Another Koen gets the scalp of Grey College in the King Price Derby Series
Just as they did last year, Paarl Gimnasium defeated Grey College.
This time, they won by 29 points to 14 on the JA Kriel Field in Paarl in the King Price Derby Series on Saturday.
With the defeat, Grey College has, for the first time since 2015, lost three successive matches.
They previously went down to Stellenberg and Australia’s St Joseph’s Nudgee College.
The Bloemfontein outfit opened the scoring just over 10 minutes into the game through left wing, JG Horn. He chased a high kick from flyhalf, Christoff Crous. Under pressure, the ball was spilt, and Horn pounced onto it, running in the opening try of the contest.
Gimmies’ flyhalf, Louis Koen, responded with a try only three minutes later. From about 25 metres out, he sold a dummy, then cut inside to slice apart the Grey defence.
A couple of old Greys would’ve had déjà vu at this moment, as the last time they lost against Gim in Paarl was back in 1994. Paarl Gim won 10-0 back in 1994, with a certain Louis Koen as their flyhalf, playing a pivotal role.
The father of Louis, who scored the first try in Saturday’s clash. Louis sr. also represented the Springboks in 15 tests. The bragging rights in the Koen-family don’t stop here as Louis jr. older brother, Liam, played a major part in Gimmies’ victory of 18-16 over Grey during the Monnas’ Centenary Festival in 2021.
The action was intense, but Grey found their attacks consistently stymied by the Gim defence.
Hooker, Charles Whitehead, scored next for the hosts. From there, the difference widened. Near the end of the half, captain and inside centre Ethan Barker broke the line to score, and the home side went into the half-time break with a 17-7 lead.
Barker’s try was named the Suzuki Game Changing Moment of the match. Whitehead was named King of the Match for his stellar performance.
In the second half, Paarl Gimnasium added another two tries. Fullback, Lamla Mgedezi, pulled one back for Grey College with one of his trademark darting runs, but it was a lonely moment of individual brilliance in a frustrating match for the Bloemfontein school.
Since losing 19-20 to Stellenberg High at the start of the season, Paarl Gim has been a force to be reckoned with, and they’ll be aiming to extend their five-game winning streak at the Absa Wildeklawer Festival next weekend, where they face Helpmekaar Kollege and Durban High School (DHS). When those sides met at the Kearsney Eastern Rugby Festival, DHS won 39-27.
Scorers:
Paarl Gimnasium 29 (17) – Tries: Louis Koen, Charles Whitehead, Ethan Barker, Jayden Steyl, Corné Niemand. Conversions: Koen (2). Grey College 14 (7) – Tries: JG Horn, Lamla Mgedezi. Conversions: Christoff Crous (2).
