Tense clashes for NSSU final spots
Schools rugby
After an exciting season, the Namibia Schools Sport Union’s (NSSU) primary schools rugby delivered some thrilling semi-finals at Affies Park on Saturday.The penultimate weekend of the season saw 16 teams across various age categories battle it out for a spot in the finals and a chance at the coveted titles next weekend.
In the under-13 Super League, Parkies narrowly edged out Walvis Bay Private School (WBPS) with a 30-28 victory. The match was quite intense, with Parkies coach Andre Schutte and captain Jean Botha describing it as one of their toughest games for the year.
“Our opponents really pitched, but thanks to our boys, we managed to pull through and get away with a win,” said Schutte.
Coach Philip van Niekerk of WBPS expressed his satisfaction with the youngsters for putting up a good fight. “I am incredibly proud of our boys. They played wonderfully and fought until the last minute,” he said.
WBPS captain Rijk Duvenhage said: “Thanks to Parkies for playing against us.”
• Windhoek Gymnasium secured the other spot in the U13 Super League final with a 17-3 win over St. Joseph’s Primary School from Rehoboth.
Coach JT Basson of Gymnasium described it as a hard-fought battle. “I applaud St Joseph’s for stepping up to the occasion,” he said.
Gymnasium captain Ryan Steyn admitted that they had under-estimated St. Joseph. “But we were quickly made to realise it would be a tough match. Toward the end, we all came together as a team, and that’s how we made it through to the final,” he said.
St. Joseph’s manager Waldo van Wyk, speaking on behalf of coach Brian Titus, described it as a good game, acknowledging that it was “a rather tough one, but the boys made us proud”.
St. Joseph’s captain Jadin Coakley said: “It was a great opportunity to play against such a strong team. Even though this is our final year of primary school, it won’t be the last you hear of us as rugby players.”
Under-13 Reserve League
In the U13 Reserve category, Elnatan emerged with a closely-fought 38-35 win against Orban Primary School.
Coach FJ van Zyl of Elnatan said booking their place in the final was not an easy feat. “Luckily, we made it happen,” he said.
Elnatan captain Tinus Botma expressed his excitement to have made it through to the finals. “I am super excited, because it is our first time. Last year, we fell out in the semi-finals.”
Coach Ernest Groenewald of Orban said the game started well, but the boys struggled a little in the second half, only picking up again in the last 20 minutes, which was a bit too late. “We scored some very good tries. I am very proud of my boys,” he said.
Orban captain Adrian van der Westhuizen said: “Thank you to the boys. They really worked. I am proud of them.”
• Meanwhile, WAP clinched a 29-24 win over Walvis Bay Primary School in the other U13 Reserve League semi-final.
WAP coach Alberto Engelbrecht said they were on the back foot due to injury losses. “I am proud of the boys,” he said.
WAP captain Alex Coetzee described it as a good win and a great performance from both teams. “Everyone gave their all. It was just a fun game!”
Walvis Bay Primary coach Atanasius Kangala believes they found momentum a bit too late, which cost them the win. “We are going to work on our mistakes and see the way forward,” he said.
Team captain Alonzo Abrahams said they were very disappointed in their performance, because they did not capitalise on their strong points.
U12 and U11
Meanwhile, in the under-12 category, WAP whitewashed Windhoek Gymnasium 22-0 to proceed to the finals next weekend, with Parkies also booking their spot with a 14-7 win over Roots Gymnasium from Stampriet.
In the under-11 category, WAP defeated Rehoboth’s Origo Primary School 15-5, with Windhoek Gymnasium winning 17-12 against Pro-Ed Academy.