Bishops’ second half burst too good for St John’s, Hilton rampant with nine of the best
Despite a strong defensive display, the hosts of the St John’s Easter Festival, St John’s College, were unable to contain Diocesan College in the main match of an exhilarating opening day. The side from the Western Cape came to life after the interval, beating the Blues 24–7.
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At half-time, the sides were locked at seven points apiece, but it was Caleb Clark who broke the deadlock. A constant threat ball in hand, the lively back proceeded to slice through a committed Blues defence.
His reward was a five-pointer and the first of three unanswered second-half tries. Ben Durandt followed, showing a clean pair of heels to score in the corner, before prop Jack Hibling delivered the final blow with a well-earned try.
Centre Alec Psillos scored the only points for the home side, converting his own try. He and midfield partner Alec Loveland were among the standout performers during a resilient first-half defensive effort.
The curtain-raiser followed a similar pattern, with a performance that can only be described as utterly dominant. The side from the Midlands ran in 65 points to dismantle the Rhinos of Hoërskool Nelspruit 65–14, the biggest margin of the day.
The side from KwaZulu-Natal dictated proceedings from the kick-off and controlled the lion’s share of possession, which was reflected on the scoreboard. Hilton College blindside flanker Ross Steyn set the tone upfront, excelling in broken play and becoming a constant thorn with powerful pick-and-drives and close-range carries. His efforts were rewarded with two tries. Out wide, both wingers exploited space superbly, each crossing for a five-pointer.
Kingswood College were slow out of the blocks against St David’s Marist, but once they found rhythm, they surged clear with six tries to claim a 40–5 victory. The standout was the second try, with Kungawo Badli running more than half the length of the field to score. The well-known Mackenzie twins, Josh and James, also made their presence felt, with James Mackenzie finishing off a clever line to catch the defence off guard.
Fullback Lucritia Magau starred for Graeme College, scoring a first-half hat-trick as the side from the Eastern Cape overwhelmed St Benedict’s College 57–5. Magau was not the only standout. Scrumhalf Luke Doyle and Erin Nelson each added two tries, with Nelson also landing five conversions and Doyle converting another to round off a commanding team performance.
Scorers:
Diocesan College 24 (7) – Tries: Cristian Toweel, Caleb Clark, Ben Durandt, Jack Hibling. Conversions: Eljaron Geduld (2), Clark. St John’s College 7 (7) – Try: Alec Psillos. Conversion: Psillos.
Hilton College 65 (32) – Tries: Ross Steyn (2), James Peattie, Liyema Gazi, Tom Gurupira, Aiden du Plooy, Lwango Ntantala, Rob Jervis, John Grubb. Conversions: Grubb (3), JD van Wyk (3). Penalties: Grubb (1). Hoërskool Nelspruit 14 (14) – Tries: Kamo Monkwe, Vian Louw. Conversions: Ewan Van Der Merwe (2).
Kingswood College 40 (12) – Tries: Junior Ndlazi, Kungawo Badli, James Mackenzie, Sithenkosi Qabaka, Ross Thompson, Ryan O’Sullivan. Conversions: Christopher Zimmerman (5). St David’s Marist 5 (0) – Try: Ronin Hallowes.
Graeme College 57 (33) – Tries: Lucritia Magau (3), Luke Doyle (2), Erin Nelson (2), Andrew Muir, Hunta van Zyl. Conversions: Nelson (5), Doyle. St Benedict’s College 5 (0) – Try: Siya Kubeka.
