Rhenish and Collegiate make a flying start at National All Girls’ Festival
The 25th edition of the National All Girls’ Sport and Cultural Festival burst into action at Wynberg Girls’ High School, in Cape Town, on Monday.
Under clear skies and in a buzzing atmosphere, some of South Africa’s top hockey talent showcased their skills on day one of the three-day competition.
In Pool A, Rhenish Girls’ High School made an early statement by stamping their authority on proceedings from the start. They powered through their fixtures, compiling a flawless four-out-of-four record.
The Stellenbosch school opened their campaign with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over a resilient Afrikaanse Hoër Meisieskool Pretoria (Affies). Building on that momentum, Rhenish then showed off their attacking prowess in a convincing 3-1 win over Danville Park Girls’ High School.
Later in the day, they added two even more resounding victories, overwhelming Queenstown Girls’ High School 4-0 before completing their schedule with a 5-0 trouncing of St. Michael’s School for Girls.
With a potent attack and rock-solid defence, Rhenish, the reigning Fairtree Super 12 champions, have firmly positioned themselves as early title contenders.
Meanwhile, Affies finished the day in second place, claiming three wins after their loss to Rhenish. The Pretoria outfit rose from their first match defeat to record an impressive 4-0 victory over St Michael’s School for Girls. They went on to overpower Danville 3-0 and Queenstown 4-0.
Collegiate Girls’ High School mirrored Rhenish’s success in Pool B, closing the day unbeaten and at the summit of their group. They enjoyed an outstanding day, scoring 17 goals while keeping a clean sheet in every one of their four matches. Their results included a 1-0 defeat of Oranje in a key clash.
The Gqeberha school combined slick passing with clinical finishing to dispatch their opponents and quickly established themselves as serious challengers for the overall crown.
While Pools A and B saw dominant performances, the teams in Pools C and D treated spectators to tighter battles, with narrow margins deciding most of the matches.
Eunice High School emerged as the standout team in Pool C and finished the day atop the standings, having scored three impressive wins. They edged out Paarl Girls’ High School 2-1 in a tense opener, before narrowly defeating the spirited hosts, Wynberg Girls’ High School 1-0. In their final game of the day, Eunice found another gear, comfortably brushing aside Clarendon High School for Girls with a dominant 4-0 win.
Paarl Girls’ High bounced back from their tight loss to Eunice by securing second place in the pool after picking up two victories. They dispatched Clarendon 5-0 and secured a solid 3-0 win over Wynberg to keep themselves firmly in contention for the later stages of the tournament.
In Pool D, Hoër Meisieskool Bloemhof enjoyed a dream start to their campaign, winning all three of their matches, which left them sitting pretty on top of the group after the day’s play. Their consistent performances on both ends of the field showcased their tactical discipline and technical skill.
Rustenburg Girls’ High School also produced some exciting hockey and finished the day in second place, behind Bloemhof. They will be aiming to continue building momentum as they eye the quarterfinals.
It was a tough opening day for the hosts, Wynberg Girls’ High, who ended it still in search of a first win. Despite showing tremendous heart and playing in front of a supportive home crowd, the hosts were unable to convert their opportunities into goals. They’ll be eager to regroup and come out fighting on day two.
RESULTS
Pool A
Affies 0-1 Rhenish|
Queenstown 1-0 St Michael’s
Danville 0-3 Rhenish
Affies 4-0 St Michael’s
Rhenish 4-0 Queenstown
Affies 3-0 Danville
Danville 2-0 St Michael’s
Affies 4-0 Queenstown
Rhenish 5-0 St Michael’s
Pool B
Collegiate 6-0 Durban Girls’ High
Oranje 7-0 Westville
Collegiate 5-0 Pietermaritzburg GHS
Durban Girls’ High 0-3 Oranje
Collegiate 5-0 Westville
Durban Girls ‘ High 1-2 Pietermaritzburg GHS
Durban Girls’ High 0-0 Westville
Oranje 0-0 Pietermaritzburg GHS
Pietermaritzburg GHS 1-0 Westville
Collegiate 1-0 Oranje
Pool C
Eunice 2-1 Paarl Girls’ High
Clarendon 0-5 Paarl Girls’ High
Eunice 1-0 Wynberg Girls
Paarl Girls’ High 3-0 Wynberg
Clarendon 0-4 Eunice
Clarendon 0-0 Wynberg
Pool D
La Rochelle 0-2 Rustenburg
Pretoria HSG 0-3 Rustenburg
Bloemhof 2-0 La Rochelle
Bloemhof 4-0 Pretoria HSG
La Rochelle 3-0 Pretoria HSG
Bloemhof 1-0 Rustenburg
