Paul Roos scored 15 tries in their 93-5 win over Southland Boys’ High at the World Schools Festival in Stellenbosch. DYLAN JACK reports.
The result brought to an end another uncompetitive match involving one of South Africa’s top rugby schools. Day two of the festival started promisingly, with Hilton and Boland Landbou having to fight for victories. However, the best two South African schools of 2018, Grey College and Paul Roos, found it way too easy against their opponents.
REPORT: Grey College crush Christchurch Boys’
Even more disappointing is that it was difficult to gauge the level of this Paul Roos side, as their total dominance saw their coaches almost empty the bench before half-time.
Southland’s only score of the match came in the second half through big wing Allan Gillies, who exploited an overlap to go over in the corner.
A competitive opening period saw Paul Roos with a good amount of possession, but miss an early opportunity to take the lead when Kade Wolhuter missed a penalty.
However, once the home side broke the deadlock through a fortuitous try from fullback Cade Croy, the floodgates well and truly opened, allowing them to run in seven tries in the first half.
The home side opened the scoring when Andrew Pegg burst through a tackle before his attempted offload rebounded into the hands of Croy, who dived in to score. Pegg then went in for a try of his own after he was found out wide by a good cut-out pass from Wolhuter.
Another period of pressure saw Paul Roos earn themselves a 5m scrum, from which hooker Meiring Ebersohn scored, before Ruben Labuschagne ran a perfect line on to a pass from Wolhuter to go over under the poles.
The hosts were on the rampage in the first half, and got their fourth when Ebersohn went over again from a powerful driving maul. Luke Burger was then freed up on the right wing and sprinted clear to score.
Labuschagne was bumped over the tryline as the hosts fell just short of bringing up the half-century before the break.
It was equally one-way traffic in the second half, as it took just a couple of minutes for outside centre Tiaan Pretorius to muscle over the line to bring up the 50. Pegg then powered through four Southland tacklers to score his brace before an uncontested maul allowed Caluym Louis to add to the scoreline.
No 8 Jarrod Cairns ran into space to grab a try for himself, which was well set up by Labuschagne. Wolhuter then got on the end of an offload for the 12th try of the match before a second from Pretorius and tries from lock Dylan de Leeuw and substitute Ronan Daniels ended the rout.
Paul Roos – Tries: Cade Croy, Andrew Pegg (2), Meiring Ebersohn (2), Ruben Labuschagne (2), Luke Burger, Tiaan Pretorius (2), Caluym Louis, Jarrod Cairns, Kade Wolhuter, Dylan de Leeuw, Ronan Daniels. Conversions: Wolhuter (3), Chris Blommenstein (5).
Southland Boys’ – Try: Allan Gillies.
World Schools Festival results (Day 2)
Photo: Speedshots
