It’s Western Province all the way in u13 IPT
Before Wednesday’s playoff games rolled around, there was no doubt that the boys’ u13 title at the Schools Water Polo South Africa Inter-Provincial Tournament was going to Western Province (WP). After all, it was Western Province A vs Western Province B in the final.
Meanwhile, it was Western Province A versus Nelson Mandela Bay (NMB) in the girls’ title game.
Both Western Province teams had finished in first place in their groups, but in the boys’ final, not unsurprisingly, WP triumphed 10-4, while the Western Province A girls matched their boys’ side by beating NMB 7-4 to underline the Cape powerhouse’s supremacy in the age group.
Boys
When WP A won in the final in the Fouvière Pool, at St David’s Marist Inanda, they also inflicted the only loss suffered by the province in the boys’ competition of the Inter-Provincial Tournament’s biggest age group, which featured 18 boys’ and 18 girls’ sides. Nonetheless, Western Province B did themselves proud. Their record included two wins over KwaZulu-Natal A.
In 2023, KZN won the title, but they found themselves outside of the medals in Johannesburg after going down 3-5 to Central Gauteng A in the third-place playoff.
Nelson Mandela Bay finished fifth after a 6-3 victory over KZN B, while their Eastern Cape rivals, Buffalo City, snatched seventh with a penalty shootout win over Central Gauteng B after they had ended level at 6-6.
Central Gauteng C showed off the host’s enviable depth in the u13 age group by beating Boland 5-4 to finish ninth.
Zimbabwe A held off Eden Districts, winning 9-7, to place eleventh.
Zimbabwe B’s Daniel Hutchings had a dream day, rocketing seven goals into the back of the Northerns A net to lead his team to a thirteenth place finish.
Nelson Mandela Bay B beat Eastern Gauteng 7-5 in the fifteenth-place playoff, and Buffalo City B cruised to a 15-4 win over Northerns B to end seventeenth.
Jordan Meiring, of Eden Districts, was the tournament’s leading goal scorer, striking 28 times, while Dominic Hutchings scored 23 for Zimbabwe B. Matthew Skeeles, of the title-winning Western Province A side, scored 18 goals, the third-most, and was matched by Helmuth Bothma, of Northerns A.
Girls
Sarah Mocke, of Western Province A, was the leading goal scorer in the girls’ u13 competition, and she struck twice in the final to help her side to a three-goal win over Nelson Mandela Bay A, who, despite the loss, must have been thrilled with their runner-up finish.
For most Eastern Gauteng teams, the IPT going was tough sledding, but the province’s u13 girls’ side excelled. Behind a four-goal performance from Taylor-Rose Botes, they beat Buffalo City A 7-4 to lay claim to the bronze medals.
Central Gauteng A ended fifth after an 8-4 defeat of Western Province B, while in an all-KZN seventh-place playoff, KZN A needed a penalty shootout to get by KZN B after they had shared a 3-3 draw. There was an example of a B team bettering their A team, though, in the case of Zimbabwe A and Zimbabwe B.
On Tuesday, the Zimbabwe B team emphatically downed the Zim A side 6-1 in the playoffs. On Wednesday, Zim B claimed ninth place with a comfortable 5-1 win over Central Gauteng C, who finished above Central Gauteng B after getting by the B side in a penalty shootout on Tuesday.
Zimbabwe A, meanwhile, beat Central Gauteng B 6-4 to finish eleventh.
Thirteenth went to Boland. They drew 3-3 with Nelson Mandela Bay B but triumphed after a penalty shootout.
Ashley Mthethwa struck four times for Eden Districts to power them to an 8-2 victory over Buffalo City B in the fifteenth-place playoff, and Northerns finished seventeenth with a 7-2 defeat of Eastern Gauteng B in which Cara Bedeker, the event’s fifth-highest scorer, netted four times.
RESULTS
Boys
17th: Buffalo City B 15: Jacob Smit (3), William Fletcher (3), Liam Priem (2), Adam Smith (2), Jack Clifford (2), Kungwayo Xhasa (2), Chase Fredericks (1). Northerns B 4: Lucca Gomes (2), Johann du Toit (1), Hanlu Wessels (1).
15th: Nelson Mandela Bay B 7: Ryan Magson (2), James-Quinn Bailey (1), Callum Taylor-Davis (1), Rogan Barrat (1), Dante Williams (1). Eastern Gauteng A 5: Gianluca Kilfoil (2), Jaxon Odgers (1), Alex Peens (1), Matteo Kilfoil (1).
13th: Zimbabwe B 12: Dominic Hutchings (7), Daniel Evans (2), Matthew Eastwood (1), Ricky Davidson (1), Liam Erasmus (1). Northerns A 7: Keenan Pienaar (2), Helmuth Bothma (2), Kwame Quaqraine (1), Liam Nortje (1), Oliver Leathem (1).
11th: Zimbabwe A 9: Mason Granger (3), Daniel Williams (2), Andile Sibanda (1), Matthew Wishart (1), Luke Ridley (1), Taylor Hendricks (1). Eden Districts 7: Keagan Godfrey (2), Gray Jacobs (1), Rhoderick Simpson (1), Jordan Meiring (1), Matthew King (1), Jonathan Pieterse (1).
9th: Central Gauteng C 5: Alexander De Matteis (3), Jono Cheek (1), Riley Badsha-Eybers (1). Boland 4: Luca Olivier (1), Johannes Muller (1), Nicolas Coolen (1), Sam Dekker (1).
7th: Buffalo City A 6 (1): Zuzezakho Ncangisa (2), Luke Lategan (1), Brody Schemel (1). Central Gauteng B 6 (0): Jeremy Wattam (2), Alexi Nousias (1), Daniel Wilson (1), Rupert Devine (1), Benjamin Alberts (1).
5th: Nelson Mandela Bay A 6: Josh Parker (3), Ithiel Harry (1), Axl Jorgensen (1), Levi Oakes (1). KwaZulu-Natal B 3: Mason Mamotte (2), James Gaddi (1).
3rd: Central Gauteng A 5: Samuel Terlingen (3), Renzo Ferrari (1), Oliver Biddulph (1). KwaZulu-Natal A 3: Samuel Ash (1), Elvis Peltz (1), Mpilo Khomo (1).
Final: Western Province A 10: Matthew Skeeles (3), Harry Corlett (2), Christopher Vermaak (1), Luca Naude (1), Maximillian Grout (1), Sebastian Iles (1), Jake du Plessis (1). Western Province B 4: Oliver Vickers (1), Charles Dingley (1), Gus Cloete (1), Josh Labuschagne (1).
Girls
17th: Northerns 7: Cara Bedeker (4), Lia Basson (3). Eastern Gauteng B 2: Paballo Nkosi (1), Sonali Singh (1).
15th: Eden Districts 8: Ashley Mthethwa (4), Trudy McConville (1), Saskia Steffny (1), Abigail Vadas (1), Emma Hunter (1). Buffalo City B 2: Riley Thompson (1), Camryn Weber (1).
13th: Boland 3 (1): Jessica Rose-Innes (1), Sophia Boustred (1), Alexis Bushney (1). Nelson Mandela Bay B 3 (0): Lily Maio-Cheia (2), Olivia Brothers (1).
11th: Zimbabwe A 6: Mazvita Makamure (4), Hannah Pringle (1), Georgia D’Aquino (1). Central Gauteng B 4: Sophie Crawford (2), Alexia Marvin (1), Ava Booth (1).
9th: Zimbabwe B 5: Lexi Love (2), Rebecca Martin (1), Divya Chauhan (1), Keira Style (1). Central Gauteng C 1: Keira Gordon-Bennett (1).
7th: KwaZulu-Natal A 3 (3): Juliette Brown (1), Zibusiso Xulu (1), Olivia Botha (1). KwaZulu-Natal B 3 (2): Emily Kriel (1), Olivia Cox (1), Sarah Howieson (1).
5th: Central Gauteng A 8: Kristin-Leigh Barker (2), Mikayla Cross (2), Holly Dorrenstein-Rowley (1), Jessica Simpson (1), Vera Collocott (1), Giana Gonzaga (1). Western Province B 4: Rebecca Hime (2), Matilda Roberts (1), Caro Bishop (1).
3rd: Eastern Gauteng A 7: Taylor-Rose Botes (4), Megan Els (2), Akwande Hlophe (1). Buffalo City A 4: Morgan Graham (3), Maya Owen (1).
Final: Western Province A 7: Sarah Mocke (2), Khloe Brown (2), Elounda Charalambous (1), Mile-Belle Slatter (1), Emilie Conradie (1), Nelson Mandela Bay A 4: Mataiah Smith (2), Jemma Windsor (1), Emma Muirhead (1).
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