Maritzburg College Sports Report

Maritzburg College Sports Report for the weekend.

Maritzburg College’s anglers featured strongly at the end-of-season prizegiving held over the weekend, with Tristan Saville securing top spot and four College boys making the KZN team. They will represent KZN at the SABAA Junior Nationals at Witbank Dam from 3-5 April 2025.

After four back-to-back home fixtures, this weekend saw Maritzburg College travel to Kearsney for summer sport. Unfortunately rain prevented any of the cricket or outdoor basketball matches from taking place, although College’s 1^st XI did compete in the Clifton T20 tournament, with some excellent performances.

College’s athletes also produced very good individual results at the 3^rd aQuelle series securing a overall 2^nd position.

Angling

Congratulations to Maritzburg College’s anglers who dominated at the provincial end-of-season prizegiving held over the weekend, with young Tristan Saville securing top spot and four College boys making the KZN team. They will represent KZN at the SABAA Junior Nationals at Witbank Dam from 3-5 April 2025.

KZN Team Selections:

Tristan Saville – 1st place

Sean Kleu – 2nd place (KZN Captain) Ross Wichmann – 3rd place

Damien Kleingeld – 5th place

Basketball

With only indoor basketball matches able to take place, College’s teams won four of their eight fixtures, with the 1^st team suffering a surprising defeat against Kearsney.

1^st team report (Mr Jacques Wilcock, MIC: Basketball)

An away trip to Kearsney saw a tough day in the office for College. The hostile environment made it difficult for College to adjust and play their style of basketball. Kearsney came out of the gates in full force putting College on the backfoot through a strong performance by their number 5, P Sithole. A poor 4^th quarter which saw College score zero points, meant it was an easy win in the end for Kearsney with the final score 34-51.

Summary of results:

Cricket

None of the planned matches against Kearsney were able to take place due to the ongoing rain and water-logged pitches. However, the 1^st XI competed in the Clifton T20 tournament, although this event as also impacted by the weather.

1^st team report (Mr Robbie Coutts 1^st XI coach) Clifton T20 Festival

The Maritzburg College First XI once again participated in the Clifton T20 Festival, competing in Pool

A alongside the hosts Clifton, Michaelhouse, and Kearsney.

Game 1 – Clifton (Live TV Match)

The festival opened with a thrilling encounter against Clifton, a game that went down to the last ball. College put on a strong batting display to secure victory by 5 wickets. However, they will be disappointed with their fielding performance, as there were too many dropped catches and miss fields. The bowling remained disciplined, while the batting was excellent. Tian Van Niekerk (45 off 44), Luka Puddu (33 off 23), and Sphamandla Dzanibe (38 off 22) all made significant contributions in the chase. However, it was the unbeaten partnership of 35 off 23 balls between Deolyn Naidoo and Reece Willson that saw College over the line off the final ball.

Game 2 – Kearsney (Washed Out)

Overnight rain and persistent morning showers led to the cancellation of the match against Kearsney at Kingsmead Oval without a ball being bowled.

Game 3 – Michaelhouse

After the rain subsided around midday, College faced Michaelhouse in a reduced 14-over match. Michaelhouse won the toss and elected to bat first, setting a challenging 127 to win at a rate of 9 runs per over.

College started well, with openers Daniel Nadasan and Tian Van Niekerk putting on 63 for the first wicket. However, in an attempt to maintain the required run rate, wickets fell at crucial moments. The final four overs yielded just 17 runs, and College finished on 107 for 5, falling 19 runs short. The defeat, coupled with a negative net run rate, meant College missed out on the eliminator round.

7th/8th Place Playoff – Waterkloof

College qualified for the 7th/8th place playoff against a strong Waterkloof team, who had both their Saturday matches rained out. Waterkloof, known for their fearless approach to T20 cricket, were disappointed to miss out on a top-six finish.

College captain Daniel Nadasan won the toss and elected to bat first. On a skiddy wicket with a slow outfield, College fought hard to post 126 for 9, with the best partnership being 49 for the third wicket between Deolyn Naidoo and Ewald Bester.

A much-improved fielding effort from College put pressure on Waterkloof’s batters, but two difficult chances went down at crucial moments. Waterkloof held their nerve, chasing the target down in the 16th over, winning by 7 wickets.

Scores in Brief Game 1 – Clifton Clifton 168/5

• Dzanibe 2/30 College 169/5
• VanNiekerk45
• Puddu 33
• Dzanibe 38 College won by 5 wickets

Game 2 – Kearsney

Match abandoned (rain)

Game 3 – Michaelhouse Michaelhouse 126/3 College 107/5

• VanNiekerk39
• Nadasan 35 Michaelhouse won by 19 runs

Game 4 – Waterkloof College 126/9 Waterkloof 127/3

Waterkloof won by 7 wickets

Vs Kearsney in the main

 Water polo

Kearsney outcompeted College in the pool this weekend, winning nine of the team encounters.

Congratulations to the 2nd team Water Polo squad for their gutsy and determined performance at the Logan Stanley Tournament. The team demonstrated incredible resilience, skill, and sportsmanship throughout the tournament, achieving some very good results:

• Curro 1st: A thrilling match that ended in a 4-4 draw, with Maritzburg College clinching victory in sudden death penalties!
• Hilton: Despite a tough game, the team fought hard but faced a 2-10
• Westville: Another challenging match, ending in a 3-6 loss, but the team showed great
• DHS: A fantastic 6-4 win, showcasing the team’s excellent teamwork and
• AFFIES: A hard-fought game with a 2-10 result, but the team never gave

The boys eventually finished in eighth place overall.

1^st team report (Mr Darren Sherriff – Director Aquatics)

On Saturday College travelled to Kearsney knowing it was going to be a tough day in the pool but very much up for the task. The first chukka was gruelling and Kearsney took a 0-1 lead. As the game went on they kept control of the lead. College put up a good fight in the last chukka, but it was not enough and Kearsney won the match.

Summary of scores vs Kearsney

Athletics

Competing in the 3^rd aQuelle series, against 32 schools, College’s athletes finished an excellent 2^nd overall. College achieved four 1^st places, one 2^nd places and four 3^rd places.

Results:

1st:

B Andrews – High Jump under 17 (1.93m) new aQuellè record T Boshoff – Shot putt (14.13m) and Discus (44.07m) under 17 L Bottcher – Discus under 15 (42.36m)

2nd:

R Slade – Shot putt under 15 (12.09m)

3rd:

C Sweetnam – Shot putt under 17 (13.30m)

B Mhlongo – 100m under 19 (11.29s)

T Ekerold – Shot putt under 19 (12.38m)

N Jakatyana – High Jump under 15 (1.70m) Overall age categories:T Boshoff – 1^st under 17

Swimming

Congratulations to College’s swimmers, who at the Co-ed gala held earlier in the week, finished 2^nd just behind Hilton, and ahead of Michaelhouse (3^rd) and St Charles in (4^th).

Tops co-ed sports schools in SA for 2024