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What Coaches Are Saying: The Case for School Sports Rankings

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A Compass, a Benchmark, a Source of Pride: Why School Sports Rankings Are More Important Than Ever

For the past 19 years, the SA School Sports rankings have been at the heart of school sport in South Africa. While the system has occasionally drawn a handful of criticism—often from coaches frustrated in defeat—the overwhelming sentiment among schools, coaches, and sporting directors is that the rankings add immeasurable value. Far from being a distraction, they have become a compass, a benchmark, and a source of pride for players, coaches, schools, and communities across the country.

Excitement, Debate and Accuracy

The rankings aren’t about mathematical absolutes; they’re a living conversation that fuels passion and healthy debate. As one veteran hockey coach, who has coached countless players to national honours, explains, rankings inspire lively discussion and a sense of excitement among young athletes.

“I think that the rankings are paid attention to and loved by schools when they do well and then suddenly ignored when the opposite is happening. There can be no ‘absolute accuracy’ when it comes to ranking simply because some schools have less hectic fixture lists than others. The rankings certainly allow people to debate their thoughts at will, and they create a certain amount of excitement amongst kids who love bragging rights and if one looks at the SA School Sports rankings, they’re pretty accurate although never ABSOLUTE.”

This perspective is a truth many can relate to. The rankings give young athletes “bragging rights” that inspire competition and foster growth, turning a list of numbers into a catalyst for ambition.

Pride in Small Communities

The rankings’ impact isn’t limited to the larger, more well-known schools. They provide an opportunity for all to thrive, including small-town teams. For Calvin Beck, Head of Hockey at Union High School in Graaff-Reinet, the rankings represent far more than numbers on a screen.

“The rankings this year have been a journey of growth and pride. Our clear goal this year was to push into the Top 25 schools. To do that, we knew we had to raise both the number of fixtures we played, the quality of opposition we faced and focus on improving our goal difference. This created incredible opportunities for our girls, a small-town team from Graaff-Reinet competing against some of the best schools in the country. Although the rankings system can sometimes feel frustrating to calculate ourselves, the team behind it has always been willing to guide, explain the details and help me understand where our shortfalls where in the season. The rankings have helped us plan better, added fuel to [our] motivation, to train harder and provided a benchmark to improve and grow our program.”

For Union, every fixture became “a benchmark to measure ourselves.” The rankings have helped them “plan better” and have become a stepping stone toward the prestigious La Rochelle Rising Champions Cup.

Every Game Counts

Chris Gerber, Head of Hockey at Rhenish Girls’, points out that the rankings have transformed the significance of school fixtures.

The fact that each game now counts towards something has meaning. Almost like the world Test championship for cricket. In the past the matches didn’t really mean anything. Now because of the SA School Sports rankings it does. We also work hard to be seen as a top hockey school and the rankings gives us that platform where people can see the work we put in and it’s on a national platform.”

Gerber also notes that rankings give schools “a good measurement” of how holistic their programs are, ensuring that every player, and every game, contributes to a national picture of excellence.

A Culture of Ambition and Pride

For Matt Smith, first team coach at Our Lady of Fatima, the rankings have reshaped his school’s sporting culture.

“The SA School Sports rankings have created a huge sense of excitement and pride within our school. They’ve given our girls something tangible to strive for and a reason to push themselves harder. It’s not just about winning anymore; it’s about being among the best in the country and competing at a higher level. They’ve given our teams clear goals to work toward and inspired younger players to play harder to achieve more. It also created a culture of ambition and pride that extends beyond the field!”

Smith’s words capture what many schools are experiencing: rankings are no longer just about results; they’re about creating an environment where striving for excellence becomes part of a school’s identity.

Motivation, Goals and Healthy Competition

The rankings serve as a powerful motivational tool for coaches and players alike. As Liam Garrett, Outeniqua’s U16 hockey coach, puts it, the rankings have been a “nice aid in creating a goal for the team/school to work towards, [and] assist with creating goals and giving the team a direction. All in all, it adds a good level of excitement and healthy competition amongst the team and the league itself.”

Wade Botha who coaches the Boys’ U16’s at Hoërskool Noordheuwel reflects on how rankings build bridges between schools that might never have competed otherwise.

“It created a real sense of pride in representing the school and sparked greater interest among younger players… the rankings have also managed to build a few bridges between competitive schools who would’ve, in no other way, met each other on the pitch. The rankings have definitely added an extra layer of excitement and motivation for all our players this year. It gave our teams something tangible to work towards and helped keep their focus throughout the season. It’s been a valuable tool for setting future goals for our school as well as our community and celebrating the progress that we have made this year, not just for our teams but again for the wider hockey playing community too.”

This bridging effect—where teams can compare themselves across provinces and divisions—gives schools fresh opportunities and creates new rivalries and friendships.

Families, Communities and Joy

The excitement generated by the rankings extends far beyond the turf. At Oranje Meisieskool, hockey coordinator Mariska Van Der Merwe describes how the entire community gets involved.

I feel that the SA School Sports  hockey rankings have a huge positive impact on the coaches, players and parents. It definitely enhances performance, because it reflects how well hockey teams in South Africa are performing. Parents, players and coaches can’t wait for the following week’s rankings to be released… Proud families immediately share the results on Facebook or grandpa receives a screenshot of the positions held, very proud of his granddaughter and her team. Everyone in the old age home are informed of this accomplishment! I feel that the hockey rankings have a huge positive impact on the coaches, players and parents. It definitely enhances performance, because it reflects how well hockey teams in South Africa are performing. The rankings motivates, creates fair competition and definitely help the great sport of hockey to grow and shine.”

This community pride illustrates how the rankings ripple outward, creating moments of joy and shared celebration that resonate in households, on social media, and even in retirement homes.

Benchmarks and National Recognition

For Michael Baker, Head of Hockey at Paul Roos Gym, the rankings are deeply personal.

“Personally, the ranking system has really helped me. I feel schools have invested more into sports since its inclusion, as a result means more. In the past, Western Cape schools might never have known about how well a Durban school is doing, and vice versa. Where I’m going with this is that I was able to apply for a post in the Cape because those schools are now aware of what’s happening at my school in Durban. They were able to see the rise in the rankings. For me, as a sports person, particularly a hockey person, career wise I feel that without the rankings, I possibly might not have had a job as a Head of Hockey, and I definitely wouldn’t have been able to apply for a job in the Cape. Not because it’s better, but simply because we wouldn’t really have heard of each other or followed schools having successful seasons. The rankings highlight schools that have made massive improvements or had strong seasons, and that visibility makes a huge difference.”

Another aspect of the benefit the rankings provide is how it enhances a schools marketing ability. Many schools are cash strapped and heavily reliant on sponsorship to boost their sports programs and again thanks to the rankings schools have an independent metric that can help.

Michael van Rensburg, Head of Boys Hockey from Parel Vallei, highlights the marketing and sponsorship power of rankings.

“The SA School Sports Boys Hockey Rankings serve as a valuable tool for schools, coaches, players, and supporters. Parel Vallei weren’t featured in the Top 50, 5-years ago and are now placed in the Top 20 which indicates progress, not just at 1st XI level but at age group levels too, which gives a good holistic view on our boys program.

 Beyond performance analysis, the rankings play a key role in marketing and promotion. A strong national ranking can be leveraged to boost the visibility of your school and its hockey program, helping to attract new talent, increase potential sponsorships and invites to top tournaments and festivals. Sponsors are far more likely to support programs that show proven results, consistent improvement, and national recognition. In short, Rankings are not just about numbers—they’re a reflection of development, achievement, and opportunity.”

This visibility and credibility not only elevate individual schools but also raise the standard of school sport nationally.

A Rugby and Cricket Perspective

The benefits of the rankings aren’t limited to hockey. Katleho Lynch, St John’s College Director of Rugby, emphasizes how rankings shape mindset.

“The key lies in managing players’ mindsets—framing rankings as something exciting and relevant, without allowing them to define who we are or how we play. We were able to turn the conversation into a positive by using it as a reference point for where we are as a group and where we aspire to be in the future.”

Even a relatively low national ranking can serve as a powerful marker of progress. Coach Zane Olckers of Fish Hoek U14 rugby acknowledges that their modest national ranking provides a marker of progress: “With a starting point for us to end 110th for 2025 it help us set a goal to work harder for 2026.”

The positive sentiment is shared by the cricket community. Khalipha Cele, Director of Sports and Cricket South Africa TAP lead scout, explains how he uses the rankings as a tool for progress.

“For me, the SA School Sports rankings have always been something useful rather than something to fear. I use them a lot in my coaching, not as the be-all and end-all, but more as a way of checking if we’re heading in the right direction. They give us an idea of where we stand on the national stage and, importantly, they help set goals for players to work towards. I’ve found that players respond well when you say, ‘By this stage of the season, let’s aim to be around this mark.’ It gives them something real to chase without the pressure of everything resting on a single number. At the same time, I know how rankings work – sometimes you can win matches and still slip down if other schools are playing stronger opposition. That never worried me. I’ve always looked at them as motivation and perspective rather than judgment.”

Perhaps Renso Nel of Paarl Gim sums it up best, having coached the U14 rugby team for over 14 years his perspective speaks volumes. “I see the rankings very positively. They measure you against the best, and it’s always nice to see how other schools are performing. For example, I don’t only look at the Top 20, but also at other schools in the country and how they improve from one year to the next. Rankings are the best benchmark to measure where you compete nationally. I’m a rugby man, but every week I also look at Hockey, Rugby, Netball, and Cricket. SA School Sports can be very proud of the model and should never stop it. It’s an incredible model – and I just love it!”

The Bigger Picture

Across these testimonies, a common thread emerges: rankings inspire motivation, shape training, strengthen school pride, and bring national recognition to sports programs. They turn matches into milestones and local victories into national celebrations.

As Morne Ordendaal of St Anne’s concludes:

“I think the SA School Sports rankings play a significant role in shaping the landscape of hockey. They create a healthy sense of accountability and provide schools with a clear benchmark to measure progress against some of the best programs in the country. For our players, the rankings generate excitement and give them tangible goals to work towards—both individually and as a team. They help fuel motivation during training and add meaning to fixtures that might otherwise feel routine. Overall, while results will never fully capture the depth of development and growth happening in a program, the rankings do add real value in keeping the sport vibrant, competitive, and forward-moving.”

The nature of rankings is not to be a final, indisputable judgment, but a dynamic and ever-evolving measure of performance. The critics who complain that rankings are flawed miss the point entirely. They fail to understand that a ranking is simply a snapshot in time—a benchmark, not a law of the universe. This is a truth accepted at the highest levels of global sport, and it’s a truth we must embrace in school sport as well.

Consider the legendary 2015 Rugby World Cup. Japan, a team ranked 13th in the world at the time, played and beat the mighty Springboks, who were ranked No. 1 and would go on to win the tournament. There were no complaints about the World Rugby rankings then. No cries of bias, no tears of frustration that the rankings were flawed, and no demands by Japan to suddenly leapfrog the Springboks on the table. It was accepted, because that is how rankings work. They provide a context for an achievement, not a guarantee of a result. Similarly, in Test cricket, nobody complains that the Zimbabwe team, ranked 12th with 17 matches played, should be ranked above Afghanistan (11th, 5 matches) or England (3rd, 40 matches). The varying number of matches is simply part of the equation, and the results are accepted as they are.

For nearly two decades, the SA School Sports rankings have stood as a mirror of progress and passion in school sport. They have provided benchmarks, opportunities, and even careers. They have ignited rivalries and united communities. Most importantly, they have given young athletes across South Africa something priceless: a reason to dream bigger, to play harder, and to measure themselves against the very best.

The SA School Sports Rankings have been generated for various sports codes with the same commitment to impartiality and transparency. We do so without fear or favour. For the record, no employee at SASS has ever done their schooling in South Africa, ensuring there is no hidden bias or attachment to any particular school. Our door has always been open for coaches and Heads of Sport to engage, learn how the formula works, and understand how they can progress. Those who have embraced this opportunity have reaped the benefits, and their results are a testament to that fact.

We are proud to stand behind a system that provides a clear, credible, and unbiased measure of progress. It is a system built not for static judgment, but for forward momentum and growth. We are a part of a vibrant community of coaches, players, and supporters, and we are grateful for your passion. We want to thank the hundreds of coaches who engage and have benefited from the rankings, the thousands of players, and the tens of thousands who visit the website each day to see the latest rankings. The rankings belong to you, the doers, the triers, and the strivers.

As a final word to the few who choose to complain from the sidelines instead of engaging, we offer the timeless wisdom of Theodore Roosevelt:

“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena.”

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