Schools’ rugby reaches climax

THE Metropolitan Boards Rugby Trophy goes to the wire this weekend when top schools will vie for places in the final in the second-last stage of the tournament tonight at the Hage Geingob Stadium.

The finals are scheduled for tomorrow at the same venue. The schools’ rugby tournament will see 16 schools going into the semi-finals in an attempt to clinch a spot in the final.A total of 60 schools competed in the first round, but the best rugby-playing schools in the various categories are now through to the last stages, with only 729 players left of the more than 2 000 who started out.It is the moment of truth for top schools such as Windhoek High School (WHS), Academia, Elnatan, Dr Lemmer, Higher Technical School (HTS) and Jan Moehr to pull all the stops to emerge as winners, as most of their opponents have proven to be no push-overs during their campaigns.The school that has so far produced the most impressive display in its matches this season is Elnatan, which hails from the south of the country.The school competes well among the traditional powerhouses in schools’ rugby and has found a special place in many rugby fans’ hearts.Elnatan is favoured to win the Under-19 Super League title, while their junior team in the under-15 A category is also expected to make it to the final.The senior team face Walvis Bay in their semi-final encounter tonight, and the winner this evening will play against Dr Lemmer or Windhoek High School.The first matches today will be between the under-14 A and B sides, followed by the under-15 A and B, while the under-19s will play in the A, B, C, and D categories.Some of the highlights of the semi-finals will see Dr Lemmer taking traditional foes on PK de Villiers in the under-15 B section, while HTS and WHS are expected to clash in the under-15 A category.There were close margins in matches between these schools and fireworks are on the cards today.Another interesting match will see WHS battling it out against Walvis Bay in the under-19 B category, while Jan Moehr has a date with Dr Lemmer in the same division.Underdogs such as Dawid Bezuidenhout in the under-14 B category will meet HTS, while Tsumeb’s under-14 A side will try to overcome HTS in one of their early encounters of the evening.Ella du Plessis, Dawid Bezuidenhout and Eldorado are the only three schools from Katutura and Khomasdal left in the tournament.Other schools that are represented are Rehoboth, which has a team in the under-19 D category, while Moria/Edugate will fight it out in the under-15 B and under-19 B categories.Otjiwarongo will meet WHS in the under-14 A division, before their senior players meet HTS in the under-19 A category.HTS has the most representation at the tournament with a total of seven teams competing in the various age groups, followed by WHS with six teams.Dr Lemmer has four teams that will travel from the south to make their mark today.There will be 18 matches in the nine leagues today.Today’s matches will start at 15h30, with the final matches on Saturday starting at 08h00.The schools’ rugby tournament will see 16 schools going into the semi-finals in an attempt to clinch a spot in the final.A total of 60 schools competed in the first round, but the best rugby-playing schools in the various categories are now through to the last stages, with only 729 players left of the more than 2 000 who started out.It is the moment of truth for top schools such as Windhoek High School (WHS), Academia, Elnatan, Dr Lemmer, Higher Technical School (HTS) and Jan Moehr to pull all the stops to emerge as winners, as most of their opponents have proven to be no push-overs during their campaigns.The school that has so far produced the most impressive display in its matches this season is Elnatan, which hails from the south of the country.The school competes well among the traditional powerhouses in schools’ rugby and has found a special place in many rugby fans’ hearts.Elnatan is favoured to win the Under-19 Super League title, while their junior team in the under-15 A category is also expected to make it to the final.The senior team face Walvis Bay in their semi-final encounter tonight, and the winner this evening will play against Dr Lemmer or Windhoek High School.The first matches today will be between the under-14 A and B sides, followed by the under-15 A and B, while the under-19s will play in the A, B, C, and D categories.Some of the highlights of the semi-finals will see Dr Lemmer taking traditional foes on PK de Villiers in the under-15 B section, while HTS and WHS are expected to clash in the under-15 A category.There were close margins in matches between these schools and fireworks are on the cards today.Another interesting match will see WHS battling it out against Walvis Bay in the under-19 B category, while Jan Moehr has a date with Dr Lemmer in the same division.Underdogs such as Dawid Bezuidenhout in the under-14 B category will meet HTS, while Tsumeb’s under-14 A side will try to overcome HTS in one of their early encounters of the evening.Ella du Plessis, Dawid Bezuidenhout and Eldorado are the only three schools from Katutura and Khomasdal left in the tournament.Other schools that are represented are Rehoboth, which has a team in the under-19 D category, while Moria/Edugate will fight it out in the under-15 B and under-19 B categories.Otjiwarongo will meet WHS in the under-14 A division, before their senior players meet HTS in the under-19 A category.HTS has the most representation at the tournament with a total of seven teams competing in the various age groups, followed by WHS with six teams.Dr Lemmer has four teams that will travel from the south to make their mark today.There will be 18 matches in the nine leagues today.Today’s matches will start at 15h30, with the final matches on Saturday starting at 08h00.