Durban High School kicked off the first match of the Premier Interschools season with victory at home over rivals Maritzburg College on another weekend of memorable schools rugby.
DHS were victorious in the clash between these two schools in 2022, winning 38-14, and the hosts were set to repeat the feat on Saturday when they led 14-0 at half time.
Maritzburg College fought back but couldn’t muster more than one try before the referee blew for a 14-7 win to DHS.
? Congratulations @DurbanHighDHS on their victory in today’s tough rugby derby against @MaritzCollege.@SportsmansW @OUTsurance
#Premierinterschools2023 #Sportsmanswarehouse #Outsurance #schoolssports #rugbyderby #schoolrugby #schoolsports pic.twitter.com/lTuxt8hS0Q— Premier Interschools (@PremierSchools) March 25, 2023
There were thrilling schools matches across the country, with several key festivals taking place, including the 150th anniversary of the Graeme College Festival in the Eastern Cape.
Dale College pulled off a nerve-wracking win over Pearson, coming from 20-10 down with 11 minutes left to win 22-20 on the second day of the popular event in Makhanda.
The preceding match was also full of gutsy effort as Muir College held on to defeat Stirling 21-10, while Selborne proved too good for Nico Malan in a 34-17 victory.
St Andrew’s just got the better of SACS for a 13-12 win, before the visitors from Cape Town bounced back to beat hosts Graeme College (19-5). Elsewhere, Marlow Agricultural were no match for Kingswood (34-5) and Grey College (52-12).
In Gauteng, Garsfontein and St John’s beat Jeppe and St Albans, respectively, while rampant Pretoria Boys’ High blanked St Stithians 66-0.
And in action from the Western Cape, Rondebosch Boys’ High claimed back-to-back wins against Duineveld and Oakdale, while there were also good wins for Bishops, Durbanville, Wynberg and Paarl Gimnasium.
Results (24-25 March):
Gauteng
Garsfontein 28-24 Jeppe
Pretoria Boys’ 66-0 St Stithians
Helpmekaar 41-3 Voortrekker Bethlehem
St John’s 29-24 St Albans
Eastern Cape
Dale College 22-20 Pearson
Die Brandwag 3-48 Hilton College
Die Brandwag 0-22 Queen’s
Framesby 14-18 Graeme College
Hilton College 19-3 Framesby
Kingswood College 21-12 Queen’s
Muir College 21-12 Stirling
Selborne 34-17 Nico Malan
St Andrew’s 13-12 SACS
St Andrew’s 0-48 Grey College
Kingswood 34-5 Marlow
Grey High 27-7 Hudson Park
Graeme College 5-19 SACS
Marlow 12-52 Grey College
KwaZulu-Natal
Durban High 14-7 Maritzburg
Western Cape
Bishops 47-5 Noord Kaap
Paarl Gim 24-23 Stellenberg
Rondebosch 52-5 Duineveld
Wynberg 24-20 Durbanville
Oakdale 18-24 Rondebosch
Durbanville 26-25 Paarl Boys’
Photo: Darren Stewart/Gallo Images