It’s St Mary’s DSG, Kloof, versus Bloemhof in St Mary’s Waverley final
St Mary’s DSG Kloof and HMS Bloemhof will face off for the title at the Standard Bank St Mary’s Waverley Festival on Sunday afternoon.
St Mary’s defeated Eunice and Bloemhof downed Rhenish Girls’ High in the semifinals to punch their tickets to the showdown.
St Mary’s DSG has won the trophy on two previous occasions, 2007 and 2018, and will be looking to end their seven-year wait for a third title. Their opponents, on the other hand, have never won the St Mary’s Waverley Festival trophy and will be looking to make history.
In the first semi-final, St Mary’s DSG took on a spirited Eunice team in an entertaining clash in which they traded blows and made forays into each other’s halves without managing to breach the opposition’s defences.
That sent the contest into a penalty shootout and St Mary’s clinched a place in the title decider by a 2-0 margin.
Ziyanda Mchunu, the St Mary’s goalkeeper, emerged as the hero for the ladies from KwaZulu-Natal after pulling off two outstanding saves.
Nicola Forbes, the St Mary’s captain, struck with the first penalty, slotting past Christine Fouché, in the Eunice goal. Bianca Rees-Gibbs, the Eunice skipper, stepped up to the plate to take the first one for the Bloemfontein side but was denied by Mchunu.
Jamie da Silva, who has tormented defenders at the festival and who played an integral role in St Mary’s DSG’s victory in the semifinals, made no mistake with her team’s second effort to put them two goals clear.
Anebel Venter needed to convert her penalty to keep the contest alive, but her shot was kept out by a diving save from Mchunu.
The second semifinal, between Bloemhof and Rhenish, followed a similar script. The Stellenbosch rivals launched excursions into each other’s halves and showed great drive, but neither could find a goal as the defences kept up their outstanding form.
It was 0-0 at the end of the game, but Bloemhof won the shootout 3-1.
Elré Oosthuizen, the Bloemhof captain, led from the front and converted the first penalty for her side with little fuss.
Emeri Botes, then, exhibited sound technique to give Bloemhof the advantage when she saved Leah du Plessis’s effort.
Mari Steyn doubled Bloemhof’s lead with a brilliant feint before driving the ball beneath goalkeeper Jasmine Aitken to make it 2-0.
However, Grace Hobbs kept Rhenish in the contest with a lovely conversion of her penalty stroke, which placed pressure on Bloemhof’s Mari Boezaart. If she converted, her side would be through to the final.
Boezaart has been a top performer for Bloemhof throughout the festival with her mix of skill and power and she showed off both when she fired a rocket past the Rhenish goalkeeper for her side’s third and match-winning goal.
St Mary’s and Bloemhof have enjoyed good runs at the festival and seem to be peaking at the right time. Spectators can expect a humdinger in the final.
