Northern KZN triumph in testing u/16 rugby week
After a shaky start, Northern Natal took control of the final and won convincingly 36/26 to win the title.
The Northern KZN under 16 rugby team featuring a strong local contingent from Dundee High and Sarel Cilliers High School, was crowned champions at the VKB country and districts rugby championships in Frankfort.
The tournament ran for five days in the Eastern Free State town and featured 12 provincial teams.
The Northern KZN team was boosted by the presence of team manager, Wally Kitching and coach Steven Brown, from Sarel Cilliers.
Eastern Free State, the host and one of the early favourites, were Northern Natal’s first opponents with an exhibition of powerful forward play, combined with a dynamic back line. Northern Natal, however, had the home favourites in shock – recording an exceptional 54-0 victory. Next up were the Titans, a team from Johannesburg which comprises players from private schools in the Gauteng area. Again, Northern Natal triumphed 25/7 to book their place in the final.
The 2016 winners, EP Country and Districts team, were their opponents in the final. However, the Northern KZN Lammergeiers mesmerised the crowd with their attacking brand of running rugby. After a shaky start, Northern Natal took control of the final and won convincingly 36/26 to win the title.
VKB announced a team selected to represent the VKB SA country and districts team. This team will be touring Dubai in September where they will compete in three matches. Coach Steven Brown was selected as coach.
Congratulations to K Hlongwane from Sarel Cilliers High School who was also selected for the touring team.
Under 19s
Best wishes to Njabulo Ndlovu from Dundee High School for a speedy recovery from his operation. During the VKB under-19 week in Reitz, he sustained an injury to his shoulder and had to undergo surgery to reattach all the ligaments. This year a new initiative from the management resulted in two u/19 teams being selected for the Reitz tournament. The team that went to the NWU Pukke week in Potchefstroom managed to scrap the underdog tag with the following results: one loss, one win and one draw.
The VKB team touring Reitz had a difficult start, but ended up competing for third place in the ‘rurals week’ where they managed to beat the EP Provice Country District side convincingly, securing them a third place in this year’s tournament.
