19 April 2023
DHS is celebrating the selection of five of its own from the class of 2022 for the Natal Sharks under-19 squad. On Saturday, at 15:00, at Hollwoodbets Kings Park, the team will be in action against the Leopards.
The selection of Connor Carson, Minenhle Ngcamu, Zak Smith, Ntobeko Mhlongo and Tholithemba Sibisi reflects a cultural shift that has taken place at DHS, which has seen the school exit some trying times and recapture the spirit that had made “School” one of South Africa’s most revered secondary insitutions.
Peter Engledow, formerly Head of Rugby at Paarl Boys’ High, who now holds the same position at DHS, told Pinnacle Schools that Headmaster Tony Pinheiro and Head of Sport Nathan Pillay deserve huge credit for playing leading roles in restoring the school to its former glory. The Old Boys, too, have been pivotal in leading the charge, he added.
Their leadership, he said, has helped deliver rapid results, not only in rugby, either. School’s other primary winter sport, hockey, under the guidance of Michael Baker, is producing results and provincial selections at a level never previously produced by DHS. And the pride that boys feel in the school has permeated all aspects of its life.
It hasn’t been an easy task to overturn the bad habits and sub-standard ways which had afflicted the school, and Engledow admitted that he had, at times, thought he might not be up to helping achieve the turnaround, but perseverance and support from those who have bought into the vision of the Headmaster has won out.
The utmost importance
While good results are important, Engledow said a strong team in 2023 is not the most important thing. He wants DHS to establish itself as a consistent top 20 rugby school in the country. But that should not be the be all and end all. South Africa, he said, needs leaders and good citizens, and that is what is of the utmost importance.
Chatting with Engledow, he exhibits an even-handed assessment of sport and life, and projects an assurance that he has his priorities in order. It’s the kind of assured leadership that most boys would likely respond to very positively. Based on results, that is the case.
Turnaround
Having mentioned results, it is worth taking a look at the turnaround that DHS has undergone on the rugby field, where the 1st XV continues to deliver inspiring results.
Going back to 2019, the DHS first team endured a trying season, losing far more often than they won, often by big margins. Then, in 2020, before sport was stopped by the Covid-19 pandemic, School suffered a big 7-52 defeat to Westville Boys’ High. The following year brought only a handful of matches, but the results weren’t particularly good either.
But, in 2022, when schools were, at last, able to play a full season, and with Engledow having taken over the leadership reins, the DHS 1st XV returned with a collective fire in their bellies, and they put together a season which was highlighted by an exciting brand of winning rugby. It was a 15-man approach – hard up front, and exciting and inventive at the back. Always relentless.
They started the season slowly, slipping to defeats against Voortrekker Bethlehem and Kearsney before finding their feet at the Kearsney Easter Rugby Festival. There, it became clear that there was something different about this DHS team. They stood back for no one, and they took it to everyone.
The festival was played in extremely muddy conditions, following flooding in KZN, but DHS rose to the challenge, comfortably handling Waterkloof in a 23-5 win, which they followed up with a 20-15 victory over an EG Jansen team whose results in 2022 included wins over Glenwood, Noordheuwel, and Helpmekaar.
In their last outing, they went toe-to-toe with a Monument team that won the Noordvaal Cup, eventually losing by a narrow 5-7 margin.
The mental approach
Engledow said a shift took place at Kearsney and a camp that followed the festival delivered further reward when the team’s focus turned to the mental approach to the game. He said the input of Marc Fraser-Grant proved to be immensely valuable, and he helped spur the team on to greater heights.
Only two more defeats followed, both against top class opposition. DHS fell 17-24 to a Hilton College team ranked among the top five in South Africa, and also went down 12-20 to an Oakdale side that played the renowned Grey College to a 17-17 draw.
But there were many more victories, including comfortable wins over Michaelhouse, Westville, and Northwood.
Record number of KZN selections
A record number of six DHS players – Connor Carson, Christian Everitt, Deano Boesak, Tholithemba Sibisi, Dwight Pietersen, Simphiwe Ngobese – were selected for the KwaZulu-Natal Schools team, which gave the Craven Week-winning Western Province side its toughest game of the tournament.
Another two players – Florensen Ockhuis, Maurice Willemse – did duty for the province at the Under-17 Academy Week.
Engledow spoke fondly of the 2022 boys who have now been picked for the Sharks under-19 team. He mentioned lock Connor Carson’s work ethic and talked of how he made good money during his matric year through his skills as a DJ. Themba Sibisi, he said, was excellent at centre, as was Mine Ngcamu, and Zak Smith, at scrumhalf, was yet another quality boy. He didn’t get to work with Ntobeko Mhlongo.
What was clear in talking to Engledow was that the cultural shift that had happened at DHS was not just on the sports fields, it was a general shift throughout all aspects of the school, and this was reflected in the boys being produced by School. That appeared to give him as much satisfaction as any of their sporting achievements.
Wellbeing concerns
His concern for the wellbeing of the boys was evident, too, when, not for the first time, he brought up the extremely challenging schedule that DHS, among others, has faced on the rugby field this year. From 25 March to 15 April, they played seven times against some of the country’s top teams. This was not sustainable, he said, and some changes were necessary.
Boys, nowadays, are so big, so well-conditioned, so strong and the collisions are so hard now, that they need more recovery time. Already a number of DHS boys have been side-lined by serious injuries. The game at schoolboy level should not be treated as if it is professional, he added.
Sustainability of success, though, is one of Engledow’s goals and the results of the DHS A teams – under-14, under-15, under-16 and 1st XV – thus far this season have been exceptional. The B teams, too, are performing at a high level. Now, Engledow said, he would like to focus on the C teams and lower and work on improving their standards.
And, in terms of sustainability, he is not after success for one or two years, he wants success to be inculcated into DHS rugby, year in and year out. However, first and foremost, the school needs to produce quality young men who will contribute to the successful future of South Africa.
DHS 1st XV in 2023
DHS 39-17 Voortrekker Bethlehem
DHS 52-14 Saint Charles (a)
DHS 14-7 Maritzburg College
DHS 24-25 Affies (a)
DHS 35-7 Nelspruit 7-35 (a)
DHS 31-36 Worcester Gimnasium
DHS 31-10 Framesby
DHS 32-25 Marlow
DHS 24-20 Westville
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