Youngsters shine for Brakpan

If the presence of strong young players is a positive sign for the future of a team, then Brakpan Rugby Club’s first have bright days ahead.

The side boasted 13 youngsters in the matchday squad from the 2019 u-21 side when they kicked off their season with a 31-15 victory over East Rand United (ERU) in the Valke Peregrine League at Bosman Stadium on Saturday.

The u-21 class of 2019 played in the Valke Peregrine final back in the days and their combination with the senior players saw Brakpan beat United for the first time in three years.

ALSO READ:

 Arries spelers haal Brakpan Rugbyspan

Tries by Jonathan Harding, Danny Keyser, PJ Beukes, Divan Brooderyk and Ruhan Brooderyk handed the local side the convincing win. Beukes converted three of the tries.

Brakpan had not played a competitive match since 2019 and at times this showed. But they were still too strong for ERU who has been one of the strongest teams around as they had been competing in the Gold Cup before Covid-19 put a halt to things last year.

There were some mistakes that the home team made as one would expect in the first game of the season, but they managed to overcome their opponents comfortably.

This pleased chairperson Harry Nieuwenhuis.

“It was clear that the guys were a bit rusty and handling and kicking mistakes cost us a bit, but this was normal after the long layoff.

“Nothing that can’t be fixed in this week’s training,” he said.

Brakpan’s u-21 side did not get to play as ERU had cases of Covid-19. The virus will be a cause for concern throughout the season.

“We really hope that we can conclude the shortened season,” said the chairperson.