Collegiate continues to stamp its authority in the Eastern Cape
Collegiate Girls’ High confirmed its status as the team to beat in the Eastern Cape over the past weekend.
The side from Gqeberha handed their rivals, DSG Makhanda, their heftiest defeat of the season, beating them 5-1 at the Webster AstroTurf in Makhanda.
It was yet another impressive victory for coach Michael Abrahams‘ side, who have been in top form this season.
While they might have fallen short of winning the title in several tournaments, including the St Mary’s Waverley Festival, All Girls Festival, and Belgotex Sport Girls Challenge, Collegiate has dominated their derby fixtures.
At St Mary’s, they bowed out in the quarterfinals after losing to Rhenish Girls’ High on a penalty shootout before narrowly going down in the semifinals at the All Girls Festival against Oranje.
A 0-1 loss to Waterkloof in the Girls Challenge final in Cape Town means Collegiate’s only remaining chance of clinching silverware this year will be at the Fairtree Super 12 in August.
Barring those tournament heartbreaks, Collegiate’s in-season form has been outstanding. Their results include a 3-0 win over Rhenish and a 2-1 defeat of Oranje. In recent weeks, they thumped both Outeniqua and Kingswood College 7-0.
“It’s been a very good way to end the term,” coach Michael Abrahams told SuperSport Schools News after Collegiate’s emphatic win over DSG.
“It’s never easy going to Makhanda and playing DSG at their home ground.
“We know a game is never won in the first half, so for us, it was about staying in it as long as possible.”
Kerrin Gillies, who has been a star performer for the past two seasons, racked up a hat-trick against DSG, while Olivia Freecks and the dangerous Casey Grobler also struck for the Gqeberha school.
Despite conceding one goal, Collegiate’s defence was solid.
“We wanted to play where there is space, be good defensively, and make sure we could handle their aerial and long ball threats,” Abrahams said. “Taking accountability for our one-versus-one defence was also key.
“When in possession, we wanted to make sure that we could move the ball and play vertically as soon as possible.
“We scored some good goals. Before the match, we spoke about a few things tactically and worked on specifics.”
Collegiate’s fixtures for the term are complete. Exams lie ahead, followed by the Inter-Provincial Tournaments during the mid-year holiday. Then, it’s back into action in July.
Abrahams’ charges face some testing fixtures in the third term. They start it with a derby against local side Framesby before facing Oranje and Eunice over a blockbuster weekend.
Thereafter, they’ll travel to Bloemfontein for the Super 12 before ending their season at home against Clarendon.
