Glenwood look to be favourites
THE second day of the Standard Bank Kearsney Easter Rugby Festival sees a further six matches with contrasting interests.
Glenwood, after a narrow three-point win against HTS Drostdy from Worcester, appears to be the team to beat at the festival. Today they will have a much easier fixture against Dale College (King William’s Town) who lost to Framesby.
HTS Drostdy on the other hand have a tough fixture against Welkom Gim, a side with the biggest victory margin on Thursday against Hoerskool Noord-Kaap. This is likely to be the match of the day, with two evenly-matched packs of forwards and pace in their three quarters. The game kicks off at 2.30pm.
Hosts Kearsney, who lost disappointingly by a single point against HTS Middelburg in the final seconds of their opening match on Thursday, come up against Noord-Kaap at midday. With both teams having lost, they will be equally hungry to win. As the two sets of forwards are better matched, this could lead to a tight and exciting contest.
Durban High School surprised, with a three-point victory against Selborne College from East London. Today DHS play Queen’s College, a team which lost to Pretoria Boys High, and will likely struggle against the heavier DHS pack. Pretoria Boys play against Framesby (Port Elizabeth), where the latter will be buoyed by their good win against Dale and are favoured to win again in the first match of the day.
The last game today will see Selborne, hurting after their loss against DHS, playing against HTS Middelburg. Selborne should make it difficult for Middelburg to taste victory in their second festival game.
Kearsney headmaster Elwyn van den Aardweg said he was delighted with the quality of rugby and sportsmanship of the players displayed on the opening day of the festival.
“We’re ready for a bumper crowd for the remaining two play days, as local supporters and those from further afield come to enjoy schoolboy rugby in a special family atmosphere on our beautiful campus.”
Remaining festival play days are today and Easter Monday, with kick-off at 9.30am daily. A local primary school fixture at 8.30am against the KZNRU U-13 Development team starts each day’s play. Hillcrest Senior Primary and Highbury Prep will play today and Monday respectively.
Numerous food outlets, a refreshment tent and KidZone will ensure spectators can enjoy a fun-filled family-orientated Easter weekend. Entry is R25 per person with ample parking available.
Fixtures and festival information, including live streaming links, are available on www.kearsney.com