26 October 2026
Clifton College continued their outstanding run of form on Sunday, claiming a third water polo title in as many weeks with a 10-7 victory over Wynberg Boys’ High in the final of the Inspired Cup Water Polo Tournament at Reddam House Helderfontein.
Coach Pierre le Roux and his charges had already lifted the KZN Top 10 and Northwood Stayers titles, beating Hilton College 7-5 and Kearsney College 6-4 in their respective finals.
Interestingly, Hilton and Kearsney were also in Gauteng, in action at the Saints Invitational Water Polo Tournament, facing an elite 20-team field. Hilton finished as the runner-up to Rondebosch Boys’ High, while Kearsney placed sixth.
Those two and Clifton are the frontrunners in KwaZulu-Natal, and those results suggest that all three teams, now featuring stayers’ line-ups, are among the best in the country. Northwood appears to be in the mix, too.
In Helderfontein, Clifton set the tone in the group stage, dominating Pool A against a mixture of first and second teams.
They scored an extraordinary 71 goals in three matches, conceding only three against Hudson Park High, St Alban’s College 2nds, and Rand Park High.
St Alban’s College topped Pool B after defeating Parktown Boys’ High, Hilton College 2nds, and Grey High 2nds. They finished the group phase with 37 goals scored and 14 conceded.
Merrifield College claimed first place in Pool C, overcoming Affies 2nds and Reddam House Bedfordview, while also edging past St Stithians College 2nds in a penalty shootout. Their match ended 9-9 before Merrifield prevailed 6-5 from the spot. They scored 38 goals and conceded 19 across their three matches.
Wynberg Boys’ High proved the strongest side in Pool D, beating Maritzburg College, St David’s Marist Inanda 2nds, and Crawford College Lonehill.
Their 13-8 victory over Maritzburg was a highlight as the Capetonians powered their way to 53 goals in the group phase, conceding only 12.
Clifton carried their dominant form into the quarterfinals, overwhelming St Stithians 2nds 20-2. Wynberg was similarly convincing, defeating Hilton 2nds 13-3 to book their place in the last four.
St Alban’s secured a 10-7 victory over Maritzburg College, who put up a determined fight, while the closest quarterfinal saw Merrifield snatch a slim 6-5 win over Hudson Park 6-5 in an all-Eastern Cape encounter.
Clifton showed little sign of slowing down in the semifinals, with captain Nabil Bejia and his teammates producing another assured display to beat St Alban’s 9-4.
Wynberg, meanwhile, booked their place in the final in emphatic fashion, sweeping aside Merrifield 17-3.
That set up a showdown between the tournament’s two standout teams, but Clifton had the final say. In a more closely contested encounter than their earlier matches, they held off Wynberg 10-7 to complete a memorable hat-trick of tournament titles.
St Alban’s claimed third place, defeating Merrifield 11-6 in the bronze-medal playoff.
Maritzburg College finished fifth after a 10-5 win over Hudson Park.
RESULTS
Pool A
Hudson Park 22-1 Rand Park
Clifton 24-1 St Alban’s 2nd
Clifton 35-0 Rand Park
Hudson Park 14-4 St Alban’s 2nd
St Alban’s 2nd (4) 8-8 (2) Rand Park
Clifton 12-2 Hudson Park
Pool B
St Alban’s 21-5 Parktown Boys’ High
Hilton 2nd 10-8 Grey High 2nd
St Alban’s 5-3 Hilton 2nd
Grey High 2nd 12-4 Parktown Boys’ High
Hilton 2nd 10-3 Parktown Boys’ High
St Alban’s 11-6 Grey High 2nd
Pool C
Merrifield 20-3 Reddam Bedfordview
St Stithians 2nd 3-2 Affies 2nd
Merrifield 9-7 Affies 2nd
St Stithians 2nd 13-4 Reddam Bedfordview
Merrifield (6) 9-9 (5) St Stithians 2nd
Affies 2nd 16-1 Reddam Bedfordview
Pool D
Maritzburg College 26-1 Crawford Lonehill
Wynberg 16-3 St David’s 2nd
Wynberg 13-8 Maritzburg College
Maritzburg College 12-5 St David’s 2nd
Wynberg 24-1 Crawford Lonehill
St David’s 2nd 18-4 Crawford Lonehill
Bottom Playoffs
Reddam Bedfordview (6) 8-8 (4) St Alban’s 2nd
Affies 2nd 12-5 Parktown Boys’ High
Grey High 2nd 22-1 Crawford Lonehill
St David’s 2nd 20-7 Rand Park
Quarterfinals
Clifton 20-2 St Stithians 2nd
Merrifield 6-5 Hudson Park
St Alban’s 1st 10-7 Maritzburg College
Wynberg 13-3 Hilton 2nd
13-16 Playoffs
St Alban’s 2nd 14-5 Crawford Lonehill
Parktown Boys’ High 15-11 Rand Park
9-12 Playoffs
Grey High 2nd 13-6 Reddam Bedfordview
Affies 2nd 7-3 St David’s 2nd
5-8 Playoffs
Maritzburg College 15-5 St Stithians 2nd
Hudson Park 7-5 Hilton 2nd
Semifinals
Clifton 9-4 St Alban’s
Wynberg 17-3 Merrifield
Final Placings
15/16: Rand Park 14-7 Crawford Lonehill
13/14: Parktown Boys’ High 11-10 St Alban’s 2nd
11/12: St David’s 2nd 14-6 Reddam Bedfordview
9/10: Affies 2nd 7-1 Grey High 2nd
7/8: Hilton College 2nd 9-5 St Stithians College 2nd
5/6: Maritzburg College 10-5 Hudson Park
3/4: St Alban’s 1st 11-6 Merrifield
1/2: Clifton College 10-7 Wynberg