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Roedean School celebrated a successful day in the pool at the Prestige Cup on Saturday and another successful year of giving back to the community through the annual water polo tournament.

In a thrilling final, Roedean held off St Stithians College, claiming a 9-6 win in a thrilling final on Saturday. While Roedean enjoyed the victory, the school explained that the true triumph of event goes far beyond the scoreboard.

Founded with a vision of addressing a critical need for water-based skills in under-resourced schools, the Prestige Cup has become one of the most meaningful water polo tournaments on the school sports calendar. It was launched with a swimming development sponsorship programme designed to bridge the gap between privilege and access in aquatic sports.

Across Gauteng, young black children, especially, remain largely underrepresented in swimming and even more so in water polo.

Roedean’s Head of Water Polo, Anita Trninic, explained more details about the event: “The tournament was designed to encourage well-resourced girls’ schools to partner with under-resourced schools, helping them develop swimming and water polo skills through mentorship, shared facilities, and guided programmes,” she said.

“The long-term goal is to create self-sustaining Learn-to-Swim programmes within each partner school. Each participating water polo school is encouraged to support its partner school in progressing towards interschool gala participation, thereby expanding the pool of potential water polo players across the province.”

The Prestige Cup Programme runs throughout the year and features two components: the Prestige Cup Water Polo Competition and the Prestige Cup Learn-to-Swim Swim-a-thon.

The season begins in February and concludes in October with the final playoffs and Swim-a-thon. The top three schools receive prize money of R30 000 for first place, R20 000 for second, and R10 000 for third, which must be donated to their partner schools to support their Learn-to-Swim initiatives in the following year.

From 2011 to 2021, Old Mutual sponsored the entire tournament, including the prize money, which had to be used exclusively to support partner schools’ swimming development programmes, which aligned with each school’s Community Service Initiative (CSI) goals.

Aquatic sports in South Africa continues to face a number of challenges, including limited access to pools, a lack of transport, and a shortage of trained swimming teachers in under-resourced communities. As a result, many children aren’t afforded an opportunity to learn to swim. That, also, limits water polo development. As the organisers noted: “Without strong young swimmers, there can be no strong young water polo players.”

In its first three years, the Prestige Cup successfully introduced swimming to 10 partner schools, whose learners would not have had access to facilities nor funding.

Now, each year concludes with the Learn-to-Swim Gala, hosted by Roedean, where young swimmers showcase their progress and get to experience an atmosphere of excitement and pride.

On Saturday, more than 70 learners, both boys and girls, participated in the gala. The impact of the Prestige Cup is further reflected in the success of its past participants in the Learn-to-Swim programme, with Natasha Katongo now training with the OJ Eagles Junior Water Polo Club, while Zamokuhle Komondela, from Houghton Primary and now at Jeppe High School for Boys, has represented the Central Gauteng provincial water polo team for five consecutive years.

Roedean coach Siya Guzana emphasised that the real success of the event lies in the lives that it changes: “Prestige is always a special tournament, not just for the competition, but for the purpose behind it,” she said.

“Historically, the bigger picture is about the Learn-to-Swim programme and giving back to the community. So, all the schools that participated in the competition are part of a Learn-to-Swim programme. Anita Trinic is passionate about learn to swim,” he told SuperSport Schools Plus.

“It is an opportunity for schools to raise awareness and give back to the community, to children who don’t have the facilities, so that is what this tournament is about, it is not about the results.

“We are more content and happier as the [swimming] event was successful because we saw children smiling. We saw kids who were afraid of the water when we started at the beginning of the year, now swimming full lengths confidently. This is more rewarding than the tournament itself, or us playing, because we feel we have made an impact and added to society. This is what we are happier about.”

The 2025 tournament saw the following school partnerships: Reddam House Bedfordview with Tokoza LTS; St Dominic’s Catholic School for Girls with Emaromeni Catholic Primary; Kingsmead College with Parkhurst Primary; Crawford International Lonehill with Witkoppen Primary; St Mary’s Waverley with HA Jack Primary; Beaulieu College with Diepsloot Primary; St Stithians Girls’ College with the Thandolwazi Math and Science Programme; and Roedean School with Johannesburg Girls’ Preparatory.

RESULTS

Reddam House Bedfordview 5–7 Roedean
St Stithians College 11–5 St Mary’s Waverley
St Dominic’s 7–8 Crawford Lonehill
Beaulieu College 14–2 Kingsmead College
Crawford Lonehill 4–11 Beaulieu College
Reddam House Bedfordview 9–8 St Mary’s Waverley
Final: Roedean 9–6 St Stithians College

Final standings

1. Roedean
2. St Stithians
3. Reddam House Bedfordview
4. St Mary’s
5. Beaulieu
6. Crawford
7. Kingsmead
8. St Dominic’s

RESULTS

BOYS

Semifinals

Cape Town City (3) 0-0 (0) Panorama
Chippa United 1-0 Junior Birds

Bronze Playoff

Panorama 5-0 Junior Birds

Final 

Cape Town City 3-0 Chippa United

GIRLS

Semifinals

Durban Ladies 2-1 Cape Town Roses
UJ 1-0 EastHigh Girls Academy

Bronze Playoff 

Cape Town Roses 7-0 EastHigh Girls Academy

Girls’ Final 

UJ 1-0 Durban Ladies

After four days of highly competitive water polo, Hudson Park High and Wynberg Boys’ High were crowned girls’ and boys’ champions of the Woodridge Stayers Water Polo Tournament at Thornhill, on Sunday.

Hudson Park, in their maiden appearance, defeated Glenwood House 9-5 in the girls’ final, while Wynberg Boys’ High edged out Selborne College 4-3 to win the tournament for the first time.

Relive the action on SuperSport Schools.

The Breakdown

Girls’ Section

It was a special campaign for the Eagles, beginning with their domination of their group stage opponents. Coached by the charismatic David Carter, Hudson Park ripped through Pool A, defeating last year’s champions, DSG Makhanda, Collegiate Girls’ High, Oakhill, Merrifield College, and Woodridge College.

In the quarterfinals, they brushed aside Stirling High 7-4 before beating Kingswood College by the same scoreline in the semifinals.

In the final, they came up against an unpredictable Glenwood House side.

The girls from George had edged out Clarendon High School for Girls 2-0 in a penalty shootout after their semi-final had ended level at 5-5.

The Final

Glenwood House made a bright start and scored two early goals through Mia Gibson and the dangerous Tatum Dace.

With three minutes remaining in the first chukka, Hudson responded captain fantastic, Kara Batting, netted an incredible lob goal.

During the second chukka, coach Carter’s side came into their own and began to boss proceedings.

Kayden Glasgow quickly scored a brace to give the East London school the lead for the first time before another strike by Batting made it 4-2 in favour of Hudson Park at the halfway point.

“The ‘Batting” show continued in the third chukka, with the skipper extending her side’s lead with another two goals before Tyler-Jade Roebert joined in on the scoring action to make it seven.

Glenwood House closed the gap with two of their own back through Nellie Hansson and Dace. Heading into the final chukka, it was 7-4 to Hudson Park.

A Jessica Whitehead strike for Glenwood House reduced the gap to only two goals in the final chukka, but Glasgow soon replied for Hudson Park, netting twice to complete her hat-trick, as the East London girls went on to a historic 9-5 victory.

Boys’ Section

The journey to the final for both Wynberg and Selborne was relatively smooth. Both were drawn in Pool B, but it was Selborne who emerged from group stage games unbeaten.

They defeated Grey High‘s second-stringers, Pearson High and Wynberg, with the match against the Cape Town school ending 4-3 in Selborne’s favour.

That resulted in those two sides finishing in first and second place, respectively, in Pool B, before heading into the playoffs.

Wynberg first had to tackle Kingswood College in a cross-pool fixture to progress to the quarterfinals. Coach Kwakhona Ngwanya‘s side dismantled the Makhanda school 20-0 before edging the 2024 winners, St Andrew’s College, 6-4 in the last eight.

They went on to thump Stirling High 16-1 in a one-sided semi-final, while coach Storm Siebert‘s side edged out Grey High 6-5 in their semifinal meeting.

The Final

Many spectators around Woodridge’s main pool were expecting a high-scoring final, but it turned out to be exactly the opposite, although Wynberg opened the scoring in the first minute through Tim Belcher.

It was a fairly balanced encounter thereafter, and both goalkeepers, Christian Fox (Wynberg) and Aaron James (Selborne), had to pull off some saves to keep the score at 1-0.

It was not 20 seconds from the end of the second chukka that Wynberg doubled their advantage, with lefty, Yakub Fakir, finding space on the wing before slamming the ball past James to put his team two-up at the break.

The second half was filled with drama, controversial decisions, and game-changing moments.

In the third chukka, Selborne came out firing. They were aggressive on defence and suffocated Wynberg.

Then, Blake Abrams scored their opener before Daniel Woodin converted a five-metre penalty to level things up heading into the final quarter.

Wynberg had a golden opportunity early in the final chukka to take back the lead through a five-metre penalty, but Jack de Beer’s shot hit the post.

That mattered little, however, as Caleb Harley struck to give them the lead a few minutes later. Then, with only 29 seconds left, Selborne made it 3-3 when Woodin converted a penalty.

It appeared that the contest was headed to penalties, but Riley Clarke had other ideas. He linked up well with his teammates in midfield and created some space for himself. Then, when the ball was returned to him, he pulled off an immaculate shot to make it 4-3 just 21 seconds remaining.

Selborne staged one last attack, but Wynberg’s defence stood firm, and they won the maiden Woodridge Stayers Water Polo Tournament title for the first time.

RESULTS

Sunday

Boys

Somerset College 7-2 Oakhill (15th/16th place)
Invitational team 7-0 Kingswood College (13th/14th place)
Grey High 2nds 8-6 Merrifield College (11th/12th place)
Pearson High 5-3 Hudson (9th/10th place)
Woodridge College 9-2 Grey College (7th/8th place)
St Andrew’s College 11-2 Glenwood House (5th/6th place)
Grey High School 8-4 Stirling High (3rd/4th place)
Wynberg Boys’ High 4-3 Selborne College (1st/2nd place)

Girls

Somerset College 4-3 Oakhill (11th/12th place)
Collegiate 8-2 Merrifield College (9th/10th place)
Woodridge College 7-1 Stirling High (7th/8th place)
Pearson High 6-4 DSG Makhanda (5th/6th place)
Clarendon 7-1 Kingswood College (3rd/4th place)
Hudson Park 9-5 Glenwood House (1st/2nd place)

St Charles College visited the Riverside Sports Club on Saturday for a limited overs clash against Clifton College. After a composed performance, the home team came away with a composed four-wicket victory.

Saints won the toss and opted to bat first. They lost Matthew Weightman early, but Christiaan Prinsloo and Caleb Sharp partnered for 51 runs for the second wicket before Sharp was caught and bowled by left-arm spinner Blake Johnson for 31. He had spent 42 balls at the crease and hit four fours.

While Prinsloo played a patient knock, Connor Simpson gave the innings some impetus with his 25, before Prinsloo became the fifth man to fall with the total on 134. He had contributed 40 off 73 deliveries.

A minor collapse followed, with Saints being reduced to 147/7 before Ryan Clarke and Keegan Vermaak put on 25 for the ninth wicket. Clarke was, then, the man to go, caught by Muhammed Malek off of Blake Johnson for the highest score of the innings, 45. It had taken only 40 balls and included six fours.

Vermaak did a good job of leading a 27-run partnership for the last wicket, but he was the last to go, run out by Tim Saulez, for 25. Connor Vogt ended with 10 runs to his name as St Charles totalled 216 all out.

The Clifton attack was, for the most part, tidy. Caleb Naicker returned the best figures of 3/28 from 8.4 overs, which included the wickets of both opening batsmen, while Shiraz Perumal clamped down on the Saints’ batsmen, returning the most economical figures of 2/28 from 10. Blake Johnson also bowled well, picking up 2/34 from his 10.

Needing to bat at 4.34 runs per over to win, Clifton made a good start, with the openers, Muhammed Malek and Cohen Naidoo, making 54 for the first wicket. Malek was then trapped in front by Keegan Vermaak for 15 and five runs later he was followed by Naidoo, caught off the bowling of Ryan Clarke for 28.

Byron Ward and Tim Saulez steadied the innings, though, taking the total to 100 before Saulez became Vermaak’s second victim, out for 17. Ward, meanwhile, was in the groove and, with a useful 14 from Hayden Drieselmann he helped to advance the total by another 49 runs before Drieselmann exited.

Ward fell on 168, the fifth wicket to go down, caught off the bowling of Vermaak for a difference-making 58 from 51 deliveries, which featured three sixes and six fours. During his time at the crease, Clifton had added 109 runs. With Ward’s dismissal, it was important for Clifton to maintain their momentum without losing any more wickets quickly. They aced that test.

Shiraz Perumal and Lawson Dinsdale added 48, which tied the scores. But there was a final twist, with Perumal going out on 216, caught off Rowen Rajah for a run-a-ball 29, which included five fours.

Dinsdale and Caleb Naicker then saw Clifton to victory after 42.3 overs. They had batted at 5.11 per over to get to 217/6, with Dinsdale unbeaten on 19.

Keegan Vermaak, although a touch expensive, was the pick of the St Charles’ bowlers, returning 3/52 from eight overs, while Ryan Clarke kept it tidy, claiming 1/37 from 10.

Saints, though, did themselves no favours by conceding a massive 36 extras, 23 of which were wides. Clifton, by contrast, bowled only nine wides and gave up 12 extras.

Scores

St Charles College 216/10 (Ryan Clarke 45, Christiaan Prinsloo 40, Caleb Sharp 31, Connor Simpson 25, Keegan Vermaak 25; Caleb Naicker 3/28, Shiraz Perumal 2/28, Blake Johnson 2/34); Clifton College 217/6 (Byron Ward 51, Extras 36, Shiraz Perumal 29, Cohen Naidoo 28; Keegan Vermaak 3/52).

Clifton College won by four wickets.

Fresh from winning the Schools Water Polo South Africa Inter-Provincial title with the Central Gauteng u16 team, meet the promising Pretoria-born goalkeeper and Roedean School grade 11 learner, Kuhlesibonge Buthelezi.

The talented goalie, who has captured attention with her super saves, is the second of four children in her family.

After her mother, Samukelisiwe, encouraged her to give the game a go, she played it for only three months in 2020, before the Covid-19 pandemic led to a lockdown.

“When I moved to a new school in a new province, Gauteng, from Mpumalanga, I wanted to try some new sports and my mom was the one who suggested that I play water polo. If it wasn’t for my mom, I don’t think I would have tried it, but it was an interesting sport that l had never seen or heard of before,” Kuhle revealed.

It turned out that her mother’s guidance was the best as she took to the game with relish. “I honestly can’t remember how I fell in love with the sport, but it quickly just became such a huge part of my life,” she fondly told SuperSport Schools Plus.

While the lockdown stopped teams from playing matches, it didn’t stop them from putting in work that would benefit them later. There were online gym sessions and goalkeeper sessions with coaches where they spoke about things like positioning and techniques.

“It was quite interesting doing a sport online, but our coaches always found a way to make it fun,” she said. “After lockdown, we had training at the Nokuthula pool.

Talking about her experiences in the sport, she said: “I think the thing that I loved most about water polo was the community that we had. The long car rides with friends on the way to training, singing songs in the car, and the end-of-year braais and lunches.”

In her first water polo tournament, her team finished third. At her next tournament, the Durban Girls’ College u13 Tournament, Roedean finished second. At the end of the year, she attended her first Inter-Provincial Tournament. Central Gauteng made the final, and it was a nerve-wracking experience.

“It was my first time going to penalties in such an important game and, as a goalkeeper, there was a lot of pressure on me. But I am proud to say that I made the game-winning save, and my team came away with the gold.

“The years after that were filled with countless hours of training and dedication to the sport,” said added.

In East London, at last year’s IPT, Buthelezi shone, helping her side to move through the group phase unbeaten. Then, in the final, she pulled off some big saves to help Central Gauteng beat Western Province 8-6 in the gold medal game.

Again, it was the memories she made that she treasures, Kuhle said. “My fondest memories that I have with my Gauteng team are, without a doubt, the car rides to games, and especially the ride back from the final, blasting our victory song, celebrating our winning streak.”

Winning the title in East London wasn’t the first time that she had claimed Inter-Provincial gold with Central Gauteng. “A moment that I’ll never forget is our 2022 final when we were up by four goals, with only a few minutes of the game left. Our coach, Gareth Prout, called a timeout and said: “Congratulations, girls, you did it again!”

Playing goalkeeper is challenging, Kuhle admitted, but she has had excellent guidance from her school coach Anita Trininic.

“Well, my coach, Madam Trininic, was the reason I ended up being a goalkeeper. I had just started water polo and was at my first match after having had only a few training sessions. She said that we needed a goalkeeper for the game since our team goalkeeper was injured. The next thing I knew, Madam Trininic had put me in the goals.”

That suited her perfectly, Kuhle admitted: “As someone who wasn’t very fond of swimming, I was more than happy to be in the goals. I soon discovered, or rather Madam Trininic did, that I have a lot of potential as a goalkeeper, and I started training as a goalkeeper at school practices.”

Despite her many successes, Kuhle has, also, had to overcome some challenges, which she shared: “I’m not the tallest goalkeeper, and my height and the length of my arms is sometimes a disadvantage, but it makes me work harder to get to those top corners. So, I’ve spent a lot of training strengthening my legs and perfecting my technique to make sure that I’m on top of my game.”

Along the way, she has garnered individual awards, too. In 2023, she was named the Goalkeeper of the Tournament at the u15 Crawford tournament. That same year, she was named the top goalkeeper at the Reddam Inspired Cup. Then, in 2024, she received the Goalkeeper of the Tournament accolade at the Saints u19 Invitational Tournament, where she was included in the Team of the Tournament.

The 16-year-old, who is now coached by Siyabonga Guzana and Anita Trininic, said: “By far, my greatest achievement was being a part of the u16 South African team and representing South Africa in the 2024 World Aquatics Women’s u16 Water Polo Championships.

She added: “I just want to say thank you to all the coaches that have been a part of my water polo journey. Special thanks to my u13 coaches, Matthew and Andrew van Rooyen, who still send me pictures of them watching my games, and to Mr Gareth Prout, who was with me for two important years of my polo career.”

Being a goalkeeper is nerve-wracking but rewarding, says Kuhle Buthelezi. Photo: Will Morrell.[/caption]

Reflecting on other highlights of her water polo journey thus far, Kuhle said: “My highlights have been seeing the work, time, and effort that I’ve put into water polo show in my playing, and being able to let the results speak for themselves.

“Another highlight has been the friendships that I’ve made through playing this sport. I’ve made some lifelong friendships with players from different schools, provinces, and even countries. I can honestly say that some of my closest friendships were formed through playing water polo.”

In 2025, she will be moving up to the senior ranks of schoolgirls’ water polo. Given her hard work and dedication to the game, and the superb coaches guiding her, it is no surprise that she cannot wait to take the step up and take on the challenges.

“I’m quite thrilled to be moving up to the u19 provincial squad. There is going to be a lot more competition, but I think that it’s going to be great for me to train with the u19 goalkeepers,” she enthused. “I’m excited to train with other SA [u19] players and even players that were in the [South African] Women’s water polo team. I think it’s 100 percent going to challenge me, but I’m ready, and I can’t wait.”

Now that the soon-to-be 17-year-old has reached the senior age group for schools, she has some words of advice for those who are yet to make that journey, and who have provincial aspirations.

“The advice that I would give them is never to give up and, if you truly want something, you should be willing to work hard for it. My mom always told me that I needed to put in 10 000 hours if I wanted to do well in something.

“You are always given the choice to put in the work, and when an opportunity is in front of you, you have to take it because if you don’t take that opportunity and do the best that you can, other people will.

You can follow Kuhle Buthelezi’s water polo exploits on Instagram – @kuhle_waterpolo.

Selborne College will face Wynberg Boys’ High in the boys’ final of the Woodridge Stayers Water Polo Tournament, while Hudson Park High will lock horns with Glenwood House in the girls’ final on Sunday.

Catch the action LIVE on SuperSport Schools

Those four sides booked their places in the title-deciding fixtures after pulsating semifinals on Saturday at Woodridge College.

In the boys’ section, Selborne was favoured to go all the way after winning the event in 2023 before falling at the final hurdle in 2024.

They dominated their pool stage matches, winning all three, to score the maximum nine points.

In the quarterfinals, coach Storm Siebert’s side brushed aside Glenwood House 8-2, but they were made to work hard in the last four by Grey High.

In the all-Eastern Cape derby, the East London side was pushed to the limit, but they prevailed 6-5 to advance to the final for a third consecutive year.

Wynberg, meanwhile, stunned the defending champion, St Andrew’s College, 6-4 in the quarterfinals before thumping Stirling High 16-1 in the semis.

Sunday’s showdown will be the first time Selborne and Wynberg have met in a final. The action begins at 14:00.

GIRLS

There will be a new champion crowned in the girls’ competition, too, after DSG Makhanda bowed out in the quarterfinals.

Newcomers, Hudson Park, will be eyeing the silverware, but standing in their way will be Glenwood House.

The girls from George had to go through two penalty shootouts to book their spot in the final. Firstly, they defeated DSG 2-0 in a shootout after their quarterfinal clash finished 2-2.

Later in the day, Glenwood House got the better of Clarendon, also 2-0 in a shootout, but that game had ended 5-5 in regular time.

In Hudson Park, they’ll be up against a fiery side that has scored goals for fun.

In the last eight, they defeated their East London rivals, Stirling High, 7-4, before seeing off Kingswood College by the same scoreline in the semis.

Hudson Park heads into the final as the only unbeaten team in the girls’ competition. The title game kicks off at 13:00.

RESULTS

BOYS

Playoffs

Stirling High 7-2 Hudson Park
Glenwood House 10-6 Invitational
Pearson High 3-4 Grey College
Kingswood College 0-20 Wynberg Boys’ High

9-16

Hudson Park 6-5 Somerset College
Invitational (0) 7-7 (1) Grey High 2nds
Pearson High 6-2 Oakhill
Kingswood College 2-9 Merrifield College

Quarterfinals

Woodridge College 3-4 Stirling High
Grey High 9-2 Grey College
Selborne College 8-2 Glenwood House
Wynberg 6-4 St Andrew’s College

Semifinals

Wynberg 16-1 Stirling High
Selborne College 6-5 Grey High

GIRLS

Quarterfinals

Hudson Park 7-4 Stirling High
DSG Makhanda (0) 4-4 (2) Glenwood House
Woodridge College 3-6 Clarendon
Kingswood College 8-4 Collegiate Girls High

5-12

Merrifield College 0-14 DSG
Oakhill 1-11 Stirling High
Pearson High 7-5 Collegiate Girls High
Somerset College 2-10 Woodridge College

Semifinals

Hudson 7-4 Kingswood
Clarendon (0) 5-5 (2) Glenwood House

There was excitement for some, disappointment for others on Saturday at the University of Pretoria‘s High Performance Centre, where the Engen Champ of Champs moved ever closer to the gold medal games.

The event features the provincial champion club teams in the u18 boys’ age group and at u20 women’s level. It’s also a stage upon which to unveil the next generation of South African football stars.

On Sunday, the action kicks off with the semifinals in the morning. Later in the day, the finals take place at the Tuks Stadium.

Catch the LIVE action on SuperSport Schools 

In the boys’ competition, it’s Panorama versus Cape Town City for a place in the final, while Chippa United tackles Junior Birds in the other semifinal fixture.

In the girls’ competition, Durban Ladies take on Cape Town Roses, and the University of Johannesburg (UJ) goes up against EastHigh Girls Academy.

Gauteng champions, Panorama, finished top of group A but were pushed extremely hard on Saturday, which they began with a 1-1 draw against Junior Birds in their first match, followed by a narrow 1-0 victory over EastHigh Boys Academy.

EastHigh Boys Academy, meanwhile, edged out Postmasburg 1-0, while Junior Birds beat Bakgaka United 3-1.

In Group B, the most highly anticipated clash of the day featured Cape Town City and Chippa United, and it was the East London team, Chippa United, which rose to the occasion, claiming a 2-0 victory.

After that setback, Cape Town City rebounded with a 3-0 win over Potch Academy, while Chippa United suffered a bit of a letdown, sharing a scoreless draw with Kusekhaya Football Academy. Kusekhaya, the KwaZulu-Natal champions, also scored a narrow 2-1 victory over Potch Academy.

The KZN champions in the girls’ competition, Durban Ladies, is the only team to have maintained a perfect 100 percent record in the group stages, winning all their matches.

They finished at the top of Group A after overrunning Sisters 6-0 victory on Saturday before grinding out a 1-0 win over Royal Wizards.

After being overpowered by Durban Ladies, Sisters demonstrated strong character to force a 1-1 draw against Ixias Ladies, who subsequently endured 2-4 loss against EastHigh Girls Academy.

Royal Wizards, who finished in second place in Group A, reversed their score against Durban Ladies in their next outing, beating EastHigh Girls Academy by the same margin.

In Group B, UJ and Cape Town Roses both qualified for the semifinals. They also shared an outstanding 2-2 draw.

UJ, then, beat City Lads Ladies 2-1, and City Lads Ladies responded with a 2-1 win over Mafikeng Ladies.

Cape Town Roses drew 1-1 with Mafikeng Ladies, but the Cape Town side had done enough to advance to the semifinals.

RESULTS 

Boys’ Competition

Group A

EastHigh Boys Academy 1-0 Postmasburg
Junior Birds 3-1 Bakgaga United
Panorama 1-1 Junior Birds
Panorama 1-0 EastHigh Boys Academy

Group B

Cape Town City 3-0 Potch Academy
Chippa United 0-0 Kusekhaya
Kusekhaya 2-1 Potch Academy
Chippa United 2-0 Cape Town City

Girls’ Competition 

Group A

Ixias Ladies 1-1 Sisters
Royal Wizards 1-0 EastHigh Girls Academy
EastHigh Girls Academy 4-2 Ixias Ladies
Durban Ladies 6-0 Sisters
Durban Ladies 1-0 Royal Wizards

Group B

Cape Town Roses 1-1 Mafikeng Ladies
UJ 2-1 City Lads Ladies
City Lads Ladies 2-1 Mafikeng Ladies
UJ 2-2 Cape Town Roses

The defending champions of the annual u17 Interprovincial Sevens tournament, South Western Districts, did not manage to come out unscathed in their pool matches on the opening day of this year’s event.

They lost by 17-26 against Griqualand West in their second pool match. They did however, beat the Leopards (26-19) and Boland II (31-19) to secure their place in the quarterfinal.

This year’s tournament is hosted at Trappes Park in Worcester by HTS Drostdy.

The slip-up against Griquas did set them up with a tough encounter for the quarterfinal against the Blue Bulls.

The Bulls won their group by coming out on top against the Griffons (29-28), Wynland Invitational (17-12) and Eastern Province (35-22).

The Purple People Eaters finished second in this pool despite losing their encounter against the Wynland Invitational by 17-19, thanks to a better points difference.

The most successful team since the inaugural tournament, the Free State, didn’t manage to reach the quarterfinals of the main draw. They will now have set their sights on being crowned Bowl-champions.

The Golden Lions and Boland reached the quarterfinals for the Cup-section in Pool C. The Lions will face Western Province in a clash that will be titanic in the next round. Boland will face Namibia in the other quarterfinal.

Three provinces are not in attendance – KwaZulu-Natal (last year’s runners-up), Valke and Border. Hopefully these unions get their affairs in order to support this tournament in future.

All the Results | Day 1 

Pool A: South Western Districts 26, Leopards 19; Griqualand West 24, Boland II 10; Griqualand West 26, South Western Districts 17; Boland II 35, Leopards 17; South Western Districts 31, Boland II 19; Griqualand West 35, Leopards 22.

Pool B: Western Province 29, Pumas 7; Namibia 10, Limpopo Blue Bulls 5; Western Province 19, Limpopo Blue Bulls 17; Pumas 19, Namibia 19; Western Province 31, Namibia 19; Limpopo Blue Bulls 14, Pumas 12.

Pool  C: Golden Lions 21, Free State 14; Boland 38, West Coast Invitational 5; Boland 29, Free State 29; Golden Lions 45, West Coast Invitational 0; Free State 53, West Coast Invitational 5; Boland 31, Golden Lions 26.

Pool  D: Blue Bulls 29, Griffons 28; Eastern Province 28, Wynland Invitational 21; Griffons 17, Eastern Province 7; Blue Bulls 17, Wynland Invitational 12; Wynland Invitational 19, Griffons 17; Blue Bulls 35, Eastern Province 22.

After a blistering start on Thursday, spectators were treated to a show on Friday at the Woodridge College Stayers Water Polo Tournament.

The annual tournament is into its third edition and runs into Sunday, with the girls’ and boys’ finals scheduled for 13:00 and 14:00, respectively.

Catch all the matches LIVE on SuperSport Schools.

Day two delivered goals galore, with some of the top teams stretching their leads.

In the boys’ section, the hosts lead Pool A with nine points after convincing wins over Grey College (14-3), Kingswood College (9-1), and Somerset College (14-3).

Grey College lies second, followed by Kingswood and Somerset College, who are still searching for a first victory. 

Selborne College is out front in Pool B after scoring a whopping 25 goals in their three matches, all victories, over Wynberg Boys’ High, Pearson High and Grey High School‘s second-stringers respectively.

Grey High’s first team, meanwhile, has enjoyed a smooth run in Pool C, and they will progress to the quarterfinals after staying unbeaten throughout the pool stage matches.

The defending champions, St Andrew’s College, are also sitting comfortably after two days of action. The Grant Mackenzie-coached outfit defeated Glenwood House 8-2 on Thursday, which they followed with a 12-3 win over Hudson Park on Friday before scoring 15 goals against Merrifield College.

Only Selborne, St Andrew’s, Woodridge, and Grey High have secured their places in the quarterfinals. Their opponents will be determined after cross-pool playoff matches early on day three.

GIRLS

The smaller girls’ competition features two groups of six teams each, and competition has been keen. 

In Pool A, Hudson Park High has dominated, scoring with relative ease, and they have bagged a healthy 14 points after their five matches.

On Friday, they defeated Merrifield 10-1 and Oakhill 13-3 to assert their dominance. Those wins followed victories over DSG Makhanda and Collegiate Girls’ High on Thursday. They were, however, extended to a penalty shootout win by Woodridge.

DSG is in second place on 12 points after they defeated Collegiate 5-3 in their final game on Friday.

Hudson Park is through to the quarterfinals, along with DSG, Collegiate, and Woodridge.

In Pool B, it’s another East London school that’s laid down a marker, with Clarendon High School for Girls picking up maximum points. They have one group stage game remaining against Pearson early on Saturday.

Clarendon is through to the quarterfinals where, as things stand, they’ll be joined by Kingswood College.

Glenwood House is still in with a shout at the quarters, while Stirling High will hope that Clarendon can do them a favour by beating Pearson.

RESULTS

Thursday

Boys

Pool A

Woodridge 9-1 Kingswood College

Pool B

Pearson High 4-3 Grey High 2nds
Selborne 11-2 Grey High 2nds

Pool C

Grey High 8-2 Stirling High
Grey High 21-0 Invitational team

Pool D

St Andrew’s College 8-2 Glenwood House
Hudson 9-6 Merrifield College

Girls

Pool A

Woodridge 4-3 Merrifield College
Collegiate 15-3 Merrifield College
DSG Makhanda 6-4 Woodridge
Hudson 9-3 Collegiate

Pool B

Stirling High 11-5 Pearson High
Kingswood College 6-4 Glenwood House
Kingswood College 5-4 Pearson
Clarendon 7-4 Glenwood House

Friday

Boys

Pool A

Woodridge 14-3 Somerset College
Grey College 8-3 Kingswood College
Woodridge 14-3 Grey College
Kingswood College 5-4 Somerset College

Pool B

Wynberg 12-1 Pearson
Selborne 4-3 Wynberg
Wynberg 15-2 Grey High 2nds
Selborne 10-1 Pearson

Pool C

Stirling 10-5 Invitational team
Grey High 20-1 Oakhill
Stirling 10-6 Oakhill
Invitational team 8-5 Oakhill

Pool D

St Andrew’s College 15-1 Merrifield
Glenwood House 10-4 Merrifield
St Andrew’s College 12-3 Hudson
Glenwood House 11-4 Hudson

Girls

Pool A

DSG Makhanda 7-8 Hudson
Oakhill 6-16 Merrifield
Woodridge (0) 5-5 (1) Hudson
Collegiate 7-3 Woodridge
Woodridge 15-2 Oakhill
DSG Makhanda 13-2 Merrifield
Hudson 13-3 Oakhill
Collegiate 16-2 Oakhill
Hudson 10-1 Merrifield
DSG 5-3 Collegiate

Pool B

Kingswood 3-6 Clarendon
Pearson (2) 2-2 (1) Glenwood House
Stirling 9-1 Somerset College
Pearson 7-1 Somerset College
Kingswood 4-3 Stirling
Clarendon 13-2 Stirling
Glenwood House 4-3 Stirling
Glenwood House 9-1 Somerset College
Clarendon 13-2 Somerset College

Click HERE to see day three’s fixtures.

The Engen Champs of Champs, being played at the University of Pretoria‘s High Performance Centre (HPC), got off to an entertaining start on Friday, with the Gauteng boys’ and women’s champions, Panorama, and the University of Johannesburg (UJ) catching the eye, while Cape Town Roses also shone in the women’s competition.

Catch the LIVE action on SuperSport Schools 

In the lead-up to the event, there were some concerns about the performances of Panorama, who had experienced a drop-off in form in the Gauteng Development League (GDL) since their historic 2-1 comeback victory over Kaizer Chiefs in the Engen Knockout Challenge Gauteng.

On Friday, though, Panorama made a winning start to their Champs of Champs campaign. They faced Postmasburg in a Group A clash in their first game and came away with a narrow 2-1 victory. Kayle Thomas and Thabang Hlaudi netted for the Gauteng champions, while Omatle Molema replied for the resilient Northern Cape representatives.

Then, Panorama raised the bar in their second outing, with the Roodepoort-based club scoring a decisive 4-0 victory over the Limpopo champions, Bakgaga United.

In another exciting Group A match, Postmasburg shared a 2-2 draw with the Free State champions, Junior Birds. Katleho Molema struck twice for Postmasburg, while the dynamic duo of Monaheng Ntsalong and Vuyo Tsoeunyane found the back of the net for the Free Staters.

Junior Birds played to another draw, sharing the spoils 1-1 with EastHigh Boys Academy, while the match between Bakgaga United and EastHigh Boys Academy ended goalless.

In Group B of the tournament, one of the favourites, Cape Town City, picked up a 2-0 win. So, too, did Chippa United.

In one of the day’s most anticipated matches, Cape Town City faced Kusekhaya Football Academy, the KwaZulu-Natal representatives. Goals from Nande Witbooi and Siyanda Mangciba secured the points for the Western Cape side.

Chippa United won 2-0 against Potch Academy. The Urban Academy alumni, Qhamani Gubevu, who shone in school football in 2024, but is now playing for Chippa United, was on fire, netting a brace.

On Saturday, day one winners, Cape Town City and Chippa United will meet in a contest that is likely to decide the group winner.

In the girls’ competition, the Gauteng champions, UJ, got off to a flying start, sticking five goals past Mafikeng Ladies without reply. The experience of the UJ players was evident, as most of their team has been actively engaged in competitive football throughout the year, participating in both the Hollywoodbets Super League and the Varsity Women’s Football Cup.

Gugu Dlamini led the scoring for UJ, striking twice, while Lumka Qhekeka, Thato Mofolo, and Nhlakanipho Moyo each contributed a goal.

While the focus was directed towards UJ, another title contender made a statement when Cape Town Roses overwhelmed the Eastern Cape’s champions, City Lads Ladies, 6-0. Emihle Mazana scored a hat-trick, Lisakhanya Situlweni added two goals, and Siyamthanda Macingwana completed the scoring.

In Group A, Durban Ladies, another of the tournament’s top contenders, secured a 3-1 victory over EastHigh Girls Academy.

One of South Africa’s top emerging talents, Durban Ladies’ Khwezi Khoza has already caught the eye in the South African National Development Team and in the Caf African Schools Championship alongside Katleho Malebana, and she netted two goals for the KZN side, while Kusaselihle Shibane also struck.

Later in the day, Durban Ladies made it two out of two with a 3-0 victory over Ixias Ladies.

Royal Wizards also picked up two wins, with Kedisaletse van der Ross to the fore. She grabbed a brace in a 2-0 win over Ixias Ladies, and she was the sole scorer in a tight victory over Sisters.

After going down to Durban Ladies, EastHigh Girls Academy bounced back with a 3-0 win over Sisters, with Angel Ntsila, Nkosingiphile Mthombeni, and Ndimphiwe Ngomane finding the back of the net.

RESULTS

Boys’ Competition 

Group A

EastHigh Boys Academy 1-1 Junior Birds
Panorama 2-1 Postmasburg
Bakgaga 0-0 EastHigh Boys Academy
Postmasbug 2-2 Junior Birds
Panorama 4-0 Bakgaga United

Group B

Cape Town City 2-0 Kusekhaya
Chippa United 2-0 Potch Academy

Girls’ Competition

Group A

Royal Wizards 1-0 Sisters
Durban Ladies 3-1 EastHigh Girls Academy
Royal Wizards 2-0 Ixias Ladies
EastHigh Girls Academy 3-0 Sisters
Durban Ladies 3-0 Ixias Ladies

Group B

Cape Town Roses 6-0 City Lads Ladies
UJ 5-0 Mafikeng Ladies