Mouth-watering clashes: Northwood vs College, Kearsney vs Durban High School
Reece-Edwards Field will be pumping on Northwood‘s Old Boys’ Day on Saturday. The Knights host Maritzburg College at 15:00.
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After Northwood beat Westville Boys’ High 19-14 at the Sharks Schools Rugby Day and College edged out Durban High School (DHS) 18-17 on Gilfillan Field, rugby lovers should be salivating for the showdown in Durban.
Both games were very physical, uncompromising, with the pride the players held in their jerseys to the fore.
Northwood’s imposing Jamie Wimble exited their game against Westville early. He appeared to be dealing with a cough, but if he is fit, that would be a big boost for the home side. They have a more than capable replacement in Kevin von Volenstee, though. While Wimble was recently named in the Sharks’ Craven Week team at no. 8, Von Volenstee cracked the nod in the Sharks Academy squad.
Maritzburg College’s captain and no. 8, Rory Stanton, was outstanding in the win over DHS and crossed for a brace of tries in the second half. His success, though, was the product of a 15-man effort. The Red, Black, and White‘s voracious defence showed many similarities to that of Northwood in their win over Westville.
Something’s got to give on Saturday, but a high-scoring game appears unlikely; both sides show far too much pride on defence to allow that to happen. Nothing is guaranteed, however.
The Knights’ Anesu Kuzonyei, another Craven Week selection, has shown he doesn’t need much ball to make an impact, and he’s a huge threat on cross-kicks. His aerial prowess has earned him a handful of tries this campaign.
Behind the packs, it will be a duel between the Craven Week scrumhalves, Dom du Toit (College) and Ludi van der Walt (Northwood). Both do a tidy job of providing their backs with good-quality ball, and both are good goal kickers. With ice in his veins, Du Toit won the match for College against DHS with the last kick of the game.
College’s big centre, Olwethu Kosani, is a dangerous, powerful runner. Northwood did a good job of containing Westville’s outstanding midfielder, Jadrian Afrikaner, last weekend, and they’ll need to be as wary and effective against Kosani on Reece-Edwards Field.
Buckle up! It should be a great game.
Kearsney College vs Durban High School (DHS)
Another equally exciting match takes place on Stott Field at Kearsney College, where the One-Stripe faces Durban High School (DHS) at 15:00.
Catch the action LIVE on SuperSport Schools
The Horseflies head into the game having lost four on the trot. They’re now five and four on the season, but underestimating coach Peter Engledow‘s charges would be a silly mistake, and it’s not one that Kearsney will make. Those four losses were to Monument and Paarl Gimnasium, who are among the top teams in the country, at the Absa Wildeklawer Tournament, and by three points to Northwood, and one to Maritzburg College.
Both sides are well represented in the Sharks’ Craven Week and Academy Week squads. DHS has five players – Nathan Aneke, Amo Mataboge, Zion Smith, Iglesias Bruiners, and Priden Sibiya – in the Craven Week line-up, and six in the Academy Week squad – Sterling Padi, Tanwil Onkers, Richaard Kriel, Aobakwe Moeng, Bulelani Cebane, and Phokuhle Hlatshwayo.
The return of Smith, their inspirational captain, who missed the Maritzburg College game, is a big boost for the visitors.
Kearsney has four players in the Craven Week line-up – Lwazi Mbebe, Daniel Miskey, Nhlanhla Ndlovu, and Clement Makalele – and the first three (Makalele is a front-ranker) are among the most exciting playmakers to be found anywhere.
DHS will be focused on closing down space when that trio is in possession. Loose kicking onto Mbebe, at fullback, is a recipe for disaster. He’s hugely unpredictable, which is challenging for his own team at times, due to Mbebe’s unorthodox thinking.
While School has the names up front, Kearsney’s pack is solid and extremely hard-working. They’ll fight for every centimetre of the field.
If the play stays tight, it should tilt DHS’s way. If it opens up a bit, Kearsney will fancy their chances. They’re one of the most inventive and exciting attacking teams in the game.
Northwood vs Maritzburg College at Reece-Edwards Field, Durban, at 15:00
Northwood: N/A
Maritzburg College: 15 Sandiswa Hadebe, 14 Sakhokuhle Xaba, 13 Olwethu Kosani, 12 Likhona Kosani, 11 Matthew Harris, 10 Luthando Dlamini, 9 Dom du Toit, 8 Rory Stanton, 7 Caleb Sweetman, 6 David Colenbrander, 5 Joshua Thompson, 4 Sean Jansen, 3 Alande Ngubande, 2 Theo Boshoff, 1 Linamandla Mabanga.
Kearsney College vs Durban High School at Stott Field, Botha’s Hill, at 15:00
Kearsney College: 15 Lwazi Mbebe, 14 Luke Grobbelaar, 13 Thomas Aylward, 12 Keanu Williamson, 11 Lwandile Mkhize, 10 Daniel Miskey, 9 Fynn Verbaan, 8 Nhlnhla Ndlovu, 7 Oliver Ludwig, 6 James Whatmore, 5 Thomas Francke, 4 Robert Gelderman, 3 Tunga Griffiths, 2 Matthew Wilson, 1 Clement Makelele.
Durban High School: 15 Tanwil Onkers, 14 Amo Mataboge, 13 Sterling Padi, 12 Nathan Aneke, 11 Richard Gyamfi, 10 Cilermo Carlous, 9 Hlomelo Mbane, 8 Aobakwe Moeng, 7 Jose Lottering, 6 D Swart, 5 Bulelani Cebane, 4 Ambisiwe Sipanga, 3 Priden Sibiya, 2 Okuhle Mbanjwa, 1 Tumiso Mokoena.
