28 October 2025
(Feature photo: Kearsney College Director of Aquatics, Nick Rodda, with Kearsney College 1st team captain Thomas Aylward, and Tanya Bower, chairlady of KZN Schools Water Polo).
In a repeat of 2024’s outcomes, Clifton College captured two of the three KZN Top 10 water polo titles, but Kearsney College‘s consistency across all age groups earned them the title of overall champions.
Unlike last year, when Kearsney lifted the 1st team crown, the Botha’s Hill school didn’t claim a single age group title this time around. Hilton College triumphed in the u14 division, while Clifton bagged both the u15 and 1st team trophies.
Yet, echoing the previous season’s overall standings, Kearsney edged out Hilton and Clifton by a single point to top the combined rankings.
u19
In the senior competition, the Clifton 1st team produced an outstanding run to lift the u19 title in their home pool, at the Clifton Aquatic Centre.
They were pushed hard along the way – edging Westville Boys’ High 10-9 and defeating Kearsney 7-4 in the final – but never once required penalties. A solid 8-5 opening win over Hilton College set coach Pierre le Roux‘s charges on course for a memorable campaign.
Le Roux, who took over the programme earlier this year, has clearly begun to stamp his mark. With a full pre-season now behind them, his influence on both the 1st team and the broader Clifton setup is already bearing fruit.
Last year’s champions, Kearsney, weren’t quite the dominant force they became late in 2024 when they claimed the Saints Invitational title, but they remain a formidable outfit. Like Clifton, they were stretched by Westville, narrowly winning their semi-final 6-5. Westville, for their part, also handed Hilton a key 7-6 defeat.
Durban High School (DHS) enjoyed a strong tournament, reaching the semi-finals, thanks in part to a crucial 7-6 victory over Northwood.
1st Team Results
Saturday, 25 October
Westville 18-6 Glenwood
Kearsney 14-8 DHS
Clifton 8-5 Hilton
Northwood 15-4 Thomas More
Westville 8-3 Maritzburg College
DHS 7-4 Michaelhouse
Clifton 25-1 Glenwood
Kearsney 18-3 Thomas More
Hilton 7-4 Maritzburg College
Northwood 7-5 Michaelhouse
Clifton 10-9 Westville
DHS 14-1 Thomas More
Hilton 22-2 Glenwood
Kearsney 9-6 Michaelhouse
DHS 7-6 Northwood
Clifton 10-3 Maritzburg College
Sunday, 26 October
Michaelhouse 11-5 Thomas More
Westville 7-6 Hilton
Kearsney 9-6 Northwood
Maritzburg College 16-4 Glenwood
Clifton 9-5 DHS (Semi)
Kearsney 6-5 Westville (Semi)
Glenwood 9-5 Thomas More (9/10)
Michaelhouse 7-5 Maritzburg College (7/8)
Northwood 6-4 Hilton (5/6)
Westville 7-5 DHS (3/4)
Clifton 7-4 Kearsney (1/2)
u15
Clifton’s u15s, who swept all before them as u14s a year ago, again underlined their class. They recently impressed at the Ian Melliar Cup, hosted by Wynberg Boys’ High, where they confirmed their status as one of South Africa’s elite age-group teams.
At Wynberg, their only loss came in the quarterfinals to eventual champions Rondebosch Boys’ High, but they bounced back to win every other game they played, which include a victory over St David’s Marist Inanda, who had stunned ‘Bosch in their opener.
At the weekend’s KZN Top 10, Clifton found the going tougher than last year. They needed penalties to edge out Northwood in their opening fixture, then scraped home by a single goal against Westville. In the final, they were taken all the way by Hilton, with the match ending 5-5 before Clifton held their nerve in the shootout, converting two penalties to Hilton’s one.
Northwood, meanwhile, produced one of their best showings in recent seasons to claim third place, beating Kearsney 4-3 to take bronze.
Time and again, though, Clifton’s ability to prevail in tight contests proved decisive. It’s been a hallmark of this group’s age-group successes.
u15 Results
Saturday, 25 October
Michaelhouse 16-2 Glenwood
Clifton (2) 6-6 (0) Northwood
Hilton 14-7 Kearsney
Westville 4-0 Thomas More
Michaelhouse 15-1 DHS
Northwood 9-2 Maritzburg College
Kearsney 13-6 Glenwood
Clifton 15-1 Thomas More
Hilton 18-1 DHS
Westville 4-3 Maritzburg College
Kearsney 9-8 pens Michaelhouse
Northwood 9-2 Thomas More
Hilton 20-3 Glenwood
Clifton 11-1 Maritzburg College
Northwood 4-3 Westville
Kearsney 12-7 DHS
Sunday, 26 October
Maritzburg College 6-5 Thomas More
Hilton 14-5 Michaelhouse
Clifton 4-3 Westville
Glenwood 5-2 DHS
Hilton 8-5 Northwood (Semi)
Clifton 10-5 Kearsney (Semi)
Thomas More 10-2 DHS (9/10)
Maritzburg College 16-3 Glenwood (7/8)
Westville 5-4 Michaelhouse (5/6)
Northwood 4-3 Kearsney (3/4)
Clifton (2) 5-5 (1) Hilton (1/2)
u14
The u14 division featured three of the country’s standout sides in 2025 – Hilton College, Kearsney College, and Michaelhouse – and they finished in that order.
Hilton went unbeaten, their closest contest being a 6-5 win over Kearsney in the final, which denied the Botha’s Hill boys a fourth tournament triumph this year.
Earlier, Hilton had also accounted for Michaelhouse 6-3, which underlined their quality.
For Clifton, a narrow 4-5 loss to Northwood proved costly, ultimately dropping them to seventh overall, while Northwood secured sixth, which impacted the overall rankings.
u14 Results
Westville 25-0 Glenwood
Kearsney 9-4 Clifton
Hilton 6-3 Michaelhouse
Northwood 7-4 Invitational
Westville 7-4 Maritzburg College
Kearsney 12-5 DHS
Michaelhouse 21-1 Glenwood
Clifton 10-1 Invitational
Hilton 12-0 Maritzburg College
DHS 6-2 Northwood
Michaelhouse 12-2 Westville
Kearsney 12-0 Invitational
Hilton 24-0 Glenwood
DHS 8-5 Clifton
Kearsney 7-2 Northwood
Michaelhouse 10-4 Maritzburg College
DHS 9-2 Invitational
Hilton 12-3 Westville
Northwood 5-4 Clifton
Maritzburg College 16-0 Glenwood
Hilton 12-4 DHS (Semi)
Kearsney 9-4 Michaelhouse (Semi)
Invitational 17-1 Glenwood (9/10)
Clifton 6-4 Maritzburg College (7/8)
Westville 7-3 Northwood (5/6)
Michaelhouse 12-1 DHS (3/4)
Hilton 6-5 Kearsney (1/2)
Points Allocations
1st – 11
2nd – 10
3rd – 8
4th – 7
5th – 6
6th – 5
7th – 4
8th – 3
9th – 2
10th -1
Overall Ranking
Kearsney u14 (10), u15 (7), 1st (10), 27
Clifton u14 (4), u15 (11), 1st (11), 26
Hilton u14 (11), u15 (10), u19 (5), 26
Westville u14 (6), u15 (6), u19 (8), 20
Northwood u14 (5), u15 (8), u19 (6), 19
Michaelhouse u14 (8), u15 (5), u19 (4), 17
DHS u14 (7), u15 (1), u19 (7), 15
Maritzburg College u14 (3), u15 (4), u19 (3), 10
Glenwood u14 (1), u15 (3), u19 (2), 6
Thomas More u14 (0), u15 (2), u19 (1), 3
Leave a Reply