Preview – Duineveld vs. Upington HS

On Saturday, 27 April 2013, Duineveld host Hoërskool Upington to an FNB Classic Clash.

Upington on the fertile banks of the Orange River has two really strong rugby schools – Duineveld and Upington, Velties and Uppies. They are the schools who can compete with any other school in South Africa and dominate the Griqualand West Country Districts side, which is the name for the old Northwest Cape. Last year 17 of the 22 players who went to Craven Week were from those two schools. There was then one each from Kalahari of Kuruman, Kathu, Nababeep, Posmasburg and Concordia. None of the six Velties is back in their team this year and only two of the 11 Uppies – fullback Darryl de Wee and eighthman Jasper Wiese.

The two schools meet twice a year. Each time it’s an Interjol. This first one is the Klein Interjol. The match in the third term is the Groot Interjol. The contact and competition goes well beyond rugby and yet it is the rugby that counts most, especially the 1st XV match. The competition includes chess, shooting, hockey for boys and girls and netball.

It is likely to be close. In 2010 Duineveld won the Klein Interjol 25-6. In 2011 and 2012 Uppies won – 33-12 and 12.10. One thing is certain there will be a big crowd at Duineveld for Saturday’s match. The result is beyond prediction. Last year Uppies were doing badly while Duineveld were doing really well, but Uppies won.

This year Duineveld have played two teams ranked in the FNB Top 20 – Grey College of Bloemfontein and Diamantveld. They lost both – 52-13 and 26-19. They also lost to Jim Fouché and drew with Hugenote of Springs. They have yet to win a match but have been playing top opposition.

Uppies have beaten Namakwaland, Wolmaransstad and Bellville, the last a good win. But they have lost to Kalahari, as they did last year, Montagu and Hermanus.

Adding lustre to this year’s match will be the referee – Jonathan Kaplan, the most experienced Test referee in the history of the game. His presence will be unforgettable for the teams. He referees a Vodacom Cup match in Potchefstroom on Friday evening and then heads for Upington on Saturday.

The teams:

Upington HS: 15 Darryl de Wee, 14 Junior van der Merwe, 13 Johnathan Steenkamp, 12 DJ Dry, 11 Gert Rupping, 10 DJ van den Heever, 9 Roschè Naudé, 8 Jasper Wiese, 7 Alvin Steenkamp, 6 Louw Scholtz, 5 Willem Koeglenberg , 4 Edaurd Killian, 3 Thapelo Masenge, 2 Bryan van der Merwe, 1 Sergio Boer. Replacements: 16 Gert Nel, 17 Hakiti du Plessis, 18 Lewies Karsten, 19 Immaculate Vundisa, 20 Franclyn Botha, 21 Dylon Magerman, 22 Chevee Niewenhuizen.

Duineveld: 15 Christiaan du Plessis, 14 Liam Griebenhauw, 13 Attie Brits, 12 Brendan-Lee Faro, 11 Chris Opperman, 10 Cobus van Niekerk, 9 Coenie Lamprecht, 8 Junior Burger, 7 Petri van der Merwe, 6 Theunis Visser, 5 Ryno Karstens, 4 Rayno Nel, , 3 Jan-Hendrik van Wyk, 2 Hendri Nel, 1 Hanro Visagie. Replacements: 16 Jaco Lategan, 17 Corné Nieuwoudt, 18 Koos Page, 19 Barend Geldenhuys, 20 Etienne Kruger, 21 Gideon Coetzee, 22 Elro Hough.

Kick-off: 15:00

Venue: Dries Potgieter Stadium at Duineveld
Expected weather condition: It’s hot in Upington on the fertile strip between two deserts. Saturday will be clear with a high of 30°C, dropping to 10°C.
Referee: Jonathan Kaplan (South African Referees’ Association)

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Hannes Nienaber

Hannes Nienaber covered schools' rugby in South Africa for Volksblad, Beeld, and Rapport for 11 years. He also created the biggest school rugby website in South Africa - School of Rugby - back in 2007. It eventually morphed into Supersport Schools Plus. He still occasionally milks cows.

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