Affies downs Grey College, Menlo gets by Waterkloof in Friday night thrillers
Afrikaanse Hoër Seunskool (Affies) brought cheer to their home crowd with a 3-2 win over Grey College in their Friday Nite Lights derby encounter on the AHMP Astro, in Pretoria, on Friday evening.
Die Hoërskool Menlopark, who hosted Hoërskool Waterkloof, brought joy to their own set of fans with a victory by an identical score at Menlopark
“I am happy with the boys’ performance because the derby is always huge,” Jaydon Lincoln, the Affies’ coach, told SuperSport Schools News.
“There is a lot of respect between both schools, and so there will always be a huge amount of pressure on the boys for games like this.”
The last time the teams met, at the Nomads Festival, they drew 3-3. Thus, a tight contest was expected, but this time Affies won by the odd goal in five.
Grey College drew first blood when they struck five minutes into the match. However, their lead was short-lived because the Witstokke issued a response almost immediately.
Affies, after losing 2-3 to Jeppe in their previous outing, identified their set-piece execution as an area of their game that needed attention. “We have been spending a lot of time on our short corners and set pieces. Big games require set pieces to be excellent, because they decide many games,” Lincoln said.
His words turned out to be a self-fulfilling prophecy because Affies’ first two goals were the result of their clinical set-piece execution, with Rudolph Thiart converting penalty corners in the seventh and ninth minutes of the chukka.
Grey College dusted themselves off and headed into the second chukka, firing on all cylinders. Their forays into Affies’ half were rewarded with a goal two minutes before the halftime break.
“We’ve identified Grey College as a threat due to their physical brilliance, always being in the game and as a threat counterattacking-wise. So, there have been some small tweaks to certain outletting patterns to minimise the risk,” coach Lincoln said ahead of the contest.
Those preparations held Affies in good stead in the third chukka. Grey College took it to the home side, but the Witstokke’s defence stood its ground. The quarter ended goalless. The game was on the line in the final chukka.
With just under eight minutes remaining in the contest, Affies broke the stalemate with a superb goal from Reuben Dreyer, who capitalised on a brilliant flick towards goal by Kean Cornelissen.
Menlopark vs Waterkloof
Like Affies, Menlopark brought cheer to their home fans with a 3-2 win over Waterkloof in a thrilling encounter on the Menlo Blou Astro.
Menlo enjoyed the home ground advantage, but Waterkloof grabbed the early initiative and took advantage of some casual defensive play by Menlopark to score first from a well-worked field goal.
That strike jolted Menlopark to life, and it wasn’t long before they registered their first goal, a tap-in at the post by Ruben Oberholzer, six minutes after Klofies had taken the lead.
Both sides created chances in the next chukka, but their respective goalkeepers made outstanding saves, and they went to the halftime break on level terms.
When Reco Grobler thrust Menlopark into the lead by converting a well-worked short corner, momentum shifted towards the home side. Deep into the quarter, the hosts made inroads down the right-hand baseline before Oberholzer executed a brilliant upright reverse stick shot to make it 3-1.
Waterkloof refused to throw in the towel, but Menlo stood strong. Eventually, though, the visitors’ efforts paid off, and they pulled a goal back. By then, though, only seconds remained in the match.
Results
Affies 3-2 Grey College
Menlopark 3-2 Waterkloof
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