Dominant Jeppe u16A claims Alan Monk Top 10 title
Parktown Boys’ High School hosted 10 hockey schools from across Gauteng for the u16 Alan Monk Top 10 Tournament, between 30 April and 3 May, and when the smoke had settled after four days of competition, Jeppe High School for Boys had walked away as the champion.
The Kensington kids put together six outstanding performances and overpowered their rivals, King Edward VII School (KES), 4-0 in the final.
From the first blast of the whistle, Jeppe established themselves as the team to beat. They opened with a confident 4-2 win over a tough Afrikaanse Hoër Seunskool (Affies) side and then overran Hoërskool Monument 6-1.
Those two wins set the table for a clinical demolition of St David’s Marist Inanda, with Jeppe powering their way to a breathtaking 14-0 victory. They wrapped up pool play with a comfortable 5-0 win over the hosts, Parktown Boys’ High.
That set up a semi-final showdown with Pretoria Boys High School, and they proved to be a tougher challenge. It was a tight affair, but Jeppe triumphed again, this time by a 3-1 margin, which put them through to the title game against KES.
With silverware on the line, Jeppe dominated possession and effectively punished defensive mistakes by KES to run out comfortable winners.
In six matches, the winners tallied a remarkable 36 goals while conceding only four. Those statistics underline their control at both ends of the field.
Jeppe also picked up individual accolades, with Jadon Havinga being named the Defender of the Tournament for his rock-solid presence at the back, while Tshimologo Mogale lit up the front line and claimed the Forward of the Tournament award with his sharp and clinical finishing.
The runner-up, KES, began their run to the final slowly, drawing 1-1 with Pretoria Boys High and 2-2 with Hoërskool Noordheuwel.
They were pushed hard by St John’s College but claimed a 3-2 win in their third outing. They, then, completed their pool fixtures with a 2-0 defeat of Kempton Park. KES saved their best for the semi-finals, convincingly beating Noordheuwel 4-1.
Despite their final four defeat , the Krugersdorp school made an outstanding impression and wrapped up their campaign by claiming third place, just ahead of Pretoria Boys High, in fourth, and Noordheuwel’s rivals, Hoërskool Monument, who completed the top five.
RESULTS
Day 1
KES 1-1 Pretoria Boys High
Jeppe 4-2 Affies
Noordheuwel 3-0 St John’s
Monument 1-1 Parktown
Pretoria Boys High 4-0 Kempton Park
Affies 3-1 St David’s
KES 2-2 Noordheuwel
Day 2
Affies 1-1 Monument
Pretoria Boys High 1-0 Noordheuwel
Jeppe 5-0 Parktown
KES 3-2 St John’s
Noordheuwel 3-0 Kempton Park
St Davids 0-4 Monument
Affies 0-2 Parktown
St John’s 2-1 Pretoria Boys High
Jeppe 14-0 St Davids
KES 2-0 Kempton Park
Day 3
Noordheuwel 3-2 Monument
Parktown Boys 1-3 Pretoria Boys High
St John’s 7-0 St David’s
Affies 7-0 Kempton Park
KES 4-1 Noordheuwel
Jeppe 3-1 Pretoria Boys High
Day 4
St David’s 0-1 Kempton
St Johns 1-2 Affies
Parktown (4) 2-2 (5) Monument
Noordheuwel 3-1 Pretoria Boys High
Jeppe 4-0 KES (Final)
FINAL STANDINGS
Jeppe High School for Boys
King Edward VII School
Hoërskool Noordheuwel
Pretoria Boys High School
Hoërskool Monument
Parktown Boys’ High School
Afrikaanse Hoër Seunskool
St John’s College
Kempton Park
St David’s Marist, Inanda
