Southern Gauteng geared up for the SASHOC National Week
The Southern Gauteng u18 hockey squad to represent the province at the SASHOC National Week in Bloemfontein from 16 June has been announced, and it includes a number of players who helped Southerns make the final in 2023.
Within the 16-player squad are St Stithians’ Matt Eichweber, Deven Wax of Beaulieu College, and Avela Sibisi, from St David’s Marist Inanda, who did duty last year in Bloemfontein.
Jeppe High School for Boys provides three returning players in Boipelo Koloti, Joshua Renders and Ethan Kapanda. Those three have been at the forefront of Jeppe’s efforts this season and helped the school bag another Aitken Cup title this month.
Coach Anthony Woodhouse, assisted by Justin Rosenberg and team manager Siya Sityana, explained how they carried out the selection process.
“Our trial process is complicated,” Woodhouse said. “We have three- and four-term schools, with very different holiday periods to consider. This creates a small hiccup, in terms of when trials can take place. Then there is the sheer number of players from across Johannesburg and the Vaal area.
“We usually have district trials before centralised trials, totalling five to six rounds before the final teams are picked.
“This year, we split into A/B and C/D squads and had two training sessions before finalising the teams.
“Lastly, we have many traditional top hockey schools, as well as excellent players from lesser-known schools. This means that some excellent players miss out on selection across teams. Luckily, it’s a good problem to have,” Woodhouse said.
Last year, the team enjoyed a good run and placed second after winning four games, losing two, and drawing one. Southern Gauteng, as always, will be one of the favourites to win the provincial title, although the defending champions, Western Province, will be odds-on to add another crown.
Woodhouse believes his charges are on the right path so far in terms of their preparations. “They’ve gone well so far,” he reckoned.
“It is a bit of a balancing act, with many players writing exams, some still playing fixtures, and a few who have club commitments. Luckily, our sports scientist, Jarred Marsh, has been diligent in managing the load on the players.
“We have had a good number of training sessions and are playing practice matches against premier league club teams and other Southern Gauteng teams.
“I am excited to be working with such a high-quality management group, including Siya Sityana, Justin Rosenberg and Jarred Marsh, who bring with them a wealth of experience and knowledge.
“The team is starting to gel on and off the pitch and I am hopeful that we can bed down some smaller details in the final stretch to the IPT,” he added.
While Woodhouse politely admitted the goal is always to win the title, this year, he said, they “will take the tournament game by game.”
He concluded by saying” “I realise that this is a bit of a cliché, but I think it is especially important to have this outlook in our pool. We have both KZN teams, who are generally in the top four, as well as EP, Free State, and Northern Gauteng, who are all drawing on excellent schools to make up their teams. It is a very strong group, and the most consistent teams will make it to the semifinals.”
SOUTHERN GAUTENG TEAM
Joshua Renders (Jeppe High School for Boys), Ethan Kapanda (Jeppe High School for Boys), Ryan Venter (Parktown Boys’ High School); Fynn Campbell (King Edward VII School); Matt Eichweber (St Stithians College); Juan Martin (Jeppe High School for Boys), Ryan Harcourt-Baldwin (Jeppe High School for Boys); Zeyad Davids (Parktown Boys’ High School), Boipelo Koloti (Jeppe High School for Boys), Tyler Napier (Home School), Jack Waddell (St David’s Marist Inanda), Devin Wax (Beaulieu College), Avela Sibisi (St David’s Marist Inanda), Nashaan Matroos (Dainfern College), Ben Benjamin (Jeppe High School for Boys), Jared Beilings (St David’s Marist Inanda).
TECHNICAL TEAM
Coach – Anthony Woodhouse – St John’s College
Assistant coach – Justin Rosenberg – Redhill
Manager – Siya Sityana – Jeppe High School for Boys
