Paul Roos hosts talented Rondebosch, Strand prepares for passionate Swartland
Paul Roos Gimnasium hosts Rondebosch Boys’ High on Main Field at 13:00 on Saturday. With hooker and SA Schools star Altus Rabé coming back into their side, the Maroon Machine is ready to take on the competitive Southern Suburbs challengers.
Although, it’s not just the usual starting lineup for Ou Polla’s Boys, with flank Caleb Koeberg making his 1st XV debut. The young talent is an exciting player to watch and has signed a contract with the Bulls.
Rondebosch won’t mind going up against such star firepower, since they have some of their own. Western Province representatives, like Caleb Bell on the wing, provide serious threats to the home defence, never mind clever and elusive centres like Matthew Galpin and David Kadima.
They are, however, without their captain, SA Schools’ flank Josh Neill.
In 2023, Paul Roos scored a comfortable 24-7 victory and last year’s all-conquering Maroon Machine won 38-17, but ‘Bosch has been a very competitive outfit over the past two seasons. While the Stellenbosch hosts are the favoured in Saturday’s fixture, they won’t be taking the Cape Town visitors lightly.
Strand find themselves up against a familiar foe when they host Swartland at 12:10 on Saturday.
Both sides are well rested after the holidays and should be at their best for one of the most important fixtures of their respective seasons.
With seven wins, a draw, and only three losses, Strand owns a more impressive record than Swartland, whose season’s record stands at four wins and six defeats.
They also, for example, beat Hermanus 31-20, while Swartland fell to a 0-17 loss against the same opposition. Then again, Swartland beat Charlie Hofmeyr 18-10 and Strand drew 19-19 against the same side.
The point is the outcome is unpredictable, and anything could happen on the day. A well-rested and passionate Swartland side will not be taken lightly by Strand.
Strand are most dangerous from their set-pieces, from which their backs wait to unleash an arsenal of moves.
The visitors are usually good starters, and an early lead might give them the confidence required to suffocate the creative Strand attack. If they can find cohesion in their scrums and lineouts, they will keep the scoreboard tight.
Teams:
Paul Roos Gimnasium: 15 Keenan Stoffels, 14 Divan Lamprecht, 13 Tiaan Basson, 12 Ian Smith, 11 Jordan Steenkamp, 10 Travis Pheiffer, 9 Jan-Jan Nel, 8 Gert Kemp, 7 Luke Kent, 6 Caleb Koeberg, 5 Manus van Leeuwen, 4 Trupse Schoeman, 3 Lehan Barnard, 2 Altus Rabe, 1 Zak Hickman.
Rondebosch: 15 Shellvon Mabooi, 14 Caleb Jeneker, 13 David Kadima, 12 Matthew Galpin, 11 Caleb Bell, 10 Sebastian Boshoff, 9 James Kirsten, 8 Alutha Wesi, 7 Connor Arbuthnot, 6 Linakho Mehlomakulu, 5 Bertus Versfeld, 4 Danil-Nicolas Oosthuizen, 3 Damian Spence, 2 Ismaeel Conrad, 1 Bulele Mbala.
Strand: 15 Ashton Mitchell, 14 Marquin Smith, 13 Kealan Milton, 12 Lyle Julies, 11 Kyle Steyn, 10 Justin Phillips, 9 Jaydan Steenkamp, 8 Rohan Bezuidenhout, 7 Chrismar Prinsloo, 6 Schalk Beukes, 5 Keagan Coetzee, 4 Joshua Lourens, 3 Timothy van den Bergh, 2 Ruben Paanakker, 1 Christopher Els.
Swartland: 15 Aurello van Wyk, 14 Enrico Louw, 13 Justin Vermeulen, 12 Daniel Walters, 11 Zaidell Paulus, 10 De Wet van Aswegen, 9 Dimitrios Boutsikaris, 8 Wessel Neethling, 7 Jayron Lottering, 6 James Joubert, 5 Martin Neethling, 4 Christian Cupido, 3 Melchoir Botha, 2 Eben van Wyk, 1 Lamin Bah.
