Westville to channel their 'DNA' for DHS crunch clash

EXCLUSIVE: If there’s one thing the 2026 season is revealing, it is that schoolboy rugby is cyclical, and teams can no longer afford to rest on their laurels.

That’s because the current season has seen the rise of schools once considered lesser opponents while also exposing the shortcomings of sides that rode a wave of success in 2025.

Stellenberg High School have been one of the stories of the year after upsetting some of the top guns in the Western Cape and around the country.

*Also read: Behind rankings and results: The mental health battle in SA’s schoolboy rugby

While traditional powerhouses like Paarl Gimnasium, Paarl Boys’ High, Paul Roos, and Affies may have started the season slowly, they’ve come alive in recent weeks and produced some convincing victories.

A side that’s joined them in reviving its season is Westville Boys’ High, who have found brilliant form in the past two weeks ahead of their crunch derby against Durban High School (DHS) on Saturday.

The KwaZulu-Natal outfit enjoyed an unbeaten season in 2025, but emulating that rare feat was always going to prove difficult.

This year, they’ve suffered five defeats but recorded seven wins, and it’s been a campaign full of lessons, according to head coach Zander Erasmus.

“Each season brings its own challenges,” Erasmus told Rugby365.

“We are very process-driven, and if we are honest with ourselves, there will always be learnings in losses more than there are in continuously winning.

“We’ve had a lot of individual errors instead of system errors, and we’ve had close games, especially at Wildeklawer.

“We narrowly lost to Jeppe, went down to Waterkloof in extra time, and drew with Kearsney – It’s been an up and down season because last year we won a lot of these close games.”

Erasmus’s assessment is fair because, at times, Westville has been its own worst enemy.

In the clash against Jeppe, for example, they allowed their opponents to crawl back into the game and seal the 29-28 win with a late penalty.

After the Jeppe loss, they went down to Oakdale, Waterkloof, and provincial rivals, Northwood School.

“It’s natural to look within when you start losing, and start questioning and doubting yourself,” the coach shared.

“At one stage, I just said to the boys, if we can go through our process, tick our boxes during the week, and go to every game giving our best, win or lose, we will take the performance.

“We are dealing with kids, not professional players, and we need to guide them through the process.”

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Erasmus says he’s pleased with how his side has gelled over the past two weeks after beating King Edward VII (KES) 40-0 and Glenwood High 50-3.

In both matches, Westville raised the bar and reverted to a brand of rugby that’s worked for them in the past.

“We’ve blocked out the outside noise, and it’s been good to have our Westville DNA back.

“The boys are leaving everything on the field, and they are committed on defence, and we are ruthless when we attack, mixing backs and forwards.

“The forwards are laying a good foundation from scrums and line-outs; they carry well around the corner and are impressive on their double hits.

“We’ve been more consistent in keeping the ball and kicking into the right spaces.”

The meeting with DHS this coming Saturday will undoubtedly be one of Westville’s toughest fixtures this season.

Erasmus’s side won the clash 33-28 last season, having lost 9-19 in 2024.

It’s been touted as the clash to watch on the weekend, with a handful of exciting players from both sides set to take the field.

Westville have got the exciting and electric Jadrian Afrikaner, along with Jade-Will Koopman at flyhalf, while Luxolo Sonkononkono will be key at the back.

Scrumhalf, Sandiswa Mbokazi, has returned to the side, while Erasmus is also banking on his strong forwards, like Lwandle Makhanya, to make a mark.

“For us, it’s the biggest school game of our season.

“DHS has been a top rugby programme for the last five to six years in the province, and they’ve raised the standard of rugby, and everyone has been trying to catch up to them.

“It’s a massive game, and having the honour to play them in their 160th reunion is special.

“There are a lot of provincial players across the board, and SA Schools’ players from both sides, so I really think it’s going to be massive.”

Erasmus believes his outfit will need to match DHS’s physicality up front and cope with them during scrums and line-outs.

DHS have lost four matches and won six this season, but their 36-24 triumph against Kearsney earlier this month means it’s level pegging heading into the clash.

Image credit: Josiah Michael