SASHOC National Week kicks off with a bang in Pietermaritzburg
There was an early Monday morning start as the fog was starting to clear over Pape’s Astro, at Maritzburg College, in Pietermaritzburg. The temperature read a mere four degrees Celsius as Eastern Province A and Southern Gauteng A got the ball rolling at the 2025 SASHOC National Week.
After months of preparation, it was time for the players to walk the talk and show spectators, national selectors, and, potentially, scouts in attendance, what they had to offer.
The big winners on the opening day were the defending champions Western Province A (WP), Southern Gauteng A, Boland A, Southern Free State A, and Northern Gauteng A.
Southern Gauteng defeated Eastern Province A (EP) 1-0 in the first game of the tournament, thanks to a strike by Parktown Boys’ High stalwart, Zeyad Davids.
The boys from Gauteng were made to sweat for their win. In a scrappy first half, EP came out fighting and created ample chances. However, coach Andrew Beynon‘s boys were their own worst enemies. Their finishing let them down.
In the first half, they were awarded several short corners, but their execution was rough, and those chances went begging.
Southerns, meanwhile, struggled to gel but showed promising signs, and their defence, steered by captain Ethan Kapanda, Khanyisa Kraai, and Benjamin Simon, was rock solid.
Up front, they didn’t create much, but Davids used the single chance that came his way, while Aidan Blatch showed glimpses of his potential.
The action intensified quickly when the defending champions, Western Province, took on Boland B.
Province defeated Boland A 3-2 in last year’s final and arrived in the Midlands as one of the favourites. Boland B, on the other hand, earned promotion after winning the B-Section in 2024.
WP hardly got out of first gear but, after a well-contested first chukka, went in front in the second chukka through Litha Kraai.
They doubled their tally soon after through a thunderbolt drag flick from captain Jo le Roux. Then, in the final chukka, Aiden Topper sealed the victory with a brilliant solo goal.
Another side that had a good opening day was KZN Inland A, who finished fifth in 2024, a placing with which they were disappointed.
Coach Damian Kimfley’s boys have flown under the radar ahead of the tournament, but they’re one of the sides to keep an eye on in a tough Pool A.
They enjoyed a good start, defeating a game KZN Coastal B side 2-0. Later in the day, they played out a goalless draw with Eastern Province A.
Inland created several good goal-scoring opportunities, but were frustrated by EP. It was a tightly contested affair, but EP’s Keegan Le Roux had a golden chance to win it in the dying minutes of the game when he picked up a loose ball and made a circle entry. His shot was wide of the mark, however, and it didn’t bother Viwe Ndlovu.
Inland also had a chance to snatch victory, but Kiano Broadhurst proved why he’s so highly rated, pulling off some acrobatic saves to keep the hosts goalless.
In Hilton, St Anne’s DSG’s lower AstroTurf hosted three boys’ matches, too, with Boland A taking on Western Province B, Northern Gauteng facing KZN Coastal A, and Southern Free State A tackling Southern Gauteng B.
Province B competed wholeheartedly, but Boland controlled the contest and finished well to run up an emphatic 5-0 victory, which set a nice foundation for the Western Cape side for the remainder of the tournament.
Ruben Gouws, Tylor Carter, Christo Swanepoel, and Adam Leitch, all of Paul Roos, netted, while Luka Meets completed the scoring, converting a stroke with a minute to play, to make it five.
The match of the day was undeniably between Northern Gauteng A and KZN Coastal A.
Led by coach Steven Paulo, the Northerns boys made a poor start, but coach Paulo’s speech halfway through the match sparked his boys back to life.
They trailed 0-2 at the break courtesy of strikes by Joshua Mungherera and Luke Allen, who both netted field goals in the second chukka. Owen McMennamin, though, kept his side from going a further goal behind by saving a penalty stroke.
Northerns had to respond, and they did so early in the second stanza when Tyler Trower pulled one. With seven minutes left to play, Luken Brunette levelled matters with a successful penalty stroke.
A 2-2 draw would have been befitting of the occasion, but Northerns had other ideas.
On the hooter, the boys from Pretoria were awarded a short corner. They turned to their co-captain, Luken Brunette.
He is no stranger to big match moments, and he did what he does best and converted, rocketing the ball past Georg Wolhuter, in the Coastal goal, to snatch a dramatic 3-2 win.
Southern Free State, meanwhile, mustered a 1-0 win over Southern Gauteng B, with by captain Matthias Visser slotting a penalty corner to secure the win for the boys from Bloemfontein, who dominated the contest, but found Southerns B tough to break down.
Day 1 | Results and scorers
Pool A
Southern Gauteng A 1: Zeyad Davids. Eastern Province A 0.
KZN Inland A 2: Lynton Fitz, Gordon Deutscher. KZN Coastal B 0.
Western Province A 3: Litha Kraai, Jo le Roux, Aiden Topper. Boland B 0.
Eastern Province A 0. KZN Inland A 0.
Pool B
Southern Free State A 1: Matthias Visser. Southern Gauteng B 0.
Boland A 5: Ruben Gouws, Tylor Carter, Christo Swanepoel, Adam Leitch, Luka Meets. Western Province B 0.
Northern Gauteng A 3: Luken Brunette (2), Tyler Trower. KZN Coastal A 2: Joshua Mungherera, Luke Allen
DAY 2 FIXTURES
Pool A
11:45 – Southern Gauteng A vs KZN Inland A
13:10 – Eastern Province A vs Western Province A
14:35– KZN Coastal B vs Boland B
Pool B
07:30 – Boland A vs Northern Gauteng A
08:55 – Southern Gauteng B vs Western Province B
10:20 – KZN Coastal A vs Southern Free State A
16:00 – Boland A vs Southern Gauteng B
17:25 – Western Province B vs KZN Coastal A
