Parktown Boys’ High to tackle Jeppe in the Aitken Cup final
For a first time since 2010, Parktown Boys’ High School has made it through to the Aitken Cup final.
They booked their spot in the title-decider following a 5-3 semi-final triumph over St John’s College on Saturday at St Stithians.
It was tight in the opening chukka, but Parktown edged ahead with a late goal. They continued to build their confidence with a second strike to make it 2-0 at the break, and two more in the third chukka had Kyle Reddy‘s charges cruising towards the final.
Credit to St John’s, though, they kept fighting and netted three times in the fourth chukka, with Parktown scoring once, to finish the game strongly. Parktown, though, had done all the hard work in the first three chukkas, and they were through to the final.
Reddy’s side has been a pleasant surprise in 2024. They started slowly at the Founders Festival, but they’ve come on in leaps and bounds during the course of the season, and at the Aitken Cup they’ve impressed.
Earlier, on Saturday, they scored a vital 2-1 win over St David’s Marist Inanda. In the final, they’ll tackle Jeppe, who have been most dominant school in the history of the competition.
In their opening match, on Friday, Jeppe drew 1-1 with St David’s, who had beaten them 4-1 earlier in the season in a league clash. Since that draw, the Zebras have been on a dominant winning run, with their defence keeping four clean sheets in succession.
They overpowered Northcliff 5-0 and rattled off a 3-0 win over Hoërskool Monument. Then, they ran out 2-0 winners over Helpmekaar to secure their place in the semifinals.
There, they emphatically grabbed their chance, with coach Siya Sityana’s side, who lost the 2023 final to St Stithians, scoring a 3-0 win over King Edward VII School (KES).
RESULTS
Parktown 2-1 St David’s
St Stithians 7-0 Northcliff
St John’s 1-0 St Benedict’s
Noordheuwel 1-0 Linden
Jeppe 2-0 Helpmekaar
Monument 4-0 Randpark
KES 5-1 Trinityhouse
Fourways 3-2 Beaulieu
St David’s 4-1 St Benedict’s
Northcliff 2-1 Linden
Parktown 5-3 St John’s
St Stithians 7-1 Noordheuwel
Randpark 3-1 Beaulieu
Monument 5-0 Fourways
Jeppe 3-0 KES
Helpmekaar 2-1 Trinityhouse
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