Michaelhouse captures Jody Momple Cup as favourites are ambushed
Upsets abounded in the Jody Momple Cup, with neither of last year’s finalists making it beyond the quarterfinals. Instead, it was Michaelhouse and Ixopo High who contested the gold medal game on Sunday at Hilton College.
In a back-and-forth tussle, a sudden death shootout was needed to settle it, with ‘House winning 6-5 from the spot after regulation time had finished at 1-1.
Maritzburg College, who beat Carter High 3-2 in the 2023 final, were ousted 1-0 by Edendale Technical College in the last eight, while Carter went down 1-2 to Ixopo in their quarterfinal clash, which sent two of the title favourites crashing out.
Michaelhouse, meanwhile, accounted for Carter B, who had done themselves proud as late replacements for Maritzburg Christian School, winning 3-0, and Hilton College charged into the semi-finals, netting three goals in double-quick time after the first whistle had sounded, on their way to a convincing 5-2 win over Alexandra High School.
While Maritzburg College and Carter were done, a mouthwatering semi-final between the arch-rivals, Hilton and Michaelhouse, awaited, and the Ixopo versus Edendale clash brought the teams that had ousted the favourites together.
With hearty support from their schoolmates, the Hilton team got off to a flyer in their semi-final, winning an early penalty to take the lead against Michaelhouse.
‘House has shown throughout the season, though, they’re a resilient bunch and they battled their way back into the contest before eventually winning it 2-1.
Meanwhile, neither Ixopo nor Edendale could find a way through their opponent’s defences, with chances being few and far between. Ixopo, though, moved on with a 3-1 win from the penalty spot.
In the title-decider, both sides did a good job of isolating players in the midfield, which made swift progress up the field difficult. Ixopo, though, snatched the lead right before half-time from a corner, with their captain, Saki, nodding in from close range.
A strong wind had blown throughout most of the day, and in the second half it favoured Michaelhouse, which made clearing the ball from the back and deep into the Ixopo half easier.
Early in the second half, the Balgowan boys found a reply, just managing to bundle the ball over the line from a corner after a goalmouth scramble. It was close, but it was an excellent decision by the linesman. Under heavy pressure, he called it correctly.
In the latter stages of the contest, Ixopo pushed hard for a winner, opening up Michaelhouse on a number of occasions, but they couldn’t find the finish they so desperately wanted.
That sent the match to the penalty spot, and both sets of penalty-takers responded superbly, executing their kicks with confidence. There were only a couple of close calls, one from each side.
However, when it went to sudden death, Michaelhouse scored and Ixopo finally blinked, with their shot going wide of the mark to leave Michaelhouse the winners of the Jody Momple Cup for a first time.
Later, at the awards ceremony, Jason Brufau, of Michaelhouse, was named the Player of the Match.
Michaelhouse captain Angelo Nkosi told SuperSport Schools Plus afterwards: “As a school, we always want to win. We always want to go all the way. We knew it was going to be tough. In the past tournaments, it has been tough, and we have always come up short.
“Our matrics are in the middle of trial exams, so we knew that if we’re going to come here, we are going to have to commit every single part of ourselves to this event. I’m so happy.”
Nkosi said he hoped winning the prestigious title would give a boost to football at Michaelhouse: “Hopefully, it means there will be a greater focus on the football programme, more excitement about it. I hope this gives guys a reason to invest in the sport, to support the guys who play, and to grow the culture.”
Then, he turned to his teammates, saying: “These guys are amazing. A lot of them put up their hands. A lot of them said that this is the year we are going to make it count. We are going to have a successful season. I love each and every single person here, and I couldn’t have asked for a better team.”
Arguably, no team was happier at the conclusion of the event than Etham College. They dominated Heritage Academy in the Bowl final, winning 4-0, and they celebrated that achievement mightily.
The Plate title went the way of Haythorne Secondary School, who held off ML Sultan Secondary to claim a 2-1 win.
The Bryce Moon Trophy, for the event’s top goal scorer, went to Hilton College’s Tino Hove, who struck seven times for his side, just one goal shy of equalling the tournament’s record.
RESULTS
Bowl Quarterfinals
Riverwood 7-0 St Nicholas
Weston 0-1 Heritage Academy
Greytown 1-5 Etham
Wartburg 4-1 Treverton
Plate Quarterfinals
Howick 4-1 Grace College
ML Sultan 3-1 St Charles
Newton 0-2 Haythorne
Linpark 1-0 Umvuzo
Cup Quarterfinals
Hilton College 5-2 Alexandra
Michaelhouse 3-0 Carter B
Carter 1-2 Ixopo
Edendale Technical 1-0 Maritzburg College
Bowl Semi-finals
Riverwood 3-4 Heritage
Etham 1-0 Wartburg
Plate Semi-finals
Howick (5) 1-1 (6) ML Sultan
Haythorne (8) 2-2 (7) Linpark
Cup Semi-finals
Hilton College 1-2 Michaelhouse
Ixopo (3) 0-0 (1) Edendale
Bowl final
Etham College 4-0 Heritage Academy
Plate Final
ML Sultan 1 – 2 Haythorne
Cup Final
Michaelhouse (6) 1-1 (5) Ixopo
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