Boys' High win centenary match

The first official Interschools match between Paarl Boys' High and Paarl Gim was played in 1915. It has always been keenly contested and this time Paarl Boys' High won, 16-10 on a great afternoon for rugby at Faure Street in Paarl.

Paarl Boys' High were never behind in yet another tough, tense encounter and when the final whistle eventually sounded they had beaten Paarl Gim by just six points, just one point higher than the average over 100 years, and even at the end they were in danger of losing it. The last time Paarl Boys' High won was in 2009.

Yet again the stadium was jampacked and yet again the emtions were at breaking point. And yet agin the  manner of the two schools were impeccable. There was not an 'incident', there was silence for kicks at goal and when the Paarl Boys' High player was stretchered off the Gim players clapped hands in sympathy. And afterwards when the captains spoke, they were calm and respectful and praised their opponents.

High-powered rugby is not always as honourable as this was.

There was no obvious notice taken of the centenary. That is not surprising as it would be hard to add more  lustre to the Interschools which already has a surfeit.

At the start there were ceremonies. The two teams presented to the two principals with big rosettes to advertise their loyalty. There were the big portraits of the players behind the line-up of the players for the singing of each school song and the shouting of each warcry, egged on by athletic cheerleaders in tailcoats. Balloons were released , blue and white for Boys' High, green, red and yellow for Gim. Up they went, a huge flock, into the clear sky.

The Western Cape has had storms lately and the field was a bit cut up with muddy water in one patch and a covering of sawdust.

It was only a six-point victory margin but Boys' High deserved their victory. They were just more efficient where it mattered most, except, strangely enough at the line-outs where Gim took several off the Boys' High giants. Boys' High had greater fluidity in their running and kicked less and much better, able to chase their kicks most often. In this regard the Boys' High fullback JeanLuc Cilliers was outstanding, as was his goal-kicking.

Theo Boshoff of Gim kicked off to start the Centenary match and all the stately ceremonies were over as the play became intense and hectic and the spectators beside themselves with a mixture of hope and anxiety. And suddenly, Boys' High were ahead.

The Gim flyhalf seemed to have plenty of space and time to kick. He kicked and tall Jan-Louis la Grange charged the kick down. It went bouncing into empty space with Khanya Ncusane and La Grange after it. Ncusane got there first and with excellent control footed the ball ahead. He was after it and grabbed  a kindly bounce to plunge over for a try just in from the left touchline. From far out Cilliers converted. 7-0 after just two minutes.

Gim were penalised at a tackle and Cilliers goaled again. 10-0 after 6 minutes.

Two minutes later Boys' High were penalised for the first time in the match and  Boshoff goaled. 10-3 after 8 minutes.

If it seemed that this was going to be a high scoring match, it was not going to happen. There were 13 points in 8 minutes and 13 points in the next 62 minutes.

Just after this there was the sad sight of the Boys' High flank JC van Schalkwyk taken off on a mobile stretcher, his place taken by Ruan van der Merwe of the 2nd XV.

Boys' High looked on the way to scoring when Salmaan Moerat got a great pass away and Ruben de Villiers was pounding towards the line but Wian van Zyl felled the tall lock.

Then it was Gimmies' turn to come close when Boys' High overthrew a line-out. MJ Hayes got the ball and set off for the posts, and Ernst van Rhyn and Hayes were stopped right at the line. Boys' High were again penalised near their posts and Gim tapped and bashed some more. Boys' High were penalised again and Gim kicked out for a five-metre line-out. Gim won the ball and attacked again. Again Boys' High were penalised and this time Gim opted to kick at goal. After easy kicks, this one was difficult and missed. All that attacking produced not a single point. They missed again from further out when Boys' High were penalised for an air tackle on Van Zyl as he leapt high for a ball.

There was a drab period of play in the second half till Boys' High went right and George Lourens stretched high to intercept the pass. He was soon being tackled but got an exquisite pass away to Boshoff who raced down the left touchline, handing off a defender and scoring a try which he converted to make the score 10-all after 44 minutes.

For the next 10 minutes there was no more scoring though a searing break by Van Zyl on counterattack could well have brought a try. Then Gim had a drop charged down and it seemed that Boys' High were taking over.

At a ruck Gim were penalised some 40 metres out and at an angle. Cilliers thought he might as well have a go at goal and the ball soared high, reached its zenith and started to drop but when it did so it was over the crossbar. 13-10 to Boys' High  after 54 minutes.

As he kicked, Cilliers felt the kick of cramp in his leg. It was so bad that he was replaced by Jandré Grobler.

Boys' High had a great chance when Gim fiddled with a ball kicked into their 22 and Boys' High got possession and were close enough to get a five-metre scrum but Gim's defence was vigorous and Boys' High were penalised. Gim found relief but were again penalised at a tackle and this time it was Grobler who took the penalty and again it was OVER. 16-10 with three minutes to play.

Boys' High went on a pick-'n-bash session as they ticked the seconds away but suddenly they were penalised and they kicked out for a line-out on the Boys' High 22 with fewer than 10 seconds remaining. They won the line-out. They attacked. Boys' High were penalised for a high tackle. At 71 minutes 31 seconds they tapped and attacked but the defence stopped them at their five-metre line and when they tackled a Gim player he stood up again and was penalised.

Boys' High started the match with 15 players but they ended it with about 1015 players on the field as a swarm came charging across the field. The kick eventually got into touch and the referee, in the midst of a joyous mob, blew the final whistle and left the field to the revellers.

There is no greater divide than that between victors and vanquished in such a match.

It will be a match that Boys' High remembers for a long time and on Monday those victorious players will enjoy the admiration of their whole school.

Not that Gim have anything to reproach themselves with. All they did was lose a rugby match.

Scorers:

For Paarl Boys' High:

Try: Khanya Ncusane

Con: JeanLuc Cilliers

Pens: JeanLuc Cilliers 2, Jandré Grobler

For Paarl Gim:

Try: Theo Boshoff

Con: Theo Boshoff

Pen: Theo Boshoff

Teams

Both teams have replacements who will all have played for the 2nd XV and will be used only in case of injury

Paarl Gim: 15 Theo Boshoff, 14 Max Thalwitzer, 13 Charl du Toit, 12 George Lourens, 11 Keenan Abrahams, 10 Wian van Zyl, 9 Anrich Stoman, 8 Muller Uys, 7 Gustav Marais, 6 Johan Adam van As, 5 Ernst van Rhyn (captain, 4 MJ Hayes, 3 O’Neil Thiart, 2 Johan Grobbelaar, 1 Rohan Hamman

Replacements: 16 Emile Booysen, 17 André Booysen, 18 Jan Neveling, 19 Nicolaas Uys, 20 Janus Swart, 21 Andries Viljoen, 22 Naudé Wessels, 23 Taigh Schoor

Paarl Boys' High: 15 Jeanluc Cilliers, 14 Tyreeq February, 13 Manuel Rass, 12 Jan-Louis la Grange, 11 Urgene Johannes, 10 Rayhaan Lombaard, 9 Bradley Thain, 8 Khanya Ncusane, 7 JC van Schalkwyk, 6 Andreas van Wyk (captain), 5 Salmaan Moerat, 4 Ruben de Villiers, 3 Leo Kruger, 2 MC de Jongh, 1 Wikus Groenewald

Replacements: 16 Daniel Jooste, 17 Reece Bezuidenhout, 18 Ruan van der Merwe, 19 David Meihuizen, 20 Kristo Sadie, 21 Jandré Grobler, 22 Jacques Burger, 23 Adam Neethling

Referee: Francois Pretorius (Western Province Referees' Society)

Assistant referees: Daniel Fortuin (Western Province Referees' Society), Neil Bosman (Western Province Referees' Society)