20th Annual JOMBA! Contemporary Dance, Anniversary Legacy Festival - Call for applications to participate

29 August – 9 September 2018

The annual JOMBA! Contemporary Dance Experience which takes place at the Elizabeth Sneddon Theatre from 29 August to 9 September invites dancers, dance-makers and theatre lighting practitioners to apply to participate in selected programmes of its 20th edition.

Presented by the University of KwaZulu-Natal’s Centre for Creative Arts, JOMBA! provides a platform for professional, experimental and up-coming choreographers and dance companies within its Main, Fringe and Youth Fringe programmes.

The JOMBA! Fringe is an adult contemporary dance platform where 8 short works of not more than 15 minutes each are selected and technically supported. A JOMBA! committee will select these works and this will depend on meeting the relevant criteria and the level of professionalism. This Fringe event takes place at UKZN’s Elizabeth Sneddon Theatre on Saturday 1 September.

The JOMBA! Youth Fringe is open to dancers under the age of 16 years. It is a supportive initiative for various ‘Dance Development’ projects operating in the province of KZN and provides a space to celebrate our up-and-coming generation of young contemporary dancers and dance practitioners. This event will take place at UKZN’s Open Air Theatre on Sunday 2 September.

Both platforms do not come with financial support but those selected are given professional technical support via the lighting designers, sound technicians and stage managers as well as the JOMBA! team.

2018 sees JOMBA! join forces with the Durban Arts Gallery (DAG) to present a very special site responsive dance event at the festival on Friday 7 September. JOMBA! and DAG are looking to award two Durban-based choreographers with a small grant to create a dance/physical theatre work that will premiere at this event. The work has to be entirely new and selected choreographers will be mentored and giving full technical support. The grant is for a vision of work that engages ‘in situ’ spaces both inside and outside the Gallery.

This year there is a welcome addition of an open lighting for dance workshop on Monday 3 September at the Elizabeth Sneddon Theatre. Julie Ballard, Chicago-based professional theatrical technician affiliated with IATSE Local 2 and Actors’ Equity Association, and the Stage Manager and Properties Master for Hubbard Street Dance Chicago will present this workshop for dance-makers, dancers and technicians. This workshop is free for 20 participants – but prior applications must be made.

Applications for the JOMBA! @DAG closes on June 1, and the Fringe, Youth Fringe and the Lighting Workshop must be in by Monday 4 June 2018 by 4pm and should to be sent to jombafestival@gmail.com

For more information or to get an application via email contact Lliane Loots on lootsl@ukzn.ac.za using the name of the programme/workshop  you are applying for in the subject line.

SPAR KZN School Girls’ Hockey Challenge uMvotii, uThukela and uMzinyathi Regional at Wartburg Kirchdorf

SPAR KZN School Girls’ Hockey Challenge

uMvotii, uThukela and uMzinyathi Regional at Wartburg Kirchdorf

Saturday 12 May

The second last regional of the SPAR KZN School Girls’ Hockey Challenge takes place in Wartburg on Saturday 12 May.

Leading the uMvotii, uThukela and uMzinyathi Regional is host school, Wartburg Kirchdorf School who have claimed victory five times. 

Coach for the defending champs, Lisa Misselhorn stated that her team was hard at work getting their game plan ironed out to their usual German precision. 

Wartburg have dominated the regional with five consecutive wins, since 2013. Previously Wembley College won in 2011 and Ladysmith High won in 2012. Five schools will be participating in this tournament, with the first game of the round robin tipping off at 8am. The games are 28minutes long, with a changeover blown at 14minutes.

Joining Wartburg are Deutsche Schule Hermannsburg, Wembley College; Domino Servite and Greytown High School. Four points will be awarded for a win, 2  points for a draw with goals, 1 point for a goalless draw and zero points for a loss.

The winner of this region will be heading to the Grand Finals that will be held at St Mary’s DSG in Kloof on 21 and 22 July. 

Teams that have reserved their spot at the Grand Finals are Ferrum Hoërskool (Northern KZN); newcomers Epworth School (PMB Central Regional); St Anne’s DSG (PMB Northern Regional); Durban Girls’ College (DBN Central Regional); Amanzimtoti High School (DBN South Regional); Our Lady of Fatima (DBN North Regional); King Edward High School (Southern KZN Regional) and St Mary’s DSG (Highway Regional). 

The last regional for 2018 is the North KZN Coastals, which takes place at Grantleigh in Richards Bay on May 19.

For more info visit the tournament’s Facebook page.

SPAR KZN School Girls’ Hockey Challenge Highway Regional

SPAR KZN School Girls’ Hockey Challenge

Highway Regional

Westville Girls’ High School: Sunday 6 May

Maintaining their reign, St Mary’s DSG defended their title in the Highway Regional of the SPAR KZN School Girls’ Hockey Challenge in a hard-fought battle against hosts, Westville Girls High School.

Saints added to their six titles in this regional when they managed to defeat Westville in a riveting final that concluded in a penalty shootout. Saints opened up their account with their first goal smashed in after 66 seconds of play, by a powerful shot by ace striker, Kiana-Che Cormack. The ball was pushed right from the castle to Cormack who controlled the ball and then sent it flying.

Saints camped out around the Westville circle, earning themselves another two short corners that were both defended. They also had three shots at goal that Westville dealt with valiantly. With 95seconds remaining in the first half Tayla Thwaits found herself unmarked in front of the goals, spun around controlling the ball to the left of her, and slipped the ball in with a cheeky shot notching up the second goal for Saints.

Saints continued dominating the final with their fourth short corner that Westville again defended. In a moment of brilliance, Kerryn Swanepoel ignited her Westville team with a solo run down the left, leaving Saints scrambling with only two defenders still at the back. Swanepoel weaved around the first, dodging the second but the first Saints defender chopped Swanepoel’s stick. Standing on the spot, no-nonsense umpire Mike Lees split his arms indicating a penalty flick for Westville. A calm Swanepoel stepped up to the p spot and slotted in her shot into the top left corner.

Four minutes later, the amped Swanepoel charged down the right of the field surging towards the Saints circle. Swanepoel made a dash for the goals but was forced out of play by a harsh shoulder charge from St Marys, resulting in her second penalty flick that she bravely converted, levelling the score at 2 a piece.

The game then progressed to three players from both teams taking an eight second penalty shootout. After three rounds, both teams only managed to slot in one goal each, meaning the score line was still level pegged at 1-1. The finals then went to a sudden death, with the same three players stepping up to the spot for another chance. Two more rounds were played with no winner being revealed, then Leah Piggot managed to slot her shot in, going 1 up for Saints, earning her team the win and the regional title for 2018.

Special mention must go to the Westville keeper, Saiyuri Govender for her fearless display on the line throughout the game, bravely standing tall surge after surge of Saints powerful attacks.

Saints are the eighth team to head to the Grand Finals that they will be hosting on 21 and 22 July. The girls will be making their seventh appearance at the Grand Finals where they are also the overall defending champs from 2017.

Manager for the St Mary’s Malcolm Reeders said “The tournament is always a highlight on the school girl hockey calendar. Winning the finals today was a fantastic end to the day after all the pressure for us to hold on to the title. There was some fantastic hockey played today. But was a case of a tale of two halves, as at half time we were two up and then after half time, Westville managed to equalize. Our penalty takers were brilliantly composed during the shootout."

Ryan Lees, coach for Westville Girls High said, “It was a smoothly run tournament, but it was hard to perform consistently in all the games. Our team did themselves proud by coming back after being 2 down at half time, to equalize and then take it through to sudden death."

They join Ferrum Hoërskool (Northern KZN); newcomers Epworth School (PMB Central Regional); St Anne’s DSG (PMB Northern Regional); Durban Girls’ College (DBN Central Regional); Amanzimtoti High School (DBN South Regional); Our Lady of Fatima (DBN North Regional); and King Edward High School (Southern KZN Regional).

For more info like the tournament’s Facebook page.

Results

1 St Mary’s DSG, 2 Westville Girls’ High School, 3 Thomas More College, 4 Hillcrest High School, 5 Kloof High School, 6 Curro Hillcrest

ENDS

N.E.W Pitch – Callout. Win the chance to produce a wildlife, environmental or conservation documentary short

N.E.W Pitch – Callout.

Win the chance to produce a wildlife, environmental or conservation documentary short

DURBAN: The N.E.W Pitch short documentary pitching competition is aimed at discovering the next generation or nature, environment, wildlife and adventure conservation filmmakers, and is one of the key sessions at the Nature Environment and Wildlife Filmmakers Congress (NEWF) taking place from 16 – 18 July at Durban Botanic Gardens and surrounds.

“Do you have an engaging, innovative or inspirational natural history, environmental, conservation or adventure story?” asks Pragna Parsotam-Kok, Founder and Congress Director of NEWF.  “If you do, we invite you to submit your documentary short concept and you could be one of eight finalists selected to pitch at the N.E.W Pitch competition during NEWF 2018. Submissions are open to all emerging and aspiring filmmakers, scientists and conservationists over the age of 18.”

The N.E.W Pitch is targeted towards emerging and student filmmakers in order to provide them with pitching experience and the opportunity to win a production grant to produce a short documentary film in this genre.  

During the NEWF Congress, the eight finalists will be invited to participate in a pitching session before a live judging panel. Coming out of the pitch session, four winners will be selected to win R50 000 to develop and produce their documentary short.

The four winners will have access to mentorship during the production of their shorts.  The films need to be completed within a year, and the four films will be combined into a once-off 48-minute TV documentary, which will be broadcast on national television.

During the NEWF Congress this year, the winners of last year’s Pitch will screen their film for the first time. The winners of last year’s competition were, Fidel Tshivhasa for his story on the humpback whale migration that takes place in KZN; Shivan Parusnath for an undercover look at the illegal reptile trade, Mikhale Singh whose project is about the endangered Pickersgills’ Reed frog and the Ashdown and Imbali EnviroChamps (Liberty NPO and DUCT) who are a group of individuals working to protect the wetlands and rivers in their area.  These four films will be complete by end of May.

“It is hoped that the Congress will promote outstanding environmental, conservation, wildlife and adventure films from professional, aspiring and student filmmakers and that we will contribute towards transformation through our developmental programmes aimed at enriching the industry with an increased pool of diverse content creators,” she said.

To pitch for your documentary – register on the NEWF online portal – and enter the N.E.W Pitch competition with all the necessary supporting documentation.

Visit www.newf.co.za to enter, for submission requirements, guidelines and more information or visit the NEWF Online Portal to enter now.  Deadline is 31 May.

Registration is now open for this year’s Nature, Environment & Wildlife Filmmakers Congress. Visit www.newf.co.za for more info.  Delegate passes can be booked and paid for later.  

For more info email info@newf.co.za or contact Pragna on 064 294 0669.

ends

Illa Thompson 

Publicity Matters

illa@pubmat.co.za

 or

Sharlene Versfeld

Versfeld & Associates

Public Relations and Communications

Email: sharlene@versfeld.co.za

Delegate registration opens for 9th Durban FilmMart – 20-23 July, 2018

Delegate registration opens for 9th Durban FilmMart – 20-23 July, 2018

Durban, South Africa: Early Bird delegate registration for Africa’s premier film finance and co-production market, the Durban FilmMart (DFM), is now open.

The DFM will take place from 20 to 23 July, forming an integral part of the Durban International Film Festival (DIFF) which takes place from 19 to 29 July.

Now in its 9th edition, the DFM programme includes masterclasses, seminars, workshops, labs and networking opportunities for African and international filmmakers to collaborate, share knowledge and benchmark themselves and their work within a global and continental context.

Focus areas this year will include discussions and presentations on the evolution of digital distribution structures and development and finance trends shaping the industry. The programme will also explore the future of virtual reality filmmaking and emerging themes and genres.

As South Africa prepares to host the BRICS summit in 2018, the Durban FilmMart programme will take a look at co-production with the BRICS countries as well as the impacts of policy on filmmaking and creative expression. Other topics will include financing opportunities in the respective countries and the general state of film across the BRICS cluster.

The changing role of women in front and behind the camera will be challenged over the 4 days. This focus is fuelled by the global #MeToo campaign, but in SA begun with the creation almost two years ago of SWIFT – Sisters Working in Film and Television – now a formidable organisation making important changes in the industry.  As part of its important work of lobbying and advocacy for fair representation and equal access of women to the film industry, SWIFT will lead a critical, yet constructive discussion centered on systemic patriarchal systems that perpetuate inequality and the marginalisation of women.

A core component of the DFM is the finance forum in which 16 pre-selected projects from various countries will pitch in sessions with the intention of finding potential sponsors, funders or partners to aid the making of their films. Of these projects, 8 are documentaries and  8 are fiction features.

Two lab programmes are included in the DFM: Jumpstart, is a programme supported by Produire au Sud of Festival des 3 Continents, France for selected emerging filmmakers who will have an opportunity to hone their pitching skills. Cine-FAM-Africa, is an incubator programme led by CaribbeanTales Vice-President Nicole Brooks, aimed at South African women producers and African women producers living in South Africa with serialized television projects.

Early bird registration is open until 4 June 2018. Early bird fees are R1250  (ZAR) for the four day programme, which includes four day's access to the DFM Industry Programme, access to DFM producers lounge and DFM networking events, 10 tickets to Durban International Film Festival screenings and company information published in the industry manual. After 4 June fees are R1550 for the full programme while daily passes are R450 each (the daily pass does not include tickets to DIFF screenings or access into the opening and closing events).  All tickets exclude meals.

To register go to www.durbanfilmmart.co.za

-ends

SPAR KZN School Girls' Hockey Challenge - Highway Regional

Westville Girls’ High School - May 6

The fiercely contested Highway Regional of the SPAR KZN School Girls’ Hockey Challenge takes place this year at Westville Girls’ High School astroturf on Sunday, May 6.

St Mary’s DSG, six times winners of this regional and three times winners of the Grand Finals of this highly-respected school girls’ hockey event, will be focussed on holding onto their title. Only once have the defending champs been ousted from their top position, and that was by Westville Girls’ High in the 2014 tourney at Thomas More College.

This year, Westville Girls’ High will host this regional, and will no doubt be using their home-turf advantage in their attempt to break the iron grip that St Mary’s has on this region.

Sian Tarbuton coach for host school, WGHS says that their team is hard at training and looking forward to the regional. “Our indoor season was a cracker,” she enthuses. “We were placed second in the logs, only losing to St Mary's with a narrow loss of 4-2. We were so close to getting a draw and then they scored against us in the last couple minutes. Our outdoor season got off to a great start. We won the Crawford La Lucia outdoor hockey tournament held over the April holidays. We won our pool and then met Crawford La Lucia in the final, winning the tournament. We won our first outdoor hockey match of the season against Thomas More College, so we have high hopes for the season, but need to keep our composure and work hard.”

Other schools participating in this six-school regional include Curro Hillcrest, Hillcrest High, Kloof High and Thomas More College.

The tournament starts at 8am, and will be played in a round robin format. Games last 23 minutes with a quick change over at 11 minutes.  A win will earn a team 4 points, a draw with goals 2 points, a goalless draw 1 point and a loss 0. First and second places will then go head-to-head in a final match to determine the eighth regional team to go through to the Grand Finals at St Mary’s DSG in Kloof.

Other schools that have already secured their place at the Grand Finals are Ferrum Hoërskool from the Northern KZN Regional, newcomer Epworth School from PMB Central Regional, St Anne’s Diocesan from PMB Northern Regional, Durban Girls’ College from the Durban Central Regional, Amanzimtoti High School from the Durban South Regional and Our Lady of Fatima from the Durban North Regional.

For more info like the tournament’s Facebook page or follow the tournament on Instagram.

Action in Autism

28 April is Autism Awareness Day: Pledge to be Silent

When two people send a message of any kind to each other with or without words, they are communicating. Autistic people all have something important to say, but they can’t always express themselves as well or as easily as people around them. Over 50 % of autistic people have severe difficulties with spoken language, and when people cannot express their basic needs or experiences to others, life can be extremely isolating and lonely.

To show acknowledgement and respect for such difference, Action in Autism invites the public to join them and thousands of non-verbal people by making a pledge to be non-verbal for two hours on Saturday 28 April at the Durban Botanical Gardens from 10am to 12 noon. Bring a picnic basket and relax in peaceful surrounds, using only signs, gestures, pointing, typing or drawing to communicate during this time.

"Speaking is not the only form of communication,” says Chairperson of Action in Autism, Liza Aziz, “We ask people to join us in honouring those who are different from you and experience their world.”

Anyone who would like to extend this awareness event to their workplace during the month of April to show acknowledgement and solidarity to people with autism can purchase stickers at R10 each and t-shirts at R100 from the Action in Autism office.

Action in Autism does not receive any funding from government and relies on sponsorship and the support of the community to continue its early intervention, support and advocacy work. Anyone wanting to contribute to the organization through cash, kind or through volunteering time, the organisation  would be most thankful. 

For more information about Action in Autism and the support to parents and families provided by the organisation, call 031 563 3039 or email info@actioninautism.org.za.

SPAR KZN School Girls' Hockey - Southern KZN Regional

Kokstad: Saturday 21 April

King Edward High School claimed their fourth regional title in a riveting final against host school Kokstad College at the Southern KZN Regional of the SPAR KZN School Girls' Hockey Challenge on Saturday 21 April.

The two finalists earned top position in their pools, advancing through to the semi-finals where King Edward met Suid-Natal and Kokstad took on Southcity. King Edward won 2-0, where the Kokstad College Southcity game went to a penalty shootout resulting in a 2-0 victory for Kokstad.  

In the last game of the day, fierce rivals King Edward and Kokstad notched up a nil nil score at the end of full time, with Kokstad earning two short corners, the first of those was directly after no-nonsense umpire, Jani Dorning awarded two cards to King Edwards players, a green was dished out first, followed by a yellow for continuously infringing the five yards at a free hit. Both shorties were successfully defended by the Matatiele team. Both teams didn't really make any impact at the business ends of the field, with majority of the action taking place mid-field.

The game progressed to a penalty shootout with the defending champs taking the first run. King Edward’s Anathi Madikizela charged into the circle, only to meet the advancing Anga Gogela who didn't allow Madikizela any space to fire off a shot. Kokstad's Sibabalwe Cabangama was next to go and meet the sturdy defense of Thuto Kanetsi. Cabangama knocked the ball directly at Kanetsi, who easily stopped it and prevented any further chances. Second for KEHS, fiesty Azisa Cokota successfully knocked the first goal in, after running in and decisively sliding the ball right of Gogela. Kokstad's Tyler Rorke levelled the score after her first attempt was stopped, and she pounced on the ball slapping in her follow up shot that went left of the keeper. King Edwards's Lukhona Ndumdum stepped up to the mark, moved the ball in, drawing Gogela out, then rounding her on the left and slipping the ball in to take KEHS 2-1 up. Finally, Simamkele Kwababa's chance was denied by alert Kanetsi. Kwababa's slap attempt was easily blocked and then Kanetsi charged the ball down not allowing Kokstad player any space. The final score was 2-1 to King Edward.

In the bronze game Sheppie team, Suid-Natal took on fellow south coasters Southcity where the game also went to a penalty shootout. The game ended at nil nil with both teams not threatening to score. Suid-Natal's Kayla Parson and Valerie Ahrens scored while Michaela van Der Heever sadly missed. The mirror image results saw Southcity's Hannah Nero and Sarah-Joy Pringles score and McKayla Du Bruyn not able to get a third for her team. The bronze medal game then went to a sudden death, with Parson side stepping around Tamryn Steenkamp and determinedly finding the back of the net. Focused Nero veered left, but her shot went wide of the box allowing Suid-Natal third place.

After the finals, coach for Kokstad College Stephanie Peterson said, “It was a tough game. King Edward are worthy opponents to play against, but it is always the team with the most fight that wins. I was very proud of our team, even though they are young, they can only get better from here.”

Deidre Duminy, coach for King Edward High School said “The whole tournament, as always, was well organised and very exciting, and a good opportunity for us to practice our skills in play. The first game was slow for us, and then the goals seemed to open up after that. Kokstad College is a wonderful yet terrible opponent, as they are a tenacious team, and one can never be assured of the outcome. We enjoyed playing on their home ground and of course pleased that we managed to defend our title."

Joining the list of Most Promising Umpire from various regionals is Kyle de Kock from Kokstad College. The 16 year old Grade 11 pupil was impressive with his decisive decisions throughout the day and has been invited to the Grand Finals where he will further his umpiring career. 

King Edward are the seventh team to advance to the Grand Finals at St Mary's DSG in Kloof on the 21 and 22 July. They join Ferrum Hoërskool (Northern KZN Regional); St Anne's (PMB North Regional); Epworth School (PMB Central Regional); Durban Girls' College (DBN Central Regional); Amanzimtoti High School (DBN South Regional); Our Lady of Fatima (DBN North Regional).

For more info like the tournament's Facebook page.

Results: 

1 King Edward High School, 2 Kokstad College, 3 Suid-Natal Hoërskool, 4 Southcity School, 5 Creston College, 6 Port Shepstone High School, 7 St Monica’s Diocesan School, 8 St Patrick's College, 9 Ixopo High School, 10 Bergview High School

SPAR KZN School Girls’ Hockey Challenge Highway Regional - May 6

SPAR KZN School Girls’ Hockey Challenge

Highway Regional - Westville Girls’ High School - May 6

The fiercely contested Highway Regional of the SPAR KZN School Girls’ Hockey Challenge takes place this year at Westville Girls’ High School astroturf on Sunday, May 6.

St Mary’s DSG, six times winners of this regional and three times winners of the Grand Finals of this highly-respected school girls’ hockey event, will be focussed on holding onto their title. Only once have the defending champs been ousted from their top position, and that was by Westville Girls’ High in the 2014 tourney at Thomas More College.

This year, Westville Girls’ High will host this regional, and will no doubt be using their home-turf advantage in their attempt to break the iron grip that St Mary’s has on this region.

Sian Tarbuton coach for host school, WGHS says that their team is hard at training and looking forward to the regional. “Our indoor season was a cracker,” she enthuses. “We were placed second in the logs, only losing to St Mary's with a narrow loss of 4-2. We were so close to getting a draw and then they scored against us in the last couple minutes. Our outdoor season got off to a great start. We won the Crawford La Lucia outdoor hockey tournament held over the April holidays. We won our pool and then met Crawford La Lucia in the final, winning the tournament. We won our first outdoor hockey match of the season against Thomas More College, so we have high hopes for the season, but need to keep our composure and work hard.”

Other schools participating in this six-school regional include Curro Hillcrest, Hillcrest High, Kloof High and Thomas More College.

The tournament starts at 8am, and will be played in a round robin format. Games last 23 minutes with a quick change over at 11 minutes.  A win will earn a team 4 points, a draw with goals 2 points, a goalless draw 1 point and a loss 0. First and second places will then go head-to-head in a final match to determine the eighth regional team to go through to the Grand Finals at St Mary’s DSG in Kloof.

Other schools that have already secured their place at the Grand Finals are Ferrum Hoërskool from the Northern KZN Regional, newcomer Epworth School from PMB Central Regional, St Anne’s Diocesan from PMB Northern Regional, Durban Girls’ College from the Durban Central Regional, Amanzimtoti High School from the Durban South Regional and Our Lady of Fatima from the Durban North Regional.

For more info like the tournament’s Facebook page or follow the tournament on Instagram.

-ends

SPAR KZN School Girl’s Hockey Challenge Durban North Regional - Results April 15, 2018

SPAR KZN School Girls' Hockey Challenge

Durban North Regional

Crawford North Coast: Sunday 15 April

Our Lady of Fatima earned themselves their third title when they were crowned Durban North Regional winners at the SPAR KZN School Girls’ Hockey Challenge on Sunday at Crawford North Coast.

Fatima had a clear run to the regional final, where they met Danville Park Girls’ High School. The first half the game flowed easily up and down with no real chances being taken. Fatima started the attack with Megan Coreejes charging down the right but ran out of space with the Danville defence forcing her over the baseline. Danville were awarded a short corner a minute later, but the unimaginative shot was fired directly at the keeper, Ntando Nzuza easily stopping the shot and her defender quickly clearing it out of danger.

Fatima’s Coreejes burst down the right after a hoik pass from upfield found Coreejes in the middle of the circle. The forward put in a fine attempt but blazed it high and wide. Coreejes third break in the first half was met with a sea of green defence, and no support from her team mates saw her third opportunity amount to nothing.

After a quick change over, Fatima stepped up a gear. At the start of the second half Kirsten Lenz was in the right place at the right time as a flat pass from the right side of the circle found her lurking around the p spot, Lenz calmly slapped the ball neatly into the box getting her team’s first goal.

Directly after their first goal, Fatima surged forward in their fifth attack with Emma Lofstedt reaching the circle and quickly firing off her shot directly at the awaiting keeper which was easily blocked and defended. A short corner went the way of Fatima, a smooth delivery reached the castle, with the striker glancing the ball right to Lofstedt who didn’t make the same mistake twice, firing in her second attempt to the left of the keeper, taking her team comfortably 2 nil up.

As the game wound down, Fatima had their final chance with an exciting flurry at the goals. A shot went high and wide, with a sterling effort from Nzuza, getting both hands up to block the shot. The ball fell comfortably for the Fatima forward who was camped out at the goal and should have had an easy slot for their third goal but in the excitement, missed the ball giving Nzuza time to fly across the goals and thwart any further opportunity.

Fatima met Northlands Girls’ High in the first semi-final where Fatima went up 3 nil. Goal scorers in that game were star players Lofstedt, and Megan Coreejes with Naomi Maujean also getting her name on the score sheet.

Danville met Crawford La Lucia in the second semi-final, at full time both teams were unable to make a break through. Both teams were quietly impressive throughout the day but were at loggerheads in their semi.

The game progressed to three rounds of a penalty shoot-out. First up was Danville’s captain Awande Mkhwanazi whose attempt was blocked. Crawford’s Alison Beck’s determined run met the sturdy defence of Nzuza. Next up for Danville, Christy Gilmour drew the keeper out with her slap that was blocked, but luckily for her the ball landed kindly and she was able to follow up with an easy slot into the back of the box. Rachel Wilkinson stepped up for Crawford, striding forward and knocking in a decent looking shot that at the last minute found the left pad of Nzuza, and rolled safely out of reach. Tatum Lardant took to the spot for Danville and charged in, veering right and rolled the ball beyond the flying Linda Dlamini to take her team 2 nil up and sealing their spot in the regional final.

Receiving his second Most Promising Umpire award, Enzo Magubane from Amanzimtoti was recognised for his efforts with the whistle. He was representing Ashton International College this time round, having been selected previously blowing at the Durban South Regional.

Our Lady of Fatima is the sixth team to secure their berth at the Grand Finals that takes place at St Mary’s DSG in Kloof. They join Ferrum Hoërskool (Northern KZN), Epworth School (PMB Central); St Anne’s College (PMB North); Durban Girls’ College (DBN Central) and Amanzimtoti High School (DBN South). Next weekend the tournament travels to Kokstad for the Southern KZN Regional.

For more info like the tournament’s Facebook page or follow the tournament’s Instagram account.

Results

1 Our Lady of Fatima, 2 Danville Park Girls’ High, 3 Northlands Girls’ High, 4 Crawford La Lucia, 5 Ashton International College, 6 Crawford North Coast, 7 Reddam House uMhlanga, 8 Durban North College.

ENDS

Sophie Thompson

SPAR KZN School Girls’ Hockey Challenge- Southern KZN Regional Kokstad College

SPAR KZN School Girls’ Hockey Challenge

Southern KZN Regional

Kokstad College: Saturday 21 April

The clash of the eighth Southern KZN Regional in the SPAR KZN School Girls’ Challenge takes place on Saturday 21 April at Kokstad College.

This region has crowned three schools since the tournament began in 2011. This year, ten schools will converge in the quest to be regional champion in the hopes of travelling to the Grand Finals in July at St Mary’s DSG.

Kicking off the tournament, defending champs King Edward High School (KEHS) will meet St Monica’s who missed last year’s tournament due to other commitments. At the same time on field B two times winner Kokstad College will meet Bergview who are returning after last playing in 2014. Hosts, Kokstad College will need to find their A-game early as they meet two times winner, Creston College in their second game.

KEHS will take on Southcity in the third game of the day. Southcity were placed third last year and are hoping to continue their progression in this tournament as they quietly chip away at the placings with an improvement every year.

Coach for the defending champs, Deidre Duminy says, “My team is very young this year, basically an U16 team which is wonderful for the next two years. We lost seven of our players last year who matriculated. Of course, we will be delighted if we go through, but who knows what will happen on the day. We will surely try our best but currently we are working on building confidence as well as skills.”

Pool A features King Edward High School, St Monica’s, Southcity, Port Shepstone, iXopo and Pool B has Kokstad, Creston, Bergview, St Patrick’s and Suid-Natal taking each other on. The pool games will be 25 minutes each and the playoffs are only 20minutes long, with a possibility of a penalty shoot-out taking place if the games are drawn. If this happens, then 3 players from each team will step up to take the 8 second rolling penalty in the hope of advancing their team to the next round.

The tournament will run on four points for a win, two points for a draw with goals, one point for a goalless draw and zero points for a loss.

After the pool games, the two semi-finals will take place concurrently. Thereafter the top teams will get a breather as the positional games roll out the final placings. Once these games have been played, the bronze medal game follows, and the final game will be the main gold, silver game. At the conclusion of the 27th game, the 2018 regional champion will be revealed.

The teams to beat will be host school playing on familiar turf, Kokstad College, who have won this regional in the inaugural tournament in 2011 and three years later in 2014. Creston College took the title in 2012 and 2013 while the unsuspecting heroes from King Edwards High School have been the defending champions for the last three years.

The winner of this regional will be the seventh team to reserve their place at the Grand Finals that will take place in July at St Mary’s DSG in Kloof.

For more info like the tournament’s Facebook page or follow the tournament on Instagram.

ENDS

Josh Crickmay's Adventures

Follow Josh Crickmay's fabulous adventures in the African bushveld and beyond as he chases 10,000 treasures.

https://www.joshcrickmay.com/joshs-adventures/

SPAR KZN School Girls’ Hockey Challenge - Durban North Regional

SPAR KZN School Girls’ Hockey Challenge

Durban North Regional

Crawford College North Coast: Sunday 15 April

The Durban North Regionals of the SPAR KZN School Girls’ Hockey Challenge will take place at Crawford College North Coast on Sunday, 15 April.

This hotly contested regional will be hosted for the first time by Crawford College North Coast on their astroturf in the picturesque setting on their school grounds in Tongaat.

In the seven years of this tournament history, three schools have managed to claim the title, which has meant some fierce competition as teams jostle for the honours. 

Defending champs and two times winners of this regional, Our Lady of Fatima who raised the trophy in 2017 and at the inaugural tournament in 2011, will be keen to hold onto their title while Danville Park Girls’ High, who have won this regional twice (2012, 2014), and Ashton International College (2013, 2015, 2016), who have won three times, will be wanting to reprise their victories. They will be joined by Crawford College La Lucia, Northlands High School, Reddam House Umhlanga and Durban North College, who will all be vying to shift the balance of power in this regional.

The tournament will take the format of pool games with cross-pool semi-final playoffs with a final match to determine who will be going through to the Grand Finals at St Mary’s DSG in July. The games begin at 8am and last 23 minutes with a change over at 11 minutes with a total of 17 games being played.

This is the sixth regional to be played in this annual series, and the winner will join Amanzimtoti High School (Durban South Regional) who recently secured their berth in the Grand Finals, along with Durban Girls' College (Durban Central Regional), St Anne's Diocesan (Pietermaritzburg Northern Regional), Epworth School (Pietermaritzburg Central Regional), and Ferrum Hoërskool (Northern KZN Regional).

For more info like the tournament's Facebook page. 

-ends

SPAR KZN School Girls' Hockey Challenge - Durban South Regional

3 Schools Trust: Sunday 25 March

After an absolute humdinger of a final, Amanzimtoti High School sealed their fourth win in a duplicated 2017 performance in the Durban South Regional of the SPAR KZN School Girls' Hockey Challenge at the  3 Schools Trust Astro on Sunday 25 March.

Toti took on neighbouring school, Kuswag Hoërskool for a Toti derby with a fast-flowing final being played where they won the game 1-0 after a persistent attack from Toti resulted in the solitary goal.

It took Toti all of four minutes to knock in the goal that earned them victory. Toti's feisty Mvelo Mtombeni powered forward into the circle where Kuswag defender was penalised for getting the ball on the back of the stick. Toti had earned their first short corner. Kuswag's defense stood firm as Toti attempted to score. In the second short corner, the ball was knocked from left of the goals to the nearest player, then was quickly passed along the top of the circle. At the top of the circle the Toti ball hit a Kuswag foot, taking them to the third taking of the short corner. 

In a similar fashion, the ball moved in from the short corner, getting tapped along the top of the circle to Megan Powell standing firm mid circle, firing in a shot that Kuswag fumbled and were unable to prevent the goal. 

Thereafter a fired-up Kuswag dominated the possession, but were unable to capitalise. Nine attempts by Kuswag sadly didn't amount to an equalizer. Both the Captain and Vice-Captain for Kuswag played outstanding games, with both of them attacking the Toti defense.

Leading up to the finals, in an exact replication of last year's tournament, Toti met Kingsway in the first semi-finals where the scoreline was level on 1 all at full time. The semi went to a penalty shoot out where Kingsway stepped up first, missing the goals. Toti also missed their first attempt. Kingsway then took their second penalty attempt, missing that. Amani Xozwa broke through netting the first goal for Toti, taking the score to 0-1 to Toti going into the final round. 

Nontobeko Mazibuko leveled the score for Kingsway, managing to get the ball behind the hard-working Toti keeper, Alexia Kesaris. The final penalty had Mthombeni lining up to take it. Her first attempt was thwarted by tenacious Kingsway’s goalie, Teneze Tsouros who put her body on the line, stopping the shot. Tsouros then dived forward pushing the ball out of danger but was deemed to have used the back of her stick in the clearance, resulting in the final penalty being retaken. Mthombeni didn't make the same mistake twice and secured her team’s win.

Kuswag had an easier time advancing to the finals, meeting Werda. Captain for Kuswag Crizelda Delport scored the only goal in their semi-final, with the final score ending on 1-0 in favour of Kuswag. 

Dale Fibiger, coach of Kuswag, the host school said “It was an exciting tournament - it is always a good platform for the players to play lots of hockey and get their skills right. The coaches can use the opportunity to see where the players are best positioned too. The final match between ourselves and Amanzimtoti was exciting - it was played with good spirit and our girls were very positive and played as a team until the end."

Chris Clarke, coach for Amanzimtoti said “The first match of this tournament against Kuswag was our first game of the year. It was a very enjoyable event although it was hot all the teams stepped up their games, especially New Forest. This year the hockey was much harder. We started out well, and even though the girls got tired during the day, they managed to hold it together. It was an incredibly tough final against Kuswag, who dominated once we had scored our goal - but the girls managed to maintain their composure to make it to the final whistle."

Amanzimtoti High School is the fifth team to secure a spot at the SPAR KZN School Girls' Hockey Challenge Grand Finals that will be held in July at St Mary's DSG. They join Durban Girls' College (Durban Central Regional), St Anne's Diocesan (Pietermaritzburg Northern Regional), Epworth School (Pietermaritzburg Central Regional), and Ferrum Hoërskool (Northern KZN Regional).

For more info like the tournament's Facebook page. 

SPAR KZN School Girls Hockey Challenge - Durban Central Regional

3 Schools Trust: Saturday 17 March

Maintaining their 100% record, Durban Girls’ College successfully defended their title for the eighth year, in the Durban Central Regional of the SPAR KZN School Girls’ Hockey Challenge that took place on Saturday 17 March at the 3 Schools Trust Asto. 

College met the surprise package of St Henry’s in the regional final, and thanks to an Emma Sharratt goal, College retained their title with a 1-0 victory against the host school.

From the whistle, College took ownership of the possession with majority of the play taking place in St Henry’s half. With five minutes played, College’s third attack was rewarded. Sharratt who was lurking mid-way in the circle, received a pass from outside, the forward spun around slipping the ball under the attacking component keeper, Unathi Sibeko from St Henry’s.

Sibeko tirelessly thwarted any more College attacks, charging down several shots. College were awarded six short corners, with all of them amounting to nothing thanks to the fantastic defence from St Henry’s. 

St Henry’s only managed to penetrate the College half three times, and on all three occasions their attacks took them agonisingly close to their opposition’s goals. In their efforts, they earned themselves a short corner after a break down the right. A determined dash from both the College defenders and the forwards falling back to assist caused St Henry’s to fluff their only real opportunity. 

Leading up to the finals, College kept a flawless scorecard throughout the day, notching up the maximum of 24 points after their six round robin games. 

Kerry Gaze, coach of the winning team, which comprised mostly of players who had been in the first XI last year said “This tournament is always a really good one. Nice competitive hockey was played throughout the day, with our final being somewhat challenging as St Henry’s had improved a lot and were impressive on the field.”

Engelie Maas, St Henry’s coach, who has coached teams in every one of the 8 annual tournaments, said “It is an amazing sporting festival, and St Henry’s did us so proud. The girls played with a lot of heart, spirit and soul. This was a great event to take part in just before leaving for Ireland for a week’s tour, which includes a training session with Ireland’s goalkeeper, David Fitzgerald."

The announcement for the team which College were to face in the regional final proved to be exciting as Durban Girls’ High School had the possibility of taking second spot on the log, but they needed to beat Maris Stella in the last pool game. The game went down to the wire with Girls’ High surging forward, attack after attack but unable to beat the defence. 

Going into the final round robin game, the tacticians were hard at work. Had Girls’ High won, they would have ended tie on points with St Henry’s. The round robin game between Girls’ High and St Henry’s ended in a well contested goalless draw, which would have meant that goals scored would have been taken into account. 

Two teams that displayed tremendous spirit during the day were Ridge Park College and Inanda Seminary. Both teams have upped their skills and knowledge of the game which bodes well for their future. 

Most Promising Umpire was Sethu Sithole representing Durban Girls’ High School. 

Durban Girls’ College is the fourth team to secure their berth at the Grand Finals which takes place in July at St Mary’s DSG. College join two teams that have seven appearances at the Grand Finals, St Anne’s Diocesan (PMB Northern Regional) and Ferrum Hoërskool (Northern KZN Regional), and newcomers Epworth School (PMB Central Regional).

For more info like the tournament’s Facebook page.

Results:
1 Durban Girls' College, 2 St Henry’s, 3 Durban Girls' High, 4 Maris Stella, 5 Port Natal, 6 Ridge Park College, 7 Inanda Seminary

Points at end of round robin

1 Durban Girls’ College 24, 2 St Henry’s 17, 3 Durban Girls’ High 14, 4 Maris Stella 13, 5 Port Natal High 5, 6 Ridge Park College 2, 7 Inanda Seminary 1

SPAR KZN School Girls' Hockey Challenge - Interview with Bulelwa Mzimela

With a tank full of ambition, young Bulelwa Mzimela is making waves in the polo world having been selected to represent South Africa.

Mzimela (16) is taking off to #Brno in the #Czech Republic at the end of the month to compete in the U17 EU Nations #Waterpolo tournament where ten teams will be competing.

"This is the first time that I will be representing South Africa, and I can't wait. It sincerely means a lot to me. And hopefully won't be the last time."

The three day tournament that starts on 30 March has host nation Czech Republic, #Denmark, #England, #Germany, #Ireland, #Scotland, #Slovakia, South Africa, #Switzerland and Wales participating. The round robin format has South Africa in Pool A taking on Wales, Slovakia, Ireland and Scotland. Once all the pool games are played, the two top teams from both pools advance to the semi-finals and then thereafter the two best teams meet in the finals.

"I love polo; I love the tactics, the tricks, spinning out of tackles. I love that it looks so graceful but under water it can be challenging and a bit rough."

The youngster has travelled far and wide around South Africa through her sports. “I am extremely fortunate to be able to explore and discover our country. But in all honesty, getting my first stamp in my passport is so exciting.”

The talented water baby is one of only two #KZN players in the team set to jet off to Europe, “Our team is great, we all know each other well having played against each other often in various tournaments. Our coach Jon-Marc De Carvalho reads the game well and is a fabulous motivator. All we need now is to gel in the pool and let the magic happen.”

Mzimela fell into the sport in Grade 5 when she was supporting her twin brother at training and was asked if she wanted to join. She jumped at the opportunity and hasn't looked back. Her twin, Bulelani has also just donned the green and gold for waterpolo this last weekend at Kings Park.

Only five minutes separate the two aspiring sporting siblings, "We are both highly motivated and are driven to achieve. I know that if I don't get something right, I try and try and try again until eventually I do. My parents say that we are both very determined."

“I play on the wing or fetch. I get a thrill out of attacking play and being able to capitalise on some awesome play and team work with getting the ball in the back of the net.”

This weekend she takes to the field with her second passion, hockey. The Grade 10 pupil at Durban Girls' College is part of the first hockey team that are taking part in the SPAR KZN School Girls' Hockey Challenge. College are the defending champs and the only team that has made it through to all the Grand Finals.

"I took part in the KZN hockey trials at #Queensmead last week. The team hasn't been announced yet, but I am hopeful."

Mzimela plans on pursuing a career in law when she finishes school. “I would love to get a degree in law, possibly studying overseas. I am working hard to earn a sports scholarship, hopefully in a country where both polo and hockey are mainstream. #Holland is appealing, but time will tell.”

Diving in, the effervescent Bulelwa Mzimela is having a rippling affect in youth sports in Durban, with her never say die attitude, her eagerness to succeed, the future star certainly is going to make a splash.

Sophie Thompson

SPAR KZN School Girls' Hockey Challenge - DBN South

Durban South Regional

3 Schools Trust: Sunday 25 March

Eight schools will be converging on the 3 Schools Trust astroturf to participate in the Durban South Regional of the SPAR KZN School Girls’ Hockey Challenge on Sunday 25 March.

Host school is one time winners, Kuswag Hoërskool. Kuswag took the honours in the inaugural tournament in 2011 and are eager to topple defending champions, Amanzimtoti High School. In their first outing to the Grand Finals, Kuswag finished ninth overall in the KZN SPAR tournament.

Toti have represented this region in the last three consecutive years, advancing through to the Grand Finals where they finished tenth overall in all three appearances. This year, the defending champs start an exciting new chapter and will be taking to the pitch under the guidance of new coach, Cris Clarke. 

In last year’s regionals, it was anyone’s trophy with an epic Amanzimtoti three-way duel developing between Amanzimtoti, Kingsway and Kuswag, with Toti knocking one goal against Kuswag to claim 2017 victory. In the build up to this year’s tournament, Kingsway and Kuswag have stretched their legs at the Scottburgh Festival held two weekends ago. Kuswag drew in all three of their games, and Kingsway faired marginally better with two nil nil draws and one victory against Scottburgh.

Taking to the field for this regional; Pool A consists of host, Kuswag; together with Amanzimtoti; Grosvenor and Rossburgh. In Pool B are Werda; Kingsway; Queensburgh and New Forest. The games are 23 minutes long with a one minute change over at half time. Once the pool games are concluded, the tournament advances to a cross pool play off with the two semi-finals taking place. Once the semis are done and dusted the third and fourth positions will be played for with the main game taking place mid-afternoon.

The Durban South Regional is certainly one of the most festive tournaments in the KZN area with all teams showing off not only their hockey skills but dance skills too, taking to the pitch for a dance-off in flash mob style in previous years.  

Encouraging everyone to bring their A game to the regional, on the day, the tournament also awards the Most Promising Umpire. Scouts for Varsity College also travel around to all ten regionals tournaments and at the Grand Finals award hockey bursaries. Last year, the Durban South player Phiwo Myeza, 2017 Captain for Amanzimtoti High School was one of the lucky recipients of this bursary.

The winner of the Durban South Regional will be the fifth team to secure their spot at the Grand Finals taking place at St Mary’s DSG in Kloof at the end of July. Teams that have already secured their place are Ferrum Hoërskool from the Northern KZN Regional, newcomer Epworth School from PMB Central Regional, St Anne’s Diocesan from PMB Northern Regional and the winning team from the Durban Central Regional which takes place this weekend (Saturday 17 March). 

For more info visit the tournament’s Facebook page.

SPAR KZN School Girls' Hockey Challenge - PMB Northern Regional Results

SPAR KZN School Girls’ Hockey Challenge

Pietermaritzburg North Regional

St Anne’s Diocesan: Sunday 11 March

Retaining their title for the seventh consecutive year, St Anne’s Diocesan College remain the champions of the SPAR KZN School Girls’ Hockey Challenge Pietermaritzburg North Regional on Sunday 11 March.

St Anne’s took on The Wykeham Collegiate in the finals for the region. In an enthralling 25 minutes, the whistle blew with one goal separating the two teams, 2-1 in favour of the defending champions.

Wykeham Collegiate kept all their panache for the main game, having gone down to Saints earlier in the day during the round robin match which ended 3 nil to the hosts. Fifteen seconds into the game, Saints revealed their attacking prowess with their first attempt going right of goals. 

It didn’t take Saints long to slot in their first goal. Just under two minutes had ticked away when Danni Chessenski, camped out on the left hand post, received a perfect pass and quietly slapped the ball in. 

Eight minutes into the game, Wykeham’s Loren Gerrard dazzled the Saints defence with a run down the left side line, crabbed her way along the baseline and fired in a shot directly to the waiting keeper. The clearance went directly back to the waiting Gerrard who followed up her shot with more determination and slotted in the all important equaliser. 

Another three minutes ticked by when a poorly strategized 16 hit from TWC was charged down. Saints capitalised, nailing in a shot from the top of circle by Danni Rhodes. The attempt was deflected by a defender landing in the box, sealing the win for Saints.

Saints had a total of eleven shots at goal, with four hitting their target of which two were goals and two being defended, four going right of the upright and three veering to the left. Wykeham’s defence was exemplary only giving away a handful of short corners to their opposition.

Robin Jones, coach for the winning team said, “It was a fantastic day for hockey. It is always difficult to maintain the same standard throughout a day like this, and we knew the finals would be tough but the team did well - I am very, very proud of them.”

Sam Scott, coach for The Wykeham Collegiate said, “This tournament provides experience and a good opportunity for us to see where we are as a team and where we need to go.  We may not have won, but the finals provided a great game for the players and spectators alike, and the TWC girls gave it 100%, so we could not have asked for more.”

Top goal scorer for the tournament, was St Anne’s Vice Captain and star player, Danni Rhodes who netted an impressive 18 goals in total out of her teams 33.

Most Promising Umpire was awarded to Voortrekker High School’s Lethokuhle Mngadi. Mngadi took charge in the final showing fabulous calm nerves in the tense, action packed game.

Saints is the third team to secure their berth at the Grand Finals. They join Ferrum High School representing the Northern KZN Regional and newcomers Epworth College, champions of the Pietermaritzburg Central Regional.

For more info like the tournament’s Facebook page.

Results

1 St Anne’s Diocesian, 2 The Wykeham Collegiate, 3 Carter High School, 4 Treverton, 5 Voortrekker High School , 6 Grace College.

SPAR KZN School Girls' Hockey Challenge - PMB Central Regional Results

Pietermaritzburg Central Regional

Pietermaritzburg Girls High School: Saturday 10 March

The second tournament of the SPAR KZN School Girls’ Hockey Challenge welcomes a new regional winner after Epworth School dethroned the defending champions in the Pietermaritzburg Central Regional that took place at Pietermaritzburg Girls’ High School on Saturday 10 March.

Epworth School took on defending champs, St John’s DSG in the first pool game of the day and in the final. At the end of both whistles, the scoreline was unchanged with neither team managing to net a goal. In both, St John’s held slightly more possession, firing off a handful of unsuccessful chances not finding the back of the net.

In the main game, the hanging result went to a penalty shoot out with three players from each team lining up in an attempt to seal the win for their team. St John’s DSG bravely stepped up first, with Christin Stubbs’ attack shaving the outside of the post. Epworth’s Tayla-Jade Weiss stepped up to the plate, charging forward and edging the ball into the goals. In a replay of their first attempt, St John’s second shot taken by Laiken Peters sadly also shaved the outside of the upright. Epworth’s Emma-Jane Smythe advanced determinedly, drawing the St John’s keeper Courtney Dyssell right, and successfully rolling the ball under Dyssell’s defensive dive. 

In the final round of the 8 second penalties, both attempts didn’t find the back of the box. The final score was 2-0 in Epworth’s favour.

Coach for Epworth, Kegan Walters said, “This was my first time coaching the team and within this tournament, so I am very pleased with their win. This is a new team with loads of talent, and enthusiasm and we are getting to a point where we are playing exciting hockey. They fared very well, considering this was their second time playing together, after a tough match against St Mary’s on Thursday last week. We are hoping that loads of positive things come from this."

St John’s DSG coach Lyndall ‘Binks’ Robertson said, “The team played positively, but at the end of the day you have to put the ball in the back of the box. I was pleased with how they played, it was a good pre-season start and we are excited about the league season ahead.”

The tournament had the format of pool games, with the top two teams of both pools squaring off in the semi-finals. First up were 2017 winners, St John’s who met Pietermaritzburg Girls’ High School. Girls’ High had dominated the region winning the title six consecutive times since its inception. Paige McGladdery from St John’s knocked in the only goal, advancing her team to the finals.

In the second semi, Epworth took on Howick High School. Emma- Ane Smythe and Emily Cobbald both netted goals for their team, Epworth with the final whistle resulting in a 2-0 win. 

68 goals were scored in the twelve pool games that lasted 25 minutes each, with a change over after 12 minutes. 

Stars of the day were newcomers Newton High School who in their defeat showed magnificent team spirit throughout the day.

Most Promising Umpire was awarded to Howick High School’s May Mazibuko. A very strict Mazibuko officiated the final in fine fashion, flashing a green card in the second half.

Epworth School joins winners of the Northern KZN Regional Ferrum High School, the first team to advance through to the Grand Finals. The next tournament takes place at 3 Schools Trust this coming weekend with St Henry’s hosting the Durban Central Regional.

Results:

1 Epworth School, 2 St John’s DSG, 3= Pietermaritzburg High School, 3= Howick High School, 5 Alexandra High School, 6 Russel High School, 7 Maritzburg Christian College, 8 Newtown High School