Hoërskool Upington hunts Injerjol glory against Duineveld
The town of Upington, in the Northern Cape, will be abuzz this weekend when Hoërskool Upington takes on their biggest rivals, Hoërskool Duineveld, in the annual ‘Klein Interjol’ clash on Saturday morning.
The highly anticipated match will see the boys’ and girls’ teams from the local schools take to the turf with their sights set on quietening their noisy neighbours.
It’s LIVE on SuperSport Schools! Pushback for the boys’ clash is at 11:30, while the girls’ match starts at 12:45.
It’s been a topsy-turvy start to the 2025 season for the Uppies‘ boys’ 1st XI, which is led by coaches SD Botes and Sergio Jones.
After a couple of pre-season outings, in April, the boys in white and orange participated in the Belgotex Sport Easter Hockey Tournament, in Cape Town.
It was their first time at the tournament, and Uppies came up against some tough opposition, but they held their own and finished in 29th place out of a whopping 48 teams.
“We had a very slow start to the season,” Botes told SuperSport Schools Plus. “This year, for the first time in eight years, we have a fairly young side, with only three grade 12s.
“We are not happy with the results thus far,” he admitted, “but we see every loss as a learning opportunity, and it pushes us to better ourselves every game.”
Playing in the Belgotex Easter Hockey tournament was a milestone for Hoërskool Upington’s hockey programme, which has been making massive strides within the Northern Cape region.
Although some results during the tournament didn’t go their way, the coaches believe that facing top teams will leave the boys in good stead for the remainder of the season.
“It changed our minds a bit to see we can think bigger than the Northern Cape and Free State Province, where we normally compete,” Botes shared.
“At this stage, we try to give our younger players as much exposure as possible, and each game we can see improvement from the team, as a unit. To be able to be the best, you have to compete against the best.”
The Uppies team will be required to be at their best when they face Duineveld on Saturday morning.
The Interjol is a huge occasion, and Botes explained its significance: “Interjol is massive for the players, staff and coaches from both schools.
“We, however, try to stay focused on the fact that this is also the start of the league, so we have a bigger picture in mind. This match can be likened to the derby between Paul Roos and Paarl Gimnasium. It’s fairly big and gathers big crowds.”
In their last meeting with Duineveld, Uppies scored an emphatic 6-1 victory on home soil.
They’ll be playing away this time around, and the coaches believe if they bring their A-game and execute well, another win could be on the cards.
“If we stick to the plan and execute it well again this time around, we can, in return, get another positive result, no matter if it’s home or away.
“This is a special group of boys who like to bring their A-game when necessary,” Botes concluded.
The Uppies side will be led by John-Dre Rooi, and he’ll be assisted by De Villiers Fourie. Players who could be pivotal to their challenge include Hendrik Van Der Westhuizen and Roux Erasmus.
TEAMS
Hoërskool Upington: Heinrich Goussard, CJ Botha, Thysson van Rheene, Roux Erasmus, Corné Kriek, De Villiers Fourie (vc), John-Dre Rooi (c), Hendrik van der Westhuizen, Jaco Strauss, Ruan Strauss, Fredrick du Plessis, Evan Janse van Rensburg, Franco Coetzee, Ihshan Mvuyekure, Johan Truter, Nicolaas Brockman.
Hoërskool Duineveld: Juan Zaayman (GK), Markus van der Merwe, Christian Kotzé, Jean-Pierre Smith, Luan Olivier, Drihan Venter, Werner Broodryk, Wilmar Gresse, Wade April, Wickus Nel, Henco Dege, Nico Hodgson, Albert Oberholster, Tristen du Toit, André du Rand (vc), Ewald van Rensburg (c).
