St Charles set to challenge Westville for Saints Sevens title
Westville Boys’ High, the winners of the Clifton Sevens two weeks ago, will be defending the Saints Sevens title at St Charles College on Saturday in Pietermaritzburg. They will, however, be without one of their star players.
Zekhethelo Siyaya, who scored a hattrick for SA Schools against the SA Schools A side, has been withdrawn because of his selection for the SA u18 team to play against France, England and Ireland later this month.
It’s not as if the cupboard will be empty without Siyaya, though. The Griffin are blessed with some tricky runners, including Jade-Will Koopman, a slippery customer, who set up one of the tries of the season with a brilliant run when Westville and KES shared a 36-36 draw on Bowden’s in May.
Last season, Westville beat St Charles 28-17 in the final and Saints will likely be one of the frontrunners for the honours this season. Their grade 12 boys didn’t play in the Clifton Sevens, but they’ll be in action on home soil on Saturday. Fleet-footed Salmaan Mohammed, big and fast Raphael Ajibade and multi-skilled Matthew Fick will pose problems for any team facing the hosts.
Michaelhouse A, who held Westville to a draw at the Clifton Sevens in pool play, before going down to the same side in the final, should be a contender once more.
Hilton College could be in the running as they play themselves into form, and Clifton, while they won’t be favoured to go all the way, have the ability to pull off an upset or two. They were comfortable winners over Michaelhouse A at their home tournament.
Kearsney College missed the Clifton event, so they’re a bit of an unknown.
Pool A – St Charles A, Kearsney A, Michaelhouse B, Clifton and Hilton A – with four A teams is tougher to call than Pool B – Michaelhouse A, Kearsney B, Hilton B, St Charles B and Westville – which has only two A teams.
Those two sides, Michaelhouse A and Westville, who contested the final at the Clifton Sevens, should be favoured to fight it out for a place in the title match. Sevens, though, is an unpredictable game and anything could happen.
In the u15 event, Pool A features three A sides, Michaelhouse, Clifton and Kearsney, who will also face St Charles B and Hilton B. Pool B includes Westville, Hilton A and St Charles A, along with Kearsney B and Michaelhouse B.
Although no u15 winner was crowned at the Clifton Sevens – each match was played as a one-off – Westville Boys’ High went through their schedule undefeated. Should they repeat their unbeaten run through pool play, they may face a tough challenge. Their last match is scheduled to start at 12:45 and the final takes place directly after that at 13:00.
FIXTURES
SENIORS – OLD ORCHARDS
(7 mins a side)
Round 1
08:00 – St Charles A vs Clifton (Pool A)
08:20 – Michaelhouse A vs St Charles B (Pool B)
08:40 – Kearsney A vs Michaelhouse B (Pool A)
09:00 – Kearsney B vs Hilton B (Pool B)
Round 2
09:20 – Michaelhouse B vs St Charles A (Pool A)
09:40 – Hilton B vs Michaelhouse A (Pool B)
10:00 – Clifton vs Hilton A (Pool A)
10:20 – St Charles B vs Westville (Pool B)
Round 3
10:40 – Hilton A vs Michaelhouse B (Pool A)
11:00 – Westville vs Hilton B (Pool B)
11:20 – St Charles A vs Kearsney A (Pool A)
11:40 – Michaelhouse A vs Kearsney B (Pool B)
Round 4
12:00 – Kearsney A vs Hilton A (Pool A)
12:20 – Kearsney B vs Westville (Pool B)
12:40 – Michaelhouse B vs Clifton (Pool A)
13:00 – Hilton B vs St Charles B (Pool B)
Round 5
13:20 – Hilton A vs St Charles A (Pool A)
13:20 – Clifton vs Kearsney A (Pool A, Crookes)
13:40 – Westville vs Michaelhouse A (Pool B)
13:40 – St Charles B vs Hilton B (Pool B, Crookes)
14:15 – Final (Winner A vs Winner B)
JUNIORS (u15) – CROOKES
(5 min a side)
Round 1
08:00 – St Charles B vs Michaelhouse A (Pool A)
08:15 – Westville vs St Charles A (Pool B)
08:30 – Clifton vs Hilton B (Pool A)
08:45 – Hilton A vs Kearsney B (Pool B)
Round 2
09:00 – Hilton B vs St Charles B (Pool A)
09:15 – Kearsney A vs Westville (Pool B)
09:30 – Michaelhouse A vs Kearsney A (Pool A)
09:45 – St Charles A vs Michaelhouse B (Pool B)
Round 3
10:00 – Kearsney A vs Hilton B (Pool A)
10:15 – Michaelhouse B vs Kearsney B (Pool B)
10:30 – St Charles B vs Clifton (Pool A)
10:45 – Westville vs Hilton A (Pool B)
Round 4
11:00 – Clifton vs Kearsney (Pool A)
11:15 – Hilton A vs Michaelhouse B (Pool B)
11:30 – Hilton B vs Michaelhouse A (Pool A)
11:45 – Kearsney B vs St Charles A (Pool B)
Round 5
12:00 – Clifton vs Michaelhouse A (Pool A)
12:15 – St Charles A vs Hilton A (Pool B)
12:30 – Hilton A vs St Charles B (Pool A)
12:45 – Michaelhouse B vs Westville (Pool B)
13:00 – Final (Winner A vs Winner B)
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