22 September 2026
(Feature photo: Westville Boys’ High on Facebook)
KwaZulu-Natal’s three representatives – Westville Boys’ High, Durban High School (DHS), and Northwood – performed strongly at the Clover High School Sevens Series Champion of Champions Tournament in Potchefstroom on the weekend, finishing second, third, and eleventh, respectively, in the 24-team event.
In 2025, Westville edged out Northwood 15-14 in the national final. This time, though, they came out on the wrong end of another tight title game, falling 17-19 to the event’s surprise package, Hoërskool Rustenburg.
DHS, meanwhile, faced Grey College in the third-place playoff and recorded a convincing 28-12 win.
Northwood ran out 35-15 winners over Hoërskool Nelspruit in the eleventh-place playoff.
Westville was drawn in Pool A, where they crushed Hoërskool Middelburg 45-0 in their opening match, the largest margin of victory achieved in the tournament. In their second outing, they defeated Bloemfontein’s Sentraal 30-12.
In Pool C, DHS outplayed Hentie Cilliers 42-5, then beat Helpmekaar 27-24. The win over Helpies wasn’t quite as tight as the score might suggest, with the Johannesburg side scoring their last seven points in the final move of the game.
Northwood had the misfortune of facing Rustenburg, the eventual champions, in Pool H. Rusties beat Northwood 21-10, then Northwood downed Fichardtpark 27-7, which sent the Durban boys into the Plate quarterfinals, while Westville and DHS progressed to the Cup quarterfinals.
Westville blanked Menlopark 29-0 in their next outing, while DHS endured a tougher challenge from Waterkloof, scoring a 33-22 win. They were joined in the semifinals by Grey College, who beat Welkom Gimnasium 36-21, and Rustenburg, who beat Monument 24-19.
Meanwhile, in the last eight of the Plate, Northwood handed Potchefstroom Volkskool a 33-14 loss. They were joined in the semifinals of the competition by Nelspruit, Zwartkop, and Helpmekaar
Unfortunately, the Cup semifinals brought the two KZN teams together. At the Glenwood Sevens, Westville beat DHS, while DHS beat Westville at the DHS Sevens. In Potch, the Griffins beat the Horseflies 24-12. Rustenburg won 17-10 against Grey College in the other semifinal.
Northwood suffered a narrow 26-28 defeat to Zwartkop in the Plate semifinals, while Helpmekaar beat Nelspruit 28-24 to reach the final.
The Clover Forward Foundation beat Hentie Cilliers 28-21 to lay claim to the Bowl, and Helpmekaar edged out Zwartkop 24-21 to win the Plate.
RESULTS
Pool A
Westville 45-0 Middelburg
Sentraal 29-10 Middelburg
Westville 30-12 Sentraal
Pool B
Nelspruit 35-5 Goudveld
Menlopark 31-5 Goudveld
Menlopark 17-14 Nelspruit
Pool C
Helpmekaar 35-17 Hentie Cilliers
DHS 42-5 Hentie Cilliers
DHS 27-24 Helpmekaar
Pool D
Queen’s College 26-5 Potchefstroom Gimnasium
Waterkloof 40-5 Queen’s College
Waterkloof 47-5 Potchefstroom Gimnasium
Pool E
Dale College 27-10 Wesvalia
Grey College 43-0 Dale College
Grey College 44-5 Wesvalia
Pool F
Welkom Gimnasium 31-12 Clover Forward Foundation
Zwartkop 12-10 Clover Forward Foundation
Welkom Gimnasium 21-19 Zwartkop
Pool G
Potchefstroom Volkskool 22-5 Kempton Park
Moonument 35-19 Potchefstroom Volkskool
Monument 32-10 Kempton Park
Pool H
Rustenburg 37-10 Fichardtpark
Rustenburg 21-10 Northwood
Northwood 27-7 Fichardtpark
Bowl Quarterfinals
Middelburg 29-14 Goudveld
Clover Forward Foundation 17-14 Wesvalia
Hentie Cilliers 29-12 Potchefstroom Gimnasium
Fichardtpark 19-17 Kempton Park
Plate Quarterfinals
Nelspruit 29-0 Sentraal
Zwartkop 28-19 Dale College
Helpmekaar 31-7 Queen’s College
Northwood 33-14 Potch Volkskool
Cup Quarterfinals
Westville 29-0 Menlopark
Grey College 36-21 Welkom Gim
DHS 33-22 Waterkloof
Rustenburg 24-19 Monument
Bowl Semifinals
Hentie Cilliers 28-17 Middelburg
Clover Forward Foundation 31-26 Fichardtpark
Plate Semifinals
Helpmekaar 28-24 Nelspruit
Zwartkop 28-26 Northwood
Cup Semifinals
Westville 24-12 DHS
Rustenburg 17-10 Grey College
23rd/24th Place
Wesvalia 33-15 Goudveld
21st/22nd Place
Kempton Park 55-17 Potchefstroom Gimnasium
19th/20th Place
Middelburg 45-17 Fichardtpark
17th/18th Place
Clover Forward Foundation 28-21 Hentie Cilliers
15th/16th Place
Dale College 31-12 Queen’s College
13th/14th Place
Potchefstroom Volkskool 30-17 Sentraal
11th/12th Place
Northwood 35-15 Nelspruit
9th/10th Place
Helpmekaar 24-21 Zwartkop
7th/8th Place
Welkom Gimnasium 21-7 Menlopark
5th/6th Place
Monument 29-26 Waterkloof
3rd/4th Place
DHS 28-12 Grey College
Final
Rustenburg 19-17 Westville