After having played only two matches so far this season, our 1st rugby team looked forward to participating in the Independent Schools Rugby Festival, hosted at Cornwall Hill College in Pretoria from 6-10 April 2023. We had three matches to play at the festival, making it a fitting end to the pre-season fixtures.

The preparation for the festival went well and the team was ready to give a good account of themselves. The first game was against St Andrew's School from Bloemfontein. From the first whistle, Woodridge had the upper hand with the forwards dominating play and setting a good foundation from which the backline players could attack. It did not take long for the team to cross the line, with the first try being scored by John Kirsten. This gave the team the confidence they needed and led to some wonderful interplay between the forwards and backline players. Soon Jack McClure, Cwenga Ncapayi, Waydon Bopp, Ethan Scanlen, Buzwe Pango, Finn Will and Bukho Pantsi got us onto the scoreboard and Junaid Damons ensured the conversions. It was some of the best rugby played at the festival that day. Woodridge walked away with a 50-0 victory. VanGinkel Venter took the honours of being named man of the match.

The next game was against the hosts, Cornwall Hill College, an equally impressive team with a victorious 1st day of the festival in the bag. At the beginning of the match, it was a real tussle, but Woodridge gained some momentum and soon found themselves in their opponent’s 22. Woodridge was awarded a penalty in front of the poles and opted to scrum. Cornwall had no reply to the power of the pack and after the 3rd penalty, the team opted for the kick at goal and took the 3 points to take the game to a 10-point lead. Woodridge continued to play with confidence and remained in control of the game by kicking when necessary or keeping the ball in hand while playing running rugby. The team made a real impression on the style of rugby they played and received compliments from spectators and coaches. Bukho Pantsi scored a hat trick of tries, all under the poles and he was deservedly awarded man of the match. Junaid Damons converted two tries and a penalty goal to ensure a win of 24-17 for Woodridge.

The final match was against Heronbridge College from Johannesburg on a wet and slippery field. The forwards got stuck in and soon got the upper hand, giving the backline front-foot ball to play from. Woodridge did not disappoint, playing another game of running rugby. Tries were scored by Buzwe Pango, Jack McClure (2), VanGinkel Venter (2) and Junaid Damons with conversions by Junaid Damons, earning him the man of the match award. When the final whistle blew, the score was 47-0 in our favour. 

There were several exceptional individual performances throughout the festival, but the growth of the team was evident, as they worked well together on the field and enjoyed the experience that a festival of this nature offers.