Stellenbosch attacks Paarl
Paarl Gim have just usurped Paul Roos’s top spot on the FNB Top 20 and here they are playing each other in Paarl on Saturday, one of the top school matches in South Africa this weekend.
It is one of the most anticipated game of the local season, when Paul Roos, smarting from two recent home defeats, arrive on a very straightforward mission: to stake an irrefutable claim to the top place in the South African schools hierarchy that the Young Maties carved out for themselves in the early stages of the season.
Sure, Grey (PE) beat them only 23-19 and their mauling by the Tygers (20-22) boiled down to a difference of one conversion, but six victories, five of them by convincing margins, out of seven games at the Grey (PE), Kearsney and Wildeklawer Festivals had already given the nation notice of their quality.
The cold light of day may well reveal a growing injury list in the Maroon Platoon’s ranks, but they have vast resources to tap into in their hour of need. Throughout the campaign thus far, Jason Worral has been keeping the scoreboard operators busy from the tee and Ramone Samuels seems just as happy to score tries whether he is at hooker or on the flank.
Paarl Gim have posted 132 points in their last two outings, 75 of them two weeks back against Tygerberg, the balance against Bishops last Saturday. Simple and direct stuff: twenty tries – twelve by the backs – plus sixteen conversions. They couldn’t be looking better no matter from what angle you look at them.
Blissfully injury-free and fine-tuned by master tactician Christoff Lötter, Gim are playing with a relentless menace born of confidence. Their pack boasts several stars in the making. Flank Rikus Bothma, prop Ollie Regue and locks JD Schickerling and Hennie Botha are all drawing rave notices. Their backs need no introduction either: halfbacks Lotter Pretorius and Handré Pollard have made sure of that. Lead destroyers in the points’ fest against Bishops were left-wing Loek van der Merwe and centre Wesley Cupido with three and two tries, respectively.
The game will be broadcast on television, but nothing beats being right there to witness the drama first hand. This will be someone’s Waterloo, but whose?
The season so far:
Paul Roos have drawn a match and lost two of their 10 matches. Two of those defeats were in recent times – at the hands of Grey PE and then last weekend, the shock of the weekend, to Tygerberg.
Paarl Gim have lost just once – to Affies.
Paarl Gim have had the big win of the season. They played mighty Grey College of Bloemfontein and beat them 45-29. That shook the nation.
The two schools have, up till now, just one opponent in common – Tygerberg. Paul Roos lost to Tygerberg and Gimmies beat Tygerberg a whopping 75-3, which is almost as big an aberration as Tygerberg’s victory over Paul Roos.
Of other schools in the Top 20, Paul Roos have beaten Westville, Kearsney, Queen’s, Boland Landbou and Maritzburg College and have drawn 27-all with Dale.
Apart from Grey Bloem, Gimmies have beaten Waterkloof (38-11) and Glenwood (35-25).
It seems that Paul Roos’s quantity is better while Gimmies’ quality is better, and Gimmies are at home – not that it is a massive trek from lovely Stellenbosch to lovely Paarl.
The teams will enjoy having the most capped referee in the history of the game to referee this match. Jonathan Kaplan loves refereeing schools matches and he does it brilliantly.
TV broadcast:
The match will be broadcast live under the Premier Interschools banner on channel SuperSport Five at 12.00 on Saturday with repeats over the weekend on SS1.
The teams:
Paul Roos: 15 Jason Worral, 14 Jos Braqino, 13 Michael Hazner, 12 Marcus Geldenhuys, 11 Dalen Goliath, 10 Calie Nel, 9 SP Ferreira, 8 Ruhan Rossouw, 7 Pieta Smit, 6 Ramone Samuels, 5 Lohan Louw, 4 Leonard Duvenhage (captain), 3 Petrus Senekal, 2 Gerrie le Roux, 1 Corné Stemmet.
Replacements: 16 Chad Solomon, 17 Adrian Zevenster, 18 Albie Louw, 19 Christo van der Merwe, 20 Joel Heugh, 22 Muller Brink.
Paarl Gim: 15 Dawie Dyason, 14 Wion Robertse, 13 Wesley Cupido, 12 Altus Momsen, 11 Loek van der Merwe, 10 Handre Pollard (captain), 9 Lotter Pretoruis, 8 Rikus Bothma, 7 Corne Cooper, 6 Jacques Vermeulen, 5 Hennie Botha (vice-captain), 4 JD Schickerling, 3 Stephan Morkel, 2 Evan Mcdonald, 1 Ollie Regue.
Replacements: 16 Ronald Roux, 17 Regardt Louw, 18 DJ van Niekerk, 19 Attie van Rensburg, 20 Wian Adriaanse, 21 Brendon Nel, 22 Wayett Murphy, 23 Arno Swart.
Date: Saturday, 12 May, 2012
Kick-off: 12.00
Venue: Paarl Gim
Expected weather conditions: Partly cloudy with a high of 21°C, dropping to 8°C
Referee: Jonathan Kaplan (Western Province Referees’ Society)
Programme for 12 May:
(The matches are all at Paarl Gim.)
Kriel Field
08.30: 15A
09.40: 19C
10.45: 19B
12.00: 19A
Stofberg Field
08.30: 19D
09.40: 14A
10.45: 16A
Dammetjie Field
09.40: 19E
08.30: 19F
10.45: 19G
Oukraal Field
08.30: 16B
09.45: 16D
10.45: 16C
Lemoenkloof Field
08.30: 15D
09.45: 15C
10.45: 15B
Fonteintjie Field
08.30: 14B
09.45: 14D
10.45: 14C
