22 April 2023
Durban High School was abuzz on Saturday afternoon for the visit of Northwood’s Knights, who a week ago had scored a memorable victory at Glenwood for the first time. Enzo van Niekerk and his team certainly challenged School in the first half, but after the break DHS turned up the heat and broke clear to win 26-7.
The sides were level at half-time after an indifferent first half in which both made far too many errors. Part of the reason for that could be attributed to the efforts of the two teams to impose themselves physically on the other, but the match was missing a spark, especially since the two 2nd XVs had just produced a cracking back-and-forth match, won 29-17 by DHS.
One thing that could not be faulted, however, was the support that the boys of both schools showed for their 1st XVs. The place was bouncing, drums and voices reverberating about Van Heerden’s. Top marks for school spirit to both.
The Horseflies snatched the first half lead after a break-away from a maul that had formed following a lineout about 10 metres into Northwood territory. After DHS drove it forward, the maul splintered, and Dale Hendrikse, with an open field ahead of him, sprinted clear with only the covering fullback between him and the try-line. He was stopped, but the tackle was high, and the referee awarded DHS a penalty.
After knocking the ball into touch, the boys in dark blue set up a maul from the lineout and bullied their way across the whitewash for the first points of the game. Deano Boesak tacked on the extras and the home team led 7-0.
Northwood fought back strongly, but flyhalf Cade Latham was off target with a simple looking kick at posts. The Knights, however, kept DHS pinned deep in their half for some time. Their industry was eventually rewarded when lock Titus Cesonis ran onto a short ball and hit the DHS defensive line in a gap.
Dragging a defender with him, he powered over the line under the uprights to put the Knights within a simple conversion of levelling the game. Latham duly slotted the kick to make it DHS 7-7 Northwood.
Due to the many simple errors it was, however, an uninspiring contest, and the teams were all square at half-time with both, surely, looking to up their game in the second stanza.
DHS started it like a house on fire. They forced their way deep into Northwood territory and then, in a carbon copy of their first try, they executed a lineout and driving maul with precision to cross for a second try. Boesak’s conversion attempt was wide, but DHS led by five and had the bit between their teeth.
“For the first half, we weren’t switched on. In the second half, once we scored that first try the guys really switched on and we really started pumping our legs,” DHS skipper Christian Everitt said after the game.
He and his side had raised their game and were causing the Knights all sorts of problems with their intensity, taking it to them with hard running and quick recycling of the ball. Credit to Northwood, they defended stubbornly. DHS, though, inched their way towards the try-line, bashing it up and drawing in defenders.
Then, a beautifully timed pass from scrumhalf Florenson Ockhuis picked out Zingce Simke, who was steaming up to the line at full speed. He took the ball nice and flat and hit the nearest defender, spinning in the tackle to twist his way loose and over the try-line for a five-pointer beneath the posts. The simple conversion extended the home side’s advantage to 19-7. Crucially, they were dictating the play and Northwood were beginning to show the wear and tear that comes with having to constantly defend.
When the coup de grace came, it began with strong defending by DHS deep in their own territory. A heavy hit jarred the ball loose from a Northwood attacker and centre Simke snapped it up. Hitting the accelerator, he raced towards the visitors’ try-line, but seeing that he was going to be caught, he kicked ahead. A Northwood cover defender reached the ball first, but Simke was all over him, forcing a desperate kick to touch only metres from the Knights’ try-line.
Once again, the Blue Typhoon turned towards the driving maul that had served them so well earlier in the contest. With clean lineout ball, they drove towards the Northwood try-line. Eventually the Knights’ defence cracked, and DHS crashed over for a match-securing score. Boesak’s conversion completed the scoring, giving DHS an impressive 26-7 margin of victory.
DHS coach’s comments
So, what changed in the second half, Pinnacle Schools asked DHS Director of Rugby, Peter Engledow, afterwards. A stiff talking-to made the difference, he smiled: “I was quite robust with my half-time speech, I have to admit, and then I let coach Ronnie [Uys] jump in as well. I was disappointed with our effort and our work rate off the ball.
“The focus in training was very good this week, especially after they had a good win over Glenwood, which was only expected. Everyone focused at training. There was nothing wrong with that. We just didn’t pitch up on the day. After half-time, luckily the guys bounced back.”
The biggest positive in the game, said Engledow, was his side’s driving maul. “That was something that we have been working on,” he explained.
Engledow also praised Northwood for their effort: “I thought they played very well,” he said. “They had some good tactics. It was a very tough battle. We go in at half-time, it’s 7-7, and the pressure is on. Well done to them. They’re having a really good season.
“The KZN League is becoming tough,” he added. “The standard is going up all the time. You take the win, and you move onto the next week.
“When we get back from Wildeklawer, we’ve got Hilton and Michaelhouse. We’ll refocus then, but for now our focus is on two Wildeklawer games [against Paul Roos Gimnasium and HTS Drostdy].
Commenting on the tremendous support and spirit exhibited by DHS in the face of a robust challenge from Northwood, who also did themselves proud, on both the hockey and rugby field over the course of two days, Engledow said: “I’m immensely proud. I play a small part in it. There are people like Mr Pinheiro and Mr Pillay, who have been here for a five-year journey so far. A lot of credit has to go to the schoolteachers.
“We work hard at our discipline and our attitude, and it’s a wonderful privilege to be able to coach these boys and work at the school.
“It’s not just about winning. Obviously, it’s nice for the school, but it’s about what we’re trying to do and the kind of children that leave the school is the important thing.”
Pleasingly, that is a refrain that is commonly shared among School’s staff and the impact has been remarkable.
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