Simplicity – The keyword driving St David’s Marist Inanda in 2026
After a resplendent season in 2025, the St David’s Marist Inanda water polo first team intends to build on the momentum of a memorable year in 2026.
The Sandton-based school impressed last year, playing a dynamic brand of water polo that saw them win the Vides Water Polo Tournament and finish second at the prestigious SACS Water Polo Tournament in Cape Town.
A talented group of players lifted their game to new heights under the guidance of head coach Dean Whyte.
Their 2026 campaign began shakily a week ago at the King Edward VII (KES) Thursday Night League, which hosted its inaugural games between KES, St David’s, St Stithians College, St John’s College, Jeppe High School for Boys, and St Benedict’s College.
St David’s narrowly lost 3-5 against Saints, and they’re eager to bounce back against KES this week.
“We had a lot of work to do on the drawing board; there’s lots of stuff to fix,” Whyte told SuperSport Schools Plus.
“We have to work on holistic points – from mobility to intensity, to the physiological side of things.
“One of the big things we want to put our focus on is that it’s a new year, a new team, a new us, and we’ve got to start from the ground and work right back up.”
The newly formed Night League means the Gauteng schools will battle each other weekly with silverware on the line. The final round takes place on Thursday, 19 February.
It’s an initiative that coach Whyte believes was needed in the region. “It’s great to finally have a night league,” he said.
“Although the Gauteng schools have a deeper range of alternative sports, I just find that it’s super busy, in particular with the swimming season. With that said, this is good. We need more games to close the gap in terms of competing.
“It also develops the sport and allows younger players to come into the fold and step up. It’s nice for blooding in some of our younger players as well.”
Apart from competing in the league, St David’s will also defend their Vides title next month in East London. Whyte, however, isn’t looking too far ahead.
“For us, it’s one game at a time. We will worry about the next game when it arrives,” he reckoned.
“I’m very focused when it comes to these things because school sports are not professional. We are not looking at six or seven games down the line.
“We will go with the intention to compete in every single game. We focus on good processes, and the outcomes we want will follow.”
St David’s locks horns with KES on Thursday at 18:00, while Jeppe takes on St Benedict’s at 18:45. St Stithians and St John’s will be in action at the SAC Shield in Makhanda.
