3 February 2026
Kearsney College returned to the AH Smith Oval on Saturday buoyed by a confidence-boosting draw against Westville Boys’ High and a statement win over Glenwood in the W100, but they were brought back down to earth by a disciplined Northwood outfit that claimed a hard-earned four-wicket victory in Botha’s Hill.
Having won the toss, Kearsney would have been keen to capitalise on familiar conditions, yet their batting, so fluent against the Green Machine earlier in the week, never truly found its rhythm.
Northwood struck the early blow they were looking for when Ryan van Zyl removed Gary Verbaan in the opening over, immediately placing the hosts under pressure.
Rivaan Moodley and Aaron Blackburn attempted to rebuild, but their 22-run stand, which consumed 55 balls, underlined the difficulty Kearsney was having in rotating the strike. When Moodley departed for 10, the innings unravelled rapidly.
From 22/2 in the 10th over, the home side slumped to 33/5 by the 15th, with Northwood’s bowlers applying relentless pressure and cashing in on every opportunity.
Luke Grobbelaar and Daniel Miskey provided some resistance, combining for 34 runs for the sixth wicket, and Grobbelaar later added another 34 with James Bishop for the eighth.
Grobbelaar was the backbone of the innings, but when he was trapped lbw by van Zyl for 37, Kearsney reeled on 101/8. A further 20 runs were scraped together by the last two wickets, but the hosts were dismissed for a disappointing 121, well short of what they would have hoped for on their home patch.
Chasing a modest target, Northwood appeared well placed, but the contest took another twist early in the visitors’ reply. Litha Gonya ripped through the top order, striking twice to leave the Knights wobbling on 7/3 inside the first five overs and handing momentum back to Kearsney.
Luc Boyall and Josh Mills steadied the innings with a composed 31-run fourth-wicket partnership, before Boyall fell to the leg-spin of Moodley. Mills then took charge and together with Hamza Amla lifted Northwood to 60.
Mills’ dismissal for a well-made 36, which included six fours, once again tilted the balance, with the Knights on 60/5 and the game finely poised.
With plenty of overs remaining, Thomas Oosthuizen emerged as the decisive figure. Batting at seven, he played with authority and intent, striking six fours and a six in a match-winning 44 from 59 balls.
Although he fell with Northwood just two runs from victory, the damage had been done, and four balls later the Knights crossed the line. Amla’s unbeaten 18 ensured there were no further hiccups.
Matthew Gorrie led Kearsney’s bowling effort with 2/22, well supported by Gonya’s 2/27 and Moodley’s controlled 1/28, but it was Northwood’s composure under pressure that ultimately earned them the win.
Kearsney College 121/10 (Luke Grobbelaar 37; James Searle 3/14, Keegan Reeves 2/20, Trevor van Volenstee 2/25, Ryan van Zyl 2/25); Northwood School 124/6 (Thomas Oosthuizen 44, Josh Mills 36; Matthew Gorrie 2/22, Litha Gonya 2/27). Northwood won by four wickets.
Overall, Northwood won one more match than Kearsney – 5-4 – on a very evenly contested day. The result of the day, though, belonged to the 4th XIs, who played to a thrilling tie.
Results
2nd XI
Kearsney 137/10; Northwood 92/10
Kearsney won by 45 runs
3rd XI
Kearsney 139/10; Northwood 90/10
Kearsney won by 49 runs
4th XI
Kearsney 127/9; Northwood 127/10
Match tied
u16A
Kearsney 72/10; Northwood 76/2
Northwood won by eight wickets
u16B
Northwood 274/6; Kearsney 89/10
Northwood won by 185 runs
u15A
Northwood 175/10; Kearsney 179/4
Kearsney won by six wickets
u14A
Kearsney 274/6; Northwood 196/10
Kearsney won by 78 runs
u14B
Kearsney 117/10; Northwood 118/2
Northwood won by eight wickets
u14C
Northwood u14D 72/7; Kearsney 37/10
Northwood won by 35 runsBottom of Form
BASKETBALL
In a very high-scoring contest, which produced a massive 186 points, Northwood scored a 98-88 win over a game Kearsney 1st team in front of a packed crowd in the Skweyiya SportZone,
Kearsney made a strong start, racing into a 7-1 lead, but Northwood’s offensive pressure led to the Knights making frequent trips to the free throw line, where they did a good job of turning those opportunities into points.
At the end of the first quarter, it was Kearsney 17-20 Northwood. By halftime, they had extended their advantage to seven points, leading 45-38.
In the third quarter, Kearsney’s offence fired and produced 28 points, but the Knights found answers each time the home side threatened to haul them in and dropped 30 points of their own to take a 75-64 lead into the final quarter.
Kearsney gave it their all and, for the first time in the contest, enjoyed the advantage in the chukka. It was, however, by only one point, 24-23, leading to Northwood winning by 10, 98-88.
Daniel Prinsloo led the home side’s scoring, with 17 points. Pabatso Sithole added 16, and Kwakuhle Sibiya and Lubanzi Msuleku 10 each.
Northwood’s Siya Shabalala and Awande Chiliza went off for 25 points each.
Results
1st: Kearsney 88-98 Northwood
2nd: Kearsney 34-38 Northwood
3rd: Kearsney 22-26 Northwood
4th: Kearsney 25-30 Northwood
5th: Kearsney 19-18 Northwood
6th: Kearsney 6-11 Northwood
16A: Kearsney 35-17 Northwood
16B: Kearsney 33-17 Northwood
16C: Kearsney 28-21 Northwood
16D: Kearsney 13-21 Northwood
16E: Kearsney 28-17 Northwood
15A: Kearsney 37-30 Northwood
15B: Kearsney 45-23 Northwood
15C: Kearsney 15-24 Northwood
15D: Kearsney 35-15 Northwood
15E: Kearsney 25-18 Northwood
14A: Kearsney 35-20 Northwood
14B: Kearsney 32-26 Northwood
14C: Kearsney 15-14 Northwood
14D: Kearsney 8-17 Northwood
14E: Kearsney 20-12 Northwood
WATER POLO
The Kearsney Night Series entered week two, with three matches taking place. Thomas Francke starred for Kearsney, scoring five goals, in their hard-fought 8-6 win over Westville. Maritzburg College held Northwood to a 6-6 draw, and Hilton beat DHS 11-7.
The growing strength of the Northwood water polo programme was evident as they picked up four wins against Kearsney, with one match ending in a draw. Kearsney won seven matches and fared especially well in the junior age groups.
Results
1st: Kearsney KCOB draw
2nd: Kearsney 4-6 Northwood
3rd: Kearsney 5-3 Northwood
4th: Kearsney 7-7 Northwood
5th: Kearsney 4-10 Northwood
6th: Kearsney 5-12 Northwood
7th: Kearsney 13-4 Northwood
15A: Kearsney 14-5 Northwood
15B: Kearsney 9-1 Northwood
15C: Kearsney 13-2 Northwood
14A: Kearsney 8-3 Northwood
14B: Kearsney 10-1 Northwood
14C: Kearsney 5-7 Northwood
Leave a Reply