No perfect records after day one of Nedbank Grey College Soccer Tournament
The hosts enjoyed a strong opening day of the Nedbank Grey College Soccer Tournament in Bloemfontein on Saturday, recording two wins and a draw, including a 2-1 victory over the 2023 champions, St Stithians College.
It wasn’t a good day for the champs, who were also beaten by Pretoria Boys High, going down 0-2 in that contest, but they finished it off with a narrow 3-2 win over George Royal Academy.
In 2023, Grey finished eighth in the 24-team field, and they’ll be eager to challenge for higher honours this time around. They’ve made a good start.
Boys High matched the home side with a record of two wins and a draw after the opening day, and that draw came when the two sides met.
George Royal Academy is poised to pounce if either Grey or Pretoria Boys High slips up. They blew through Victoria Park 4-0 and beat Durban High School (DHS) 3-1 before falling to St Stithians.
Brebner, one of the local top teams, who finished third in 2023, recorded two wins and a draw in Group B, beating Curro Bloemfontein and Glenwood in tight contests without conceding a goal before being held to a 1-1 draw by Parktown Boys’ High.
Wynberg, sixth in 2023, beat Jeppe, last year’s fourth-place finishers, 2-0 and Glenwood 3-1, while they drew 2-2 with Curro, so they’re set to challenge for a place at the top of the group.
While Jeppe went down to Wynberg, they followed up with wins over Parktown and Curro, so they’re still in the running to progress to the Cup playoffs.
Westville Boys’ High, who were beaten in the Bowl final last year, after losing four matches by a single goal, enjoyed far better fortunes on Saturday. Playing in Group C, they rolled to a 2-0 win over Norkem Park High and a 3-0 defeat of Bloemfontein’s St Andrew’s School.
As matters stand after day one, two more local teams, Bloemfontein South and Navalsig, are breathing down Westville’s neck in the group. Bloem South won 2-1 against St Andrew’s and Navalsig handed St David’s Marist Inanda a 2-0 loss before the two winners drew 1-1.
In Group D, last year’s runners-up, HTS Louis Botha, recorded a 3-2 win over Hodisa Technical High School before being held to a goalless draw by Robinvale.
King Edward VII (KES), fifth last year, opened their challenge with a 3-1 win over Empangeni High School. They were, however, beaten 1-0 by Kimberley Boys’ High next time out.
Matters in Group D are the tightest of any pool. All of the teams have played twice and their records stand at either a win and a draw or a win and a loss.
There’s plenty to play for on Sunday.
RESULTS
Group A
George Royal Academy 4-0 Victoria Park
Pretoria Boys High 2-0 St Stithians College
Grey College 3-0 Durban High School
Grey College 2-1 St Stithians College
George Royal Academy 3-1 Durban High School
Pretoria Boys High 3-2 Victoria Park
Durban High School 3-3 Victoria Park
Grey College 1-1 Pretoria Boys High
St Stithians College 3-2 George Royal Academy
Group B
Wynberg Boys High School 2-0 Jeppe High School
Glenwood High School 2-1 Parktown High School
Brebner High School 1-0 Curro Bloemfontein
Brebner High School 2-0 Glenwood High School
Wynberg High School 2-2 Curro Bloemfontein
Jeppe 2-1 Parktown School
Jeppe 2-0 Curro Bloemfontein
Wynberg Boys High 3-1 Glenwood High School
Brebner 1-1 Parktown High School
Group C
Navalsig 2-0 St Davids Marist Inanda
Westville Boys High School 2-0 Norkem Park High School
Bloem South 2-1 St Andrew’s Bloemfontein
Westville Boys High 3-0 St Andrew’s Bloemfontein
Navalsig 1-1 Bloem South
St David’s Marist Inanda 0-0 Norkem Park High School
Group D
Robinvale 3-2 Kimberley Boys High
King Edward VII School 3-1 Empangeni High School
HTS Louis Botha 3-2 Hodisa Technical High School
Hodisa Technical High School 2-1 Empangeni High School
Kimberley Boys High School 1-0 King Edward VII School
HTS Louis Botha 0-0 Robinvale
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