The annual Graeme College vs Kingswood College derby took place on Saturday in a match which saw both sides dealing with a number of lost opportunities on a waterlogged Kingswood’s City Lords field.
The annual Graeme College vs Kingswood College derby took place on Saturday in a match which saw both sides dealing with a number of lost opportunities on a waterlogged Kingswood’s City Lords field.
Lihleli Xoli of Kingswood opened the scoring 17 minutes into the first half via a drop goal, only for Carl Oerson of Graeme to equalise a few minutes later through a penalty kick.
The pace of the game was slow, with the two teams going into the break with the score at 3 apiece. In the first half Graeme created many opportunities and rue the fact that at least four try scoring opportunities were squandered.
Graeme came out all guns blazing in the second half and scored a well worked try for Buhle Dumbu as they took the lead for the first time, leading 8 points to 3.
Graeme continued to dominate and had most of the possession and territory in the second half. Graeme flanker Juandre Nel then scored a try in the corner and after the linesman confirmed that it was indeed a legitimate try a 17-year-old school boy referee then awarded a lineout to Kingswood.
Kingswood’s Kyle Edwards proved a thorn into the flesh of the home side back line throughout the match. The agile Edwards looked comfortable as he exerted pressure on the visiting side, as he equalled the scoring with a try towards the end of the game.
Graeme were awarded a penalty in extra time and Oerson would have won the match for his side, but the pressure got the better of him as the kick missed and the game ended in an 8-8 draw.
Kingswood were tenacious in their defense. Graeme’s two props Chad Banfield and EP Country Districts Craven Weekn player Jade Bowles were particularly effective running with the ball in hand.
The match was played under some terrible weather conditions as it rained througout most of the match. The one side of the field was just so unplayable that players had to be really careful when running.
"It is really difficult to play under such wet conditions, and it’s also not easy to judge the players either because of it," said Mthwalo Lawrence, a local rugby supporter and a member of Winter Rose RFC. Lawrence then hit on the home side for letting loose of a win.
"They really should have done better for a team that looked so well balanced from the get go. Their forwards looked comfortable going forward, maybe their biggest setback was their lack of defending when out of possession," said a man who calls himself a rugby encyclopedia.
The supporters had mixed views about the match. Simnikiwe Jam-Jam said, "Besides the boring weather of Grahamstown I enjoyed the match for the atmosphere, and as for the game itself I think that Kingswood should have done defended better."
The results between Graeme and Kingswood are:1sts drew 8-8, 2nds Graeme won 15-3, 3rds Graeme won 29-14, 4ths Graeme won 38-7, 5ths Graeme won 34-5, U15B Graeme won 32-7, U15A Graeme won 37-3, U14B Graeme won 29-7, U14A Graeme won 22-5.
