Luan Bornman reflects on historic 100 caps for Boishaai
The 2025 hockey season has been a positive one for the Paarl Boys’ High first team.
Under the tutelage of head coach Rowan McLachlan, Boishaai has played some enterprising hockey, troubled some of the top guns, and made spectators stand up and take notice.
They’ve been fearless in their approach. They’ve attacked with vigour and been defensively sound. If this season has revealed anything, it’s that Paarl Boys’ High is no pushover. They mean business.
A handful of players have been influential in helping the school to turn around its fortunes on the AstroTurf, after a tough 2024, and one of them is Luan Bornman.
The trusted goalkeeper made his 100th appearance for the side at the Cape Town International Hockey Tournament, where Boys’ High finished in third place, behind Reddam House Constantia and South African College High School (SACS).
Bornman – humble, well-spoken, and respectful – became the second player in the school’s history to achieve the feat, following Elmar Liebenberg in 1991.
“It was a special moment,” he told SuperSport Schools Plus. “I felt very blessed, but at the end of the day, it was just another game.
“I have the same mindset going into each game, and I always tell myself that I can’t be overexcited or do anything out of character.
“With that said, though, I’ve learnt a lot in the past 100 games. Some lessons include not placing too many expectations on myself and keeping calm and composed in goal. These have helped me throughout the years.”
Bornman started playing hockey in grade five and joined Boishaai at a young age.
He recalled some of his earliest experiences and explained why he opted to be a goalkeeper.
“I became a goalie in grade five when my family and I moved from Gauteng to the Western Cape.
“I was exposed to hockey for the first time. I quickly saw that I wouldn’t be able to compete against the other players who had all the skills in the field, and I saw two ‘keepers, and I was interested.
“I told myself it can’t be hard, and that’s when I took it on and kept building on it until now.”
The shot-stopper also highlighted the positive influence of his parents and coaches during his journey.
Now, he looks forward to his final match for the school against Paarl Gimnasium in the famous interschools clash, which takes place on Saturday at 10:30.
“I’m very excited for interschools,” he shared, “and I think this year it’s more excitement than nerves.
“In previous years, I was nervous, but I’m now more comfortable and used to the tempo of the game. When you are young, you tend to let the occasion get the better of you, but I’ve grown with time.
“It will be a good match. I trust our matrics and the whole team fully. We have skilful players and great leaders, and I think they will handle the pressure well.”
Bornman is one of six grade 12 learners in the team. On Saturday, he’ll turn out for Boys’ High on the Astro for the last time alongside his teammates AJ Fourie, skipper AJ Mostert, Gideon du Toit, Joel Martini, Nicholas Swanepoel, and Tiaan Liebenberg.
