Paul Roos will look to bounce back from their loss against Paarl Gim when they travel to Paarl Boys’ High in the second big Winelands derby of 2019. DYLAN JACK writes.
It will be the 42nd clash between the two 1st teams since 1976, with Paarl Boys’ High enjoying a good run of form in the derby with six wins out of eight.
However, it is Paul Roos who has the bragging rights going into this match, having demolished Boys’ High 44-8 on their way to a near-unbeaten season in 2018.
Other than that, games between the two schools have traditionally been very tight, even when Boys’ High were going through their ‘golden years’ under former coach Sean Erasmus.
Paul Roos started their season on a high at the annual World Schools Festival, where they blasted New Zealand schools off the park, before flying to Japan and claiming the Sanix World Youth Rugby tournament rather comfortably. However, following a two-week break, they were brought back to earth when they were largely outplayed by Paarl Gim, who handed them their first defeat of the year.
Paarl Boys’ also started their season against an international team, beating a university side from Argentina. They have steadily built momentum under new coach Peter Engledow, coming away from the North-South tournament with a win and a draw against good opposition. They also managed to give Grey College a good run for their money in Bloemfontein, leading 17-12 at half-time before struggling to keep up with the hosts in the second half.
With Boys’ High enjoying a short break last weekend, all is set for another classic between these two schools.
Recent Results:
2018 – Paul Roos 44 Paarl Boys’ 8
2017 –Paarl Boys’ 21 Paul Roos 9
2016 – Paul Roos 3 Paarl Boys’ 28
2015– Paarl Boys’ 29 Paul Roos 10
2014 – Paul Roos 17 Paarl Boys’ 13
Teams:
Paarl Boys’ High – 15 Jacques Rousseau, 14 Angelo Osch, 13 Quan Horn, 12 Tyler Bocks, 11 Javier Farmer, 10 Kian Meadon, 9 Wian van der Sandt, 8 Gideon van Wyk, 7 Eon van der Berg, 6 Stass Nel, 5 Niel Venter, 4 Evan Roode, 3 Sebastiaan Lombard, 2 Allister Williams, 1 Rhynardt Rijnsburger (c).
Subs: 16 Delmar Degenaar, 17 Abraham Reyneke, 18 Armandt Coetzee, 19 Jade Hendricks, 20 Cameron Hanekom, 21 Keean Barnard, 22 Rikus Jonck, 23 Riis du Plessis.
Paul Roos – 15 Cade Croy, 14 Matthew Luddit, 13 Luke Burger, 12 Ronin Daniels, 11 Gerhard Cloete, 10 Kade Wolhuter, 9 Xander Botha, 8 Jarod Cairns, 7 Arno Heenop, 6 Andre Smit, 5 Dylan de Leeuw, 4 Daniel Swart, 3 Corne Weilbach, 2 Meiring Ebersohn, 1 Robert Rodgers.
Subs: 16 Jesse Linders, 17 Damian Swartz, 18 Joubert Grobelaar, 19 Andreas Wild, 20 Calvyn Louis, 21 TBC, 22 Christiaan van Blommenstein, 23 Myron-Lee Jonkerman.
Other games to watch this weekend include Affies’ cross-Jukskei match against the always impressive Jeppe. St Stithians, who ran Jeppe close in a 54-49 thriller last weekend, are up against Pretoria Boys’ High. Menlopark and Garsfontein provide the standout fixture of the Virseker Cup. In KwaZulu-Natal, Maritzburg College play against Westville. In the Eastern Cape, Selborne host St Andrew’s College.
Photo: Thys Lombard/Paul Roos Facebook
