That's as far as you're going ! Bishops captain and no.8 Jean Pienaar (left) grabs hold
of an Eton opponent trying to break out of defence in their match, won 62-10 by the
hosts, on Saturday 2 July 2016, the opening day of the ISRF. (photo: Steven Riches)
As if the considerably warmer, almost summery, weather didn’t provide enough heat, hosts Bishops and Hilton produced a red-hot encounter in the main game on day two of the Independent Schools Rugby Festival on Monday 4 July 2016.
The Platinum Blues were soon given notice that their 62-10 canter against Eton on Saturday was not going to be repeated as the team from the KwaZulu-Natal midlands kept them under constant pressure.
Bishops may have scored five tries – all of them converted by scrumhalf Harry Makin – to their opponents’ three, but the booming long-range tee-work of flank David Rodseth made sure that his side was never out of the picture.
It was only in the period following half-time, at which point they trailed 14-18, that the locals started expressing themselves in their inimitable manner to lead 28-18, but their expansive passing also cost them, one looping pass resulting in an easy intercept try from Hilton centre Hein Marx.
They will have to be a lot more conservative if they are to see off Kingswood on Wednesday.
Bishops (14) 35 (Tries: 12 Robert Macdonald (2), 15 Brandon van der Westhuizen, 10 James Macdonald, 6 Byron Cranswick; Conversions: 9 Harry Makin (5))
Hilton (18) 31 (Tries: 11 Fadzai Mushonga, 8 Tristan Warren, 12 Hein Marx; Conversions: 7 David Rodseth, 10 Nick Winskill; Penalties: Rodseth (3), Winskill)
Kingswood took up where they left off at the weekend, bemusing a game but ultimately outgunned Penryn side 53-24, running in nine lovely tries, four of which went to elusive right wing Esona Mrwetyana.
It is hard to believe that the Grahamstown side’s powerhouse no. 8 Jimmy Sholto-Douglas has seen almost no action this year due to injury; his solid-frame will be featuring in many Penryn players’ nightmares for a while to come.
Penryn contributed three excellent tries of their own, the pick coming from outside centre Wethu Shongwe, while flyhalf Kyle Hay kept the scoreboard ticking over with some accurate goalkicking.
Kingswood (34) 53 (Tries: 11 Esona Mrwetyana (4), 23 Jeff Mtuku, 8 Jimmy Sholto-Douglas, 22 Ross Craig, 20 Athi Galada, 10 Weston Potgieter; Conversions: Potgieter (4))
Penryn (10) 24 (Tries: 12 Hadrick Coertze, 7 Jarred Swanevelder, 13 Wethu Shongwe; Conversions: 10 Kyle Hay (2), Coertze; Penalty: Hay)
Michaelhouse found St Alban’s much more of a handful than many had expected, outscoring their opponents 4-2 in the try stakes.
Right wing Kuhle Khumalo opened their account and they were always comfortably ahead despite two excellent tries by Saints centre Ayrton Marquardt, who was only denied more by a lack of support.
Michaelhouse (17) 24 (Tries: 14 Kuhle Khumalo, 6 Christiaan Opperman, 17 Keynan Knox, 8 Ross Egberink; Conversions: 12 Liam England, 10 William Glassock)
St Alban’s (15) 15 (Tries: 22 Ayrton Marquardt (2); Conversion: 12 Cornel Korff; Penalty: Korff)
Grahamstown whacked Bloemfontein in the Battle of the Two St Andrews, the score largely being curtailed due to only two conversions being successful.
Full-back Ross Ferguson caught the eye with two sparkling five-pointers, but virtually every threequarter ended up on the scoresheet in a match which saw the next generation of a famous Bishops family, Murray Koster, son of Ralph, gracing the hallowed turf of the Piley Rees.
St Andrew’s College (Gtn) (34) 39 (Tries: 15 Ross Ferguson (2), 2 Kieran Skaye, 12 Tom Stevens, 13 Byron Sharwood, 11 William McAdam, 14 Angus Cook; Conversions: 10 Murray Koster (2))
St Andrew’s School (Bfn) (0) 0
St Charles from Pietermaritzburg registered another 41 points in a rather one-sided victory over CBC Boksburg, right wing Daniel Schreuder dotting down two of their six tries.
However, the East Rand side never threw in the towel and deserved to break their duck, with burly tighthead Christiaan Enslin particularly impressive with numerous powerful drives, all of which unfortunately petered out tamely.
St Charles (17) 41 (Tries: 14 Daniel Schreuder (2), 13 Christopher Hope-Johnson, 1 Lunga Zondo, 12 Longi Nkhosi, 11 Curtley Smit; Conversions: 10 Braden van Zyl (4); Penalty: Van Zyl)
CBC (Boksburg) (0) 0
St David’s weathered a determined, but unsuccessful onslaught by Somerset College, before sealing victory with second half tries by full-back Ryan Koster (no relation) and Braden Wooley.
St David’s (8) 20 (Tries: 15 Ryan Koster (2), 4 Braden Wooley; Conversion: 13 Liam Wrightson; Penalty: Wrightson)
Somerset College (6) 6 (Penalties: Jaymie van der Merwe (2))
Other scores :
Reddam House 12 (Tries: 7 Hugh Bedford, 9 Connor Whitley; Conversion: 10 Daniel Adams)
Uplands 8 (Try: 16 Connor Hofmeyr; Penalty: 12 Hilton Thomson)
Kearsney (24) 38
Eton (7) 14
St Stithian’s 13
Clifton 10
Eton 2nds 12
Excelsior 10 (Try: 7 Nizaam Phillips; Conversion: 10 Aydan Morris; Drop Goal: Morris)
The stage has indeed been set for a thrilling finale when Bishops face Kingswood at 13:00 on the Piley Rees on Wednesday, but there will be other keen contests that will make a visit well worth the time as Hilton meet St Andrew’s College at 11:30 on the Avenue and two of the less successful teams, CBC Boksburg and St Andrew’s School, will be keen to register some success to tell their schoolmates back home about.