Pretoria Boys celebrate 124 years with a clash against Jeppe
This weekend marks a special occasion in South Africa’s capital city where Pretoria Boys High (PBHS) celebrates its 124th birthday on Saturday, with a full slate of sporting fixtures against Jeppe High School for Boys.
Those fixtures include the first team hockey match, with Boys High facing the daunting task of taking on unbeaten Jeppe, who recently successfully defended the Aitken Cup to lay claim to being the top hockey side in the Johannesburg region.
Pretoria will also witness St Alban’s College, a team that has enjoyed a strong season, in action against St John’s College. In a local derby, Afrikaanse Hoër Seunskool (Affies) will face Hoërskool Menlopark.
PBHS heads into their clash with Jeppe on a run of mixed results. They recently claimed a 2-1 win over Sutherland High School. However, that performance was followed by 1-3 losses, first to St Alban’s and then to Michaelhouse, last weekend.
The Red Sox, with the home crowd to carry them, and the 124th birthday celebrations to motivate them, will be itching to pull off an upset. If they did, it would certainly be a big one. Jeppe has been in imperious form.
They head to Pretoria as one of only two top teams – the other being SACS – with an undefeated record in 2025.
Meanwhile, St Alban’s, following their 3-1 defeat of Pretoria Boys High, will be full of confidence. St John’s has been less convincing than the blue and grey.
They recently played to a goalless draw with Parktown Boys’ High and, before that, they fell to a 2-3 loss against St Benedict’s College.
In Johannesburg, King Edward VII School (KES) will close out their term’s hockey schedule against Helpmekaar Kollege. The sides meet at the Weinberg Astro.
While Helpmekaar has put together some good results, KES has enjoyed the more consistent season and will be favoured to claim victory at home.
