SACS playing for pride
13 Aug 2010
Bishops should have little trouble in recording their fifth straight derby win when they host underperforming southern suburbs rivals SACS on Saturday.
While the home side chases the elusive clean sweep over their three traditional rivals, for the visitors, a slim chance of redemption albeit it a seemingly impossible task as they search for the first Premier League A win of the season.
The gulf between these two sides this year has been massive; Bishops once again against the odds able to field a competitive XV against all-comers, while for SACS, the poor neighbours tag lives on, always struggling to make a fist of it for whatever reason.
To be brutally honest, SACS’ poor form has set in over recent years. But, in headmaster Ken Ball, there’s hope of a renaissance in, as there’s no man passionate about the game at this level than this former senior provincial player. But Ball alone can’t succeed – it’s going to need a collective effort from interested parties to affect the much-needed, long-awaited turnaround.
Let’s remember that SACS were once a feared foe. Nothing will hurt the school more than the sub-standard rugby being dished out at the moment. They also have a long-standing relationship with WesternProvince rugby dating back to the very first committee meeting held of the union in 1883 with former old boy WH Ashley as one of its members. He would be turning in his grave at the thought of the one-sided defeats suffered by his former school and would want nothing more than pride to be restored back to the jersey.
While that process may begin to take shape next season, the first tentative steps in the right direction could be sewn by putting up a fight against an in-form Bishops XV enjoying a great season. It won’t be easy to contain the second best XV in the Cape, but with passion, pride and commitment comes hope. Any team emitting those three key ingredients can never be faulted on the final outcome.
Just take the approach of Bishops, they can’t wait to get stuck in such is their motivation for the occasion. Coach Dave Mallett says his boys live off the hype in these derbies.
‘Nothing like a match against one of your main rivals to get the blood pumping,’ he said. ‘And to be playing on our beloved Piley Rees field for these encounters is always something special. But we will never forget to afford our rival the utmost respect irrespective of their form. But in saying that, I will be somewhat disappointed if we don’t run out big winners, I’ve got my best starting XV for some time at just the right time.’
By Mike de Bruyn
14 Comments
13 Aug 2010, 09:36 am
That;s all they ever play for!! lol
Er, Mike mate:
“as there’s no man passionate about the game at this level than this former senior provincial player”
I’m sure you wanted ‘more’ after the word man above hey? No worries.
13 Aug 2010, 14:03 pm
As a former SACS boy, it’s disappointing to see a steady decline in their results over the last few years. To be fair we all know Bishops can dangle bursaries in the air to cover their immense private school fees as incentives to draw in some of the top talent within the country. That is unfortunately something that SACS cannot compete with.
That said, the situation regarding SACS and their declining rugby results is unfortunate.
13 Aug 2010, 14:08 pm
@Yetirat(Yetirat)-2: One busary even odd year for a Grade 10 pupil is hardly goign to make much diffence mate, I’m sorry.
I cant remember the last time your bunch beat ours. Hard lines, mate, hopefull your boys put up a bit of a fight on the weekend but I doubt it.
I reckon this’ll be a 60 or 70 pointer!
Come on Boys!
13 Aug 2010, 14:36 pm
@WP_(WP_)-3:
I doubt they’d be offering them if they didn’t make much difference bud…
The demographics at SACS has changed massively over the last 10 years (from what I’ve heard and seen) and that has no doubt had an impact on the school’s traditional sporting strengths.
SACS don’t get to price certain sectors of society out of the market like Bishops do
13 Aug 2010, 14:44 pm
@ YETIRAT
Ummm, mate, yawn…….please tell me how many Bishops boys are on bursaries? 1? 2? Maybe.
Fact is, because Bishops are a private school, and the fees are much higher, it is actually MUCH more difficult to just give away bursaries. See, a bursary (to educate you) is NOT a scholarship. A bursary is a PRIVATE fund, funded by an individual or organisation outside of the school. They do this because they want to. So, for every one boy on bursary at Bishops, SACS (if they just got up off their bums) could probably get an individual to sponsor 10 boys.
So, instead of complaining about bursaries, why don’t SACS old boys get together and create one or 2 of their own? Heavens, man……every other government (model C or whatever you want to call yourselves) are doing it. They are creating bursaries for 6 or 7 players a year. Bishops could NEVER do that.
So, you (SACS) have a choice.
1. get with the programme and get the old boys to create bursaries so that you can compete at the highest level again.
2. sit back and complain about all the other schools who do it. (Bishops do it on a very small scale because it is so expensive – but they do do it). And while you sit there complaining, whach your favourite school start having derby games against Plumstead. because that is who you will end up playing if you don’t move with the times.
But, most importantly, please get your facts right about bursaries, the difference between a burasry and a scholarship, and the fact, that compared to most big rugby schools, Bishops are wayyyyyy behind in the queue when being able to hand out rugby bursaries. Instead, ask yourself what SACS can do to start being more competitive again.
Good luck tomorrow.
13 Aug 2010, 17:10 pm
@Balikibaba(Balikibaba)-5:
listen nob….by nature, the rich kid school generally get’s the best of everything and benifits from it.
and if there is that one superdooper middle class or even disadvantaged kid out there….in an amazing act of kindness your pope or priest or rabbi or whomever the hell it is running that show these days takes him on board.All expenses paid.
13 Aug 2010, 17:14 pm
@Balikibaba(Balikibaba)-5:
Let me repeat what I said in an earlier comment, and this is just my opinion, as I do not have any affiliation with the school other than being a member of the Old Boys union:
“The demographics at SACS has changed massively over the last 10 years (from what I’ve heard and seen) and that has no doubt had an impact on the school’s traditional sporting strengths.
SACS don’t get to price certain sectors of society out of the market like Bishops do”
You seem to have missed the allure of a bursary/scholarship completely. The fact that Bishops fees are so high i.e. the reason they cannot afford to give many bursaries out, is exactly the reason they have the ability to draw in the best of the best. It’s all relative, a bursary is only as valuable as the amount that it’s for. If you’re one of the most sought after rugby players in the country, are you going to go for a school that is offering 10 places each with a bursary of R10,000 where you have more chance of obtaining it, or 1 place in an Elite school that offers a bursary to the value of over R100k?
I’m not complaining at all. Bishops must do what they need to and take advantage of what they have to offer.
I’m not close enough to SACS to have a good look at where they could improve, I suspect it is a combination of player resource, training resource and coaching resource and a lack of confidence and identity. Aside form that I can say from 1st hand experience that our boys, bar the odd exception, simply cannot match schools like Paarl Gym and Raul Roos physically – that’s just different genes!
Enough bickering though anyway, I always loved the RBHS, Bishops and Wynberg derbies and Bishops is an awesome venue to go to watch games, so here’s hoping tomorrow’s game is a cracker.
13 Aug 2010, 18:05 pm
Come on Kids, keep it clean
balika what year were you in Matric and where you in F, W, S, O, K, B, G or M?
13 Aug 2010, 18:41 pm
WP…..92……..F
You?
13 Aug 2010, 19:16 pm
@ yeti
Agreed. The Southern Suburb derbies are always special.
You seem level headed, so thankfully we can have decent conversation. Lets hope Brigadier van Zyl is not a SACS old boy, becuase he is a bit of an emabaressment really, and I won’t even answer him.
i agree with some of your points. However, I think you need to relook at your one theory. If you are intimating that good rugby players would rather go to a private school than a government school when offered a bursary by both schools and therefore the private schools only attract the best of the best, then how is it that there are only TWO private schools in the Top 20 this year and why is it the same every year? Surely, by your theory private schools would dominate the Top 10? Why then, was there only ONE private school(read Bishops) player in the WP craven week team? And why so few private school players in ALL craven week teams accross the South Africa?
I think you will find the answer in that ALL the schools in the Top 10 are able to offer bursaries. lets use Paarl Boys as an example. Their fees are not as high as Bishop’s per say. As a result they are able to offer 15 bursaries every year to under 14 boys entering the school. Nothing wrong with that in my opinion, because the boys are getting a great education, but i ask you, how does a private school (read Bishops) compete with that? The answer is that they can’t and hence schools like SACS and Wynberg should not be too worried about the one or two boys on bursaries at Bishops but should rather concern themselves with the 15 schools like paarl Boys get every year. And, by the way, THAT is fact….15 bursaries a year. Basically a whole u13 Craven week team goes to schools like Paarl Boys every year. If you don’t believe me, do some homework and have a look where this year’s paarl Boys under 14a players come from and if they played Craven Week this year. Do it and then come write your findings on this blog again. And, by the way, I am just using Paarl Boys as an example. I could mention another 10 to 15 schools who do the same…..
13 Aug 2010, 21:31 pm
balikibaba
01 F hey. Floreat Bishops
So you were there with Hersch?
Awesome period that.
13 Aug 2010, 22:17 pm
@ WP
yes, with Hersch. Floreat!
14 Aug 2010, 15:43 pm
Agree with Balikibaba,
Makes complete sense. Impossible for a private school like St Andrew’s or Bishops to compete against 15 players (a u13A craven week side) to bring in at grade 8. That would cost around R10.5 Million (Using St Andrew’s or Bishops’ current fees)!
In comparison, other great government playing rugby schools can bring 15 boys in (and there are great government rugby playing schools that dominate the Top20) – cost them only a couple hundred thousand for 15 players.
18 Aug 2010, 17:27 pm
the fact of the matter is that when Bishops spots a talent, they offer them scholarships and bursary’s. that is why Bishops play consistent rugby. i would say that Bishops buys their fame. Gives SACS a couple of years to come right, next year they will beat Bishops(U16 A’s are good)
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