On Saturday morning, Clifton College lit up the Riverside Sports Club AstroTurf and their opponents for an Old Boys’ Weekend clash, St David’s Marist Inanda, producing an effective and entertaining performance from the first whistle to the last to score an emphatic 8-0 victory.
“It was outstanding. We were hungry to play,” coach Calvin Price said with a broad grin.
“We moved the ball exceptionally well. Six field goals, the counterattack, high pressing – we did exactly what we wanted to do on Old Boys’ Day.”
St David’s had made it all the way to the semi-finals of the Aitken Cup, Johannesburg’s premier boys’ schools hockey tournament, the previous weekend, but, missing a couple of key players, they were overrun.
They created an opportunity or two in the first chukka, but openings in the Clifton defence quickly closed. Then, just before the end of the quarter, goal-hungry Daniel Holliday scored the first goal of the game.
Holliday, who was included in the KZN Coastal u18A team for the SASHOC Inter-Provincial Tournament, showed why the selectors chose him by adding a second off a rebound at a penalty corner to make it 2-0 at the break.
Coach Calvin Price exhorted his players to be clinical during his halftime talk. They took that to heart and made sure of the win in the second half, scoring six times without reply.
Luke Carolan got the scoreboard ticking again early in the third chukka, tucking the ball into the St David’s goal from the far post. Dan Holliday then made it 4-0 with his third. A tidy first touch took the ball out of the reach of his marker, and Holliday then dived and prodded the ball into the backboard.
It’s the Dan and Dan show for Clifton up front. Dan Rea, who set up Dan Holliday for the opener, then turned goalscorer to make it a handful of goals for the home side.
They finished with a bang, netting in three different ways in the final chukka.
Tye Milne made it 6-0 with a penalty stroke conversion. Soon, he bagged his brace from a penalty corner.
The coup de grâce came from captain Ryde Brisset, who struck from close range with just over a minute to go.
He’s an interesting player. At times, he turns over possession. Then again, he is often the one asking questions of the opposition’s defenders, the player with the skills and the drive to make something happen for his side. Inevitably, that means a loss of possession at times. It also means he creates opportunities for his teammates.
Overall, Clifton won six matches, St David’s won two, and four were drawn.
Results
1st: Clifton 8-0 St David’s
2nd: Clifton 2-4 St David’s
3rd: Clifton 1-1 St David’s
4th: Clifton 2-1 St David’s
16A: Clifton 3-1 St David’s
16B: Clifton 3-1 St David’s
16C: Clifton 2-3 St David’s
16D: Clifton 2-2 St David’s
14A: Clifton 0-0 St David’s
14B: Clifton 3-2 St David’s
14C: Clifton 1-0 St David’s
14D: Clifton 0-0 St David’s
RUGBY
There was both disappointment and pride on the Riverside Sports Club’s main rugby field on Saturday afternoon after Clifton College produced a wholehearted display in a narrow 17-23 loss to St David’s Marist Inanda.
Clifton coach Jose Dos Santos admitted afterwards that the result hurt, especially given the massive effort his charges had poured into the contest.
“I so wanted this for the boys today,” he said.
Still, he found consolation in the manner of the performance.
“They made the Old Boys proud, and that’s what we wanted.”
Those words captured the mood perfectly. Clifton came up short on the scoreboard, yet their commitment, intensity, and willingness to fight until the final whistle ensured they walked off with their heads held high after a gripping encounter.
There was next to nothing between the sides, and Clifton almost snatched victory in the dying moments. Inside the final two minutes, the hosts earned a penalty deep inside the St David’s 22 and kicked for touch, setting themselves up for one last assault on the visitors’ line.
Unfortunately for the home side, they were without tighthead prop Trent Bam, their regular lineout thrower in that situation, after he had earlier exited with an injury. St David’s seized the moment, stealing the throw and seemingly ending Clifton’s hopes.
The Durban boys, though, refused to fold. They forced a turnover and launched one final attack, but a knock-on brought the match to an end, and the Johannesburg visitors escaped with a hard-earned win after trailing 12-14 at halftime.
Arguably, the defining moment of the contest arrived in the opening three minutes.
Clifton had begun impressively, controlling possession and territory while stringing together phases with patience and purpose. Then came a brutal setback. A pass was intercepted by St David’s wing Tadiwanashe Javangwe, who sprinted 55 metres untouched to score beneath the uprights.
Giorgio Ferreira added the easy conversion, and suddenly Clifton found themselves 7-0 behind despite having dominated the early exchanges. Ultimately, they lost by six points.
To their credit, the hosts responded superbly. Flyhalf Izah Roux played an influential role in dragging Clifton back into the contest. His tactical kicking repeatedly turned the St David’s wings around and gave Clifton opportunities to contest possession in the air. Time and again, the home side regained the ball and pinned the visitors deep inside their own half, with captain Troy Young and Tor Mclean, especially, making life difficult for the St David’s defenders.
Roux and Jack Snaith, the Clifton halfbacks, did a good job of controlling the game. Roux is a top-class water polo goalkeeper for the Clifton 1st team in the summer months and looks every bit as comfortable when taking on the very different role of playmaker in the no. 10 jersey.
Snaith’s slick service impressed, as Dos Santos revealed: “‘He has a really nice, crisp pass’, Jordan Hendrikse, our coach, standing behind the try line with me, commented on Jack’s passing.”
Eventually, Clifton’s pressure told.
Second-rower Cole Nienhuser burst through the St David’s defence and raced away to score in the right-hand corner. Roux then nailed an excellent conversion from a difficult angle to level matters at 7-7.
Territory continued to favour Clifton, but St David’s showed how dangerous they could be when opportunities presented themselves. After finally working their way into Clifton territory, they capitalised on a stolen lineout close to the try line, with lock Chris Theorides crashing over from close range.
After 20 minutes, the visitors were back in front at 12-7. Again, Clifton answered.
Only four minutes later, big tighthead Trent Bam powered his way over for a deserved try, rewarding another sustained spell of pressure from the hosts. Roux converted, and Clifton carried a deserved 14-12 lead into the break.
Early in the second half, Ferreira edged St David’s back in front with a penalty goal, but Clifton soon regained control of territory and possession. For almost 10 minutes, they camped inside the visitors’ 22, hammering away at a stubborn St David’s defensive line.
The Johannesburg side defended with immense resolve, and when Clifton eventually opted to take a penalty for a 17-15 lead instead of continuing to chase a try, it felt like a small victory for the visitors.
In hindsight, Clifton may wonder if that was the moment to press harder for seven points instead of three.
From the restart, St David’s responded emphatically. They forced play into Clifton territory and, unlike the hosts earlier in the half, turned their pressure into a decisive try.
Number eight Matthew Scott caught Clifton off guard when he peeled away from a rolling maul and found open space in front of him before crossing for the visitors’ third try.
A late penalty from Dylan Gander pushed St David’s six points clear and left Clifton needing a converted try to win.
The home side threw everything at the visitors in the closing stages, and they came agonisingly close to stealing victory, but St David’s held firm under immense pressure to secure the result.
Afterwards, Dos Santos praised his players for the effort and physical commitment they had shown throughout the contest.
“There were a lot of positives. It’s disappointing to lose, though,” he reflected.
“The commitment levels were through the roof. This game, and our game against St John’s College (Harare), had the best levels of performance and commitment.”
There was, however, one area he felt ultimately separated the two sides.
“Our execution cost us,” Dos Santos said. “We’ve got to get better at closing out games like this.”
Apart from the 1st XV match, the tightest competition came in the u15 age group, where St David’s won the A-team game by seven points, and Clifton took the B-team win by 18.
Results
1st: Clifton 17-23 St David’s
2nd: Clifton 7-50 St David’s
3rd: Clifton 7-31 St David’s 5th
16A: Clifton 12-34 St David’s
15A: Clifton 10-17 St David’s
15B: Clifton 28-10 St David’s
14A: Clifton 0-50 St David’s
14B: Clifton 0-51 St David’s
TENNIS
Playing in the familiar coastal altitude, Clifton’s 1st team rolled to a convincing win over St David’s, who had contested the Kearsney College Tennis Tournament earlier in May, giving them a sense of the conditions. It finished 71-26 to the home side.
CHESS
Clifton’s chess team, after a 13-7 win over St Alban’s College last weekend, followed up with a victory over St David’s Marist Inanda, triumphing 9,5 to 6.5.