{"id":89862,"date":"2026-02-05T13:21:44","date_gmt":"2026-02-05T11:21:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ssschoolsplus.co.za\/?p=89862"},"modified":"2026-02-05T13:21:44","modified_gmt":"2026-02-05T11:21:44","slug":"with-two-rounds-to-go-race-to-the-finsbury-a-final-still-wide-open","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/test.ssschoolsplus.co.za\/?p=89862","title":{"rendered":"With two rounds to go, race to the Finsbury A final still wide open"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Callie Fryer will not only be a danger with the ball. He will also test the Menlopark bowlers on Saturday. Photo: Provided by Ho\u00ebrskool Rustenburg.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The past weekend’s results, highlighted by Ho\u00ebrskool Kempton Park’s emphatic victory over Ho\u00ebrskool Eldoraigne<\/strong><\/a>, have blown the race for a place in the Finsbury League<\/strong> A Section final wide open.<\/p>\n

While a Kempton Park win over the Eldos<\/strong><\/em> was not unexpected, the scale of the victory and the manner in which it was achieved certainly was.<\/p>\n

They delivered a ruthless display, skittling Eldoraigne for a paltry 38 before cruising to a nine-wicket bonus-point victory at a crucial juncture of the competition.<\/p>\n

That result leaves Kempies<\/strong><\/em> on 10 log points, level with Die Ho\u00ebrskool Menlopark<\/strong>, as they prepare for their toughest test to date: a clash with the defending champion, Ho\u00ebrskool Waterkloof<\/strong>, at the Andr\u00e9 van der Walt Oval<\/strong> in Pretoria on Sunday.<\/p>\n

Waterkloof currently sits comfortably at the top of the standings and remains unbeaten in the competition. Last weekend, they beat Ho\u00ebrskool Rustenburg <\/strong>by five wickets on Saturday, and followed that with a dramatic one-wicket triumph over<\/a> Grey College <\/strong>on Sunday. Those results underline both their consistency and composure under pressure.<\/p>\n

Sunday’s forthcoming match sets up an intriguing contest between the in-form bowling pair of Kempies’ Willem van den Berg<\/strong> and Stian van Breda <\/strong>and Waterkloof’s experienced middle order. With a \u201cmust-win\u201d label firmly attached to the visitors from Kempton Park, the ingredients are in place for a compelling contest.<\/p>\n

Menlopark, meanwhile, returns to action on their home ground after suffering a seven-wicket defeat away to Potchefstroom Volkskool<\/strong>. Menlo hosts Rustenburg, who are winless and desperate for points. A significant boost for the Rusties<\/strong><\/em>, however, will be the return of Callie Fryer<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Rustenburg was without their strike bowler against Waterkloof because Fryer was making his first-class debut for the North West Dragons<\/strong> over the past weekend. His duel with Monr\u00e9 Koekemoer<\/strong>, Jacques de Villiers<\/strong>, and Jan-Willem Pienaar<\/strong> in the Parkies<\/strong><\/em>‘ middle order, on the traditionally bouncy Pretoria wickets, could be one of the highlights of the round.<\/p>\n

In Centurion, Ho\u00ebrskool Eldoraigne welcomes Potchefstroom Volkskool for another pivotal encounter. The Volkies<\/strong><\/em> are only one point behind Kempton Park and Menlopark in the standings, and a victory over last year’s runner-up would put them in a strong position to challenge for a place in the final, which they last reached in 2024<\/strong><\/a>.<\/p>\n

For Eldoraigne, the situation is far more precarious. Still without a win, they find themselves locked in a battle with Rustenburg to avoid relegation, and they have only two rounds remaining to edge ahead of the North West side.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The past weekend’s results, highlighted by Ho\u00ebrskool Kempton Park’s emphatic victory over Ho\u00ebrskool Eldoraigne, have blown the race for a place in the Finsbury League A Section final wide open. While a Kempton Park win over the Eldos was not unexpected, the scale of the victory and the manner in which it was achieved certainly […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":82963,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-89862","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.ssschoolsplus.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/89862","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.ssschoolsplus.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.ssschoolsplus.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.ssschoolsplus.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.ssschoolsplus.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=89862"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/test.ssschoolsplus.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/89862\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.ssschoolsplus.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/82963"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.ssschoolsplus.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=89862"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.ssschoolsplus.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=89862"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.ssschoolsplus.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=89862"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}