only six runs.

DF Malan could not repeat that success on the final day against Framesby despite starting strong by dismissing the side from Gqeberha for 103.

Logan Fleetwood took four DF Malan wickets for only 21 and Hanro van Jaarsveld took three for 18 as Framesby put on a bowling masterclass to dismiss the Cape Town boys 11 runs short of their target.

Zheemo Isaacs also got four wickets against Langenhoven Gimnasium, as the Paarl Gimnasium Invitational team won that match by 45 runs.

Sentraal’s Aldo Bezuidenhout took a fiver for only four runs as the team from Bloemfontein overcame Oudtshoorn.

 

Summarized Scorecards:

Worcester Gimnasium 101/6 (Christopher Ley 47; Heinrich Gericke 2/17, Ian van der Westhuysen 2/20, MC Barnard 2/24); Hoërskool Punt 102/4 (Ricus van Rooyen 44; Aiden Pekeur 2/10). Hoërskool Punt won by six wickets.

Paarl Boys’ High Invitational 171 (Extras 47, Gysbert le Roux 30, Tiaan Liebenberg 21; Umar Kajee 3/42, MC Barnard 2/26, Ian van der Westhuysen 2/40); Hoërskool Punt 122 (Extras 34, Ewan Schoeman 21; Dian Havenga 3/25, Stephen van Eyssen 2/19, Christian van Zuydam 2/20, Gysbert le Roux 2/27). Paarl Boys’ High Invitational won by 49 runs.

Paarl Gimnasium Invitational 222 (John Coetzee 75, Extras 36, Ruan Jacobs 26, Zheemo Isaacs 23; Ewald de Jager 3/34, Stephan Cloete 2/34); Langenhoven Gimnasium 177 (Ben Pierre du Plessis 58, Cameron Avontuur 37, Extras 37, Cameron Williams 28; Zheemo Isaacs 4/36, JC Swarts 2/6, CG Steenkamp 2/41). Paarl Gimnasium Invitational won by 45 runs.

Paarl Gimnasium Invitational 122/9 (Joe van Coller 26; Zander Hammond 4/27, MC Strydom 2/21); Marlow 124/4 (Cole Hurter 28*, Dawid Malan de Ridder 22*; Zheemo Isaacs 1/15). Marlow won by 6 wickets.

Glenwood House 140 (Dylan Penlington 46, Extras 30, Tristan van Zyl 22; Zander Hammond 4/21, Alex Meyer 3/19); Marlow 143/5 (MC Strydom 41*, Ockert du Preez 34, Robert van Zyl 23; Tristan van Zyl 2/39). Marlow won by 5 wickets.

Swartland 92 (Extras 22, Matthew Ferreira 19*; DF Theron 3/16, Michael Pienaar 2/16); Nico Malan 93/2 (Jean Joubert 44*, Jayden Olivier 28*; Carlo van der Merwe 2/11). Nico Malan won by 8 wickets.

Sentraal 105 (Liam Pretorius 23, Extras 21; D’Neill du Toit 4/6, Charl Botha 2/10, Reuben Braxton 2/39); DF Malan 108/2 (Charl Botha 37*, D’Neill du Toit 30*; Liam Pretorius 1/12). DF Malan won by 8 wickets.

Sentraal 83 (Emile le Roux 28; Denzey Plaatjies 4/24, Ronaldo Prins 2/3; Herman Augustyn 2/20); Oudtshoorn 55 (Extras 29, Lenathi Ngombuza 12; Aldo Bezuidenhout 5/4, Johan van den Heever 2/1, Liam Pretorius 2/13). Sentraal won by 28 runs.

Glenwood House 114/9 (Extras 27, Kyle Smith 21; Tiaan Liebenberg 20/3, Dian Havenga 2/24); Paarl Boys’ High Invitational 117/4 (Gysbert le Roux 42, Brent Goosen 37; Tristan van Zyl 2/21). Paarl Boys’ High won by 6 wickets.

Framesby 103 (Logan Fleetwood 39, Extras 24; Johan van Rensburg 2/9, D’Neill du Toit 2/12; Benjamin Grobler 2/20, Charl Botha 2/29); DF Malan 92 (D’Neill du Toit 20; Logan Fleetwood 4/20, Hanru van Jaarsveld 3/18, Taine Douw 2/16). Framesby won by 11 runs.

Die Brandwag 119/7 (Extras 39, Damian le Roux 32, Reagan Diedericks 22; Janu Fouche 3/21, Nicholis Martin 2/10, Daniel Theron 2/16); Strand 122/5 (Nathan Drotskie 34*, Extras 27, Nicholis Martin 26; Leander van Staden 2/24, Aidan Boshoff 2/30). Strand won by 5 wickets.

 

All the results:

Day 1 

Worcester Gimnasium (53/1) beat Curro Mosselbaai (50) by 9 wickets.

Swartland (86/2) beat Hoërskool Oudtshoorn (82) by 8 wickets.

Day 2 

Paarl Boys’ High (171) beat Hoërskool Punt (122) by 49 runs.

Daniel Pienaar (140/3) beat Hoërskool Bellville (134) by 7 wickets.

Framesby (91/0) beat Swartland (90) by 10 wickets.

Worcester Gimnasium (174) beat Tygerberg (170) by 4 runs.

Dirkie Uys (143/3) beat Curro Mosselbaai (142) by 7 wickets.

Strand (194/8) beat Outeniqua Invitational (192) by 2 wickets.

Nico Malan (160/4) beat Charlie Hofmeyr (159) by 6 wickets.

Marlow (143/5) beat Glenwood House (140) by 5 wickets.

Die Brandwag (40/2) beat Hoërskool Oudtshoorn (39) by 8 wickets.

Paarl Gimnasium Invitational (220) beat Langenhoven Gimnasium (172) by 50 runs.

DF Malan (108/2) beat Sentraal (105) by 8 wickets.

Bridgeton RPC (92/7) beat Jim Fouché (91) by 3 wickets.

Day 3

Hoërskool Punt (102/4) beat Worcester Gimnasium (101/6) by 6 wickets.

Charlie Hofmeyr (320/7) beat Dirkie Uys (139) by 181 runs.

Nico Malan (93/2) beat Swartland (92) by 8 wickets.

Strand (122/5) beat Die Brandwag (119/7) by 5 wickets.

Tygerberg (196/4) beat Curro Mosselbaai (91) by 105 runs.

Daniel Pienaar (227/8) beat Outeniqua Invitational (104/8) by 123 runs.

Framesby (103) beat DF Malan (92) by 11 runs.

Paarl Boys’ High Invitational (117/4) beat Glenwood House (115) by 6 wickets.

Sentraal (83) beat Hoërskool Oudtshoorn (55) by 28 runs.

Marlow (124/4) beat Paarl Gimnasium Invitational (122/9) by 6 wickets.

Hoërskool Bellville (92) beat Bridgeton RPC (41) by 51 runs.

 

The annual inter-provincial sevens tournament kicks off at Grey College in Bloemfontein on Monday.

With 16 teams made up of the most versatile and talented rugby players in the country, the event promises to deliver stirring competition.

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Earlier this year the South African u18 sevens team earned bronze at the Commonwealth Youth Games in Trinidad and Tobago.

Three of those players will also be in action this weekend. Luan Olivier from Garsfontein runs out for the Blue Bulls. He will be facing his SA teammates Xhanti Pongolo from Grey High who plays for the Eastern Province as well as Charlie Hofmeyr’s golden boy, Luan Giliomee, who plays for Boland.

All three of these boys will be at the forefront of the action at the tournament, having already developed their skills and gained invaluable experience under the SA Sevens High-Performance Manager, Marius Schoeman, during their time in his care at the Youth Games.

This event will showcase even more future talent as speedsters from across the country gather to test their mettle in their provincial colours.

The teams are:

Blue Bulls: Albert Smit, Luan Olivier, Anwil Prince, Hendré Schoeman, Nylan Albertus, Leskin Samuels, Danny Metcalfe, Luan Potgieter, Victory Akin, Justin Julies, Stephan Pretorius, Divan Nel.

Boland: Kian van Tonder, Philip du Plessis, Giano da Kosta, Aljay Skippers, Luan Giliomee, Eathon Erasmus, Lu-Handré Arendse, Boeta Schreuder, Rheinhardt Adonis, Callum van Staden, Junaide Stuart, Bernedict George.

Eastern Province: Xhanti Pongolo, Caleb Friskin, Jan-Theo van Tonder, Christiaan van der Merwe, Shenon Jacobs, Meyer Prinsloo, Sibulele Mkhontwana, Lreese Stuurman, Cameron Doyle, Denilo Jordaan, Khanya Maduna.

Free State: Liam Santos, Liam van Wyk, AJ Meyer, Mokgaotsi Mosiane, Heinrich Theron, Ruben Cilliers, Philip Mclaren, Donelle Hendricks, Alzeadon Felix, Ethan Adams, Theko Montjane, Junior Titoti.

Free State Invitational: Marcel Coetzee, Xander Smit, David du Toit, Julian Cosmo, Bendre Vermaak, Themba Nonganga, Bernard Wessels, Sherwin Buys, Pule Motselile, Rorisang Masoeu, Piwe Mkunjane, Brandon de Wee.

Golden Lions: Pieter Moller, Ty Ax, Jarod Coetzee, Ignatius Jantjies, Jade Muller, Hanu Fourie, Aiden Bester, Khotadso Rashivanga, RJ Barnard, Lindsey Jansen, Deveno Bernado, Jenimo Luiters.

Griffons: Dawie Fourie, Kelvin Chaka, Kganya Molapo, Rewaldo Farmer, Ru-Bran Kock, Joshua Coertzen, Hloni Mokotjo, Thabiso Phafudi, Ashwin Mellon, JM Rensburg, Bokang Lensenyeho, Kamohelo Moses.

Griffons Invitational: Jan Coetzee, Owen Posholi, Daniël Meintjies, Ethan Smit, Rorisang Marumo, Tsepho Motloung, Kaneng Komane, Letlotlo Mohale, Franco de Wet, Meguel Davids, Vuyo Nzunga, Xander Wiltshire.

Griquas: Wian Liebenberg, Sylvester Hoffman, Arno Luttig, Marcwin Nero, Ethan van Zyl, Gregan Jansen, Jacquinn Jasson, Alec Andrianatos, Ambrijon Vraagom, Jaco Brits, Clinton Brits, Louwen Harper.

Namibia: Zack von Wielligh, Bradley Gawanab, Tjeripo Karuhumba, Dominique Isaacs, William Beukes, Soobramoney Sammy, Alejandro Morkel, Jivaldo Pienaar, Jaythen Orange, Wesley Haukongo, Alexandro van Wyk, Roberto Simbo.

Leopards: Hanré Venter, Dewald Potgieter, Francois Dumond, Chad Hofmeyer, Rickardt van Heerden, Winton Abrahams, Tirell Schalkwyk, Kgologano Legodi, Tiaan Booysen, Rea Motsusi, Xander Smit, CJ Felkers.

Limpopo Blue Bulls: Tihandre Reynecke, Hanno van Zyl, Aza Mabe, Anverio Bradford, Dustin Terblanche, Nikelo Moyo, Mignon Stevens, Divan Brown, Mihlali Ntlebi, FJ Drotskie, Hardus Otto.

Pumas: Toy Engelbrecht, Johnny dos Santos, Jabu Mahebula, Jarno Haaroff, Matthew Abbey, Ryan Erasmus, Kefilwe Phamotse, Lungelo Maseko, Martin Pretorius, Anele Ngwenya, Divan Mulder, Bandile Thanjekwayo.

Sharks: Vuyo Gwiji, Thando Luthuli, Carlyle Hawkins, Aka Boqwana, Luke Davidson, Zenkosi Mthiyane, Adriano Jackson, William Ridl, Mathew Fick, Unathi Mlotshwa, Kwenzo Dlamini, Zekethelo Siyaya.

SWD: Gustav van der Merwe, Roy Viljoen, Gareth Meyer, Elgernon Meyer, Andrew Stopforth, Kurt Coetzee, Keenan Jantjies, Logan Jantjies, Anrich Scheffer, Migail Barnard, Waylon Kortjie, Craig Lottering.

Valke: JP Jooste, Daniel Kazambo, Storm Labuschagne, Hennie Eybers, Jason Joubert, Gerhard van Aswegen, Ruan van Biljon, Jean-dré Claassen, Ryan Smith, Nhlanhla Ndlovu, Tanyani Mokiri, Musa Mahlangu.

The 55th instalment of the Cape Schools Cricket Festival is in full swing after a bit of rain delayed the start for most teams on Saturday.

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Somerset College and Outeniqua were the only teams who played their first fixture on Saturday as the local boys kept building on their pre-season momentum, beating the Kwaggas with seven wickets to spare.

The boys from George opened the batting. Despite Stefan May doing well to protect his wicket and get to 80, Selborne College’s Thando Prusent wreaked havoc among his teammates, taking three wickets for only 23 runs and helping his team keep the visitors to a 173/6 in the reduced 35 overs.

An unbeaten 57 from Nicholas Rieth helped Somerset College to their first victory of the festival.

The boys from Somerset West backed up this performance with another big win on Sunday against Dale College.

Prusent was on fire, scoring 118 before declaring, with his team at a comfortable 283/5.

Callum Hughes scored 53 runs as he and Prusent added 127 since the last wicket fell before they decided to send the Dale boys out to bat.

Exceptional bowling by Thomas Parsons (4/21) and Christopher Varie (3/10) forced the follow on and Dion Claassens (2/4) and Hughes (2/5) tied up the loose ends in Dale College’s second innings to secure a massive victory by 182 runs.

This year’s Cape Schools Festival hosts, Paul Roos Gimnasium, had to slug it out with St Andrews from Bloemfontein to get their campaign started with a victory.

Riley Norton was the top scorer for the home team with 23 runs, but despite only setting up a total of 113, the Paul Roos bowling attack managed to dismiss the visitors for 90, leaving them exactly 23 runs short.

Norton has been the point of difference for his school more than once in the past and is just as influential on the rugby field for the boys in maroon.

He was selected for the SA Schools team this year after his performance for WP at the Craven Week and is in with a shot at also representing SA at the u19 Cricket World Cup in Sri Lanka next year.

It was definitely a day for the bowlers though with St Andrews’ JC Young dismissing five Paul Roos batsmen for only 17 runs and Joshua Zietsman replying for the hosts with four wickets for 28.

Rondebosch Boys’ High are still looking like one of the most complete teams in the country this year.

After Pearson had been building some momentum with their pre-season success, their run came to an end against the Rondebosch boys.

Rondebosch scored 257/8 and despite a five-wicket haul for Pearson’s stalwart Esa Gangat, an unbeaten 50 by Raeeq Daniels and a solid 45 by Jordan Neill helped the hosts to a comfortable total.

Declan Gillespie and Daniels then unleashed on the Pearson batsmen, dismissing five for a combined total of only 28 runs to help seal the victory early, dismissing the visitors for 74 for a 183-run victory.

Wynberg Boys High scraped by against the visiting Grey High from Gqeberha by nine runs in one of the most exciting games of the day.

Benni Hansen raced to 120 before Wynberg declared at 297/7.

Divan Linde also contributed 67 with the bat and the locals looked well set up for a comfortable win.

Grey High got to 107/5 thanks to 50 by Corby van Heerden and  44 by Jean Upman, but it was the 73 off 37 balls by their seventh batsman, Dylan Garrod, that really put the Wynberg boys under pressure.

Garrod smashed five sixes and seven fours to help his team back into the game.

In the end, Wynberg Boys’ High held on for the win thanks to three wickets each by Divan Linde and Naas Beets.

Charles King took 6 wickets for Paarl Gimnasium against Outeniqua on Saturday, before Marinus Daling and Willem Mathee both reached their half-centuries without losing their wickets to secure a big 9-wicket triumph for the Gimmies.

Diocesan College flexed its muscles against a strong Queen’s College to cruise to a 187-run victory.

Adnaan Lagadien got 121 off the bat to help Bishops to a solid 291/5 after which they declared. Tiaan Louw then dismissed five batsmen from Queenstown for only 24 runs.

The only visiting team to record a victory on Sunday was Selborne College who beat Parel Vallei by 105 runs.

Ben van der Merwe, who also captains Selborne’s hockey team, scored 92 and Jacques van der Merwe followed closely with 72.

The action continues on Monday and Tuesday as nine of the top cricketing schools in the Western Cape test themselves against visitors from across the country.

Summarized Scorecards:

Day 2 (Time Cricket)

Rondebosch Boys’ High 257/8 (Raeeq Daniels 50*, Jordan Neill 45; Esa Gangat 5/55, Cayden Wilson 2/54); Pearson 74 (Jordan Collier 22; Declan Gillespie 3/17, Raeeq Daniels 2/11). Rondebosch Boys’ High won by 183 runs.

Somerset College first innings 283/5 (declared) (Thando Prusent 118*, Callum Hughes 53*, Extras 42, Rieth 30; Hlumelo Ntlola 2/68); Dale College first innings 77 (Joshua Hall 23; Thomas Parsons 4/21, Christopher Varie 3/10); Dale College second innings 24/5 (Dion Claassens 2/4, Callum Hughes 2/5). Somerset College won by 182 runs.

Graeme College 111 (Rhys Wiblin 40*; Litha Kraai 3/28, Hamish Anderson 2/23, Oliver Whitehead 2/13); SACS 115/3 (Ben Levitt 48, Joshua Wyngaard 27; AJ Jeggels 2/5). SACS won by seven wickets.

Paarl Boys’ High 143 (Gideon du Toit 45, Johan Wege 23; Kazi Shaakir 4/21, Kazi Yaseen 2/15); Union 39 (Josh Basson 7; Aden Batt 4/10, Christiaan Bourbon Lefty 2/2) Paarl Boys’ High win by 104 runs.

Outeniqua 147 (Stefan May 71, Charles King 6/42); Paarl Gimnasium 148/1 (Marinus Daling 52*, Willem Matthee 50*, Jandre Botha 34; Nathan Best 1/27). Paarl Gimnasium won by nine wickets.

Diocesan College 291/5 (Adnaan Lagadien 121, Ollie Chevallier 53, Kashief Joseph 43, Calum Daniels 30*, James Robb-Quinlan 25; Ryan Denston 1/62); Queen’s College 104 (Ryan Denston 51; Tiaan Louw 5/24). Diocesan College won by 187 runs.

Paul Roos Gimnasium 113 (Riley Norton 23; JC Young 5/17); St Andrews (Bloemfontein) 90 (FG Botha 19, Joshua Zietsman 4/28). Paul Roos Gimnasium won by 23 runs.

Wynberg Boys’ High 297/7 decl. (Beni Hansen 120*, Divan Linde 67, Paul James 40, Jordan Nel 28; Michael Molenaar 2/25, Xander Elkington 2/56); Grey High 288 (Dylan Garrod 73, Corby van Heerden 50, Jean Upman 44, Ben Ristow 34, De-Wet Goedhals 29, Extras 23; Divan Linde 3/53, Naas Beets 3/68, Yaseen Moos 2/55). Wynberg Boys’ High won by nine runs.

Selborne College 277/9 (Ben van der Merwe 92, Jacques van der Merwe 72, Waeden Plaatjes 25, Ethan Currin 20*; Joshua Smit 4/43, Christopher Hughes 2/48, Sibulele Makaleni 2/55); Parel Vallei 172 (Extras 39, Joshua Smit 31*, Joshua Pretorius 21, David Botes 20; Ethan Currin 3/40, Jacques van der Merwe 2/8, Ben van der Merwe 2/26, Bungqina Nuku 2/30). Selborne College won by 105 runs.

Day 1 (35 Overs)

Outeniqua 173/6 (Stefan May 80*, Extras 35; Thando Prusent 3/23); Somerset College 175/3 (Nicholas Rieth 57*, Antonio de Souza 43, Chad Ayford 35, Jonno Firth 20*; Christiaan van den Berg 1/23). Somerset College won by seven wickets.

 

The annual inter-provincial sevens tournament kicks off next week on Monday in Bloemfontein where 16 provincial teams gather at Grey College to determine which region will wear the sevens crown in 2023.

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The Eastern Province will be looking to defend their title from last year.

The EP boys knocked out the reigning champs from KZN, the Sharks, in the quarter-finals last year in an epic 21-19 sevens showcase before running 17 unanswered points past the SWD team to book a spot in the final where they saw away with the hot stepping Boland team by 25-14 to claim the trophy.

Judging by the performances of the schools in the various sevens tournaments leading up to this event, we are set for some amazing sevens action this weekend again.

The Western Province boys will not be participating at this year’s event, which removes one of the definite favourites early on, seeing as Paul Roos has won two major tournaments, namely the NWU Prestige Schools Sevens tournament in Potchefstroom and the Marius Schoeman tournament in Paarl already this season.

They beat Grey College in the finals on both occasions and would have been bolstered by the addition of players from Boland Landbou, Paarl Gimnasium and Paarl Boys’ High, who have also been performing well.

The teams from the Noordvaal will count themselves among the top contenders for the title next week.

Noordheuwel gave the Noordvaal Sevens trophy a new home last weekend at the tournament at Monument and many of those boys will be in action again this weekend for the Lions.

The Free State teams, with their major share of Grey College players who will be playing on their home field, are also in with a good chance.

The Grey College sevens team have been unstoppable this year, with the two losses in the finals being their only defeats thus far, a record no other team at the large tournaments has been able to replicate, not even the champions.

A full list of the players selected to represent the provinces will be released shortly.

The playoffs will commence on Tuesday and the game to determine this year’s champion will kick off at 14:30.

The Groups

Pool A: Eastern Province, Leopards, Golden Lions, Namibia.

Pool B: Boland, Sharks, Griffons Invitational, Limpopo.

Pool C: SWD, Falcons, Griffons, Free State Invitational.

Pool D: Blue Bulls, Free State, Pumas, Griquas.

The fixtures

Monday: 08:00 – Eastern Province vs Leopards; 08:20 – Golden Lions vs Namibia; 08:40 – Boland vs Sharks; 09:00 – Griffons Invitational vs Limpopo; 09:20 – SWD vs Falcons; 09:40 – Griffons vs Limpopo; 10:00 – Blue Bulls vs Free State; 10:20 – Pumas vs Griquas; 10:40 – Eastern Province vs Golden Lions; 11:00 – Leopards vs Namibia; 11:20 – Boland vs Griffons Invitational; 11:40 – Sharks vs Limpopo; 12:00 – SWD vs Griffons; 12:20 – Falcons vs Free State Invitational; 12:40 – Blue Bulls vs Pumas; 13:00 – Free State vs Griquas; 13:20 – Eastern Province vs Namibia; 13:40 – Leopards vs Golden Lions; 14:00 – Boland vs Limpopo; 14:20 – Sharks vs Griffons Invitational; 14:40 – SWD vs Free State Invitational; 15:00 – Falcons vs Griffons; 15:20 – Blue Bulls vs Griquas; 15:40 – Free State vs Pumas.

 

Some of the premier Western Cape cricketing schools will be testing their mettle against visitors from across the country this weekend at the annual Cape Schools Cricket Festival hosted by Paul Roos Gimnasium.

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18 schools will be competing at this year’s event.

The hosts, Paul Roos, will be representing the Western Cape along with Diocesan College, Parel Vallei, Paarl Boys’ High, Paarl Gimnasium, Rondebosch Boys’ High, SACS, Somerset College and Wynberg Boys’ High.

They will be facing Graeme College, Grey High, St Andrews, Pearson, Union High, Selborne College, Queen’s College, Outeniqua and Dale College over four days of non-stop cricket action.

On Saturday and Sunday, teams will be squaring off in declaration matches, on Monday, they will play 50 over games and on Tuesday there will be a mixture of 50 over and T20 games.

With some of the top cricketing schools in attendance, there are sure to be some scintillating matchups over the course of the festival.

Paul Roos takes on Graeme College on the first day to kick things off, before facing St Andrews from Bloemfontein on Sunday.

The team from Stellenbosch played against Affies last weekend and showed no signs of rust as they cruised to a victory by 62 runs thanks to a solid innings of 62 for Luca Platter as well as Callum Appolis and Cormey van der Watt taking three wickets each to help dismiss the Pretoria boys with six of the 50 overs left to spare.

St Andrews performed well at the Diamantveld Cricket Festival in Kimberley last weekend.

Deputy head boy and stalwart Connor Nel continues to impress for the Saints boys and Schalk Liebenberg took five wickets for only seven runs in their match against Kalahari which they won by 105 runs last weekend.

Somerset College has also been busy during the pre-season and looks well-oiled and ready for this weekend.

They were in action against local rivals, Fairmont High, last weekend where they dominated, winning by 102 runs.

Thando Prusent and Chad Ayford were on form with the bat in hand and Callum Hughes and Christopher Varie were their best bowlers with three wickets each.

Hughes conceded only 10 runs for his haul and Varie picked off the tailenders with a hattrick seal the victory.

The weekend before that, Ayford and Jonno Firth each scored 59 runs in a T20 against DF Malan, helping Somerset College to another big victory by 115 runs.

For many of the other participating teams, this festival will be the first real opportunity to see the boys in action before the 23/24 season fully gets underway.

Participating teams:

Western Cape: Paul Roos Gimnasium, Diocesan College, Parel Vallei, Paarl Boys’ High, Paarl Gimnasium, Rondebosch Boys’ High, SACS, Somerset College, Wynberg Boys’ High.

Visitors: Graeme College (Grahamstown), Grey High (Gqeberha), St Andrews (Bloemfontein), Pearson (Gqeberha), Union (Graaff-Reinet), Selborne College (East London), Queen’s College (Queenstown), Outeniqua (George), Dale College (King William’s Town).

The fixtures:

Saturday (Declaration):

09:30 – Paul Roos Gimnasium vs Graeme College (Paul Roos Gimnasium); Diocesan College vs Grey High (Diocesan College); Parel Vallei vs St Andrews (Parel Vallei); Paarl Boys’ High vs Pearson (Paarl Boys’ High); Paarl Gimnasium vs Union High (Paarl Gimnasium); Rondebosch Boys’ High vs Selborne College (Rondebosch Boys’ High); SACS vs Queen’s College (SACS); Somerset College vs Outeniqua (Somerset College); Wynberg Boys’ High vs Dale College (Wynberg Boys’ High).

Sunday (Declaration):

09:30 – Paul Roos Gimnasium vs St Andrews (Paul Roos Gimnasium); Diocesan College vs Queen’s College (Diocesan College); Parel Vallei vs Selborne College (Parel Vallei); Paarl Boys’ High vs Union High (Paarl Boys’ High); Paarl Gimnasium vs Outeniqua (Paarl Gimnasium); Rondebosch Boys’ High vs Pearson (Rondebosch Boys’ High); SACS vs Graeme College (SACS); Somerset College vs Dale College (Somerset College); Wynberg vs Grey High (Wynberg Boys’ High).

Monday (50 Over):

09:30 – Paul Roos Gimnasium vs Pearson (Paul Roos Gimnasium); Diocesan College vs Selborne College (Diocesan College); Parel Vallei vs Union High (Parel Vallei); Paarl Boys’ High vs St Andrews (Paarl Boys’ High); Paarl Gimnasium vs Grey High (Paarl Gimnasium); Rondebosch Boys’ High vs Graeme College (Rondebosch Boys’ High); SACS vs Dale College (SACS); Somerset College vs Queen’s College (Somerset College); Wynberg Boys’ High vs Outeniqua (Wynberg Boys’ High).

Tuesday (50 Over/T20):

09:30 – Paul Roos Gimnasium vs Selborne College (Paul Roos Gimnasium); Diocesan College vs Union High (Diocesan College); Parel Vallei vs Dale College (Parel Vallei); Paarl Boys’ High vs Grey High (Paarl Boys’ High); Paarl Gimnasium vs Queen’s College (Paarl Gimnasium); Rondebosch Boys’ High vs St Andrews (Rondebosch Boys’ High); SACS vs Outeniqua (SACS); Somerset College vs Graeme College (Somerset College); Wynberg Boys’ High vs Pearson (Wynberg Boys’ High).

 

Four members of the Springbok-squad would’ve had a déjà vu moment in their 8-13 defeat against Ireland in their Pool B clash of the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France.

The quartet of Steven Kitshoff, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Marvin Orie and Handré Pollard would like history to repeat itself as they were part of the Junior Springbok team which lost their pool match against the Irish during the u20 World Championship back in 2012. The team went on to bag the title against New Zealand (22-16) in the final.

The Junior Springboks lost their pool match against Ireland by 19-23. The Irish squad would also go on to achieve many great things and gave us our first impressions of the likes of Tadhg Furlong, Tadhg Beirne, Iain Henderson, Josh van der Flier and Jack Conan, who are all part of the number one ranked Irish team that beat the Springboks over the weekend.

Pollard who was called up to the World Cup squad after the injury to hooker Malcolm Marx was still in matric when he played a pivotal role 11 years ago to help South Africa to their only u20-title to date. Back in 2012 Pollard also received a call-up, although before the tournament, thanks to an injury to Johan Goosen.

Pollard and Marx were also team mates during 2012 as they both represented the SA Schools’ side that was selected after the Craven Week in Port Elizabeth. Other players from the Junior Springbok squad of 2012 who became Springboks are Jan Serfontein, Dillyn Leyds, Travis Ismaiel and Raymond Rhule.

They were also joined by Paul Jordaan and William Small-Smith who were already capped Springbok Sevens players.

Braam Steyn, who now plays for Italy but missed out on the World Cup squad was also in that team, as was Paul Willemse, who is currently racing to recover from an injury in time to take his place in the French team as they look to go all the way at their home tournament.

Oli Kebble was one of the props in that team and is another who would go on to find success on distant shores, earning his first cap for Scotland in 2020, along with Allan Dell, who is also a graduate of the 2012 u20 Springboks group.

The defeat against the Irish back in 2012 in the Danie Craven Stadium in Stellenbosch was the South Africans’ first outing of the tournament. Willemse scored the only try for SA in that match, with Tony Jantjies, the younger brother of Elton Jantjies, scoring the rest of the points off the tee.

South Africa still managed to top their group and progress to the semi-finals, having secured a bonus point more than the Irish by beating England 28-15, while Ireland lost to England by 20-15.

Kyle Sinckler, Luke Cowan-Dickie, Billy Vunipola and Henry Slade were in the English u20 squad that year.

In the semis, South Africa beat Argentina at Newlands by 35-3 with Pollard adding 12 off the boot and Rhule scoring a brace.

Facundo Isa and Pablo Matera were in the Argentinian squad, as was Juan Brex, who later earned his international cap for Italy.

In the final against New Zealand the South Africans fought back for a 22-16 lead, with Pollard starring in front of a crowd of 33 210 spectators to score 14 points and bring the mighty All Blacks’ four-year reign to an end.

Ofa Tu’ungafasi is the only current All Black who represented the u20 side that year and Martin McKenzie, the All Blacks Sevens star and brother of Damian McKenzie was also in that group.

Interestingly, Willemse and Tu’ungafasi both had their tournament cut short after a scuffle led to both teams receiving a red card in the final.

2012 would prove to be a telling year, with many of today’s superstars making their first international impressions at that tournament.

It was also the year that Jacques Nienaber first worked with a 20-year-old, Siya Kolisi, 21-year-old Eben Etzebeth and 25-year-old Duane Vermeulen at the Western Province, winning the Currie Cup that year under coach Allister Coetzee.

The SA Schools group that year was just as star-studded, apart from Pollard, who would continue to play for and eventually captain the u20 squad in 2014 when he was selected as the World Junior Player of the Year, the SA Schools team also featured Ox Nche, Malcolm Marx, Jean-Luc du Preez, Warrick Gelant, Sergeal Petersen and Jesse Kriel who would all go on to represent the Springboks, as well as Pierre Schoeman and Duhan van der Merwe who are both integral parts of the Scottish national team now.

Abongile Nonkontwana, the big lock from St Albans, became the first player to be chosen for the SA Schools team without playing Craven Week in 2012.

That was also the beginning of Marx’s illustrious career at hooker, in 2011 he was selected as a flanker for the Golden Lions Academy team.

Looking at the group of men fighting to protect our nation’s pride on the biggest stage in rugby this year, and thinking back on the journey they have taken to get to this point makes one realize just how much sacrifice has gone into getting to this stage and appreciate the commitment by the players as well as the coaching staff along every step of the way, from picking up the ball for the first time, working through the systems, to playing at the pinnacle of the sport in the global spotlight in the beloved green and gold.

It also reminds us that these players have worked their way back from an early defeat in a major tournament before to come back and take the ultimate prize (just like they did in 2019).

The 2012 South African u20 Rugby World Cup squad: Franco Marais, Mark Pretorius, Jason Thomas, Allan Dell, Oli Kebble, Steven Kitshoff, Maks van Dyk, Ruan Botha, Pieter-Steph du Toit, Marvin Orie, Paul Willemse, Shaun Adendorff, Fabian Booysen, Wiaan Liebenberg, Khaya Majola, Braam Steyn, Abrie Griesel, Vian van der Watt, Tony Jantjies, Dillyn Leyds, Handré Pollard, Patrick Howard, Paul Jordaan, Tshotsho Mbovane, Jan Serfontein, William Small-Smith, Kobus van Wyk, Dean Hammond, Travis Ismaiel, Raymond Rhule, Marais Schmidt.

The 2012 SA Schools team: Pierre Schoeman, Dayan van der Westhuizen, Wilco Louw, Ox Nche, Francois Esterhuyzen, Malcolm Marx, Chad Solomon, Nicolaas Janse van Rensburg, Abongile Nonkontwana, Gideon Koegelenberg, Daniël du Preez, JD Schickerling, Thabo Mabuza, Jean-Luc du Preez, Aidon Davis, Jano Venter, Justin Phillips, Akhona Sihunu, Ryno Eksteen, Handré Pollard, Jurie Linde, Rohan Janse van Rensburg, Sandile Kubeka, Warrick Gelant, Sergeal Petersen, Molapo Matjikinyane, Duhan van der Merwe, Jesse Kriel.

The second day of the Diamantveld Cricket Festival in Kimberley lived up to all the expectations set by the opening match between the hosts and Grey College in the opening match.

After Grey got the ball rolling with a victory on the Diamond Oval, beating Diamantveld by 53 runs, the other six teams kept the excitement going on the second day.

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Kalahari beat Paarl Boys High by 8 wickets with the bowling attack of Yden Agenbag and Louhan Noeth helping to subdue Boishaai and two steady innings by SW van Heerden and Shaundee Corner securing a memorable win for the proud team from Kuruman.

Agenbag dismissed four Boishaai batsmen for only six runs and crucially dismissed Paarl Boys’ High’s Liam Mack just as he was building some momentum.

Paarl Boys’ High are without JJ van der Sandt this weekend, he has been selected as part of the South African u17 team participating at the Junior Indoor World Series in Dubai.

Noord-Kaap’s scheduled match against Boishaai, which would have been the finale of the second day, had to be abandoned due to rain, so they take to the field for the first time on Sunday when they face this Kalahari squad who will be riding high after their big victory.

Grey College added another win, securing their place at the top of the pool by beating Carlton-van Heerden by 5 wickets.

Juan Viljoen led the charge with the bat again, but his bowlers left him little to do. Sicelo Matayi took three wickets for eight runs and Darion Rabe dismissed another three and conceded only 12 runs.

Potchefstroom Volkskool tops their pool after beating St Andrews from Bloemfontein and the Northern Cape HUB.

St Andrews did not live up to their full potential in their match against the Potch Volkies.

Conceding 33 extras had them on the back foot early on, and despite the best efforts of their head boy, Schalk Liebenberg, Saints fell short of their target by 78 runs.

Diaan van der Merwe set the pace with both the bat and ball for Potchefstroom Volkskool.

The St Andrews boys did, however, manage to get the highest total of the day in their match against the HUB team.

André du Preez‘s 62 helped them along their way to a solid 222/5 in the allotted 20 overs.

The hosts returned to winning ways against Carlton-van Heerden.

A calm and collected half-century by Danie van der Merwe and another quick 39 runs added by Simon Liversage saw them change innings with a healthy 151 to protect.

Luhan de la Rey was on fire again with ball in hand, taking four of the opponents’ wickets for only 15.

They beat the visitors from Upington by 75 runs, but the Carlton-van Heerden boys will have relished the opportunity to play in the big stadium, which is the kind of opportunity these tournaments can give the local players.

The action continues on Sunday and Monday as the playoffs for the final rankings commence.

Summarized Scorecards:

Diamantveld 151/6 (Danie van der Merwe 50, Simon Liversage 39; Adiam De Wee 3/35); Carlton-van Heerden 76 (J van Kratenburg 19; Luhan De La Rey 4/15; Nathan Baird 3/16). Diamantveld won by 75 runs.

Carlton-van Heerden 73/9 (Extras 21, Kaylin Snyders 16*; Sicelo Matayi 3/8, Darion Rabie 3/12); Grey College 74/5 (Juan Viljoen 26; J Assegaai 2/11, J van Kratenburg 2/2). Grey College won by 5 wickets.

Paarl Boys’ High 71 (Liam Mack 21; Yden Agenbag 4/6, Louhan Noeth 3/16); Kalahari 73/2 (SW van Heerden 32, Shaundee Corner 20; Cobelarri 2/9). Kalahari won by 8 wickets.

Potchefstroom Volkskool 141/9 (Extras 33, Diaan van der Merwe 21, Dian Liebenberg 20; JC Young 4/14, Johan Liebenberg 3/25). St Andrews 78 (Schalk Liebenberg 17; Diaan van der Merwe 4/21, Lunga May 2/16, Dian Liebenberg 2/28). Potchefstroom Volkskool won by 78 runs.

Potchefstroom Volkskool 211/6 (Extras 61, Attie Liebenberg 55, Kobus Pienaar 40*, Ludwich Schuld 21, Diaan van der Merwe 20; Mgobo 3/34, Jansen 2/34); Noord-Kaap HUB 80/9 (G Seane 20, T Obuseng 20; Dian Liebenberg 2/10, Kobus Pienaar 2/13). Potchefstroom Volkskool won by 131 runs.

St Andrews 222/5 (André du Preez 62, Jordan van der Bergh 38, FG Botha 34, Schalk Liebenberg 29, Naude Botha 26*; Mokgwabone 2/35); Noord-Kaap HUB 131/8 (G Seane 37, Extras 29, P Makatong 24; Leheta Athanousio 2/17). St Andrews won by 91 runs.