Michaelhouse fires on all cylinders in big win over Kearsney
It was a matter of time before the Michaelhouse 1st XV clicked. Unfortunately for Kearsney College, they were the opposition when that happened on Friday, with ‘House pulling away to a comfortable 50-17 victory over a side that has been in good form.
Playing for a third time in succession on Baileys, Michaelhouse put the bitter taste of a 20-25 defeat to Hilton College last Saturday behind them and took out their frustrations on the game visitors from Botha’s Hill.
He was happy, said Michaelhouse coach James Fleming after the game, but, he admitted, more relieved than anything else.
Throughout the season, playing a tough schedule, the Balgowan boys have been in every game, yet their win over Kearsney was their first against South African opposition.
They had beaten Zimbabwe’s Peterhouse and St John’s College, and drawn with Grey High School and St Andrew’s College, two teams enjoying good seasons, which showed the quality and potential of the Michaelhouse team. But a South African win had evaded them, until Friday.
With losses stacking up, though, doubt begins to creep in, Fleming admitted, but he said; “The sun will shine brighter after today. We needed that big time, so I am very chuffed.”
While there might have been doubts, one thing that his players have not lacked has been an all-out effort, the coach said. He hoped they would get it together, and they did that on Baileys. “I keep telling them,” Fleming said, “if we turn the corner, we can win every game on the run home. We could lose every game, as well,” he added. But, after a convincing win, Michaelhouse’s belief has been boosted.
From the opening whistle, the home side surged onto the attack, moving the ball wide and almost circumventing the Kearsney defence on the left. They were stopped just shy of the try line, but Kearsney was penalised for straying offsides and scrumhalf Nicholas Baker took a quick tap. He was stopped by a solid tackle, but the ball was recycled quickly and flyhalf Stefan Moolman took an outside gap to go over in the right-hand corner.
When they get going, Michaelhouse plays a lovely flowing game, with clean interaction between the forwards and backs, and it was clear they had found their rhythm early against the One-Stripe.
The home side added more points in the ninth minute, when, after losing a lineout five metres from the Kearsney try line, they pressured the visitors into dotting down and forced a five-metre scrum. A solid scrum and a couple of skip-passes created space wide on the left for Rourke O’Sullivan to scoot over in the left-hand corner.
The home team’s ability to get the ball out to both flanks was paying dividends, and that approach put Kearsney under pressure.
Michaelhouse went over for their third try in the 14th minute, with captain William Ridl making a decisive break, again to the outside, before feeding the ball back inside to O’Sullivan who went over beneath the uprights for his second five-pointer. The home supporters cheered loudly. Their team was making it look easy.
Kearsney, though, is not short of character and they forced their way down into the ‘House 22. Twice, they probed to the blind side and the second time, quick hands and astute thinking from Keanu Williamson saw the centre pick out eighthman Nhlanhla Ndlovu with a beautifully timed inside pass, which played Ndlovu into a gap, and he was over for Kearsney’s first try and points of the contest. Michaelhouse led 17-5.
Stung, Michaelhouse hurled themselves back onto the offensive, taking play deep into Kearsney’s 22. This time they kept it tight, with the forwards battering away until they had crossed the try line, but it was O’Sullivan, who was in the thick of the action, who had gone over for his third. Stefan Moolman knocked the conversion between the posts and Michaelhouse extended their advantage to 24-5.
Just before the break, Kearsney struck back. From a scrum about 30 metres out, the visiting team went left. Flyhalf Jayden Jonsson stabbed a grubber behind the ‘House backline and vice-captain Doan Nel was the first to the ball when it bounced high. He snatched it out of the air and was over for five points, just next to the uprights. Fullback Lwazi Mbebe made the easy conversion and the teams turned with Michaelhouse 24-12 in front.
Kearsney was the first to strike after the break. It began when Keanu Williamson made a huge dent in the ‘House defence after running onto a flat pass at pace, which took him up to five metres from the home team’s try line. Then, the ball was moved wide swiftly and the One-Stripe, through Valentino Lenge, went over in the corner.
With Kearsney pulling back to within one score of Michaelhouse, there was some concern, given the way the season had panned out, about how the home side would respond, their coach James Fleming said. He needn’t have worried. Kearsney had tacked on 12 points while ‘House was a player down but, once back to 15 men, they picked up their game.
Michaelhouse responded superbly to that early second-half setback and was soon camping in the visitors’ half. Their forwards did a good job of sucking in the Kearsney defenders by driving the ball up with a series of pick-and-goes before it was released to the left. Ridl, with a nice dummy, drew two defenders’ attention and then fed O’Sullivan, on his outside. The centre gratefully took possession of the pass and was over for his fourth. Moolman nailed the conversion and Michaelhouse moved two converted tries clear at 31-17.
“At 24-17 it was game on,” Fleming said, “but then we scored a lekker try to go 31-17 up, and then the boys unleashed.”
‘House added another five points in the 57th minute when Dom Sesink-Clee finished off another fluent attack down the right-hand touchline. The hosts had the bit between their teeth and were enjoying a surfeit of possession.
Before the hour mark, the red and white hoops were in again. They bashed it up on the right and then shifted it smartly to the left where fullback Alex Jankowitz took the scoring pass and crossed the whitewash in the corner for a try. Moolman rubbed a little salt into Kearsney’s wounds by converting from near the touchline.
The last try of the contest began inside the Michaelhouse half. The hosts’ attack appeared to have lost momentum when a misdirected pass forced Jankowitz to stop and grab the ball, which was a little behind him. He got a pass away to Jack Carmody, though, and Carmody headed for the outside gap. Just before he was cut down, he slipped a pass inside to Nicholas Baker.
With open ground ahead of him, Baker hit the gas, drew the last defender and passed inside to James Mallett, who outstripped the Kearsney defence to dive over close to the posts. Moolman sank the conversion to bring up Michaelhouse’s half-century.
It was a fitting exclamation mark on an excellent all-round performance from Michaelhouse.
It’s an interesting reflection on their season that they have won only three of their 10 games, but they have never lost by more than eight points, and their points difference is 160 to the good. There is, perhaps, more to come from them.
They next have a crack at Northwood on Friday, meeting the Knights for a second time this season, at the KZN High Schools Rugby Day, which will be hosted by Hilton College. At the start of the season, Northwood edged out Michaelhouse 15-13 in Durban. No doubt, William Ridl and company are looking forward to having another crack at the Durban school.
SCORES
Michaelhouse 50 (24) – Tries: Rourke O’Sullivan (4), Stefan Moolman, Dom Sesink-Clee, Alex Jankowitz, James Mallett. Conversions: Moolman (5); Kearsney 17 (12) – Tries: Nhlanlha Ndlovu, Doan Nel, Valentino Lenge. Conversion: Lwazi Mbebe.
Kearsney 17 (12) –
RESULTS
u19 – Michaelhouse I 50 Kearsney I 17; Michaelhouse II 53 Kearsney II 10; Michaelhouse III 42 Kearsney III 12; Michaelhouse IV 49 Kearsney IV 14; Michaelhouse V 45 Kearsney V 5; Michaelhouse VI 40 Kearsney VI 7; Michaelhouse VII 64 Kearsney VII 0
u16 – Michaelhouse A 21 Kearsney A 52; Michaelhouse B 29 Kearsney B 24; Michaelhouse C 21 Kearsney C 10; Michaelhouse D 26 Kearsney D 22; Michaelhouse E 26 Kearsney E 22
u15 – Michaelhouse A 19 Kearsney A 12; Michaelhouse B 25 Kearsney D 5; Michaelhouse C 47 Kearsney C 0
u14 – Michaelhouse A 17 Kearsney A 15; Michaelhouse B 57 Kearsney B 7; Michaelhouse C 29 Kearsney C 5
