Following three weeks of action, with most of the schools finalising their preparations, this coming weekend will see most of the big dogs in action. We will as we expect witness what we are being spoilt within South Africa. Fast exciting and brutal action by the top junior talent in South Africa, and maybe in the world? A brutal world where last week's or year's fame counts nothing, zero and ziltz.
The big game in the NoordVaal must be the match between Affies and Helpmekaar in Pretoria. Affies made an "iify" start, beating Diamantveld 45-24 a week ago. Helpmekaar on the other hand had to work hard to beat Michaelhouse 17-10. To be honest, the talented Affies were supposed to beat Diamantveld by at least 60, however, they lost the plot when Diamantveld started attacking the defence of Affies in the second half, exposing Affies "unwillingness" to put their bodies on the line. That being said, Affies did show brilliance every now and then, showing why they are so highly rated for 2025. On the other hand, Helpmekaar showed their willingness to put in the hard yards dominating Michaelhouse up front and securing a well-deserved win. This match will be a humdinger until the final seconds but Affies should win it, just.
Nelspruit travels to EG Jansen in what promises to be a brutal encounter. Nelspruit started with an 18-13 win over Middelburg whereafter they lost to HTS Middelburg (18-24). EG Jansen started their season with a 12-30 loss to Middelburg HTS followed by a 45-20 win over Ligbron a week ago. It is a well-known fact that EG's 1stXV is not the same team as their 2024 team with some "difficult" matches waiting for them. Their brilliant coaching duo Rudi Dames and Regardt Botha was also split this season with Rudi Dames coaching their U16A team. Al being said, I do think that EG Jansen at home will be a bit too much for the visitors.
St John's hosting KES on Saturday unfortunately should be an easy win for KES despite ST Johns coach Katleho Lynch finishing his stint as SA Schools head coach.
Jeppe should beat Pretoria Boys High with relative ease while Noordheuwel's first outing of 2025 should be interesting against Rustenburg who beat Trio (17-14) and Witteberg (27-25) earlier. Unfortunately "interesting" does not mean that Noordheuwel will not beat Rustenburg by a fair margin.
However, the match I will be watching is the battle between Ben Vorster and Oos Moot in Pretoria. Both teams chased Waterkloof until the end with Oos Moot losing 21-24 on Wednesday evening and Ben Vorster lost 30-47 a week ago. Both these teams; rugby programs are of the best in NoordVaal with Oos Moot a credible contender for being a top-five rugby school in Pretoria.
Marais Viljoen should maintain their unbeaten record in 2025 when the travel to Montana in the north of Pretoria.
Fixtures - NoordVaal
Affies vs Helpmekaar
AHS Germiston 05-67 Delmas
Bergsig Akademie vs Potch Volkies
Die Anker vs Potch Gim
EG Jansen vs Nelspruit
Eldoraigne vs Piet Retief
Heidelberg Volkies vs Pietersburg
Jeppe vs Pretoria Boys High
Kempton Park vs Transvalia
Marais Viljoen vs Lichtenburg
Montana 35-24 Marais Viljoen
Noordheuwel vs Rustenburg
Northcliff vs St David's
Oos Moot vs Ben Vorster
Parktown vs St Stithians
St Benedict's vs St Alban's
St David's vs Randpark
St John's vs KES
St Stihians vs Parktown
Transvalia vs Middelburg
Wagpos vs Wesvalia
Waterkloof 24-21 Oos Moot
Wesvalia 35-28 Potch Gim
Zwartkop vs Klerksdorp