“Peddle, faster , faster. Only 30 seconds to go!” There were many attractions at the Standard Bank Kearsney Easter Rugby Festival besides the rugby. In the Standard Bank tent where we were working were activities such as the cycling race(to see how far you could peddle in 2 minutes to win a signed Proteas jersey); selfie camera; lounges to chill; an area where you could sign up for a new Standard Bank account; and most importantly POPCORN. There were other areas of interest around the beautiful Kearsney grounds such as the food area; the MTN stand; the beer garden; Halfway Toyota; Coopertires; children’s Fun Zone and a few others.
The main attraction of course was the rugby which completely blew my mind. The passion and commitment shown by the players was inspirational and there was no such thing as kicking the ball away but instead the players backed themselves to run through entire teams even if they were stuck on their own goal line. There were too many outstanding individual performances to mention but credit must go to every team and their staff for showcasing some beautiful rugby. South African school’s rugby is in safe hands.
The weather was unbelievable for short periods of time and it ranged from blue skies and sunshine to raining and thunderstorms. Hoerskool Noordkaap vs HTS Middleburg.
This gentleman on the bike was the eventual winner as he did 1,4 or 1,6km in the allotted 2 minutes.
I can’t remember this Welkom Gimnasium player’s name but I remember seeing him outrun a lot of players. Here he is on his way to the tri line dodging tacklers from Hoerskool Framesby.
There was no shortage of passionate moms and dads on the sidelines.
Standard Bank doing a fine job sponsoring this event.
Selborne College running onto the field.
I think this was the mascot for Durban Boys High School. He looks relaxed but I can detect a scowl on that face.
The joys of being a coach. I am surprised that they don’t all have heart attacks dealing with the highs and lows of their teams.
Please, please get it over! Yes, woohoo!
The camaraderie shown by the players after each game was really special even when a side had just lost by one point in the dying moments of the game. These guys probably won their game judging by the smiles.
Fast, running rugby at it’s best. Welkom Gimnasium vs HTS Drostdy.
A lot of passionate supporters gathered on each day even when it was raining on the last day.
Teams warming up on a nearby field. The beautiful surroundings of Kearsney College are quite something.
Anxious moments for all.
A Hoerskool Framesby player trying to get away from the chasing Kearsney pack.
Coach dishing out the orders.
Dr EG Jansen school posing for a team photo.
Food glorious food.
A happy player on the bench.
The Standard Bank tent alongside the main stand.
A Pretoria Boys player scrambling to get away from his own goal line whilst the Hoerskool Transvalia players try chase him down.
Bubble Waffle creating the biggest smiles!
The beer garden is always a busy place.
A Dr EG Jansen player escaping a few tackles from the DBHS players.
The DBHS scrumhalf was such a feisty player.
Dr EG Jansen were such a strong side. Here they play against DBHS.
Some screaming fans during the Highbury Prep School and KZN Ibutho / Mark Godefroy U13 game.
Highbury Prep School and KZN Ibutho / Mark Godefroy U13 game. This was a close game in the first half but the second half was one way traffic as the KZN Ibutho ran away with the game.
A Highbury Prep School player not letting go or giving up trying to tackle the KZN Ibutho / Mark Godefroy U13 player.
A happy KZN Ibutho / Mark Godefroy coach.
Glenwood High, The Green Machine, vs Dr EG Jansen. This was the highlight game for me. Both teams were outstanding and the game seesawed throughout with Glenwood winning by 1 point in the final few seconds.
The HTS Middleburg players celebrating after scoring against Pretoria Boys High School. Another close and tense game.
Coach managing his troops.
Just as we all thought DR EG Jansen had scored the winning try, Glenwood shot back and scored a try in the corner making it a 1 point difference at that stage but in DR EG Jansen’s favour. Up stepped the “Ice Man” as he is own and calmly struck his kick from the touch line straight through the middle of the poles. What a cracker.
Winning always leads to big smiles.
Selborne College captain with the trusted mascot.
Non stop action throughout the weekend.
I wasn’t kidding when I said that the DBHS scrum half was feisty. Here he is telling the hooker to stand in the correct place. Only a scrum half would have such attitude.
