Everything to play for in Bloemfontein at the High School Sevens Series Champions Tournament
This weekend, Bloemfontein will be the battleground upon which the nation’s most formidable schools’ sevens teams will vie for supremacy in the prestigious High School Sevens Series Champions Tournament.
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In Pool A, the mighty hosts, Grey College, booked their place in the Champions Tournament after standing tall at their own tournament.
Their Alzeadon Felix has been a sevens’ revelation and will definitely be one to watch in the revered local team.
Big Ethan Adams is another player from Grey with a lot of excitement surrounding him at the moment, he will also be a player to keep an eye on this weekend.
They’re up against Brandwag, who will look to make their mark after qualifying from the 2022 series as the u15 champions of the Brandwag tournament, played in Benoni last year.
Marais Viljoen earned their spot as the champions of the Heidelberg Volkskool tournament, and Sarel Cilliers is the sole representative from KZN after taking the honours at the Pionier tournament in Vryheid.
In Pool B, Noordheuwel‘s exceptional performance at the Monument tournament in mid-September secured their passage to Bloemfontein. They sealed the deal with a 28-19 victory over Helpmekaar in the final, following an impressive semifinal triumph over the hosts (39-14), and victories in the pool stages over Marais Viljoen (35-26), St Stithians (52-7), and Dinamika (33-12).
Nories have been riding high this year, and added a further trophy to their collection at the end of September when they were crowned the Noordvaal Sevens Champions, after outplaying a formidable Garsfontein squad, also at Monument, to clinch the title.
Keep a close watch on standout performers like Jade Muller, Jeandre Uithaler, and Meyer Opperman, who were instrumental in propelling Noordheuwel to the summit of the sevens’ rankings in both the Lions and Noordvaal regions. Their sights will be firmly set on national success this weekend.
Boland Landbou secured their spot in Bloemfontein through the performance of their u15 squad during last year’s series.
Unfortunately, Paarl Gimnasium, Paul Roos Gimnasium, Queen’s College, Monument, and Hudson Park are unable to attend.
Helpmekaar suffered a number of injuries, leading to the late withdrawal of their under-17 side. An Invitational squad from Bloemfontein have stepped in to take their place.
This weekend’s tournament promises to deliver a fitting climax to the 2023 sevens’ season, with some of the best talent in the country set to showcase some spectacular running rugby.
The hosts will, no doubt, go into the event as the favourites. With their formidable rugby pedigree, it’s hard to look past them as potential champions. Their record in 2023 is, however, not unblemished.
They’ve been beaten twice this year, and both losses came at the hands of Paul Roos Gimnasium, with silverware on the line on each occasion.
The first was in a nail-biting showdown in the final of the NWU Prestige Schools Sevens Festival in Potchefstroom. The second was a more emphatic victory for the Stellenbosch school in the final of the Marius Schoeman Sevens Festival in Paarl.
A potential trilogy clash between these titans of South African schoolboy rugby would have, undoubtedly, been a spectacle. Paul Roos has, at least for the other schools in action in Bloemfontein, proved that this Grey side is not invincible.
That being said, the recent success of Free State at the 2023 Interprovincial Sevens Tournament certainly shows how daunting the challenge that awaits the opposition will be.
That Free State squad, primarily composed of talents from Grey College, produced their best rugby in a riveting final in which they narrowly bested the Sharks in a 15-14 thriller.
Liam Santos and Phillip McLaren will bear watching. They were phenomenal for the Free State team and are sure to be highly influential this weekend for the home side.
The battle-hardened hosts are ready to defend their turf, upon which they very seldom lose. But sevens is different to the 15-man game. The challenges and requirements differ. Anything is possible, and the challengers will be eager to upset Grey College and the status quo.
The groups:
u17
Pool A: Grey College, Brandwag, Marais Viljoen, Sarel Cilliers.
Pool B: Boland Landbou, Kempton Park, Noordheuwel, Bloemfontein Invitational.
u15
Pool A: Boland Landbou, Heidelberg Volkskool, Zwartkop, Pionier.
Pool B: Grey College, Graeme College, Helpmekaar, Kempton Park.
The fixtures:
u17
Friday: 14:00 – Grey College vs Brandwag; 14:20 – Marais Viljoen vs Sarel Cilliers; 14:40 – Boland Landbou vs Kempton Park; 15:00 – Noordheuwel vs Bloemfontein Invitational; 15:20 – Grey College vs Sarel Cilliers; 15:40 – Marais Viljoen vs Brandwag; 16:00 – Boland Landbou vs Bloemfontein Invitational; 16:20 – Noordheuwel vs Kempton Park.
Saturday: 08:50 – Grey College vs Marais Viljoen; 09:30 – Kempton Park vs Bloemfontein Invitational; 10:10 – Brandwag vs Sarel Cilliers; 10:50 – Boland Landbou vs Noordheuwel.
u15
Friday: 14:00 – Boland Landbou vs Heidelberg Volkskool; 14:20 – Zwartkop vs Pionier; 14:40 – Grey College vs Graeme College; 15:00 – Helpmekaar vs Kempton Park; 15:20 – Boland Landbou vs Pionier; 15:40 – Zwartkop vs Heidelbelberg Volkskool; 16:00 – Grey College vs Kempton Park; 16:20 – Helpmekaar vs Noordheuwel.
Saturday: 08:30 – Boland Landbou vs Zwartkop; 09:10 – Graeme College vs Kempton Park; 09:50 – Heidelberg Volkskool vs Pionier; 10:30 – Grey College vs Helpmekaar.
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