St John’s Easter Festival set to thrill once again
Now in its 28th year, the St John’s College Easter Festival is poised to deliver another exhilarating showcase of schoolboy rugby talent over the Easter weekend.
Follow all the action live on SuperSport Schools – (www.supersportschools.com)
The Festival kicks off on Thursday, 17 April, with First XV action featuring 14 teams. On Monday, 21 April, the spotlight will shift to the rising stars from invited primary schools, who will entertain the enthusiastic crowds expected to descend on St John’s College.
This year, a couple of new faces will make their way to Johannesburg, including Welkom Gimnasium, while Hoërskool Diamantveld travels from Kimberley to take part in the prestigious event, replacing Boland Landbou.
Diamantveld, known as the Diamonds, will feature in the curtain-raiser on the opening day, facing a confident Pretoria Boys High School side. The Candies, fresh from a victory over King Edward VII a week ago, will be brimming with confidence ahead of this encounter.
The day’s action will culminate in a highly anticipated main fixture between hosts St John’s College and Hilton College, promising a display of fast, expansive rugby. This clash will serve as valuable preparation for St John’s ahead of their date on Saturday with Hoërskool Randburg.
However, the spotlight on the second day may well be the clash between Hoërskool Nelspruit and Maritzburg College, who meet in the main match following what is expected to be a fiercely contested battle between Kingswood College and Hilton College. Kingswood, from Makhanda, have become a mainstay of the Festival in recent years.
Earlier on Saturday, spectators can look forward to a tantalising showdown between Hoërskool Voortrekker of Bethlehem and SACS at 10:40. Both sides had the opportunity to analyse each other’s tactics during the recent North/South tournament in Stellenbosch earlier this month.
Before that fixture, SACS will face a stern challenge from St David’s Marist Inanda, while Voortrekker must first overcome a well-drilled Graeme College in their respective opening matches of the weekend.
Fixtures:
Thursday – 17 April:
12:30 – Kingswood College vs Hoërskool Randburg
13:40 – Voortrekker vs Graeme College
14:50 – Maritzburg College vs Golden Lions XV
16:00 – St David’s Marist Inanda vs SACS
17:10 – Hoërskool Nelspruit vs Welkom Gimnasium
19:10 – Pretoria Boys High School vs Diamantveld
20:20 – St John’s College vs Hilton College
Saturday – 19 April:
08:20 – St David’s Marist Inanda vs Golden Lions XV
09:30 – Welkom Gimnasium vs Diamantveld
10:40 – Voortrekker vs SACS
11:50 – Pretoria Boys High School vs Graeme College
14:10 – St John’s College vs Hoërskool Randburg
15:20 – Hilton College vs Kingswood College
16:30 – Maritzburg College vs Hoërskool Nelspruit
