Rugby - and Bishops - win

Match Report

Bishops were at home to Paul Roos on Saturday and won  a highly skilled thriller 18-16. It was one of the great matches on the historic Piley Rees Field.

The two sides have been playing each other since 1876, four years before Paul Roos was born. In fact the great school took his name only after he had ceased to be principal of the school. The two sides played each other as Diocesan College and Stellenbosch and Victoria College and Stellenbosch Boys' High, and it has usually been a great match.

Kobus Louw, who died in Paarl not long ago, was the manager of the 1965 Springboks. Over and over he said: "Rugby was the winner." Great concept reduced to cliché. But cliché is usually loaded with truth. The truth today was that this was a great game between two skilled and adventurous teams.

Recently, down in the Western Province a top, professional coach complained that skills were not coming through the schools. There was more skill in a single passing movement on the Piley Rees field than there was in any 80 minutes of Stormers in 2006.

This was sublime rugby – all the skill and effort and sense of adventure. It was not soft. Both sides tackled with determination, straining every sinew in search of victory, and the match was oh-so close.

It was a beautiful day in Rondebosch, a wonderful Cape winter's day – rainless, cloudless, windless and sunny, perfect for rugby. There was a big crowd of some six thousand people. The two schools massed together and sang and did warcries and other antics.

It was a top-of-the-table clash. On the FNB Top 20 Paul Roos are ranked top, Bishops 8th. Because of the tough competition amongst the top schools, the difference is not that great, as it proved on Saturday morning.

The first half belonged to Bishops – except on the scoreboard. They dominated territory and possession and ended 10-7 down.

Paul Roos have two massive props in Emile Krugmann and the even bigger Stefan Hamman who is certain to become a part of schoolboy lore and legend. When Bishops shunted them in the first scrum of the match a cry of triumph mingled with relief went up from the Bishops ranks. This fluid, fast match did not suit the strengths of the Paul Roos props but Bishops did not again have a shove-on in the scrums.

Paul Roos threatened first when they won a turn-over and their electric wing Jesse Nowers went racing down the right. But the tackling was firm.

Bishops scored first when they moved the ball from a line-out on their left wide to the right where Michael Nel on the right wing sped for the line, handed off powerfully and scored in the corner, whence Mathew Turner the left wing converted.

Paul Roos throughout the match were better than Bishops at the tackle – both in protecting their own ball and in forcing turn-overs. They attacked down their  right and from a scrum went wide left. They won a tackle/ruck and then, some 25 metres out, their scrumhalf François Hougaard broke brilliantly. He beat one man in a match of few missed and many tough tackles and then stepped inside the fullback to score at the posts. Flyhalf Coenie van Wyk converted.

François Hougaard had a brilliant match – brilliant in his all-round play, decision-making and passing, but for some bizarre reason he is not ranked by selectors amongst the top four schoolboy scrumhalves in the Western Province.

Paul Roos were determined as Bishops launched attack after attack, believing as they do that many hands make backs work. A dropped pass amongst so many passes was greeted with a gasp of shock and disbelief. They wove their patterns, counterattacked creatively, often with slight, quicksilver Mathew Turner as the spark, and spread the ball from touch-line to touch-line but the stern Paul Roos defence, marshalled by centres Stefan Dippenaar and Charl Weideman, kept them out.

After sturdy, fast, swerving Siyasanga Mkiva had burst down the middle, Paul Roos were awarded a penalty in  a match of few penalties, and flyhalf Coenie van Wyk goaled for a 10-7 lead that was certainly against the run of play.

Paul Roos had more of the game in the second half but their hands let them down too often.

When tall lock Christiaan Uys charged down a clearing kick they put hectic pressure on the Bishops line but the defence held till a penalty at a tackle gave Van Wyk the chance to increase the lead to 13-7.

When Paul Roos were penalised at a tackle Turner's bright boot made it 13-10.

At this stage Bishops were running from everywhere and one of their best efforts came from lock Jeff van Breda down the right. But Paul Roos were next to score, again from a penalty, again at a tackle/ruck. 16-10 till a similar penalty brought Bishops to 16-13.

Bishops attacked and Paul Roos were penalised for a dangerous tackle in a kickable position. Surprisingly, praiseworthily, Bishops decided to go for a try and eighthman Nick Koster kicked the ball out five metres from the Paul Roos line on the Bishops right. 

Bishops won the line-out and mauled towards the goal-line but the defence was resolute. Again Paul Roos were penalised and this time the excellent Koster tapped and plunged over for the winning try. It was well in from touch, but the conversion was awry leaving Paul Roos within a penalty goal of victory.

The short time remaining was thrilling as the proud Paul Roos side flung everything into the attack. They swept down the left corner where their supporters were and were actually over to general delight as the exultant spectators danced onto the field.  The touch-judge on that side was a Bishops boy, a lone bit of white in a maroon sea, but the alert referee took the decision out of his hands and ruled that the Paul Roos boy had stepped into touch.

The glee snapped off, the maroon tide subsided and a line-out happened. Bishops threw over the top of a short line-out to Koster. He drove and got the ball back. It was banged into touch and the final whistle went, a signal for much blue exultation as a school ran onto the field to greet its heroes.

Bishops probably deserved to win, but Paul Roos did not easily concede.

Anyway, rugby really was the winner.

In all there were 22 rugby matches between the two schools on Saturday.

Scorers:

For Bishops:
Tries: Michael Nel, Nick Koster
Con: Mathew Turner
Pens: Mathew Turner 2

For Paul Roos:
Try: François Hougaard
Con: Coenie van Wyk
Pens: Coenie van Wyk 3

Teams:

Bishops: 15 Leigh Bruinders, 14 Michael Nel, 13 Adrian Kritzinger (captain), 12 Cian van der Vyver, 11 Mathew Turner, 10 Craig Jordens, 9 Stuart Commins, 8 Nick Koster, 7 Michael Morris, 6 Callan Artus, 5 Martin Muller, 4 Jeff van Breda,  3 Lyall Bluett, 2 Dasch Barber, 1 Wesley Chetty.

Coach: André Jacobs

Paul Roos: 15 Stefan van der Merwe, 14 Jesse Nowers, 13 Stefan Dippenaar, 12 Charl Weideman, 11 Jason Volschenk, 10 Coenie van Wyk, 9 François Hougaard, 8 Lambert Groenewald, 7 Dantes Wium, 6 Siyasanga Mkiva, 5 Jaco van Vuuren, 4 Christiaan Uys,  3 Stefan Hamman, 2 Pieter van der Merwe, 1 Emile Krugmann.

Coaches: Frans van Niekerk, Dawie Snyman, Werner Truter

Referee: Jerome America (Western Province Society)