Affies on the hunt for another upset of Paarl Gim
A battle for the ages awaits the Jacaranda City.
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Afrikaans Hoër Seunskool (Affies) will be out to cause an upset when they come up against their old foes from the Western Cape, Paarl Gimnasium, in the seventh Premier Interschools derby between the schools at 13:00 in Pretoria on Saturday.
The last time Affies came out on top against the men from Paarl was in 2022, when they surprised everyone, by claiming a nail-biting 29-26 victory at home.
Paarl Gimnasium, however, avenged that defeat last year, recording a convincing 38-21 victory at home.
Prior to that, the Witbulle last won against Gim in 2012, when they triumphed 27-20, again in Pretoria, which begs the question, will Affies be able to stop the visitors’ momentum with the advantage of playing at home on Saturday?
The Affies’ pack has already shown this season that it is capable of dominating any opposition pack. Many credit their recent victory over Garsfontein to the dominant performance of their forwards.
Unfortunately for the Witbulle, they will be without the services of their outstanding openside flank, Luan Potgieter, who is out of the game due to injury. Stephan McDonald, who takes over from Potgieter, is a high-class replacement. He was vice-captain of the Bulls’ 2023 Grant Khomo team and has been in superb form for the Affies 2nd XV.
An intriguing battle will take place at the back, between the sides’ midfield combinations. Affies’ Janco Purchase plays directly opposite Kobus Blankenberg and both inside centres wear the captain’s armband. Their personal duel and leadership will be key components of the game.
Outside of them, two of the best u17 outside centres in the country will go head-to-head. Nic Grobler, the Pretoria side’s number 13, was in wonderful form during his team’s victory over the Bere last weekend. At the same time, Markus Muller ran rampant against Boland Landbou, crossing for a hattrick of tries in Paarl Gim’s comprehensive 47-13 victory.
With both sides playing exciting, attacking rugby, it will, perhaps, come down to which team is better on defence on the day.
TEAMS
Afrikaans Hoër Seunskool vs. Paarl Gimnasium at 13:00 in Pretoria
Affies: 15 Ruben Groenewald, 14 Rikus Strydom, 13 Nic Grobler, 12 Janco Purchase, 11 Eagan Roux, 10 Ruben Pienaar, 9 Hendré Schoeman, 8 Ruan Lippold, 7 Albert Smit, 6 Stephan McDonald, 5 JD Hattingh, 4 Muntingh Hamman, 3 Ruan Smuts, 2 Ethan van Dyk, 1 Werner Vrey.
Paarl Gimnasium: 15 Freek de Kock, 14 Immanual Prinsloo, 13 Markus Muller, 12 Kobus Blankenberg, 11 Markus Moolman, 10 Chandler Green, 9 Melt Viljoen, 8 Nicolas Nel, 7 Wihan Kotze, 6 Jan Koegelenberg, 5 Marinus Daling, 4 Quintin Potgieter, 3 Ely Williams, 2 Dawie Stemmet, 1 Jean-Jacques du Preez.
