The Boys from Balgowan clocked in for their toughest day at the office yet when they disembarked to do business with DHS on Saturday, although three rugby teams managed to look after their unbeaten track records.
Hockey:
While House’s open sides brought plenty of goal-scoring confidence into the mix with the thirds winning 7-1 and the seconds wrapping up a confident 4-0 victory, the first XI’s travails continued at the Riverside Sports Club where they went down 2-4. Michaelhouse’s U16A lads were brought crashing back to reality by their 1-4 loss, with the B and D sides not able to fare much better; only the Cs coming away with a 2-2 draw. The U14 category were able to paint a slightly rosier picture with the A side winning 2-1, although the B, C, and D teams weren’t able to go back to the Midlands with wins under their belts.
Top to bottom, Michaelhouse’s rugby sides have developed a reputation for being hard to beat in recent years, but the 56% win ratio on Saturday – the lowest since 2019 – is an indication of the quality of a resurgent DHS rugby culture. It’s back to the drawing board for House’s U14A boys who came unstuck 7-14. The B side also found themselves on the less favourable side of the exchange; but the C and D sides, as has become their custom, dished out masterclasses in flair and running rugby, both posting big wins, with the latter adding another scalp to their unbeaten run in 2022. While the U15B and D teams couldn’t produce wins, the C team, also extended their undefeated status, and the A team were able to deliver the goods, the latter a bruising 17-15 affair. Like their hockey brothers, House’s U16A lads, boasting four Grant Khomo Week representatives, also came plummeting back to earth, being dealt a 12-32 blow by a confident side who interestingly capitulated to Kearsney College earlier in the season. Michaelhouse were untouchable in the other three U16 fixtures, the B team boys making it 8/8 during their Covid-affected high school career with their comfortable 28-0 victory!
Rugby:
Michaelhouse had to content themselves with a 50/50 share of the spoils in the open age groups where the sixth XV triumphed over the St Henrys second XV outfit, and the fifths and fourths chalked up confident wins over DHS. The hosts enjoyed one way traffic in the three grandstand clashes though. The second XV fixture could have gone either way, and the public definitely got what they came for, the final whistle shrilling on a 16-15 scoreline favouring the home side. The records reflect that DHS is one of the teams against which Michaelhouse is statistically most likely to draw; but with two sides hell bent on a result, the 126th clash between the two schools was never going to be a stalemate. With more than enough clean ball from the get-go, the home side’s mercurial backline were going to run at Michaelhouse all day. Which they did, but the result was as much about their defence as their ability to run from anywhere, preventing Michaelhouse from breaching the line until Craven Week forward, Thomas de Lange scored an unconverted try for the visitors late in the game. Full time 23-14 to Durban High School.
Compiled by Michaelhouse
