The Best of the West Easter Tournament got off to an exciting start as Hoërskool Bekker stamped their authority with a convincing 25–8 victory over Hoërskool Roodepoort in the opening rugby clash.

Bekker entered the match with clear intent, asserting themselves early through structured play and physical dominance. Their forward pack laid a solid platform, controlling the scrums and breakdowns, allowing the backs to find space and apply sustained pressure on the Roodepoort defence.

Roodepoort showed glimpses of promise, particularly when they stretched play wide, but struggled to convert opportunities into points. Their eight points reflected moments of resilience, but they were ultimately outmatched by Bekker’s consistency and execution.

Bekker’s ability to capitalise on scoring chances proved decisive. With disciplined defence and clinical finishing, they steadily built their lead and kept Roodepoort at bay throughout the match.

The result sets the tone for the rest of the tournament, with Bekker emerging as an early contender, while Roodepoort will look to regroup ahead of their upcoming fixtures.

Spectators can expect more action throughout the day, with Westgold Primary set to take on Boskop Primary later this afternoon. In the final match of the day, Krugersdorp High School will face Hillcrest College at 18:25.

Meanwhile, the festival’s hockey programme got underway with an international clash between Parktown Boys High School and Zimbabwe’s Gateway High School.

The match had originally been scheduled to feature Hoërskool Monument, but their fixture was moved to 15:00.

The opening quarter saw both sides fail to find the net. Parktown broke the deadlock early in the second quarter when Levi Grottis scored the first goal. Gateway responded midway through the quarter to level the score.

Parktown came close to regaining the lead in the closing seconds of the half but narrowly missed the target.

They made up for it early in the third quarter, scoring within the first two minutes, before adding a third goal shortly afterwards to take control of the match.

No goals were scored in the final quarter, although both teams had a player shown a green card.

The match ended 3–1 in favour of Parktown, with players and coaches from both sides displaying good sportsmanship after the final whistle.