Bishops show BMT to steal the show on opening day of Hibbert Shield
Bishops Diocesan College scored three goals in the fourth chukka against Selborne College to overcome a 0-2 deficit and claim a thrilling 3-2 win in their opening match of the Hibbert Shield on day one of the tournament at Grey High School in Gqeberha on Wednesday.
Catch all the Hibbert Shield action LIVE on SuperSport Schools.
Bishops entered the clash with an unbeaten record and having scored a resounding 3-0 win over their southern suburbs’ rivals Wynberg Boys High at home in their most recent outing.
By contrast, Selborne came into the tournament after suffering a first defeat in 16 matches on the weekend, when they were well beaten by Grey College, who won 5-2 in East London.
The clash was always going to be a tightly contested affair between two well organised sides, who seldom play one another.
It was the Eastern Cape team that got off to a better start and, with three minutes to play in the first chukka, Cade Kock opened the scoring.
After receiving the ball in the circle, Kock made a darting run across shot stopper Mu’aath Ganief, before smashing the ball into the back of the net to open his side’s tally in Gqeberha.
That strike held up until half-time, which Selborne entered with the single goal advantage. There was little to choose between the teams.
Bishops did, however, show positive intent, with Joshua Mettler and Andrew Raubenheimer pushing hard for their side, but it wasn’t enough, and they trailed heading into the second half.
Early in the third, Selborne had two opportunities to double their lead from penalty corners.
The first saw captain Tre’ Gilbert‘s drag flick go wide, before inaccurate distribution let coach KJ Friend’s side down on the second PC.
That didn’t seem to matter much, though, as Daniel Sirgel‘s reverse stick shot doubled Selborne’s lead early in the final chukka.
That goal, however, seemed to light a fire under Bishops, and coach Ryan Julius‘s men hit back immediately.
It was that man, Mettler, who produced a moment of individual brilliance, driving with the ball from his half before putting it past Nathan Amos-Brown to pull one back.
He wasn’t yet done and with six minutes to play, Mettler received the ball just outside the 23-metre line, sprinted towards the right-hand post, and whipped in a reverse stick shot to level the scores.
With their tails up, Bishops were suddenly in irresistable form and, with Selborne’s defence at sixes and sevens, they completed the comeback through a James Grieve goal, which sealed a dramatic 3-2 win.
“The boys showed extreme character, and massive fight to come back from a 0-2 trap position and win 3-2,” coach Julius told SuperSport Schools after the match.
“I think it’s a true testament of where the boys are.
“This sport is not meant to be easy. It’s meant to be challenging, and test us emotionally and physically, so I’m proud of them, and I can’t fault them for their 100 percent effort.
“It was a tough start, but we expected that, and we are looking forward to the challenge against Durban High School tomorrow,” he concluded.
In an earlier opening-day encounter, Westville Boys’ High got off to a solid start, recording a 2-1 win over St Stithians College.
Pearson and Garsfontein closed off the first day’s action with a goalless draw.
Results: Day 1
Westville Boys High 2-1 St Stithians College
Bishops Diocesan College 3-2 Selborne College
Garsfontein 0-0 Pearson High
Fixtures
Wednesday, 1 May
14:30 – St Stithians College vs Westville Boys’ High
15:45 – Bishops vs Selborne College
17:15 – Pearson High vs Garsfontein
Thursday, 2 May
07:30 – Paul Roos vs St Stithians College
08:45 – Grey High vs Clifton College
10:15 – DHS vs Selborne College
11:30 – Pearson vs SACS
13:00 – Clifton College vs Paarl Gimnasium
14:15 – Paul Roos vs Westville Boys’ High
15:45 – Bishops vs DHS
17:00 – Grey High vs Paarl Gimnasium
18:30 – SACS vs Garsfontein
Friday, 3 May
07:30 – Bottom Pool 1 vs Bottom Pool 4
08:45 – Bottom Pool 2 vs Bottom Pool 3
10:15 – 1st Pool 1 vs 2nd Pool 2 (Quarterfinal 1)
11:30 – 1st Pool 2 vs 2nd Pool 1 (Quarterfinal 2)
13:00 – 1st Pool 3 vs 2nd Pool 3 (Quarterfinal 3)
14:15 – 1st Pool 4 vs 2nd Pool 4 (Quarterfinal 4)
15:45 – 3rd Pool 1 vs 3rd Pool 3
17:00 – 3rd Pool 2 vs 3rd Pool 4
18:30 – Loser QF 1 vs Loser QF 3
19:45 – Loser QF 2 vs Loser QF 4
Saturday, 4 May
07:00 – 3rd Pool 1 vs 3rd Pool 2
08:15 – Semi-final 1
09:45 – Semi-final 2
11:00 – 3rd Pool 3 vs 3rd Pool 4
12:30 – Loser of Match 21 vs Loser of Match 22
13:45 – Winner of Match 21 vs Winner of Match 22
15:15 – u14 Final
16:30 – u16 Final
18:00 – 3rd/4th Place play-off
19:30 – Final
