Western Cape big guns record early season wins
The 2025 schoolboy hockey season swung into full gear in the Western Cape on the weekend, with some of the province’s top teams in action.
On Friday night, hockey fans in the region were treated to four massive derby matches and two league fixtures.
In Cape Town, Wynberg Boys’ High defeated Fairmont High School 3-0 in a league clash, while their southern suburb rivals Rondebosch Boys’ High outplayed Reddam House Constantia 4-0.
It was far from a convincing performance by Wynberg, whose last outing was the Nomads Hockey Festival in Johannesburg last month, while Fairmont was recently crowned the Belgotex Sport Easter Hockey Tournament champion.
Despite not firing on all cylinders, coach Ben Wiley’s boys got the job done, courtesy of a brace by Noah Laubscher and a strike from Mustafa Kajee.
Reddam House, meanwhile, entered their clash against Bosch brimming with confidence after a stellar showing at the Independent Schools Hockey Festival.
Coach Alex Gitlin’s side impressed in Pretoria, winning all five of their matches, but they couldn’t replicate their form against ‘Bosch.
Parel Vallei (PV) was another side in top form on the weekend, and they continued their impressive season with another win. This time around, they thumped DF Malan 5-1 in a display of calm, cool, and collected hockey.
Luka Meets, who is a player to watch, netted a brace on his 50th game for the school, while Luca Jordaan, Tristan Rautenbach, and SA u17 star, Stephan Malanalso scored.
PV has two big games before the Hibbert Shield, which takes place from 1-4 May. During mid-week, they’ll face Worcester Gimnasium and then, in a big test, they’ll take on South African College High School (SACS) closer to the end of the month.
While the action lived up to expectations in Cape Town, Paarl also delivered a blinder between Paarl Gimnasium and Affies.
Both sides were in action at the Founders Festival, so they would’ve been able to make some mental notes about their opposition ahead of the clash.
Gim coach Jacques Grobler told SuperSport Schools Plus that his team was still in search of its mojo, but he will feel now that they’re getting there.
It was a different kind of performance against Affies, and the home-ground advantage had a massive positive impact on Gim’s play.
John Coetzee and Stefan Wiehahn both scored from short corners to give the locals a 2-0 lead. Two further strikes, firstly from Josh Smit, with a field goal, and then from the skipper, Juan Swanepoel, with a late penalty stroke, sealed the win.
Paarl Boys’ High was also in action against Somerset College and claimed a 1-0 win, courtesy of a Nicholas Swanepoel strike.
In Stellenbosch, Paul Roos Gimnasium shared a thrilling 4-4 draw with Grey High School.
RESULTS
Paarl Gimnasium 4-1 Affies
Wynberg Boys’ High 3-0 Fairmont High School
Paarl Boys’ High 1-0 Somerset College
Parel Vallei 5-1 DF Malan
Rondebosch Boys’ High 4-0 Reddam House Constantia
Paul Roos Gimnasium 4-4 Grey High
