Fiery Oakdale hosts electric Paul Roos, Boland Landbou at hungry Stellenberg
Oakdale Landbou hosts Paul Roos Gimnasium (PRG) at 13:20 on “De Eike” this Saturday in a battle of two of the 2025 season’s heavyweights.
The Farmers have enjoyed an incredible season, which has included inflicting the only loss of the season on Paarl Boys’ High.
Last year, Oakdale didn’t face the all-conquering Paul Roos side, but, when they last met in July 2023, in Stellenbosch, PRG won 27-15.
The Farmers have grown significantly since then. Their set-piece this season has been awesome, with SA Schools’ loosehead Kai Pratt anchoring the scrum, SA Schools A monster lock Diaan Augustyn in the second row, and SA Schools’ 8th-man Jacobus de Villiers at the back of the pack.
Last week, in their 31-7 victory over HTS Drostdy, all five of their tries were scored within two phases of a set-piece.
Meanwhile the Maroon Machine started term three on fire, powering their way to a 48-12 win over Rondebosch last Saturday.
Once again, they’re one of the country’s leading teams, and Paul Roos, potentially, has a good counter to Oakdale’s strong lineout in the form of SA Schools’ hooker, Altus Rabe. Loose forwards’ Luke Kent and Gert Kemp add an extra layer of oomph to the Stellenbosch attack, running hard lines like centres.
Speaking of running lines, wing Jordan Steenkamp scored a hat-trick last week, while fullback Keenan Stoffels crossed for a brace. With such speedsters at their disposal, the Oakdale forwards cannot give afford to give Ou Polla’s Boys too much space or possession.
Boland Landbou, meanwhile, travels to Stellenberg for a 12:50 fixture. The hosts head into the clash off the back of an 8-14 loss against Outeniqua in a match which could have gone either way. They’ll certainly be looking to get back to winning ways.
Boland Landbou defeated Bishops 40-19 last Saturday, so will be chasing back-to-back wins.
The last time the sides met in April 2024, Boland won 25-19 on Perdeberg-A Field.
The Jade Brigade will lean on SA Schools A flyhalf, Ethan van Biljon, to dictate play with his excellent distribution and to score points with his powerful and accurate boot.
The home side is not afraid to boot the ball down field and chase. However, before their backs can look to take advantage of their flyhalf’s powers, they’ll need to secure possession through the forwards.
The Farmers also have a star halfback in SA Schools’ scrumhalf, Jayden Brits. Like Van Biljon, he scores plenty of points off the kicking tee and he’s an excellent creator with his clever passing and kicking.
The visitors have often leaked penalties and cards under pressure this season. That’s something they’ll need to avoid if they are to challenge Stellenberg. Van Biljon’s boot is one of the most accurate to be found anywhere.
Teams:
Oakdale Landbou vs Paul Roos Gimnasium at 13:20 on “De Eike-Veld” in Riversdal.
Oakdale: 15 Reinhardt Viljoen, 14 Myburgh Eksteen, 13 Anrich Scheffer, 12 Christian Vorster, 11 Lee-Winn Pretorius, 10 CT Vosloo, 9 Jandrian Goosen, 8 Jacobus de Villiers, 7 Liam Lightley, 6 Jannes Snyman (Captain), 5 Rico Ferreira, 4 Diaan Augustyn, 3 Francois le Roux, 2 Adrian Smith, 1 Kai Pratt.
Paul Roos: 15 Keenan Stoffels, 14 Divan Lamprecht, 13 Tiaan Basson, 12 Ian Smith, 11 Jordan Steenkamp, 10 Travis Pheiffer, 9 Jan-Jan Nel, 8 Gert Kamp, 7 Luke Kent, 6 Caleb Koeberg, 5 Manus van Leeuwen, 4 Truspe Schoeman, 3 Gerrit van Vuuren, 2 Altus Rabe, 1 Zak Hickman.
Stellenberg High School vs Boland Landbou at 12:50 in Belville, Cape Town.
Stellenberg: 15 Eben Rademan, 14 Daniel Mongie, 13 Luka Tonitz, 12 Armand Potgieter, 11 Christian Arendse, 10 Ethan van Biljon, 9 Daniel Steffen, 8 Yanos Molnar, 7 Ryan Jones, 6 Regardt Rademeyer, 5 Leon Vermaak, 4 Juvan Burden, 3 Janu can Deventer, 2 Liam Joubert, 1 Christian Janse van Rensburg (Captain).
Boland Landbou: 15 Jadon Ocks, 14 Kobus Jordaan, 13 Jason Ocks, 12 Blake de Kock, 11 Aleit Stander, 10 Pieter Bergh (Captain), 9 Jayden Brits, 8 Jacques Retief, 7 Kody Nell, 6 Juan Visage, 5 Jeandrè le Roux, 4 Stephan Griesel, 3 Derico Messina, 2 Wikus Coetzee, 1 Diwan Grobbelaar.
