Heavy hitters aim for a strong showing at Founders Festival
The small town of Komani in the Eastern Cape is expected to receive an economic boost this weekend when Queen’s College hosts the Founders Hockey Festival.
The annual event, which began in 1982, brings together some of the country’s top hockey-playing schools, along with those that have emerging hockey programmes.
The action takes place from 28 to 30 March at the Chris Harker AstroTurf.
In attendance, alongside Queen’s, will be the Eastern Cape duo of Kingswood College and Dale College.
Kingswood has enjoyed a positive start to the season under head coach Jose Smith. After five matches, they’ve racked up three wins, one loss, and a 2-2 draw, which came against Hudson Park at the Tony Godding Festival a fortnight ago.
Dale, meanwhile, will be aiming to hit their stride after a mixed bag of results at the Tony Godding Festival.
An exciting Western Cape contingent – South African College High School (SACS), Paarl Gimnasium, and the underdogs Somerset College – will make its way to Komani.
Many will be keen to see what SACS delivers after enjoying a splendid season in 2025.
They finished the year unbeaten with 33 victories and 2 draws– one of their draws was on a pre-season tour of The Netherlands – and they captured the prestigious Hibbert Shield title.
Litha Kraai, who has lit up schoolboy hockey over the past couple of seasons, is the SACS headliner. As an early-season festival, the event will offer coach Sam Holmes a chance to assess his side in match conditions.
Another Western Cape team eager to make a mark will be Paarl Gim. They’ve experienced some early-season teething problems, suffering shock defeats at the hands of Worcester Gimnasium and Durbanville.
Coach Jacques Grobler, however, will back his youngsters to bounce back when they tackle St Stithians College, Northwood School, and Dale.
Somerset College, led by coach Kyran Fortuin, will have a point to prove after a building season in 2025. They would’ve taken some confidence from their pre-season outings in the Western Cape.
Speaking of confidence, St Stithians College heads to Komani brimming with confidence after some impressive performances over the past week.
Coach Pat Ogwan‘s troops showed character to draw 2-2 with Jeppe High School for Boys before beating Pretoria Boys High 3-2 on the weekend.
The likes of Jason Joiner, Thomas Becker, and Mahlatse Maapola will play crucial roles for Saints during the festival. Their biggest test will come against SACS in the final match on the opening day.
Parktown Boys’ High and Helpmekaar College will also fly the Gauteng flag and will aim to shake off early-season rust as quickly as possible. Northwood, always well-drilled, will represent KwaZulu-Natal’s interests.
The action kicks off on Friday afternoon with a clash between Queen’s and Kingswood at 16:30.
FIXTURES
Friday, 27 March
16:30 – Queen’s College vs Kingswood College
Saturday, 28 March
07:30 – Queen’s College vs Helpmekaar
08:50 – Dale College vs Kingswood College
10:10 – Somerset College vs Northwood
11:30 – SACS vs Parktown Boys’ High
12:50 – Paarl Gimnasium vs St Stithians College
14:10 – Dale College vs Helpmekaar
15:30 – Somerset College vs Kingswood College
16:50 – Queen’s College vs Northwood
18:10 – Paarl Gimnasium vs Parktown Boys’ High
19:30 – SACS vs St Stithians College
Sunday, 29 March
07:30 – Helpmekaar vs Kingswood College
08:50 – Paarl Gimnasium vs Northwood
10:10 – Queen’s College vs Somerset College
11:30 – Dale College vs St Stithians College
12:50 – SACS vs Kingswood
14:10 – Paarl Gimnasium vs Helpmekaar
15:30 – Dale College vs Parktown Boys’ High
16:50 – Somerset College vs St Stithians College
18:10 – SACS vs Northwood
19:30 – Queen’s College vs Parktown Boys’ High
Monday, 30 March
07:30 – Dale College vs Paarl Gimnasium
08:50 – SACS vs Helpmekaar
10:10 – Somerset College vs Parktown Boys’ High
11:30 – Northwood vs St Stithians College
