Central Gauteng bags another IPT title after pipping WP in dramatic u19 final
“Chemistry” – That was the word used by Central Gauteng u19A boys’ coach, Jon-Marc De Carvalho, to describe his team after they successfully defended their Schools Water Polo South Africa (SWPSA) Inter-Provincial Tournament (IPT) title in Johannesburg on Wednesday.
Playing at home, Central Gauteng A defeated Western Province A 12-11 in the final at the St John’s College Indoor Aquatic Centre.
It was a drama-filled final day of IPT action, which including the title-deciding clash having to be moved midway through from the Jubilee Pool at St David’s Marist Inanda to St John’s because of lightning.
On Tuesday night, both sides also played at St John’s after their semifinals had to be moved due to adverse weather.
In the final four, Gauteng took on KwaZulu-Natal A in a repeat of 2024’s final and sealed a 13-8 win, while Province put 14 goals past Northern Gauteng and won by eight to set up a date with their familiar foes.
The last meeting between the teams in the final of an IPT was back in 2023. After an epic encounter, WP won on penalties.
The stage was set, and the stands were filled to the rafters with a sea of red and black, in support of the home side, and plenty of blue and white, in support of Western Province.
The game’s first chukka had it all. There were outstanding goals and some mind-blowing skills on display, and both sides brought a high level of physicality.
Gauteng quickly built scoreboard pressure by rushing into a 4-2 lead, courtesy of goals by James Crick, Fu-Nam Chen, and a brace by skipper Nicholas Searle.
Province responded through Timothy Young and Ben Bigara, but they were forced to play catch-up.
In the second chukka, the hosts were not at their best, which allowed Western Province A to close up the gap. Blake Brown, Luke Burger, Andrew Reynolds, and the lanky Jandro Rojo-Roos, were on the scoresheet for the visitors, but Gauteng held a slim 7-6 advantage at the break.
The third chukka resumed about 25 minutes later at St John’s. Again, it was end-to-end stuff.
Province pounced first through Young. His goal gave lifted coach Devon Card‘s side, but Central Gauteng responded quickly, with Cooper Haworth striking before Searle converted a five-metre penalty.
Heading into the last chukka, Gauteng was 10-8 to the good. They added two more goals, pulled off a penalty save and held on to score a hard-fought 12-11 victory.
“They were unbelievable. They bought into everything,” coach De Carvalho told SuperSport Schools Plus after the game.
“There are a few guys from last year’s team, but, as a collective, this group decided they were going to dig deep, and they trained hard. They were a proper unit.”
With the game being disrupted several times, the players had to stay composed. De Carvalho spoke about how his players handled the situation: “We had the two breaks at St David’s, and I think we worked that one out quite well,” he said.
“Province handled the move to St John’s a bit better. That’s probably because we had a couple of guys running late, and things like that.
“But when we scored first in the fourth chukka, we kind of turned it around, and the penalty save helped a lot.”
Coach De Carvalho led Gauteng to IPT glory in East London last year, and before that, he won the Currie Cup with the side.
It has been a couple of successful years under his tutelage, and he gave credit to his players.
“In 2023, we lost on penalties when we were leading, so we’ve been there before,” he said. “Last year, the guys pushed through and did really well, and this year they’ve done it again. I think we played good, structured water polo.
“They’ve followed my instructions well, and they’ve taken points from other coaches who have helped them, and they’ve done everything well. I’m happy that they buy into the system so much.”
Other matches
KwaZulu-Natal A ended their campaign on a high by claiming the bronze medal with a 14-7 win over Northerns.
Western Province B defeated Buffalo City by a single goal, while Nelson Mandela Bay edged out Central Gauteng B in a penalty shootout to secure fifth spot.
The Aussie Crocs were rampant in their final fixture, thumping Zimbabwe 23-12, while Eden proved too good for KZN B.
RESULTS
Aussie Crocs 23: Harry Colley (5), James Martin (5), Giacomo Hernandez (3), William Plowman (3), Hudson Dikes (2), Benjamin Spall (2), Rorey Nelson (1), Bonguthixo Cibane (1), Jack Plowman (1). Zimbabwe 12: Donovan Bodington (4), Nicholas Roukounis (3), Blaise Scheepers (2), Daniel Oxden-Willows (2), Patrick Duff (1).
11th: Eastern Gauteng 5: Dylan Kempen (3), Travis Kempen (2). Zimbabwe 0.
9th: Eden Districts 6 (2): Luca Whitehead (2), Matthew Eickhaus (2), Rorke Bubanj (2). Keegan Vogt (2), Kyle Human (2), Oliver van der Merwe (1), Matthew Lock (1). KwaZulu-Natal B 6 (1):
7th: Western Province B 6: James Pinnock (2), Nicholas Wilson (1), Harry Oldham (1), Connor Mortlock (1), Colin Douglass (1). Buffalo City 5: Thomas Caswell (3), Joshua Lentz (1), Samuel van de Venter (1).
5th: Nelson Mandela Bay 8 (2): Christian Chandler (3), Oliver Martin (1), Carter Rosser (1), Murray Copeland (1), Dane Paterson (1), Coel Trollip (1). Central Gauteng B 8 (1): Matthew Cross (2), Luke Shipway (1), Roan Wessels (1), Mukhetwa Maemu (1), David Latilla-Campbell (1), Troy Pasqualle (1), Ryan Morley (1).
3rd: KwaZulu-Natal A 14: Thomas Francke (3), Sebastian Laudenberg (3), Jamie Nicolau (2), Drew Hollingsworth (2), Matthew Lortan (1), Oliver Ludwig (1), Adrian Truter (1), John Watkins (1). Northerns 7: Ettiene van der Merwe (4), Adriaan van Niekerk (1), Julien du Toit (1), Johan Pieterse (1).
Final: Central Gauteng A 12: Nicholas Searle (3), Harry Winks (2), Chris Chapman (1), Cooper Haworth (1), Simon Mussett (1), Erik Arwidi (1), Fu-Nam Chen (1), James Crick (1), Declan Wood (1). Western Province A 11: Jandro Rojo-Roos (2), Benjamin Bigara (2), Tim Young (2), Matt Fenn (2), Blake Brown (1), Luke Burger (1), Andrew Reynolds (1).
