Affies and Saints make big statements, Jeppe wins on the road
Afrikaanse Hoër Seunskool (Affies) continued their impressive run by claiming yet another big scalp in the Gauteng region.
The boys from Pretoria, led by coach Jaydon Lincoln, stunned King Edward VII (KES) 3-2 in Johannesburg on Saturday.
That victory added another big name to a list of memorable wins for Affies this season, which also includes victories over Grey College, Paarl Gimnasium, and Garsfontein in recent weeks.
Affies headed into the game off the back of a 3-2 win over Grey College, while KES defeated Westville Boys’ High 1-0 and drew 4-4 with Northwood School in KwaZulu-Natal a week ago.
KES, led by coach Siya Sityana, got off to a dream start and scored two early goals through Kamohelo Tsoka and Rofhatutshedzwa Mathabi, much to the delight of their home supporters.
Affies, like they’ve done all season, refused to back down, and pulled one back through Ruahard Nienaber before Jurgen Schoeman made it 2-2 going into the break.
Playing with greater freedom and belief, the visitors upped the ante in the second half and defended extremely well to withstand the KES onslaught.
On attack, they remained dangerous and made it 3-2 with over four minutes remaining in the third chukka through Sam Wessels.
KES had their moments, particularly in the final chukka, but some brave defending from Affies kept them out. MJ Celliers pulled off a vital goalline save from a shot from Kamohelo Tsoka, and that proved to be pivotal.
“I’m very proud of the boys. It could’ve easily gone either way,” Jaydon Lincoln, the Affies’ coach, said after the game.
“There were a couple of decisions that went against us early on, but the guys stuck together.
“We spoke about how good KES were, but we know how good we are when we go behind. I don’t know what it is about the Affies boys with a never-say-die attitude, but that’s exactly what it was in this game.”
After going down by two goals early on, Affies made some adjustments to their shape and outlet, which paid off.
“We changed our shape to suit the press that KES have been successful with all season, and that worked out for us,” Lincoln explained.
“After making it 2-2, I said to the team the game was ours, and all we needed to do was to occupy the spaces, hold the lead, and defend well.
“They showed a lot of fight, and I’m happy with how we’ve shown up over the last couple of weeks.”
Affies won’t rest on their laurels with two big clashes remaining against St Alban’s College and Menlopark this term.
At St Stithians College, the home side survived a late scare to beat Parktown Boys’ High 3-2.
Saints, who went into the clash after a heartbreaking 1-2 loss to Jeppe High School for Boys in the Aitken Cup final, scored through Sebastian Pousson, Thomas Becker and the reliable Jason Joiner.
Parktown had an opportunity to level the scores in the dying seconds from a short corner, but an acrobatic save by goalkeeper Jasbir Naidoo sealed the win for the hosts.
“I thought we were very good in the first half, moved the ball very well, and manipulated their defensive efforts,” Saints’ head coach Pat Owgan said after the game.
“We also had very good pressure on the ball defensively, which was a key factor in our Aitken run.
“In the second half, they changed a few things, and we didn’t react well. We also lost our defensive intensity, but we showed good fight when we were under pressure.”
In Pretoria, St John’s College did just enough to edge out Pretoria Boys High 1-0, while St Alban’s College played to a 2-2 draw with St Benedict’s College in Bedfordview.
Jeppe, after winning the Aitken Cup, travelled to KwaZulu-Natal to play Northwood School and sealed a 1-0 win courtesy of a Jarryd Gordon-Watt strike.
RESULTS
Jeppe 1-0 Northwood
St Stithians College 3-2 Parktown Boys’ High
St Benedict’s 2-2 St Alban’s
St John’s College 1-0 Pretoria Boys High
Affies 3-2 KES
