‘City of Gold’ to shine as players dust off rust
Exciting rugby matches fill the menu for the kick off of the rugby season in Johannesburg on Saturday, with the “City of Gold” ready to welcome the winter fireworks with open arms.
Parktown Boys’ High will celebrate their Old Boys weekend in style, with the school band set to get the adrenaline flowing 30 minutes before their match against Pretoria’s St Alban’s College.
The Hoops face an energetic and youthful Parktown Boys’ team, but they have a number of returning players from last year’s side, and they should feel confident in the ability of their experienced players to lead the way on Saturday.
Kick-off is at 12:00 on the A field. Catch all the action live on SuperSport Schools (www.supersportschools.com).
An exciting prospect to keep an eye on is St Albans’ outside centre JJ Steenkamp. Coach Ofentse Moeng said of his midfielder: ” He is a complete player, offering versatility in the backline.” Last year, he played fullback.
Parktown’s scrumhalf Thepiso Tladi operates at the heart of the action, and he’ll orchestrate plays and provide a tidy service to his fellow teammates. Being a scrumhalf, he will, no doubt, try to get under the skin of the opposition.
St John’s College also has an early start against St David’s Marist Inanda, with the action beginning at 12:30.
Kyle Watson will lead the Blues from his position at hooker, while his deputy, Dominique Kamangu, packs down in the second row.
St David’s will be counting on a big performance from their forward pack, which includes captain D’Andre Mushonga. He fronts up at loosehead, alongside Connor McWilliams, at hooker, and Marco Bitter, on the tighthead.
Teams
Parktown Boys High School: 15 Kgotso Tumahole, 14 Muna Imenda, 13 Calestin Felkers, 12. Lisasa Mnukiso, 11 Prince Kanda 10 Kelvin Kotey, 9 Thepiso Tladi, 8 Kingsley Okonkwo, 7 Keith Ncube, 6 Lethabo Sikhudo, 5 Vuyo Ndlovu, 4 Disema Mofokeng (c), 3 Mundilo Emmeraude, 2 Lethoko Mallane, 1 Unathi Haas.
St Alban’s College: 15 Matthew Nelson, 14 Ofentse Sema, 13 JJ Steenkamp, 12 Tumelo Mohale, 11 Aiden Kloppers, 10 Matthew Ward, 9 Joshua Verster, 8 Daniel Bouwer, 7 Thabiso Mbembele 6 Patrick Weir, 5 Jandré Botha 4 Tim Garnett, 3 Neo Gama, 2 Craig Milne 1 Andreas Philippou.
St David’s Marist Inanda: 15 Tristan Lambe, 14 Kuzivakwashe Majuru, 13 James Pearson, 12 Theo Fonternel (vc), 11 Owami Maropola, 10 Teegen Rossini, 9 Diego Ferreira, 8 Daniel Fellingham, 7 Tahin Patel, 6 James Askew, 5 Jack Brady (vc), 4 William Allemann, 3 Marco Bitter, 2 Connor Mc Williams, 1 D’Andre Mushonga (c).
St John’s College: 15 Riley Elliot, 14 Bryson Walker, 13 Gerald Van Wyk, 12 Malan du Plessis, 11 Jacob Smith, 10 Joe MacRobert, 9 Tom Kruger, 8 John-John Bierman, 7 Kakuhle Tunguta, 6 Grant Barnes, 5 Zain Newman, 4 Dominique Kamangu (vc), 3 Matthew Kaplan, 2 Kyle Watson (c), 1 Joshua Shannon.
