Clifton stuns star-studded DHS under lights
A Tuesday night meeting of the Clifton College and Durban High School (DHS) 1st XIs appeared, on paper, to be a routine kind of fixture. With seven players in the KZN Coastal u18A side, including their captain Lethabo Bogacwi, who made SA Schools last year, and Lumi Matwele, who made the SA u17 side, expectations were that DHS would roll to a comfortable victory. But that’s not what happened.
Clifton, for the record, doesn’t have any players in the Coastal u18A or u18B teams, although, with only four grade 12 boys in their squad, their provincial reps are to be found at the u16 level. Still, it was a tough task that awaited coach Calvin Price‘s charges at the Riverside Sports Club, under lights.
In the first half, DHS edged the possession stakes, but they didn’t do much to challenge Clifton in the final third of the field. The home side kept their defensive structure and also put in sure tackles to blunt the DHS danger.
An injury to Lumi Matwele didn’t help DHS, but Clifton had done a good job of managing him before he left the field with an ankle injury. Afterwards, he said he expected to be able to face Michaelhouse on Saturday.
Meanwhile, Clifton counterattacked at pace – they have some exciting and confident ball-carriers – and they moved the ball swiftly up the field, winning the first two penalty corners of the contest, while creating some other fair chances.
At halftime, though, the sides were level at 0-0.
With four minutes left in the third chukka, Clifton won a penalty corner. As they were about to take it, the floodlights went out. It was, possibly, an issue with a timer. It took about 15 minutes to restore them.
From the PC, Ryde Brisset was just wide of the right-hand post. It was a close escape for DHS, but the break had done them good. Their intensity had increased. Playing with a sense of urgency, they took the game to Clifton.
Early in the fourth chukka, they laid siege to the Clifton goalbox, but goalkeeper Georg Wolhuter stood tall, pulling off two fine stops in quick succession, before, with help from his defenders, eventually clearing the danger. Wolhuter was outstanding throughout, commanding his area well and making sound decisions.
Still, the Horseflies kept setting the pace. At the same time, there was a sense of growing confidence in the Clifton ranks that they could keep DHS at bay.
They did more than keep DHS at bay, they struck with three minutes to play, with another flowing counterattack creating an opportunity for Jason Adams, who made no mistake and buried the chance.
With time running short, DHS launched a series of attacks, but Clifton’s defence was sound. Then, just as the final whistle was about to be blown, Clifton was penalised for hitting the ball away after the whistle, and the umpire indicated a penalty corner.
The DHS players lined the edge of the circle. Out came the push, as the Clifton players on the halfway line raced back to help defend, but they weren’t needed. A low drag flick was deflected high and wide, well clear of Wolhuter’s goalbox, and the boys in black had scored an unexpected but not undeserved victory.
“I’m very chuffed,” declared Clifton’s coach Calvin Price after the game. “That’s a quality side, a very good side. Keegan [Hezlett] has done exceptionally well with them.
He continued: “That’s the character that I want from the start. Getting a victory against a quality side like that, I couldn’t be happier for the boys. It’s all [because of] them. Very chuffed.”
Price said Clifton’s defensive discipline had paid off: “We tried something with our press, and I think we did exceptionally well. It worked out. Patience! And very solid tackling.”
Commenting on the game, his DHS counterpart Keegan Hezlett said: “Credit to Clifton. They defended really well. I think their goalkeeper had an exceptional game, and they were a threat on the counterattack. They also had their chances.”
The way Clifton approached the game was not unexpected, he said, but DHS were not at their best in the first half.
““I think we were poor at using the outside areas, and the T-point zones in the D. We tried to force a lot of ball down the middle of the park and, even if you get past one guy, the next guy picks up the scraps, or gets a touch and the next defender picks it up,” Hezlett said.
“After the little break in the third quarter, I think we were very good for the last part of the game. We used those outside areas, and we moved the ball, and then when you are pushing so hard for a goal, you leave yourself vulnerable to the counterattack.”
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