Selborne aiming to spoil Queen’s Reunion Weekend
Queen’s College has held the upper hand over Selborne College in their most recent encounters, but they know that past performances will go out of the window when one of South Africa’s fiercest schools’ derbies takes place in Komani on Saturday.
After suffering four straight defeats, Selborne will be thirsting for some sort of comeback at the Recreation Ground, but Queen’s will be equally determined to make their 167th Reunion a weekend to remember.
Under the guidance of coaches Clinton Loest and Tyrone Rankin, Queen’s has registered some impressive results this season, including wins over Brandwag (29-15) and Pretoria Boys High (17-14). But Loest admits there have also been some matches when they have not been at their best.
“The Queen’s-Selborne derby is always hard-fought and having home-ground advantage is good, but it does serve as motivation for the visitors,” he said.
“Queen’s has had the better of the results in the past three seasons, but each year brings a new challenge. Selborne has a strong side this year and we will have to be at our best to get a winning result.”
Loest added that the home side would need to maintain a strong thread of consistency throughout the match. “Rugby is all about momentum, and when you have it, you need to ensure you make use of it,” he explained. “And when you don’t have it, you need to work hard to get it back.
“Being our Reunion Weekend does add a sense of excitement to the occasion. Many old boys and supporters will be present for the match, and it is the responsibility of the team to give a strong performance.”
Selborne head coach Allan Miles is fully aware of the challenge that lies ahead for a team that has faced some serious tests this season.
Sandwiching a win over Pearson two weeks ago have been losses to the unbeaten KZN powers, Westville (12-45) and DHS (35-5), at the Standard Bank Grey High Rugby Festival, and defeats against Jeppe (17-38) and Affies (19-57) at the KES Easter Rugby Festival. The stature of their festival opposition is, however, a reflection of Selborne’s hard-earned status as a top-tier team in school rugby.
“It is always difficult to get a positive result on the Rec Ground,” Miles said. “They are a well-drilled and organised side, and Tyrone Rankin and Clinton Loest are doing amazing work with them.
“Neither team will give an inch on Saturday, which is what we can always expect from a traditional derby like this.”
Selborne’s blueprint, he added, would be to try to generate momentum with their attacking shape.
“If we can improve our gain-line success, it will get us into the game, but we also need to be wary of their threats out wide. Keeping our defensive width will be equally important.”
Reflecting on the KES Easter Festival, Miles said Jeppe got the upper hand straight after halftime, while he rated Affies as one of the best sides in the country.
“Our lineout did not do well in that game and that was definitely a focus area for us this week,” he said.
“We had close to 80 percent in tackle completion rate, which is getting closer to what we are working towards as a group.”
