Maritzburg College boys had a jam-packed Easter holiday schedule, showcasing their talents across a wide range of sports. From hockey and rugby festivals to individual competitions in golf, cycling, canoeing, swimming, and tennis, the college spirit was on full display around the country.
The college itself played a central role, hosting both the U19 Nomads Hockey Festival, featuring 10 teams over three days, and the annual Skonk Nicholson U16 and U14 Rugby Festival, welcoming 20 teams to compete.
Maritzburg’s Rugga Champs Shine at Easter Festivals
Maritzburg College’s rugby teams delivered a strong showing across various Easter festivals, winning a commendable 10 out of 15 matches, drawing one and only falling short in four.
The College’s 1st XV showcased their skills at the St John’s Easter Festival, securing two victories out of three. Meanwhile, the U14A and U16A teams dominated the Skonk Nicholson Festival, going undefeated and displaying some truly impressive rugby. The U15A team also embarked on a successful trip to Gauteng, participating in the Francois Swart festival hosted by Affies. They returned with a win, a draw, and a single loss.
1st team reports (Mr Tim Orchard, 1st XV coach)
Boland Landbou were too strong for Maritzburg College claiming a 32-17 win in College’s first match of the St John’s Easter Rugby Festival. The first half was a bruising encounter between the two schools, with Boland enjoying the better of the early exchanges, and keeping College in their half for an extended period. At halftime Boland were 17-5 in front.
The second half saw a shift in possession with College having more time on the ball. Boland enjoyed a few moments of magic and these were in the end what made the difference giving them a welldeserved win, although the final score of 32-17 perhaps not fully doing justice to College’s performance.
Vs SACS
Maritzburg College left it late to narrowly beat SACS 26-24 in a highly entertaining match at the St John’s College Easter Rugby Festival. The first half saw SACS finding their rhythm the quickest, often also catching College out against the run of play. College were happy to take on the boys from Cape town physically, while SACS looked good finding the space and playing the ball out wide. The running rugby was the winner in the half, with SACS closing out the half with a 19-7 lead. The second half saw a thrilling contest, with SACS enjoying the lead for the majority of the game. College however always kept within touching distance, with both teams exchanging blows on the scoreboard. It was the boys from the KZN capital that had the last laugh as they scored a late try to claim a narrow 26-24 victory.
Vs Lions
XV College were always favourites going into the clash, but the Lions put in an inspiring first half performance, to go down 5-0 at the break. The Lions had opportunities of their own to get points on the board, but the penalties just simply didn’t land. The second half saw the Lions scoring their first points of the festival through a well worked team try, which was converted. College looked better in the second half, which was evident in the scoreline. The Lions conceded a bulk of tries around the outside, with College combining well in the backline to set off their wingers, who constantly troubled the Lions defence. In the end, College finished their festival run on a high, securing a valuable 24-7 victory.
Hockey College’s 1st XI, U16A and U14A sides participated in various Nomads festivals while the 2nd XI took part in the Keith Fairweather festival at Michaelhouse, the U16B side travelled to Jeppe for the
Jeppe Mercian festival, and the U14B team competed in the Ken Florens festival hosted at Northwood. The 1st XI also took part in the King Edward VII (KES) Easter festival winning three of their five matches, drawing one and losing one.
