Teamwork, character and guts key as Paarl Gim holds SACS
When Paarl Gimnasium took on South African College High School (SACS) in the final of the Hibbert Shield, in May, in Gqeberha, they were on the receiving end of a 6-3 hiding.
That loss came on the back of some strong results from coach Jacques “Stevo” Grobler‘s team, who swept past their opponents until they met SACS.
They drove back to the Western Cape with their silver medals draped proudly around their necks.
A week later, they were called into action against Paul Roos Gimnasium. Paarl Gim struggled in that clash and suffered another big loss before going down against Parel Vallei the following week.
They restored some belief with a 5-0 win over HTS Drostdy, but their inconsistency was punished again when they went down 1-2 to Bishops.
That defeat led to some serious introspection from coach Grobler and his captain, Juan Swanepoel, because matters weren’t about to get any easier with SACS looming.
The clash against SACS, at the Brewery AstroTurf in Cape Town, was a gut check. Gim needed to put up or face a serious hammering from a team that has hit double figures a good number of times in 2025.
Gim was up for the challenge. They had their games faces on, ready to take on the team widely regarded as the best in the country.
There was an intense start to the clash, but the visitors were rewarded early for their bravery when stalwart John Coetzee netted from a short corner in the opening five minutes.
It took the home side until the second chukka to reply, and it came from Cameron Corderio, who netted the equaliser with five minutes to go before halftime.
Then, early in the third quarter, SACS hit the front, courtesy of an outrageous solo effort by Litha Kraai. After receiving a pass just outside his half, he beat a defender and accelerated into Gim’s circle untouched before firing off a rocket into the back of the net.
Heading into the final chukka, the hosts led 2-1, but Paarl Gim wasn’t done, and they clawed their way back into the contest.
They evened the scores through a successful penalty stroke conversion from their captain, Juan Swanepoel. Then, they had to withstand a nervous last minute, after SACS was awarded a penalty corner.
“Going to SACS is never easy. If you look at the past years where we’ve gone there, it’s always been a different outcome,” Swanepoel told SuperSport Schools Plus after the game.
“That said, I’m very proud of the boys. The effort they put in was exceptional. I couldn’t be prouder, especially after what we’ve been through in the last two weeks. It’s a massive step up.”
Ahead of the clash, there was no doubt that Paarl Gim was the underdog. They had played some good hockey in their recent outings, but their past results weren’t convincing. Swanepoel revealed the team had some direct, honest discussions ahead of the clash.
“We had some hard conversations as a team during the week,” he said. “Coach Stevo and I agreed that we needed to go there and get a result. We couldn’t afford to be scared or not up for the challenge. We couldn’t let SACS run us over, and we made it clear to the guys in the team that everyone had a role.
“It turned out perfectly. Even when things didn’t go our way, we stayed positive. We were up for it for 60 minutes.”
With their morale receiving a massive boost of confidence, Paarl Gim will head into their last game of the term, against Fairmont High School, next weekend, eager to sign off with a victory.
“I think we’ve set the standard now. If we take this and learn from it, we will be good moving forward,” Swanepoel reckoned.
Next term, a big derby clash against Paarl Boys’ High lies ahead.
“We can believe we are one of the best teams in the country,” Swanepoel concluded.
Other matches
In another match played in Cape Town, Paul Roos Gimnasium handed Wynberg Boys’ High a 3-1 loss.
Reuben Gouws, Caleb Cilliers, and skipper Christo Swanepoel scored for the Stellenbosch school.
Meanwhile, goals from Laubscher van Loggerenberg and AJ Fourie earned Paarl Boys’ High a hard-fought 2-2 home draw with Bishops.
RESULTS
SACS 2-2 Paarl Gimnasium
Paul Roos 3-1 Wynberg Boys’ High
Paarl Boys’ High 2-2 Bishops
