Parktown's Under-14 Festival
Parktown Boys’ High School, a state school of some 800 learners drawn from diverse areas on the edge of Johannesburg’s Braamfontein business district whose feeder areas include Westcliff and Parkview, is hosting its 29th Under-14 rugby festival as a way of introducing English-speaking high school boys to the game of Rugby – as 80% of them come from primary schools in which soccer is the winter sport.
Having been running for 29 years now, the only such festival of its kind in the country provides the learners with a limited rugby background an opportunity to fast-track their skills development over a weekend of non-stop rugby.
The format of the festival allows for coaching to take place in between the fixtures, thereby, providing ongoing and structured reinforcement over the entire two days. Furthermore, the festival affords the more experienced players the opportunity to show off their skills and share their knowledge and talent with the other players.
Finally, the boys have an opportunity to play against traditional rivals, with whom they will have much contact over the next five years; so therefore, a social and competitive spirit can be fostered under the control of the educators.
Over the years vast arrays of schools have attended the festival. The list reads like a veritable who’s-who of rugby schools – King Edward VII School, Jeppe High School for Boys, Selborne College, Dale College, St Stithians College, St John’s College, Hilton College, Michaelhouse, Westville Boys, Northwood, Uplands, Pretoria Boys and Glenwood to name but a few.
Twelve schools will be participating in this year’s event over on 30 and 31 March, 2012. Over 1,000 people are present on the campus each day.
The schools attending this year are Durban Boys’ High School (KwaZulu Natal), St Andrew’s (Bloemfontein), Upland’s College (Mpumalanga), Pretoria Boys High School, Jeppe High School for Boys, St Stithians’ College, St David’s Marist Inanda, Parktown Boys’ High School, St Alban’s College, St Benedict’s College, St John’s College, and Helpmekaar.
This year, we will also be including an Under-13 section comprising two Golden Lions Presidential sides, Weltevreden Primary School and Orchards Primary School.
Fixtures:
Friday, 30 March, 2012
11.30: St John’s vs DHS
12.05: Helpmekaar vs Jeppe
12.40: Parktown vs Uplands
13.15: Pretoria vs St Benedict’s
13.50: St David’s vs Jeppe
14.25: Parktown vs St Benedict’s
15.00: Pretoria vs Helpmekaar
15.35: St David’s vs DHS
16.10: Parktown vs Pretoria
16.45: Jeppe vs St Andrew’s
12.05: St Stithians vs St David’s
12.40: St Alban’s vs St Andrew’s
13.15: Helpmekaar vs St John’s
13.50: DHS vs St Stithians
14.25: St Alban’s vs Uplands
15.00: St Andrew’s vs St John’s
15.35: Uplands vs St Stithians
16.10: St Alban’s vs St Benedict’s
Saturday, 31 March, 2012
08.00: DHS vs St Andrew’s
08.35: Uplands vs St David’s
09.10: Parktown vs St Alban’s
09.45: Jeppe vs St Benedict’s
10.20: Pretoria vs St John’s
10.55: St Stithians vs Helpmekaar
11.30: Uplands vs Pretoria
12.05: Parktown vs DHS
12.40: St Andrew’s vs Helpmekaar
13.15: St Alban’s vs St David’s
13.50: St Stithians vs St Benedict’s
14.25: St John’s vs Jeppe
