St Andr ew’s College won their own annual St Andrew’s College Shield Water Polo Tournament which took place at St Andrew’s College on Saturday and Sunday.
St Andr ew’s College won their own annual St Andrew’s College Shield Water Polo Tournament which took place at St Andrew’s College on Saturday and Sunday.
This is the first time the hosts have won the shield in seven years. The event saw 17 teams taking part, including two highly rated teams from outside the Eastern Cape Clifton School from Durban, and St Peter’s College from Johannesburg.
The tournament was split into the shield competition for the top eight sides, and the plate competition for the other nine sides.
St Andrew’s first team won their opening pool game against Pearson 11–1, and then controlled their game against Clifton to record an impressive 4–0 win.
Their final pool game against Selborne was played in front of a capacity crowd and the St Andrew’s 1sts produced an outstanding performance to match the electric atmosphere as they ran away to a 15–4 victory.
The plate competition was closely contested, with Grey PE 2nds beating St Andrew’s 2nds 5–2 in the final, and Stirling finishing 3rd with an 8–4 win over Port Rex.
In the quarter-finals of the shield tournament, St Peter’s needed extra time to overcome Pearson 7–6 and set up a semifinal against St Andrew’s, while Clifton beat Kingswood 6–3 to progress to a semi-final against the winners of the other pool, Grey High School.
The semi-finals produced some top quality water polo, with St Andrew’s defeating St Peter’s 8–6 and Grey beating Clifton 6–1 to set up an all Eastern Cape final.
Selborne beat Alex Road 9–3 for 7th place, Pearson defeated Kingswood 10–4 for 5th place, and St Peter’s won the 3rd place playoff against Clifton 5–3.
The final was played in front of a large crowd, and St Andrew’s rose to the occasion, producing a vintage performance to beat the powerful Grey side 8 – 5 and win the St Andrew’s Shield.
St Andrew’s goal keeper Peter Cornish was awarded the Player of the Tournament trophy, while the Tournament Seven included Angus Macdonald and Matthew Malan from St Andrew’s, Neil Wessels and Gary Fensham from Grey, Devin Ramsden and Jean Michau from St Peter’s and Jason Slabbert from Pearson.
This completed a highly successful water polo season for the St Andrew’s first team, with three tournament victories and an exceptional record of 34 wins and a draw in 39 matches.
They are the most successful team ever to represent St Andrew’s and have firmly entrenched themselves amongst the top water polo sides in the country.
Final standings for the St Andrew’s Shield Water Polo Tournament were: St Andrew’s shield: 1. St Andrew’s 1sts, 2. Grey 1sts, 3. St Peter’s, 4. Clifton, 5. Pearson,
6. Kingswood, 7. Selborne, 8. Alexander Road. St Andrew’s plate: 1. Grey 2nds, 2. St Andrew’s 2nds, 3. Stirling, 4. Port Rex, 5. Hudson Park, 6. Woodridge, 7. Invitation (St Andrew’s 3rds), 8. Graeme, 9. Cambridge.
