After three days of heavy downpours, the 2025 Kearsney Easter Rugby Festival kicked off today (Thursday) in glorious sunshine. The main Stott rugby field is looking magnificent, and the campus is primed in expectation of exciting match-ups between the 12 high school 1st XV teams.
Westville Boys' High 31-00 Hoërskool Framesby
Westville Boys’ High School eased to a comfortable 31-0 win over Hoërskool Framesby in the final game of Day 1.
Framesby struggled to get any real purchase in the collisions, with Westville outmuscling their Gqeberha opponents and shutting down a number of attacking threats. In truth, had Westville been more clinical, they may well have racked up an even bigger scoreline, and they may need to address this aspect of their play with tougher tests lying in wait this week.
The KZN team scored their first through hooker Langalihle Mncwango via a driving maul, before namesake Bandile crossed the chalk for their second, as they took a 12-0 lead into halftime.
The second half saw Westville hampered by more inaccurate moments, which thwarted their efforts with the ball in hand. Still, they did manage to finish off further tries through flying left winger Avumile Lisa and big second rower Lwandile Simelane in quick succession.
The electric Lisa showed more impressive speed to bag his second later on, and while Framesby did enjoy some late territory and possession, they couldn’t make it count. Westville were able to steal a number of their lineout throws late on, and the game eventually fizzled out.
Scores
Westville: Tries: L. Mncwango, B. Mncwango, Lisa (2), Simelane. Cons: Koopman (3).
Hoërskool Monument 26-26 Glenwood High
In a proper see-saw affair, Hoërskool Monument and Glenwood High School played out a thrilling 26-all draw in the penultimate game of Day 1. Both schools were well and truly up for this one, with neither enjoying a clear advantage in what was a game of very fine margins.
The Green Machine drew first blood when hooker Nkululeko Khumalo dotted down off the back of a strong rolling maul, before midfielder Tasliem Guyan responded for Monument.
Hulking No 12 Lizwe Mtetwa then stormed over for Glenwood’s second, but Monnas again immediately hit back through Jason Joubert out wide. From there, an ensuing Sambesiwe Ndamase try meant it was the KZN outfit that took a 19-14 lead into halftime.
The teams continued to trade blows in the second half, with Glenwood striking first to extend their lead through Rorisang Ngwenya before Witbulle’s Ayden van Zyl reduced the deficit.
It was Monument substitute Jaydon Viljoen who had the final say in the contest, though, and he converted his own try with five-and-a-half minutes on the clock to share the spoils.
Scores
Monument: Tries: Guyan, Joubert, Van Zyl, Viljoen. Cons: Kourie (2), Viljoen.
Glenwood: Tries: Khumalo, Mtetwa, Ndamase, Ngwenya. Cons: Kopp (3).
Kearsney College 24-29 Dr EG Jansen
Hoërskool Dr EG Jansen triumphed 29-24 over Kearsney College in the fourth match of the opening day’s play.
As good as the boys from Boksburg were, they were helped in part by a number of unforced errors from the hosts, whose basics let them down on the day. Still, both teams ended up producing the most competitive game of the day.
Egies weren’t hanging around early on and were immediately rewarded for their bold expansive play when Bukho Hlwatika andOtloleng Zulu finished off some great attacks from deep, before an ensuing breakaway try from Juan van Aswegen made it 19-0.
Kearsney launched an all-out assault on the EG Jansen tryline just before halftime but couldn’t unlock their defence, with their passing accuracy and the visitors’ gain-line dominance ensuring Reghardt Botha’s charges headed for halftime the happier of the sides.
Kearsney came back firing at the start of the second half, with winger Lwandile Mkhize running in their festival opener from 80-odd metres out. That fast start was just what the doctor ordered, and skipper Simanye Mlakalaka scored another soon thereafter to make it 12-19.
EG Jansen hit back after setting up camp deep inside opposition territory and finally got their first points of the half when left winger Jordan van der Westhuizen dived over out wide.
The teams continued to trade tries, with Joseph Roylance, Dewet Muller and Doan Nel each going over for their respective sides in what became a topsy-turvy affair in the second half, but ultimately it was the Gauteng school that held out for an all-important win.
Scores
Kearsney: Tries: Mkhize, Mlakalaka, Roylance, Nel. Cons: Nel, Mbebe
Hoërskool Dr EG Jansen: Tries: Hlwatika, Mbebe, van Aswegen, van der Westhuizen, Muller. Cons: van Aswegen (2).
Durban High School 41-07 Hoërskool Rustenburg
DHS were comprehensive 41-7 victors over Hoërskool Rustenburg in the third game. The result ensured the unbeaten Horseflies extended their winning run to six matches this year, and you’d have to be a brave man betting against them going unbeaten at KERF yet again.
DHS withstood an effervescent start from the North West side to score through right winger Richard Gyamfi. It wasn’t long before they took control of proceedings, with flyhalf Jordan van Wyk knocking over a penalty to add to their advantage.
Rustenburg showed some promising signs with the ball in hand, doing well to switch up play on attack, but were unable to finish off any of the chances they created for themselves. When Mthiyane Zinkosi dotted down for DHS against the run of play just before the break, their job got even harder.
Things soon got worse for Rustenburg, who struggled to get out of their own half and finally conceded again when a powerful driving maul teed up SA Schools midfielder Zingce Simka for DHS’s third.
MJ Otto hit back for the boys in green, but another Simka effort, as well as two tries through Milisuthando George, sealed the deal for the local provincial side.
Scores
DHS: Tries: Gyamfi, Zinkosi, Simka (2), George (2). Cons: Van Wyk (3), Roberts. Pen: Van Wyk
Hoërskool Rustenburg: Try: Otto. Con: Enos
Hoërskool Durbanville 66-22 Dale College
In the second game of the first day, Durbanville High School breezed past Dale College 66-22 courtesy of some devastating attacking play.
The Eastern Cape outfit just couldn’t cope with Durbanville’s superior structure on both sides of the ball, with the boys in yellow and blue stripes scoring 10 tries in the end.
The Daleians enjoyed the lion’s share of territory in the first quarter, and broke the deadlock 10 minutes in, when hooker Lakhanya Mbewu burst over from close range. They failed to add to that 5-0 lead during that period, though, and were made to rue it moments later.
During their first real spell of possession inside the Dale red zone, a brutally efficient driving maul resulted in a penalty try for the Western Cape school, with Liyabona Mayikana earning himself a yellow card for a cynical collapse. Durbanville made the most of their numerical advantage and scored quick-fire tries through Jeandre Ungerer and Tiaan Kearns to shoot out to a 21-5 lead at halftime.
It didn’t take Durbanville long to open their second-half account, with Muller Jansen van Rensburg going over, thanks to another unstoppable rolling maul. Xzander Muller added another try minutes later, before teammate Eli Pedro saw yellow for a breakdown offence on their own tryline.
Dale fullback Phikolomzi Mtyalela then managed to weave his way over for their second, but more Durbanville tries by Louwrens Rademeyer, Cole Carls, Juan Smit, Muller, and Milani Madide pushed out the score even further.
Dale did manage to earn themselves an additional penalty try, as well as one by loose forward Owethu Siswana, but unfortunately, they couldn’t consistently hold their own for the full 60-minutes.
Scores
Durbanville High School: Tries: Penalty try, Ungerer, Kearns, Jansen van Vuuren, Muller (2), Rademeyer, Carls, Smit, Madide. Cons: Viljoen (7).
Dale College: Tries: Mbewu, Mtyalela, Penalty try, Siswana.
Milnerton High 34-18 Peterhouse Boys
In the opening game of the 2025 Kearsney Easter Rugby Festival, Milnerton’s power play boosted them to a 34-18 win over the touring Zimbabwean team from Peterhouse Boys’ School.
The Western Cape side dominated the opening exchanges thanks largely to some abrasive attacking play and scored the first points of the festival via a Morgan Lodewyk penalty.
Milnerton were relentless on both sides of the ball and extended their lead when their big midfielder barged over for the opening try, which he duly converted.
Those early setbacks seemed to jolt Peterhouse to life and they responded with a prolonged period of possession in the Milnerton half, finally being rewarded with three points, courtesy of the boot of Andrew Maringa.
House were still struggling to deal with Milnerton’s physicality at the contact point, though, and Prosper Zimbango ultimately saw yellow after a series of repeated team infringements from the under-pressure Zimbabweans.
However, with time up at the end of the half, and completely against the run of play, Peterhouse second rower Mufaro Mawoyo broke through the Milnerton defensive line to reduce the deficit to 10-8 at the break.
The boys in white started the second half brightly, with another Maringa penalty edging them ahead, but lapses in concentration on defence allowed Lodewyk to score his second, before substitute Nicholas Young crucially added a third try soon thereafter.
It was a long way back from there for the tourists, and further tries through Kgaugelo Mokgobu and a brilliant individual effort from Akho Mkaya effectively ended the match as a contest.
Peterhouse hit back through a converted Michael Marimo try, but by then it was too little, too late.
Scores:
Milnerton High School: Tries: Lodewyk (2), Young, Mokgobu, Mkaya. Cons: Lodewyk, Mkaya (2). Pens: Lodewyk.
Peterhouse Boys’ School: Tries: Mawoyo, Marimo. Cons: Watt. Pens: Maringa (2).