Hosts Prince Edward High School finished the Dairiboard Schools Rugby Festival unbeaten after defeating Peterhouse College 21-06 in the final match of the event yesterday.
Munyaradzi Madzokere
Prince Edward Tigers blew away every opposition they faced during the week-long rugby extravaganza and had to contend with Peterhouse, a side which was also seeking to maintain a flawless record.
It was a cagey affair for the first 30 minutes as the two teams remained deadlocked.
Tapiwa Nyangoni converted a penalty late in the first half to give Peterhouse a 3–0 lead and suddenly the contest opened up.
Coached by Dave Kurkman, Peterhouse started making mistakes and allowed their fancied opponents to score two quick tries through Francoise Chikukwa and Beadley Mabhenge which Munashe Furamera emphatically converted, giving the Tigers a 14-3 half-time lead.
Nyangoni converted another penalty for Peterhouse soon after the restart, but brilliant attacking from the Tigers backline saw them score another try, this time through Shepard Mhembere.
From then onwards it was a mountain to climb for Peterhouse as they tried to break down the hosts’ impenetrable defence. Prince Edward hung on to win 21-6 to complete a historic perfect tournament record.
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Tigers coach Robbie Durant praised his side for their flawless performance.
“I am really happy with the way we played during the tournament, we had a good pre-season and the team effort has been brilliant, I was confident that we were going to emerge unbeaten from the tournament,” he said.
In the penultimate match of the day, Churchill finished the test on high, beating giants St Georges 15-14 in a nail-biting game.
Cypan Mandenge-coached Eaglesvale, who were easily the most exciting side of the tournament, followed up their impressive defeat of Churchill earlier in the competition, claiming the St Johns scalp 21-14.
There was also final day success for visiting team Windhoek Technical College as they got the better of Hillcrest 21-13, while Botswana Under-19 team succumbed 26-11 to Watershed.
This was the first time that Dairiboard sponsored the annual schools rugby festival, replacing Cottco who has sponsored the tournament for the past 15 years.
