136 RUGBY OVERVIEW The rugby season started this year with a change to the format of the inter-house competition. The style changed from Rugby Sevens to ten-man rugby, and the competition was scheduled earlier than its usual May timeslot. The rationale behind these changes was to involve more tight forwards and to give the age group coaches the opportunity to use the event as a set of trials. The changes proved valuable, and Finningley emerged as 2019 champions. Rugby, as a school sport across the country, currently faces the challenge of reduced numbers. However, I am pleased to report that Kearsney fielded eight Open teams and four teams in each of the U16, U15 and U14 age groups. This was a total of 20 teams on any given weekend. It has been great to see the growth in participation numbers, especially in the Open and U15 age groups. Collectively, the Open and U14 teams were the most successful in terms of results, and the U14C team was crowned as the top team for the season. The 6th Team, U15A, U15C and 3rd Team also recorded successful seasons. Congratulations to the following players who were selected to represent various Sharks teams at the Craven Week hosted by Grey College in Bloemfontein: Oliver Carmody (Sharks U18 Academy), Connor De Bruyn, Massimo Fierro and Derick Marshall. Unfortunately, Connor had to withdraw his participation due to an untimely injury. I would also like to congratulate the staff members who served as officials in the provincial structures, Messrs Moodley and Steyn as Craven week selectors. Mr Dean Moodley also managed the SA Schools Team. Sevens rugby is still growing from strength to strength, and our teams enjoyed a successful season. Thank you to the coaches Messrs Nico Breedt, John Wessels, Antonie Prinsloo and Kyle Eysele for their commitment and efforts. In closing, I would like to thank the Kearsney management team, sports office, coaches, supporting staff, estates personnel, and all the players for a successful and enjoyable season. Mr Ba rend St eyn Director of Rugby 1st XV Rugby In preparation for the traditional fixtures, the season started with the customary tour of northern KZN - a trip that always proves beneficial to the sport. Although ending in a loss, the first match played against Hoërskool Pionier was an exciting start. In the match versus Sarel Cilliers High School, the team displayed a much-improved performance, resulting in a victorious 37 – 12 win after scoring six tries. The fixtures list for the upcoming season proved tough and the team was expected to produce quality rugby weekly which resulted in injuries in the latter half of the season. Obviously with key players lost, this impacted overall on the team’s performance. Despite this, it did allow for four players to earn their first One-Stripe cap in the last match of the season. This season can be divided into two distinct sections. The first being the two festivals the team participated in during the March/April holidays and the second being the traditional and annual fixtures. Festivals Kearsney supported the Kingswood College 125th Festival facing off against two formidable Eastern Cape schools and an unknown international team named the UK Lambs. The first match versus the hosts Kingswood and the third match against the highly-rated St Andrew’s College were hard-fought battles. Although Kearsney produced decent attacking play, our opponents were slightly more accomplished. Both opposing sides enjoyed marginal victories. Our second match against the UK Lambs produced good tries and the players played with significant momentum, racking up points quickly. Enjoying a half time lead of 47 – 0 allowed the whole squad to enjoy some game time. Results: vs Kingswood College- lost 15 – 23 vs UK Lambs–won 61 – 12 vs St Andrew’s College–lost 7–22 At the Kearsney Easter Rugby Festival (KERF) the team faced fierce opposition against some of the top teams in the country. Underestimating our first opposition side, Pretoria Boys High School, we performed below the required standard. Recovering quickly from this loss, the team gave a spirited performance against Hoërskool Framesby but failed to convert their efforts into points. The final match was played during a torrential downpour accompanied by the Botha’s Hill mist. The Welkom-Gimnasium High School team proved too physical and we, unfortunately made too many errors on the slippery field resulting in a loss. Rugby Congratulations to the following players who were selected to represent various Sharks teams at the Craven Week Oliver Carmody (Sharks U18 Academy), Connor De Bruyn, Massimo Fierro and Derick Marshall.
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