St Mary’s DSG Kloof enjoys the moment with an eye on the future
St Mary’s DSG, Kloof, added a new trophy to their burgeoning cabinet on the weekend. They returned home from Johannesburg with their first title of the year, the prestigious St Mary’s Waverley Festival crown.
“It’s a great achievement. We worked hard for it, so we will definitely enjoy the reward,” Nolwazi Nkabinde, the St Mary’s DSG head coach, shared after they had touched down in KZN.
Nkabinde led a young side with only one Grade 12 learner in the team, their captain, Nicola Forbes. The St Mary’s captain, one of just five players who were part of St Mary’s DSG’s campaign last year, was a workhorse in the midfield, an area they dominated in their contests. She was named the Player of the Tournament.
The other four who turned out for the KZN side in 2024 are Ella Bowyer, Jamie da Silva, Jenna-Leigh Freese, and Georgia Short. That quintet helped St Mary’s DSG bridge the gap between youth and inexperience, and they brought their collective match wisdom to the team.
“We do have a lot of u16 players,” Nkabinde said. “We lean a lot on our sisterhood and are always working to make each other better for our team and school.
“They are still learning and are always pushing themselves to be better than the previous game,” Nkabinde explained.
Sisterhood is an important part of the St Mary’s DSG’s values and principles. During their campaign in Johannesburg, the ladies from Kloof were inundated with messages from their schoolmates and teachers who had remained in KZN, former learners and players, and parents of current and former students at the institution. However, not all of the messages were of encouragement. One was a sad one.
Caelan Armour, a St Mary’s first-team player in 2023, suffered a bereavement when her mother passed away whilst running the Two Oceans Marathon, in Cape Town. The team received the news moments after winning their semifinal match. That’s why St Mary’s DSG wore black armbands in the final. They, also, dedicated their performance to the Armour family.
“Understanding and respecting each player in the team is very important. Our five senior players from 2024 have been mentoring and preparing the younger players for what is expected of them in the first team set-up,” Caryn Springate, the St Mary’s DSG Director of Hockey, said.
“We have a great group of girls, good humans, who have so much fun together. When they get onto the field, they work hard for each other and know what is expected of them.”
St Mary’s DSG found the back of the net in nine of their 12 encounters at the festival thanks to Jamie da Silva’s ability in front of goal. The forward’s incisiveness in the circle and work off the ball brought her seven goals, the most in her team. Her goalscoring prowess was a combination of both individual talent and teamwork.
St Mary’s DSG had a solid plan heading into the festival. “In preparation for Waverley, we ensured that in the games we played we focussed on the first five minutes of each game, applying a full-court press and attacking with numbers, to create scoring opportunities,” Springate explained.
Da Silva’s goalscoring efforts were bolstered by the contributions of others. Georgia Short scored six goals, while Tayte Stewart found the back of the net four times. Forbes, Ella Wood, Tain Enslin, Olivia Lord, and Sarah Patterson also scored during the tournament. The Kloof girls were also sound at the back, and when their backline was breached the opposition found themselves face-to-face with goalkeeper Ziyanda Mchunu, who was named the runner-up for the Goalkeeper of the Tournament award.
“Winning the semis on shoot-outs to make it through to the final was a great feeling. We were so proud of our goalkeeper, Ziyanda,” Springate said. “For a young girl, a grade 10, and her first Waverley tournament, to rise to that occasion was very special.”
Nkabinde said the goal for her team is to maintain the momentum they built up at the St Mary’s Waverley Festival. “We want to keep playing our brand of hockey and seek to secure a Fairtree Super 12 spot come the end of May, and enjoy the game to the fullest,” the coach elaborated.
If their performances in Johannesburg are anything to go by, St Mary’s DSG Kloof will stake a strong claim to being number one in KZN and South Africa this year.
