11 August 2026
(See DHS at the Curro Halala Cup national finals after the derby results)
King Edward VII (KES) coach Jabz Zulu was left “chuffed with the boys but frustrated” after his side pushed Durban High School (DHS) all the way before going down 12-22 in Johannesburg on Saturday.
“We had a lot of ascendancy” in the second half, Zulu said, but KES was unable to turn their pressure and numerous visits to the DHS 22 into enough points to overturn the deficit.
With his team trailing by only three points, they had the bit between their teeth, forcing the Horseflies, who were without four players doing duty for SA u18A in the u18 International Series, to dig deep on defence.
“We were just unable to deliver that hammer blow,” the former Westville Boys’ High coach said. “We had too many entries into the 22 to come away with nothing. I felt that we let ourselves down with our execution there,” he said.
“Nonetheless, I thought the boys fought hard.”
For DHS, the victory was another example of the depth developed by coach Peter Engledow throughout the season. Fresh from a hard-fought win over Northwood, the Blue Typhoon, without their international players, had to visit the high altitude of Johannesburg. That left Engeldow with a reshuffled side, but DHS took on the tough task superbly.
They made a flying start, winning their own kickoff and immediately putting KES under pressure. The visitors went through eight phases, repeatedly hitting the ball up around the fringes with strong support for the carriers.
On the ninth phase, they finally released the ball wide to the right, where captain Zion Smith, making a welcome return from injury, finished off the move inside two minutes.
KES had endured a slow start against Jeppe the previous week, allowing that derby to slip away from them. This time, however, they refused to let DHS run away with the contest, despite the Horseflies controlling territory for much of the opening half.
When KES eventually made their way onto the DHS side of the field, they made it count. Keegan Jackson finished in the left corner in the 16th minute after the Red Army had successfully outflanked the visitors, sending them one way before striking on the other side.
DHS responded almost immediately, powering deep into the KES 22, with Cilermo Carolus turning their goalline pressure into a try. Claydon Karelse added a fine conversion before slotting a penalty to put DHS 15-5 ahead at halftime.
KES dominated much of the second half and were rewarded when centre Luyanda Mbadamana crossed for a converted try, reducing the deficit to just three points.
The Red Army continued to enjoy territorial dominance, but DHS produced the decisive moment with two minutes remaining.
After a powerful scrum, Smith dispossessed scrumhalf Taig David, and DHS launched a counterattack down the left. Daniel Fwita finished in the corner, and Karelse added the conversion to seal a hard-earned 22-12 victory.
After two very successful weekends – winning 17 and drawing one in 18 matches against Jeppe, and winning 13 out of 13 against Northwood – DHS found the challenge against KES in Johannesburg to be far tougher. They had to settle for a share of the spoils, with both schools recording nine wins.
Results
1st: KES 12-22 DHS
2nd: KES 12-20 DHS
3rd: KES 26-19 DHS
4th: KES 17-45 DHS
5th: KES 45-10 DHS
6th: KES 38-13 DHS
16A: KES 24-35 DHS
16B: KES 23-7 DHS
16C: KES 31-29 DHS
16D: KES 34-21 DHS
15A: KES 0-14 DHS
15B: KES 21-28 DHS
15C: KES 24-22 DHS
15D: KES 31-27 DHS
14A: KES 16-17 DHS
14B: KES 12-24 DHS
14C: KES 0-15 DHS
14D: KES 22-21 DHS
HOCKEY
Fresh off wins over Jeppe and Northwood, the DHS 1st XI chased a third big scalp in succession against KES. It was not to be, though, with the teams settling for a 1-1 draw.
It was a tough day out for School hockey sides. They scored only two wins, by the 4th XI and u14B teams, while KES won nine matches, and two were drawn.
Results
1st: KES 1-1 DHS
2nd: KES 3-2 DHS
3rd: KES 10-1 DHS
4th: KES 2-3 DHS
16A: KES 3-2 DHS
16B: KES 0-0 DHS
16C: KES 3-1 DHS
16D: KES 2-0 DHS
16E: KES 4-0 DHS
14A: KES 2-0 DHS
14B: KES 1-3 DHS
14C: KES 3-1 DHS
14D: KES 2-0 DHS
Other Sports
KES also recorded wins on the tennis and squash courts, winning those clashes 9-0 and 8-0, respectively.
FOOTBALL
DHS contested the Curro Halala Cup national finals at HeronBridge College in Johannesburg for the first time, and made a big splash.
They were drawn in Pool D, where they opened their challenge with a goalless draw against Curro Nelspruit but then fell 0-2 to Mondeor High.
In their third outing, though, they made people sit up and take notice with a 1-0 victory over the 2025 runner-up, Norkem Park High.
On day two, DHS shone, beating Meridian Pinehurst, who would go on to top the group, 1-0, followed by a 4-0 romp against The Vaal High.
They finished with a similar record to Meridian Pinehurst – three wins, a draw, and a loss – but placed second on goal difference. That earned School a quarterfinal against St Anne’s Technical High.
They lost 0-1, but that turned out to be a commendable performance, with St Anne’s going on to lift the title.
Ultimately, DHS finished eighth in the elite 24-team field, going down 1-0 to Meridian Pinehurst in a second meeting with their Pool D rivals.