RUGBY
4th XV
It was a very successful season for the 4th rugby side , having played 12 , won nine , and lost only three matches . There were 54 young men who played for the team during the whole season that lasted from the 1st term through to the third week in the third term . I was pleased with the talent and commitment of the team members this year , and this was evident in the way they played in most of the matches . The depth of the age group was certainly the best it has been for some time , which helped when boys were injured and replacements had to be made .
The team had numerous captains due to the huge turnover of boys . As the season progressed , the team began to play some exciting rugby . The strength of the team was its never-give-up attitude in defence , and the bond the individuals had with each other .
The highlights of the season were the matches against Kearsney and Glenwood at home on Goldstone ’ s . The Kearsney match was a match where very little went wrong . The continuity was excellent , the passes all went to hand and the precision kicks and driving of the forwards were wonderful to watch . The final match against Glenwood on Goldstone ’ s began poorly with the team being 15-3 down at the half-time mark . The boys gathered together , played like the Amabovu should and gave Glenwood no chances in the second half , to finish the match 27-15 ahead .
The disappointment of the season was the match against Westville . There were fifteen boys on the field , but they failed to play rugby that day . It was very difficult to watch a team that had worked so well the week before , produce rugby of such a poor standard .
I would like to thank the boys for their commitment and their parents for their support during the season . I really enjoyed coaching the 4th rugby team this year .
Regular players :
K Anderson , G Bashford , C Camp , L Davies , C Dowell , G Easton , J Foxon , C Hartley , M Jeary , D Jones , A Koekemoer , M Mkhonza , J Moffett , L Moffett , M Mthalane , M Muller , C Poole , C Robinson , S Ten-Bokkel Huinink , J Webster
Results :
vs Grey College 7-38 , PBHS 36-7 and 12-0 , Michaelhouse 54-5 , KES 19-3 , Kearsney 87-12 , Westville 10-19 , DHS 3rd 43-12 , Hilton 15-0 , Glenwood 20-12 and 27-15 , Affies 10-33
5th XV
Mr G Dorling
The 2016 Pigs enjoyed a very successful season . Of the thirteen matches played , two were lost , one drawn and ten were won . It was the style of play that was most impressive and the ability to play expansive fast rugby with a solid defensive system was evident in the try count . The Pigs scored 57 tries with only 15 being scored against them .
Given the nature of rugby lower down we needed a simple well executed game plan and to the boys ’ credit they were able to do very well . Credit must go to the coaching structures at Maritzburg College in that boys could move from the 8th team to the 5th team and cope with the pace and structure of the game . It also showed the tremendous depth and talent that College boys have .
The season opener was a tough trip to Grey College in Bloemfontein and although it was a hard match the boys gave a good account of themselves , particularly on defence . The side needed to recover from the defeat and did so against a plucky Pretoria Boys ’ High side . They then began to gain momentum and this was shown in good structured wins against Michaelhouse , KES and Kearsney . The forwards were able to dominate and give good front foot ball to the backline .
College was then confronted with some tough fixtures – Westville , Glenwood , two first teams and Voortrekker ’ s second team . College ’ s forwards dominated Linpark 1st XV and were able to set up a good platform for the backs to express themselves . Our trip to Westville was tough and it was a match we were lucky to win , after a silly mistake almost cost us the match and we had to dig deep to come through at the end . The match against Voortrekker 2nd XV was a stagger / bridge too far , where we made too many mistakes and they had two brilliant players who just had too much pace for us in scoring three tries late in the second half . The side needed to recover from the bruising loss and did so against a strong Port Shepstone 1st XV . This good form was taken into the last game of the second term with a solid win over a good Glenwood side , away .
College started the third term with a tough match against Affies . A few basic errors allowed Affies to score three converted tries in the first half . The tight five mounted a fantastic recovery and College ended up drawing 21 all with a game breaking run from prop Habermann and some good kicking from Van Rensburg . The depth of College ’ s rugby was tested during the last two matches against Pretoria Boys ’ High and Glenwood . Full credit must go to the coaching structures in that a virtually new team could arrive and fit into our game plan and play some good rugby .
Regular players :
D Jackson ( captain ), C Shearer , K Lovell-Greene , R Taylor , J Hartley , N Booysen , A Kostakis , M Nzuza , L van Zyl , S Rowe , K Habermann , R Turnbull , L Mathonsi , J Downing , L Shabalala , R Wiggill , K McNally , B Roxburgh , N Reed , C McLennan , J Field , J Hall , J Trodd , R Ford , M Mackenzie , A Sutherland , M Jeary , C Poree , C Dowell , M van Huyssteen , T Snyman , T Spiers , R van Rensburg , G Easton , J Voller , L Salvesen , M Mathonsi , J Clark , J Hubbart , H Oberholzer , H Swift , J Foxon , M Harris , R Swanepoel , G Bashford , S Dumisa
Results :
vs Grey College 8-27 , PBHS 19-0 and 24-5 , Michaelhouse 59-0 , KES 24-7 , Kearsney 67-0 , Linpark 1st 59-7 , Westville 17-7 , Voortrekker 2nd 19-31 , Port Shepstone 1st 44-0 , Glenwood 27-13 and 31-5 , Affies 21-21
6th XV
Mr C Dutton
The 6th XV ( Pigs ) had a very successful season . The results were outstanding with only two losses and one draw out of thirteen games , succumbing only to Grey College and Affies . Although there were many changes to the side as the season progressed , the squad always played as a cohesive unit and displayed excellent team spirit . Their enthusiasm for the game was inspirational and their discipline was commendable both on and off the field .
The team was captained by M MacKenzie who led by example . He was instrumental in many of the tries scored , driving his team forward and breaking through the opposition defence . The power and work rate of the forwards steadily improved throughout the season . They performed well as a unit and the scrums and line-outs were of a very high standard . The back-line displayed excellent ball handling and maintained continuity under pressure .
The team protected their try line with courage and determination with notable big hits and try saving tackles coming from players such as S van Zyl , N Reed , M MacKenzie , R Spring , J Hubbart , K McNally and M Nzuza . The boys had a very enjoyable and rewarding season . It was a pleasure to work with this team and I wish all the players every success with their future rugby endeavours .
Regular players :
M MacKenzie ( captain ), E Welgemoed , R Spring , R Wiggill , R Broadfoote- Brown , C Shearer , C Stone , S van Zyl , B Roxburgh , C Poree , T Snyman , B Bolleurs , J Hubbart , N Reed , M Nzuza , K Lovell-Greene , K McNally , L Mathonsi , R Ford , J Ayliff , J Voller , R Taylor , J Hall , M Harris
Results :
vs Grey College 10-29 , PBHS 20-3 and 27-7 , Michaelhouse 5th 52-0 , KES 17-6 , Carter 1st 44-0 , Kearsney 62-0 , Westville 45-0 , DHS 4th 29-3 , Hilton 5th 43-5 , Glenwood 40-3 and 12-12 , Affies 0-23
Mr G Barrable
153