Graeme geared up for clash against PE rivals
EXCITED about hosting another festival, Graeme College are geared up to tackle one of the Eastern Cape’s big guns when they meet Grey High in the final fixture of the Pam Golding Properties Graeme Rugby Day in Grahamstown on March 24.
This fixture will replace their traditional match in mid-year against the Port Elizabeth giants, a date which has often been plagued by a clash with the Meyer Sauerman week.
While the hosts would love to crown the occasion with a rare victory over their PE rivals, Graeme coach Jonty van der Meulen said the day went a lot further than just producing a winning result.
He said excitement for the day had been building at the school for the past few weeks.
“This is a massive showcase for our school and it is really great to be able to host the Eastern Cape’s top sides in a wonderful festival of schoolboy rugby,” he said.
“The anticipation is not only about having such a big game against Grey, but also the chance for us as a school to make a contribution to rugby in the region.”
He acknowledged that the team’s preparations had been hampered by other activities, most notably the first cricket team’s qualification for the Twenty20 national finals in Pretoria last week.
“We had seven players away for the weekend so we decided not to have a pre-season match as planned,” he said.
“It has left us a bit short of match practice but one positive is that the guys are really itching to get onto the field to show what they can do after training started earlier this year.”
Captained by Bavu Manyakanyaka, Graeme have a few members back from last year, but Van der Meulen said the bulk of the team would be made of players who formed part of a highly successful second team last year.
“They went through the season unbeaten and were always a good side coming through the age-groups. This has helped to create a sense of continuity in the team as the guys know each other well.”
Playing in Port Elizabeth last year, Graeme put up a tremendous fight against Grey, pushing their more fancied rivals all the way before finally going down 22-15.
Van der Meulen is under no illusions as to the challenge which awaits his team.
“We know it will be an extremely tough fixture because Grey always have a good side,” he said.
“They will be well-drilled by Allan Miles, who is a very good coach, and they have players capable of producing the X-factor.”
He added, though, that Graeme were ready to show what they could do in the showdown at 16.10 on the Somerset field.
“We see this as an opportunity to take on one of the big guns in Eastern Cape rugby and we know we will have to be at our best.
“But we will aim to put them under pressure and see what happens.”
A number of other intriguing matches will be part of the programme on the main field.
Brandwag have made a promising start to the season, with three straight wins, but face arguably their biggest test against Queen’s at 10.20.
Cradock outfit Marlow Agricultural have had notable victories against Dale and Duineveld, which should send a message to East London powerhouse Selborne about what awaits them at 12.40.
Kingswood were too strong for Muir last weekend, but know they will have a much stiffer examination when they take on Framesby in the main curtain-raiser at 15.00.
Besides the action on the Somerset field, a further 15 games, which also involve U14 and U16 teams, will be played on the Marais A and B fields.
The fixtures are:
SOMERSET FIELD
08.00 Pearson 1st vs Muir 1st
09.10 Union 1st vs Cambridge 1st
10.20 Brandwag 1st vs Queen’s 1st
11.30 Nico Malan 1st vs Dale 1st
12.40 Selborne 1st vs Marlow 1st
13.50 St. Andrew’s 1st vs Hudson Park 1st
15.00 Kingswood 1st vs Framesby 1st
16.10 Graeme 1st vs Grey High 1st
MARAIS A FIELD
08.00 Graeme U16 vs Grey High U16
09.00 Graeme 2nd vs Grey High 2nd
10.00 Port Alfred 1st vs Nathaniel Nyaluza 1st
11.00 Selborne U16 vs Marlow U16
12.00 Pearson U16 vs Muir U16
13.00 Union High U16 vs Cambridge U16
14.00 Brandwag U16 vs Queen’s U16
15.00 Nico Malan U16 vs Dale U16
MARAIS B FIELD
08.00 Graeme College U14 vs Grey High U14
09.00 Graeme College U15 vs Grey High U15
10.00 Pearson High U14 vs Muir U14
11.00 Selborne U14 vs Marlow U14
12.00 Brandwag U14 vs Queen’s U14
13.00 Union High U14 vs Cambridge U14
14.00 Nico Malan U14 vs Dale U14
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