Pinetown grabs the spotlight on day one of the Kearsney Soccer Tournament
The action in the second edition of the Kearsney Soccer Tournament started bright and early in Botha’s Hill on Friday morning, with the hosts playing to a 1-1 draw with Paul Roos Gimnasium, while Pinetown posted a 2-0 victory over Northwood.
That was the start of a very good day for Pinetown, who didn’t concede a single goal in the Matterson Field Group and also claimed three wins.
They followed up their victory over the Knights with a 3-0 defeat of Maqhutshana 1 and a 1-0 win over Tuks, last year’s beaten finalists.
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It wasn’t a good day for Tuks, who were held to a 1-1 draw by Maqhutshana 1 and were also beaten 2-0 by Northwood.
Siyajabula enjoyed a strong start in the group, powering their way to a 4-0 victory over Ashton International Ballito, which they followed up with a 2-0 win over Lebone II College.
Lebone, from Rustenburg, sneaked a 4-3 victory over Clifton College in a thrilling opener for both teams. The Durban school was involved in a second goal-fest later in the day, but they held on for a 3-2 win over Ashton.
Durban High School (DHS), who lost 0-5 to Tuks in their opener in 2023, before upsetting the same team 1-0 in the final, enjoyed a much better start to their 2024 challenge. Faced with a tricky opener, they recorded a 2-1 win over Gqeberha’s Urban Academy.
Later in the day, they dominated against Curro Hazeldean, but had to settle for just a 1-0 victory.
The hosts, Kearsney, who are also in the Roberts Field Group, had a good day. After their draw with Paul Roos, they beat Maqhutshana 2 3-1 and completed their assignments with a convincing 4-0 defeat of Thomas More College.
Paul Roos, who claimed the Plate at the Kloof High School Football Tournament, just down the road, in mid-June, after scoring twice in the last five minutes against Pinetown, overran Thomas More 6-0.
In the girls’ competition, St Mary’s DSG grabbed a 2-1 win over Curro Hazeldean in their 08:00 opener, but later cruised to a 4-0 win over Durban Girls’ High.
Kloof High won twice, too, beating Lebone II College 2-0 and Ashton 2-1.
Danville Park remains undefeated, but not perfect, after a 1-1 draw with Curro Hazeldean and a 1-0 defeat of Durban Girls’ High.
It was a busy day for the boys’ primary school teams, with 10 matches being played.
Highbury Prep, a leading feeder school for Kearsney, was one of the top performers, with their A team scoring eight goals while conceding only one, in two victories.
Their rivals from Pietermaritzburg, Merchiston Prep, also went two for two, beating the Highbury Prep B team comfortably, before being pushed hard by Hillcrest Primary.
RESULTS
Boys’ High School
Roberts Field
Kearsney 1-1 Paul Roos
DHS 2-1 Urban Academy
Thomas More 2-5 Maqhutshana 2
Sutherland 1-1 Curro Hazeldean
Kearsney 3-1 Maqhutshana 2
DHS 1-0 Curro Hazeldean
Thomas More 0-6 Paul Roos
Urban Academy 2-1 Sutherland
Kearsney 4-0 Thomas More
Matterson Field
Pinetown 2-0 Northwood
Lebone II College 4-3 Clifton College
Tuks 1-1 Maqhutshana 1
Siyajabula 4-0 Ashton
Pinetown 3-0 Maqhutshana 1
Lebone II College 0-2 Siyajabula
Northwood 2-0 Tuks
Clifton College 3-2 Ashton
Pinetown 1-0 Tuks
Girls’ High School
St Mary’s DSG 2-1 Curro Hazeldean
Ashton 2-0 Thomas More
Kloof High 2-0 Lebone II College
Curro Hazeldean 1-1 Danville Park
Thomas More 2-1 Lebone II College
Durban Girls’ High 0-4 St Mary’s DSG
Ashton 1-2 Kloof High
Danville Park 1-0 Durban Girls’ High
Boys’ Primary School
Ashton Ballito 1-0 Thomas More
Atholl Heights 1-2 Reddam Ballito
Highbury Prep A 3-0 Kloof Senior Primary
Hillcrest Primary 2-3 Merchiston Prep
Kloof Senior Primary 2-2 Ashton Ballito
Atholl Heights 1-4 Hillcrest Primary
Thomas More 3-1 Winston Park
Reddam Ballito 1-2 Highbury Prep B
Highbury Prep A 5-1 Winston Park
Highbury Prep B 0-3 Merchiston Prep
