Independent Schools Rugby Festival
The 17th biennial Independent Schools Rugby Festival takes place this year at Michaelhouse in the Midlands of KwaZulu Natal
There are 16 teams from all over South Africa and Zimbabwe taking part. The festival moves around the subcontinent, and is hosted by the top rugby playing independent schools in the country. Criteria for hosting include a special event at a school, and the marketing of the event as a feast of running schoolboy rugby.
The first festival was held at Kingswood College in 1982. The last festival was held at Penryn College in Nelspruit, the 2010 Festival at Falcon College in Zimbabwe, following events at St Benedict's in Johannesburg, Kearsney in KwaZulu Natal, St Andrew's in Bloemfontein and Michaelhouse in 2000.
Eight matches are played each day on three match days – the Wednesday, the Thursday and the Saturday of the first week in July.
Not all sides will be at full strength. Bishops for example, have six players in the Western Province Craven Week side and one in the Academy Week side. They will not be at the Festival.
The 16 schools taking part this year are Bishops, CBC Bulawayo and CBC Boksburg, Clifton, Kearsney, Kingswood, Michaelhouse, Penryn, St Andrew's School of Bloemfontein, St Alban's, St Benedict's, St Charles, St David's, St John's and Uplands of White River.
Schools that were at the Festival in 2012 but are not there again this year are Thomas More of Kloof, Hilton, St Andrew's College of Grahamstown and Woodridge of Port Elizabeth. In their places come Bishops, Kingswood, St Charles of Pietermaritzburg and CBC Boksburg.
Fixtures
Wednesday, 2 July 2014
09.00: Kingswood vs St David’s
10.10: St John’s vs Uplands
11.20: St Andrew’s vs CBC Bulawayo
12.30: CBC Boksburg vs Penryn
12.30: St Stithians vs Clifton
13.40: Kearsney vs St Alban’s
13.40: St Benedict’s vs St Charles
15.00: Bishops vs Michaelhouse
Thursday, 3 July 2014
09.00: St Alban’s vs St Charles
10.10: Kearsney vs Bishops
11.20: Clifton vs St Benedict’s
12.30: St Stithians vs Michaelhouse
12.30: CBC Boksburg vs CBC Bulawayo
13.50: Uplands vs St David’s
13.50: St Andrew’s vs Penryn
15.00: Kingswood vs St John’s
Saturday, 5 July 2014
09.00: Clifton vs CBC Bulawayo
09.00: CBC Boksburg vs St Andrew's
10.10: St Stithians vs St Charles
10.10: St Alban’s vs Bishops
11.20: Penryn vs St David’s
11.20: Uplands vs St Benedict's
12.30: Kingswood vs Michaelhouse
12.30: Kearsney vs St John’s
