27 September 2024
Friday morning’s action at the Clifton Centenary Water Polo Tournament led to a thrilling conclusion to the battle for first place in Pool C, and an intense showdown between Hilton College and SACS for the top spot in Pool A.
Overnight, Kearsney College led Pool C, but the fact that one of their two wins on Thursday was in a penalty shootout left them vulnerable to being overtaken. Instead of the three points that a regulation time victory brings, a penalty shootout win is worth two, and the loser in the shootout receives a point, too.
Kearsney faced Paul Roos Gimnasium (PRG) in their final pool game, with PRG having lost 7-8 to Affies on Thursday evening after having a player red carded. The Stellenbosch boys had sneaked a 9–8 win over Michaelhouse in their other game.
In keeping with the group’s trend, only one goal separated the teams at the end, and it was Paul Roos who shaded Kearsney 8-7. That win edged them just ahead of the KZN side, with six points to the Botha’s Hill boys’ five. Then, when Affies produced a strong defensive performance to comfortably beat Michaelhouse 10-3, they surged to first place with Kearsney relegated to third.
Kearsney would have an opportunity to progress further, nonetheless, when they faced Durban High School (DHS) in the playoffs later in the day. For what it’s worth, coach Nick Rodda’s boys looked like the pick of the third place finishers.
Pool A came down to a clash of Hilton College and SACS, with the Cape Town school, the defending champions, ahead after day one on goal difference. That counted for little, though, with the winner of the game set to claim first place and a rest until Saturday. It was a back-and-forth affair.
Hilton produced a brilliant first chukka, controlling it from start to finish, to leap into a 3-0 lead. SACS, though, came back strongly in the second chukka, finding success against the previously stiff Hilton defence to score four times. Hilton, meanwhile, added two to their total to lead 5-4 at half-time.
After the break, the momentum swung back in favour of Hilton, who extended their advantage to 7-4, but SACS, with admirable resolve, clawed their way back to level the scores at 7-7, which forced the contest into a penalty shootout. On the second SACS’ shot, goalkeeper Trent Chubb stopped Mac Lecuona‘s shot and Hilton went on to secure the win with their next shot.
The hosts, Clifton, were the emphatic winners of Pool C. They followed up an 8-5 win over DHS and a 9-4 defeat of King Edward VII (KES) on Thursday, with a 12-3 romp against Reddam House Constantia. Oliver Ditz and his team built up steam during the contest and when Reddam had a player sent off they were overrun.
Pool C ended with a battle for first place between St John’s College and Westville Boys’ High in the last of the pool games. St John’s, with a strong defensive effort, kept Westville in check and moved the ball more comfortably up and down the pool than the Griffin. In the end, they were deserving 6-2 winners, which left them with a perfect record of three out of three.
SACS, after their loss to Hilton, had only an-hour-and-a-half’s break before they were back in action, facing Selborne College in a cross-pool playoff. The East London side had brushed aside Maritzburg College earlier in the day, scoring with ease to bag a big 18-3 win. They gave SACS a tough time, but coach Nathan Holm‘s boys withstood Selborne’s challenge to claim a tight 5-4 win.
In the second playoff game, Paul Roos had no problem seeing off familiar Western Cape opposition, cruising to a 9-3 victory over Reddam House Constantia.
Westville Boys’ High, then, scored a hard-fought 5-3 win over Northwood, which was the third in succession for teams that had finished second in their pool over sides that finished third. Earlier in the day, the Knights had beaten Grey College 7-4.
That run came to an end when Kearsney College met DHS in the last of the quarterfinals. The Horseflies made it a tough outing for Kearsney, but the talented Botha’s Hill squad pulled off a 10-8 win. DHS had kicked off the day’s action with a 7-5 win over KES to take second spot in their pool.
That leaves the Cup quarterfinals as follows: Hilton College versus Paul Roos at 09:30 on Saturday, Affies versus SACS at 10:30, St John’s against Kearsney at 11:30, and Clifton versus Westville at 12:30.
POOL RESULTS
KES 5-7 DHS
Kearsney 7-8 Paul Roos
Northwood 7-4 Grey College
Clifton 12-3 Reddam
Selborne 18-3 Maritzburg College
Affies 10-3 Michaelhouse
Hilton (9) 7-7 (8) SACS
Westville 2-6 St John’s
PLAYOFFS
SACS 5-4 Selborne
Paul Roos 9-3 Reddam House Constantia
Northwood 3-5 Westville Boys’ High
Kearsney 10-8 DHS
Selborne 10-7 KES
Reddam House Constantia Grey College
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