Super Stellies claim another big scalp
WRAP: Stellenberg stunned Paul Roos while Oakdale held Paarl Boys to a draw on yet another dramatic weekend for South African schoolboy rugby.
Stellenberg have earned the title of giant-killers, after beating three of South Africa’s traditional powerhouses over the past two months.
While the results have stunned the wider rugby community, those in the know have marked the rise of the Jade Brigade in recent seasons, and have been less than surprised by their wins against Paarl Gimnasium, Grey College and more recently Paul Roos.
On the eve of their clash with Stellenberg, Paarl Gim coach Pieter Rossouw told Rugby365 that the team from northern suburbs of Cape Town would be tough to beat.
As it happened, Stellies hung on to claim a monumental 20-19 win against Gimmies.
A couple of weeks later, the Jade Brigade made the most of their chances against Grey College at the North-South tournament, and emerged with a 26-21 victory.
This past Saturday, they beat Paul Roos 20-10 at Stellenberg to make another statement regarding their consistency and quality.
It was a massive result in the context of the overall season, as Paul Roos recorded their first defeat of 2026.
All six of South African rugby’s “top dogs” – Paarl Boys, Paarl Gim, Grey College, Paul Roos, Affies and Oakdale – have lost at least one match over the past two months.
Stellenberg may join that elite group by the end of the season.
Stellenberg’s packed 20-game schedule includes fixtures against five of the six leading teams, and having beaten three already, they may fancy their chances in upcoming games against Oakdale (May 9) and Boishaai (May 16) – although both are away from home.
The latter teams met in Paarl on Saturday, with the contest ending in a 13-13 draw.
While no team enjoys a stalemate, Oakdale may view the draw as a win, given that Boishaai were the leading team in South Africa last season, and are always tougher to topple at Brug Street.
Boishaai, on the other hand, will be disappointed with a home draw and with the fact that they’ve gone two matches in succession without a victory – having lost 28-31 to Garsfontein two weeks ago.
Meanwhile, their arch-rivals delivered a statement in the biggest interprovincial clash of the past weekend. Fullback Thomas Saunders scored a hat-trick in Gimmies’ resounding 51-24 win against Affies in Pretoria.
Gimmies have scored 40 or more points in their last three matches – against Durbanville, Noordheuwel and Affies – and are hitting form ahead of next week’s showdown with Grey College in Paarl.
With the loss to Gimmies, Affies recorded their third defeat of the season. It won’t get any easier when the Wit Bulle host Garsfontein next week, and it’s worth reiterating that Garsies beat Boishaai a weeks ago at the North-South tournament.
Elsewhere, Jeppe took an early lead in the two-match derby series against KES when they won 31-24 at home.
In KwaZulu-Natal, Westville outlasted Northwood 35-29, while Maritzburg College proved too strong for Glenwood, eventually winning 33-13.
The annual four-way battle between the leading teams in Cape Town’s southern suburbs kicked off at Wynberg this weekend, with the hosts beating Rondebosch 27-17.
Outeinqua continued their good run, claiming a 34-24 win against Boland Landbou at home, while Pearson beat Selborne 22-5 down in the Eastern Cape.
Graeme College thumped Port Rex 48-10 to extend their winning run to five matches.
While Paul Roos and the other top dogs have sustained at least one defeat this season, Graeme and a few other members of the chasing pack – such as Durban High School – remain undefeated.
The form of those teams will be put to the test in the coming weeks, however, when they compete at tournaments such as the Grey High Festival in Gqeberha and the Wilderklawer Series in Kimberley.
SELECTED RESULTS APRIL 11
NOORDVAAL
Affies 24-51 Paarl Gim
Jeppe 31-24 KES
Waterkloof 71-32 Nelspruit
Menlopark 64-12 Oos-Moot
EG Jansen 31-46 HTS Middelburg
Rustenburg 56-5 Potch Gim
Transvalia 38-31 Eldoraigne
CENTRAL
Duineveld 0-36 Diamantveld
Fichardtpark 29-17 Jim Fouche
KWAZULU-NATAL
Glenwood 13-33 Maritzburg College
Westville 35-29 Northwood
EASTERN CAPE
Dale College 12-24 Grey High
Stirling 17-27 Queens College
Pearson 22-5 Selborne
Hudson Park 36-12 Cambridge
Daniel Pienaar 28-36 Framesby
Brandwag 33-40 Marlow
Port Rex 10-48 Graeme College
Nico Malan 31-24 Muir
WESTERN CAPE
Paarl Boys 13-13 Oakdale
Wynberg 27-17 Rondebosch
Durbanville 20-18 SACS
Stellenberg 20-10 Paul Roos
Outeniqua 34-24 Boland Landbou
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