Westville Boys’ High primed for another powerhouse campaign

When a thrilling 2025 rugby season wrapped up, only one school in South Africa playing a top-tier schedule was unbeaten. For the first time in their 70-year history, Westville Boys’ High vanquished all who stood in their path.

The side’s excellence was further underlined when three players – Zekhethelo Siyaya, Jadrian Afrikaner, and Lwandile Mlaba– were included in the South African Schools squad. Another five – Jade-Will Koopman, Sean McGough, Liam Simpkins, Wandile Simelane, and Bandile Mncwango – were included in the Sharks Schools Craven Week team.

Later in the year, in Potchefstroom, Westville laid claim to the national title in the High School Sevens Series, beating the defending champion, Grey College, in the semi-finals before edging out their KZN rivals, Northwood, in the final.

And just for good measure, Westville old boy, Ethan Hooker, made his Springbok debut and was part of the side that handed New Zealand a record 43-10 defeat in Wellington, which was followed by a record 67-30 win over Argentina in Durban. He was named the Young Player of the Year at the recently held SA Rugby Awards. 

No doubt, 2025 was the best season in Westville’s rugby history, and it was, arguably, the best season produced by any school’s team last year.

Seasons, though, are never a smooth journey. Westville boasted quality and depth, and they needed to call on that depth when injuries hit their campaign. The fact that they didn’t skip a beat speaks volumes about the excellent work being done by the school’s rugby programme.

As the coach of the 1st XV, Zander Erasmus, explained, at Westville, the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd teams practice together. That approach proved its value when the 1st XV props were injured, which meant the 2nd XVs props moved up to start for the 1st XV, and the 3rd XVs pair came off the bench. And yet, the Westville pack remained a strength.

It was Erasmus’s first season in charge of the 1st XV, and he relished the opportunity to work with players he had previously coached at u16 level. He knew they were talented, but talent gets one only so far. Hard work was key, and, with captain Liam Simpkins literally leading the fitness sessions from the front, the players bought into what Erasmus was selling.

Incredibly, during Westville’s 13-match season, they played only four matches at home. One, against Jeppe, was rained out.

It wasn’t just that Westville Boys’ High was unbeaten for the first time in 70 years, but what impressed as much as their record was the manner in which they achieved their successes: they did it with power, and they did it with speed. They gritted out wins and won it in the trenches. They also outpaced teams with their skilful, pacy backs. They were versatile, and they had good answers to every question posed.

Crucially, coach Zander Erasmus provided the steady and insightful leadership required to deal with the different challenges his charges faced.

He was a member of the SuperSport School Class of 2025 and was joined in that elite group by fullback Zekhethelo Siyaya, who scored an unprecedented hat-trick of tries for SA Schools against SA Schools A for a second successive year.

A very challenging season lies ahead for the 2026 Westville 1st XV. It includes their traditional KZN schools’ fixtures, plus three matches at the Kearsney Easter Rugby Festival, and two at the Absa Wildeklawer. Those five matches all take place in April.

Perhaps, though, the one that followers of the game in KZN are most looking forward to seeing is Westville’s showdown with Durban High School (DHS) on 30 May – School‘s Founder’s Day – on Van Heerden’s Field.

Erasmus has tagged it as the Griffins‘ biggest game of the year. In 2025, Westville and DHS were the best teams in the province, and their clash on Bowden’s Field in May was one of the best matches of the year played anywhere in South Africa, with Westville pulling off an electrifying 33-28 win.

Erasmus also expressed his enthusiasm for a clash against Maritzburg College on 21 March. In recent years, the sides have met as part of the Sharks’ trials games, so hosting the Red, Black, and White in a traditional clash is special.

At Kearsney, Westville faces Dublin’s Catholic University School, Helpmekaar Kollege, and Milnerton High. Erasmus expects the showdown against Helpmekaar to be “a massive physical encounter, and one that will bring out the best in us.”

At Wildeklawer, the stature of Westville is evident from the fact that they play in the last games on Friday and Monday, taking on Oakdale Landbou and Waterkloof, respectively.

Those outings, too, “will be massive games,” Erasmus said, “at altitude, against opposition we don’t normally play.”

Lastly, he identified his side’s match against Michaelhouse, on 6 June, Westville’s Old Boys’ Day, as one to circle because it has been a few years now since the Griffins beat ‘House on Bowden’s.

Based on the talent in their squad, Westville is going to be a very tough team to beat. They have 15 players – a full team’s worth – with 1st XV experience. They include SA Schools’ lock Lwandile Mlaba and SA Schools’ wing, Jadrian Afrikaner.

Props Sbu Hlongwa (Sharks u17), Bandile Mncwango (Sharks u18), and Lwandle Bulose (Sharks Rhino Week) all pulled on the black and white last year. Between them, hooker Ngcali NonXubu has 1st XV experience.

Mlaba, meanwhile, has Ompiwe Dladla to partner him in the second row or Warren Murray.

Lwandle Makhanya turned out at flank in 2025.

Playmaking Jade-Will Koopman, a Sharks’ u18 and Sevens representative last year, will pull the strings at flyhalf. He is also an excellent goal-kicker.

Besides Afrikaner outside him, he’ll have the talents of Lux Sononkonkono (Sharks u17 and Elite Player Development), Avumila Lisa (Sharks u17), Kyle McGough (Sharks Rhino Week), and Buhko Sotaka (Sharks Rhino Week) to call on. Add to the mix Sandiswa Mbokazi, who also played for the 1st XV in 2025.

But wait, there’s more! Ezra Karolisin and Lisa Sijadu were members of Westville’s national title-winning Sevens team, and represented the Grant Khomo-winning Sharks’ u16 team, along with u16 captain and hooker Rorke Stirk, openside flank Levin Allen, and inside centre Curtis Fenton

Westville is well stocked with the necessary pieces to put together another impressive campaign.

Adding further fuel to their ambitions, the coaching crew remains unchanged. Erasmus will be assisted by the Westville Director of Rugby, Dusty Noble, who was also part of the SA u17 EPD camp. He’ll take charge of the attack.

Alwayno Visagie, who helped the Pumas win the Currie Cup in 2022, takes care of the backs, and Mzamo Majola, a Westville old boy and the Sharks’ u19 head coach, as well as the Sharks’ Currie Cup scrum coach, looks after the forwards.

Given the rich talent Westville possesses and an unbeaten record in 2025, expectations for the Griffins in 2026 will be sky-high among their supporters. Coach Erasmus is not going to fall into the trap of focusing only on results, however.

His goal, he explained, is “to be process-driven, rather than chasing rankings and positions. To create our own legacy and not fall into the trap of trying to be the 2025 team.”