Carl Johnson of St Andrew's College is the only Grahamstown player selected for the Eastern Province U16 team to play in the Coca-Cola Grant Khomo Week, taking place in Oudtshoorn from 6 to 9 July.
Carl Johnson of St Andrew's College is the only Grahamstown player selected for the Eastern Province U16 team to play in the Coca-Cola Grant Khomo Week, taking place in Oudtshoorn from 6 to 9 July.
The annual Coca-Cola Youth Weeks picked up a notch on Monday as the Under-16 Coca-Cola Grant Khomo Week and the Coca-Cola Academy began in Oudtshoorn and Vanderbijlpark respectively.
The U16 Coca-Cola Grant Khomo Week is hosted at the Bridgton Sports Grounds in Oudtshoorn, while the Coca-Cola Academy Week will takes place at the Isak Steyl Stadium in Vanderbijlpark, with both tournaments running from Monday (6 July) to Thursday (9 July).
This follows the Under-13 Coca-Cola Craven Week in White River and the LSEN Week in Worcester last week.
Given the fact that several Springboks have progressed through the South African rugby ranks from these tournaments, and with the U16 Coca-Cola Grant Khomo Week marking the first opportunity at age-group level for the top players to be drawn into the South African Rugby Union’s Elite Player Development system, the competition is expected to be intense in the next few days.
Springboks who participated in the U16 Coca-Cola Grant Khomo Week include Trevor Nyakane, Siya Kolisi, Nizaam Carr, Jan Serfontein and Handre Pollard, while Willie le Roux, Oupa Mohoje, Francois Hougaard and Lourens Adriaanse, as well as Springbok Sevens star Seabelo Senatla have come through the Coca-Cola Academy Week ranks.
These competitions will be followed by the flagship event of the Coca-Cola Youth Weeks, the U18 Coca-Cola Craven Week at Paul Roos Gymnasium in Stellenbosch from 13 to 18 July. -SARU Corporate Affairs
