Great Day for Hudson Park
Historically Selborne have dominated the fixture with Hudson having won only twice at home, the last time in 2004.
With the match played at the College grounds, few people gave Hudson Park a chance before the game and with Selborne racing to an early 19-3 lead the likelihood of a winning result for Hudson Park seemed near impossible. This was until Hudson Park had their first real opportunity for possession and after multiple phases of blistering attack, scored a humdinger of a try through left wing Avuyile Mabece to go to 19-10.
Hudson continued to mount pressure for the remainder of the half scoring another try through flyhalf Sine Qeshile before a late penalty from Selborne flyhalf David Coetzer saw the half-time score going 22-15 Selborne’s way.
The second half saw Hudson Park lift the intensity of the game with star fullback Jarred du Plessis scoring shortly after the break to close the deficit to 22-20. With their tails up Hudson continued to dominate the contest on the ground which led to a penalty for Hudson to take the lead 23-22 for the first time in the game.
A standout point within the game was the interplay between Hudson’s forwards and backs as the ball was moved with precision, a clinical build up saw Jarred Du Plessis score his second try to put his team 28-22 in front.
Selborne, having been on the receiving end for the bulk of the half, came back strongly to apply a period of sustained pressure leading to a try by Stephan Nieuwenhuizen to make it 28-27. Coetzer missed the chance to put Selborne in front and the game was poised for a tense finish. Selborne continued to throw the kitchen sink but Hudson’s defence held firm to win a match defining penalty.
In a scene reminiscent of Selborne’s famous win over Grey Bloem earlier in the season, Hudson scrumhalf Hlumelo Ndudula tapped the ball and ran into the corner to run down the clock before kicking the ball dead for Hudson Park's biggest win.
The result may come as a surprise to many but the evidence of Hudson Park’s elevation on the school scene has seen them overcome Dale, Queen's and St Andrew's College in recent seasons. The appointment of James Winstanley as Director of rugby in 2015 has seen the growth of the school's performance across all levels with the future looking bright for the East London School.
From Hudson Park
