On a cold and miserable day in Durban it was a delight for Maritzburg College as they beat rivals Glenwood High School 18 – 7 in the first Sportsmans Warehouse Premier Interschools fixture of 2024 on Saturday the 6th of April.

A wet, cold, and hostile Glenwood High School welcomed visitors Maritzburg College in the first Sportsmans Warehouse Premier Interschools derby of 2024. Many would think that the conditions would dictate much of the style of play in this encounter, but it was the complete opposite as both sides were more than happy to give the ball some air despite the tricky handling conditions.

The visitors managed the opening stages of the game with momentum firmly in their favour. This meant they drew first blood thanks to the foundation and power of their forward pack. College found themselves well within the 22m area of the hosts after choosing to kick for touch from a previous penalty given away by Glenwood. The College rolling maul was in full force only falling centimeters short of the try line. Two quick phases later and it was scrumhalf Maartens who sniped his way over to score. The conversion by Flyhalf James Slevin was successful. College with an early lead 7 – 0 after 11 minutes of play.

The trend of success that College’s maul was experiencing continued as it would be the foundation of their second try of the afternoon. A rolling maul was setup just outside the Glenwood 22m area after a kick error by Glenwood scrumhalf Lochner which went straight into touch. College built their phases once more following their maul with bruising carries by their forward pack putting them on the front foot. Soon enough Flyhalf Slevin found a wide pass to Langalehle Makathini who finished clinically in the corner. The conversion by Slevin was unsuccessful. College lead 12 – 0 with 14 minutes played.

Glenwood began to find their mojo shortly after conceding. Their lineout worked well to provide eigthman Hargreaves with front foot ball. Glenwood’s backs found space out wide as inside centre Dwayi got around his opposite number to put his right winger Weber into space. Weber was too quick for the cross cover defence of College and dived over in the corner to open the scoring for the hosts. Weber converted his own try to hand his team a full complement of points. Glenwood 7 Maritzburg College 12 with 17 minutes played.

The balance of the half was an arm wrestle, but the scoreboard was unchanged. College lead at half time 12 – 7. The second half was dominated by ill discipline from both sides, but it was Glenwood who were particularly poor. Maritzburg College however were the first to receive a yellow card after a dangerous tackle by Captain P. Kubheka. Glenwood were unable to capitalise on having an extra man and the score remained the same for the duration of the yellow card with no damage being done for College.

College found themselves with the lion’s share of possession in the second half and asked many questions of the Glenwood defence. These questions would soon pay dividends as College got the chance to add three points from the kicking tee after a breakdown infringement by Glenwood, which Flyhalf Slevin duly did. College extended their lead to 15 points to 7 with 52 minutes played.

Glenwood were well under the pump from College and after a team warning for repeated penalties by the referee it was tighthead prop Xaba who was penalized and given a yellow card. College opted for the three points once more and Slevin stepped up and converted to put his team outreach. College 18 points to 7 with 15 minutes to play.

The back and forth between the two teams continued with both outfits having multiple opportunities to score more points however it was a combination of slippery conditions, poor decision making and resolute defending that meant neither team could add any more points.This titanic KZN derby ended with the visitors securing the bragging rights as Maritzburg College beat Glenwood High School 18 – 7 away from home. The return fixture set to take place on Goldstones later this season promises to be another classic!

Sportsmans Warehouse Man of the Match: Maritzburg College Lock – Jake Jansen

Scorers:

For Glenwood

Tries: L. Weber

Con: L. Weber 1/1

Pens: None

For Maritzburg College

Tries: R. Maartens and L. Makhathini

Cons: J. Slevin – 1/2

Pens: J. Slevin – 2/3

Teams:

Glenwood:

15 L. Kumalo,

14 L. Weber,

13 L. Mtetwa,

12 S. Dwayi 11,

M. Ndwalane,

10 K. Ncamazane,

9 L. Lochner,

8 J. Hargreaves,

7 Y. Mwamba,

6 M. Mhlongo,

5 T. Madat,

4 T. Conynham,

3 U. Xaba,

2 M. Van Wyngaardt,

1 L. Nkalitshana

Maritzburg College:

15 L. Sinkfontein,

14 L. Makhathini,

13 S. Mbatha,

12 N. Sithole,

11 A.Hadebe,

10 J. Slevin,

9 R. Maartens,

8 I. Kemka,

7 N. Isaacs,

6 S. Ooshuizen,

5 J. Jansen

4 W. Vyambwera,

3 A. Botha,

2 S. Nyathi,

1 P. Kubheka

Photographer: Sandile Xakaza from Inja Ka Moya Snaps