Paul Roos welcomes top Cape teams for Pre-Season Water Polo Festival
Schools’ water polo action resumes this coming weekend in Stellenbosch, just under a month after the 2024 Schools Water Polo South Africa Inter-Provincial Tournament concluded in East London.
Paul Roos Gimnasium (PRG) hosts their much-anticipated annual pre-season festival from 10-11 January.
The two-day event has been described by PRG head coach Vaughn Marlow as a “chance for teams to sharpen their swords” ahead of a jam-packed season.
The first match on each day will begin at 09:00 sharp, and the day’s play will conclude with the final fixture starting at 17:30.
It’s a festival that will pit the top Western Cape schools against each other before the SACS Nite Series commences later this month.
In action alongside PRG will be SACS, Rondebosch Boys’ High, Wynberg Boys’ High, Bishops Diocesan College, and Reddam House Constantia.
St Andrew’s College, from Makhanda in the Eastern Cape, will make another appearance at the festival, and they are joined by newcomers, Paarl Boys’ High.
Bishops dominated the region in 2024. Under coach Jabulani Sibiya, they claimed the top honours at the Nite Series, Mazinter Cup, and won their maiden SACS Water Polo Tournament later in the season.
SACS, meanwhile, reigned supreme at the SAC Shield and Clifton Water Polo Tournament. Rondebosch Boys’ High made massive strides by winning the KES Water Polo tournament.
All three teams dominated the Western Province u19A squad, while PRG contributed three players to the u19 team that finished in third spot at the Inter-Provincial Tournament.
The schools participating in the festival bade farewell to some influential players at the end of last season, so there are many unknowns as the 2025 season gets underway, which will make for an interesting event.
Bishops will begin life without star players Jordan de Sousa and Ross Stewart, while SACS have to find replacements for Nicholas Fall and Connor-Melling Williams.
Rondebosch said farewell to Bradley Warneke and Pierre du Plessis, while PRG will be without the services of Adam October and Arkin Marais.
The festival will allow the respective coaches to begin building their squads for the forthcoming season without the pressure of the result being of primary importance. The organisers have also confirmed to SuperSport Schools Plus that no scores will be kept as the festival is all about preparation for the forthcoming season.
The matches will run for 30 minutes, with two breaks taking place during each day.
The hosts will kick things off against St Andrew’s College on the opening day.
Fixtures
Day 1
09:00 – Paul Roos Gimnasium vs St Andrew’s College; 09:30 – Wynberg Boys’ High vs Paarl Boys’ High; 10:00 – Rondebosch Boys’ High vs St Andrew’s College; 10:30 – Paul Roos Gymnasium vs Paarl Boys’ High; 11:00 – Rondebosch Boys’ High vs Wynberg Boys’ High; 11:30– Reddam House Constantia vs St Andrew’s College; 12:00 – Paul Roos Gimnasium vs Reddam House Constantia; 13:30 – Paul Roos Gimnasium vs Rondebosch Boys’ High; 14:00 – St Andrew’s College vs Paarl Boys’ High; 14:30 – Wynberg Boys’ High vs Paul Roos Gimnasium; 15:00 – Reddam House Constantia vs Rondebosch Boys’ High ; 16:00 – Reddam House Constantia vs Paarl Boys’ High; 16:30 – St Andrew’s College vs Wynberg Boys’ High; 17:00 – Rondebosch Boys’ High vs Paarl Boys’ High; 17:30 – Wynberg Boys’ High vs Reddam House Constantia
Day 2
09:00 – Paul Roos Gymnasium vs Bishops Diocesan College; 09:30 – St Andrew’s College vs SACS; 10:00 – Paul Roos Gimnasium vs Paarl Boys’ High; 10:30 – St Andrew’s College vs SACS; 11:00 – Bishops Diocesan College vs Rondebosch Boys’ High; 11:30 – Paul Roos Gimnasium vs SACS; 12:00 – Bishops Diocesan College vs Paarl Boys’ High; 12:30 – Wynberg Boys’ High vs Rondebosch Boys’ High; 13:00 -Paarl Boys’ High vs SACS; 13:30 – St Andrew’s College vs Reddam House Constantia; 14:00 – Rondebosch Boys’ High vs SACS; 14:30 – Wynberg Boys’ High vs Paul Roos Gimnasium; 15:00 – Reddam House Constantia vs Rondebosch Boys’ High; 15:30– Bishops Diocesan College vs Wynberg Boys’ High; 16:00 – Reddam House Constantia vs SACS; 16:30 – Wynberg Boys’ High vs St Andrew’s College; 17:00 – Rondebosch Boys’ High vs Reddam House Constantia; 17:30 – Reddam House Constantia vs Wynberg Boys’ High.
