Author: stagingnwoodccdevcoza

On Saturday the 27^th of May Northwood school hosted Clifton.

The Knights kicked-off playing towards the school. Northwood managed a great start building up some solid phases with outside centre Mac Mudara scoring in the corner within the first 3 minutes.

With a few handling errors from both sides for the next 15 minutes the game was really in limbo as each team waited for another to take charge. It would be Northwood who again set up a nice try to take a 14-0 lead. With another well worked try by experienced winger Mvelo Mlangeni, Northwood were up 21-0. Clifton did well to bounce back with 2 quick tries and reduce the deficit to 21-12. The game was officially alive and the Knights were really feeding off the energy. Another 2 brilliant converted tries by the Knights saw the Northwood home side go into the half time break for a chat holding a confident 35-12 lead.

Looking to build on their 1^st half performance the Knights were humbled by a determined Clifton outfit. Clifton fought hard to score 3 unanswered tries in the second half which saw Northwood being forced into lots of errors which they will be feeling determined to sort out for their upcoming fixture on reunion weekend when they host Michaelhouse.

Special mention to Mvelo Mlangeni for some great work out wide consistently getting the Knights on the front foot and fly-half Robin Weersma with a brilliant kicking display all round.

Final score in favour of Northwood 35-31.

Northwood’s annual Old Boys Day will take place on 3^rd of June this year, and forms part of the “Reunion Weekend” which includes the school and Old Boys golf day, a special Old Boys assembly and breakfast, as well as the traditional Reunion Dinner held the night before match day.   Northwood parents and staff will be hard at work selling boerewors and bacon rolls, burgers, breyani, sweets and chips, as well as refreshments; along with a beer garden which will add to the festivities of the day.  The community are welcome to support their local high school in what is set to be a full day of competitive fixtures vs Michaelhouse.

For further information, please contact:

marketing@nwood.co.za

On Saturday 6^th May Northwood took on St Charles in the midday slot in Pietermaritzburg. It was a hot afternoon and the pitch was tricky, however the Northwood boys didn’t let this bother them and began the game at a blistering pace with good movement off the ball and solid ball-speed as well. It was St Charles who had the first few opportunities but Taine Bird was equal to the challenge and cleared his line well.  It was Tyrone Stanley who opened the scoring midway through the half with an excellent finish after a strong carry from the left hand side of the field. Stanley then doubled the score after an excellent bit of skill from Slater Capell saw his shot hit the post and land at Stanley’s feet for a tap in goal. At half time it was clear that Northwood had come to play, and to add another team victory to the growing list this season. The second half started much the same with St Charles pushing but not able to convert their possession which lead to an excellent attack from Northwood that saw Thomas King completely bundled over in the D which resulted in a penalty flick. Captain Ross Venning-Pridham calmly slotted the flick. Northwood then pushed for a 4^th but just couldn’t convert, and as the heat and pace of the game disintegrated through the half, it was St Charles who scored the last goal of the game after a wayward shot deflected off a Northwood stick, wrong footing Taine Bird in goal. However the win was never in doubt, with another amazing performance from the Northwood Knights. They will be tested this weekend against Pretoria’s finest with a match on Friday night against Pretoria Boys High and on Saturday against St Alban’s.

 

Discrimination may take many forms, such as race, gender, age, religion, societal, disability and so many other types; societies all over the world are constantly grappling with this grave problem. Even today in SA, our society remains fractured because of the cruel policy of Apartheid; it is and will be your task to undo the harm caused by generations of discrimination. Some other countries experience problems not unlike our country’s … Russia and its Chechens, China and its Uighurs, USA and its Native Americans, Australia and its Aborigines, Rwanda and its Hutu & Tutsis…the list is formidably long.

Discrimination may be very briefly defined as “the unfair treatment of a person or group on the basis of prejudice.” People are pre-judged [in advance] by others before they can be fully understood. Often, discrimination arises because of mutual misunderstanding. Take, for example, the case of the first party of Dutch people arriving in what was to be Cape Town. Having rowed ashore, they were greeted by the people who were indigenous to the Cape. Presumably, the Dutch would have said, “Goede Morge, Junges!” and the Khoisan would have replied, “Click!” Instant mutual misunderstanding! Or take the Romans greeting the Turks with “Sit jucundus tibi dies!” and getting the reply, “Salaam aleikum!” And so out of this initial mutual lack of understanding grew assumptions that the other was foolish, of lesser worth, and therefore could be treated as a servant, slave or lackey; and if one side had technological superiority [firearms etc.], the other side’s fate was pretty well sealed.

Lack of understanding and unwillingness to change the initial perception causes the problem to grow out of control, which can lead to the most ghastly consequences. Hitler’s abuse of Germany occurred in just 12 years, leaving the country ravaged. Australia’s Aboriginal policies took them almost to the brink of extinction; in fact, the last Tasmanian Aborigine died well over 100 years ago. Thankfully, today the Australians have come to understand much better the complexities of Aboriginal society and are, as a result, more compassionate and inclusive of their indigenous people. In Britain, the political party UKIP is the British Nazi Party with a smiley face. In USA, Mr. Trump’s populist rhetoric concerning foreigners, women, Mexicans and immigrants is alarming, to say the least.

South Africa’s wounds are deep and slow to heal; much remains to be done. The harm done by Apartheid’s policies [forced removals, racist labour policies, political discrimination, divide and rule] have severely skewed South Africans’ perception of each other, sowing division and hostility throughout the land. We view each other through stereotypes and generalize about other sectors of society. It’s lazy to do this and tempting to follow a line of thought that requires little effort and which appeals to our baser emotions.

You may ask yourself, “So what can I do about all this?” It’s true that you alone cannot resolve all of South Africa’s problems, but if each one of us plays our part by being courteous and considerate, by recognizing our defective points, re-examining our perceptions and trying to improve, we can make a difference to heal our collective wounds. Here at Northwood, we encourage you to practice the art of mutual respect. The school’s code of chivalry urges on you the virtues of the Knight, which empowers you to take on the challenges of life in school and in society. Amongst other things, chivalry requires you to protect the weak, fight wrong, seek justice, be fair to all people, be generous, honour and respect all women, and to be true, gentle, faithful and brave.

South Africa has many, diverse cultures; why not learn about them, respect and celebrate their virtues. Compassion and consideration for others can do much to bring harmony to our country – and it starts with your determination to free yourself from the chains of discrimination.

Thank you for your attention.

Robert Lyle.

eSports, or electronic sports, are a form of competition whereby teams and individuals compete in multiplayer video games. Northwood is proud to be associated with Mind Sports South Africa (MSSA) in this regard. The MSSA is the South African Federation for board games, card games, eSports, robotics and war-games.

On Saturday 22^nd April the Northwood DOTA 2 team participated in the 2017 DOTA 2 online championships.

DOTA 2 is a free-to-play multiplayer online battle arena where two teams of five battle it out for control of the gaming map and the defence of their team’s ‘ancient’ (a building in their base).

Last year, at the 6^th International tournament for DOTA 2, the combined prize pool was well over 20 million dollars for those professional gamers skilled enough to participate in the tournament. Our boys are a long way from this level of gaming but have made a step in the right direction if they wish to pursue careers as professional gamers.

Under the coaches Mr Gebreab and Mr McDowall with capable leadership of Jaryd Krishna as a captain, the Northwood team (Keagan Oliphant, Daniel Knight, Bill Lie, Alvin Ke and Jaryd Krishna(C) ) did exceptionally well coming 2^nd out of 9 schools taking part in the tournament. Northwood played against 5 other teams and won 4 of their fixtures.

In the first game Northwood was up against Maritzburg college and this was quite a one sided fixture in favour of Northwood. The final result 51-10.

The second game of the tournament saw Northwood going up against some very tough opposition – Sinister5. The Northwood team wasn’t in the right frame of mind for this fixture and lost 41-9 to the team that went on to win the tournament.

Northwood looked commanding at the start of their fixture against VexxedPhoenix and due to a technical issue VexxedPhoenix were disqualified.

The fourth fixture was against Jeppe High School and this was again quite a one-sided fixture in favour of Northwood with the final score being 59-16 to Northwood.

The final fixture was against Grey High School. The team was very nervous for this fixture as they had lost to Grey the day before in a warm up game. The Northwood team did not let nerves get the better of them and they managed to win the fixture.

This was the first DOTA 2 tournament that Northwood had participated in and the boys did extremely well and can be proud of their achievement.

Over the weekend Northwood travelled up to JHB to play against Jeppe Boys’ High.

The thin air at that altitude makes a remarkable difference. The ball travels faster and bounces higher. And the lungs start to burn sooner.

8 of our boys making up Northwood’s 1st and 2nd teams, made the trip up to Jeppe. The boys were in high spirits when we arrived, even after having been in the bus for 7 and a half hours.

The games began and all was looking well. Ryan Parkin had a hockey match to play later in the evening so he was up first. He was 2 nil up and fatigue started to catch up with him. His opponent made a come back. In the 4th game however, Ryan got it together again and won his match 3 games to 1. Dylan McIlroy and Jason Kent both  had similar experiences, each winning their matches 3 games to 1. James McIlwraith had a fairly easy match and beat his opponent 3 games to 0.

Nathan Hill and Luke Bricknell both had some really tough competition and lost their matches 3 nil. Nick Wright played against a more senior opponent and gave him a run for his money, but it was not enough and he lost 1 game to 3. Ethan Klebe came out fast and furiously. He was 2 games up when his opponent woke up. The 3rd game was neck-and-neck; 11 all, 13 all, and so it went. His opponent managed to win the game 20 points to 18. The next two games were just as nail biting as the 3rd. Unfortunately the home side had the advantage with the thin air and Ethan went down 2 games to 3.

The final outcome of the fixture: A draw of 15 games each.

The Jeppe boys and the Northwood boys really enjoyed the fixture. We can’t wait to take them on again next year on our own turf.

In beginning of the Easter holidays, the Northwood 1^st XI travelled to the Founders Festival being hosted by Potch Boys High. The festival was played in excellent sportsmanship from most of the teams there that transferred into some excellent hockey being played. The Northwood Knights took on Queens on day 1 and with Northwood controlling the match, but not closing it out, saw them win it 2-1. Day two was the highlight day of the festival for Northwood as they played two of the Cape’s hockey powerhouses, SACS in the morning and Paul Roos in the evening. The SACS match was a game of two halves where Northwood raced to a 3 goal half time lead after scoring all three in the space of five minutes. SACS pulled a goal back but Northwood maintained the 3-1 lead to the final whistle. The game of the festival for Northwood was definitely against one of the country’s finest teams, Paul Roos. Northwood had a clear game plan to hurt the Paul Roos defence on the counter and by half time were 4-1 up. Paul Roos scored early on in the second half and forced a penalty flicked minutes later that would have made it 4-3, however Taine Bird had other ideas who saved the flick with a diving stick save to his bottom right. After that moment the belief became a reality and Paul Roos struggled to penetrate the Northwood defence and they ran out 4-2 victors. Day three saw two regulatory wins against Dale and Potch (4-0 and 3-0 respectively). On the final day Northwood and Rondebosch faced up, being the only two teams to have won all their matches to that point, the match was set to be a ‘final’. Northwood came out firing and dominated possession and territory and found themselves 1-0 up early on. However an excellent flick from the Rondebosch captain into the hight right corner of the Northwood goal meant at the break it was all square again. The second half was controlled by the boys from Cape Town and a further 3 goals to them and only 1 for Northwood meant they lost the match 2-4.

 

In the last week of the Easter holidays, the Northwood 1^st XI travelled to the KES Festival to play a further 5 matches. On day 1 they played the early match against Johannesburg locals, St John’s. St John’s came out the blocks firing and 45 seconds into the match, Northwood found themselves 1-0 down after a blistering strike in open play from the St John’s left forward. However the Northwood boys used that as a catalyst to ‘wake-up’ and by half time were 3-1 up. The second half was played predominantly between the 23m lines until the last 3 where St John’s scored their second to make the last few minutes very frantic, but no more change in the score took place. Later that afternoon, Northwood played the hard running, physical outfit of Affies. The match was played in good spirit at a hard hitting pace that saw the teams locked at 1-1 at the half way stage. However the second half was an exhibition of hockey from Northwood who didn’t allow Affies to play at all. The game played out to a 3-1 win after one of the goals of the season from a left hand side build up and superb individual finish from Slater Capell left. The Affies keeper was incredible all week and kept the score line down in our match as well. The third match was against a destructive Menlopark team who played to break play down and not allow attacking space. The match was never in doubt after the Northwood third goal but the performance lacked somewhat, but a 3-1 win when not performing is a sign of a good side. After the dip in performance against Menlopark, the Knights then took on the hosts KES. In what was a disciplined performance from both teams, it was a single penalty flick that separated these two proud teams. The final day saw Northwood play the hockey powerhouse of Grey College (Bloem). The match was outstanding, with Grey dominating territory all of the first half and creating the lion’s share of the chances. Grey hit the post on their 1^st of two penalty corners to keep the score locked at 0-0, however their second corner with just 2 minutes to the half saw the boys from the Free State take a 1-0 lead at the break. The second half was a role reversal as Northwood changed their structure to counter the high press of Grey and within 2 minutes of the restart scores were level. The Northwood boys then just got stronger and stronger and by the end of the match had a 3-1 lead and a short corner on full time which was mistrapped but it didn’t dampen the fact that Northwood won all 5 of their KES fixtures to go unbeaten as a school for the first time since the 2013 Northwood 1^st XI.

 

In summary over Easter, the Northwood 1^st XI played 11 matches, won 10 and lost just the 1 to Rondebosch. They scored 31 goals and only conceded 13. The u16A team also went unbeaten at the u16 Founders Festival, hosted by Kearsney, in their 6 matches, winning 5 and drawing 1 and finally the u14A team also went unbeaten in their 6 matches at the annual Ken Florens Festival hosted at Northwood after winning 4 and drawing 2 of their matches.

 

On Saturday the 1^st XI played a strong Jeppe team in what was always set to be a tight affair. With both teams having been involved in successful KES Festival performances, the match started at an electric pace with Northwood threatening the Jeppe goal first with a well-flicked short corner from captain Ross Venning-Pridham was equally well-saved by Eddie Ramohlale the Jeppe goalkeeper. The match then saw Jeppe finding some passing momentum and created several short corners of their own, which both the corner defence and Taine Bird (Northwood goalkeeper) dispatched of well. The first half played out to a goalless end but the match thus far was from boring. The second half saw both teams up the intensity and determination not to allow the other an easy goal. Jeppe created the first real opportunity from field play, when a through ball was rocketed into the left-hand post without Taine moving an inch. Not long after that near miss, the Northwood goal was breached after a drag flick from Callum Birkenfield took a nasty deflection off a Northwood defender to wrong-foot Taine and flew into the net. From this moment on the game turned and Northwood pushed hard for an equaliser creating the three best chances of the match. The best being after an excellent infield break that saw Thomas King shooting off his reverse to force a save from the advancing Eddie, the ball found its way to an unmarked Cade Leaity who with only a struggling Jeppe defender left on the line blasted the ball wide. Moments later Slater Capell fired a shot over the bar and again missed after he ran the right baseline and failed to find the net after some excellent skill. The last 5 minutes was an exhibition of last ditch defending from Jeppe with a strong push from Northwood to get the scores level. However the clock ran out and Jeppe were victorious. This was one of the best school boy hockey matches I have been privileged enough to have witness and both teams deserve credit for the big shifts they put on display. Well done to Lance Louw (Jeppe 1^st XI coach) and his troops!

Northwood is proud to announce the appointment of former player, Sharks coach, and assistant coach to the Springboks, Dick Muir, as our new Director of Rugby. He will officially begin his new position at the start of the 2^nd term on 18 April as he takes over the reins from Grant Bashford, who is embarking on a new coaching venture in Japan.  Since finishing with the Springboks in 2011, Dick took on the role of Managing Director of the Investec International Rugby Academy which has kept him at the forefront of international coaching trends and cutting edge knowledge of the game. In 2016 an opportunity arose for him to assist with Northwood Crusaders Rugby, which he says once again ignited his interest in coaching. This interest at grass roots level has now come to fruition with his new appointment at Northwood – and compliments his ongoing role as Director of Northwood Crusaders Rugby Club.  On taking over from his counterpart Grant Bashford, he says has been fascinated with the difference and passion that Grant has brought to rugby at Northwood, and looks forward to the season ahead and taking Northwood into 2017 and beyond.

The KZN Youth Wind Band, under the baton of Northwood’s Russell Scott returned victorious with a Gold Award from the New York Wind Band Festival last week. The KZNYWB, featuring 2 Northwood learners – Julian Gaul and Mitchel Kruger, and two Old Boys – Chayce Tyne and Sphe Zungu – were unanimously awarded the top honour by 3 professional judges, well respected in the musical scene in New York.

Performing in the iconic Carnegie Hall was an amazing experience not to be forgotten by the young musicians from the KZNWYB.

The band’s energy and enthusiasm shone through in every performance and especially in the rehearsal exchanges where the KZNYWB was able to showcase the warmth and joy of African Music and Culture.

Besides the performance obligations, the KZNYWB members also found the time to take in some of the sights in a very cold and snowy New York City.

The 1^st XI hockey took on Kearsney on Saturday. With both teams consisting of a lot of talent, the match was always set to be an exhilarating one. Both teams started at an electric pace but it was Kearsney who drew first blood early in the match with a blistering backhand shot from Captain Luke de Vlieg which left the Northwood players and faithful’s stunned. After the initial nerves settled, it was Northwood that began to build some ascendency towards the half way break with several penalty corners and a save on the line from the Kearsney defender after Cade Leaity rounded the Kearsney keeper, however the half way mark saw Kearsney maintain their 1-0 lead. The second half was where the game came alive.  Northwood changed a few things tactically at half time and the Kearsney defence slowly began to falter. Eventually a well-worked routine from another penalty corner saw Slater Capell get onto the score-sheet with a deflection, this sparked some energy and belief and 5 minutes later Northwood took a 2-1 lead from Tyrone Stanley’s goalmouth scrambled finish. Northwood looked set for the win with merely 6 minutes of match time left after scoring their second, however Kearsney responded well and began a fight back and with some sustained pressure forced 2 more goals of their own in 2 minutes through Ben Proctor and Steven Conway. The see-saw was not over there, and the resilience of the Northwood team showed as for the last 4 minutes of the match they played with 5 strikers and only 2 defenders to push for an equaliser. An excellent turnover deep in the Kearsney half and a great counter from Northwood saw them rewarded with a foul in the D and a penalty corner on full time. The moment of truth lay on the shoulders of Captain Ross Venning-Pridham to square the game up, in front of a massive crowd who was dead-silent in anticipation, from Northwood spectators hoping for a goal to Kearsney supporters hoping for the win. The injection came and after a breakdown, a re-award unfolded and all had to watch in anticipation again. Out came the second injection, a good stop and an even better flick from Ross, under immense pressure he rose above the occasion and squared the match up 3-3!

An excellent game for all involved and all who witnessed it. The rest of the block against Kearsney was good, there were 13 matches played, 6 wins, 4 draws and only 3 losses across the board.

Match Report Courtesy of Mr Baker

Director of Hockey

Photo Images courtesy of Northwood Press Club

 

Northwood is once again proud to host a FNB Classic Clash vs Kearsney which will be televised live from Northwood by SuperSport this Saturday.

Rugby and hockey fixtures will take place throughout the day, with our  1st team hockey match starting at 10:30am and our 1^st team rugby kicking off at 2pm.

Our Northwood Parent Group (NPG) will be hard at work (and up early!) selling bacon and wors rolls, as well as soft-drinks and cuppachinos’s with a sweet treat. We ask our parents and visitors to please support this school fundraising initiative which will be found on both upper campus in the grade 11 quad and on the lower campus next to the astro.

Parking will be available at our Mackeurtan Road entrance on the lower campus field at a cost of R20 per car.

Hospitality Tea and coffee will be served from 9:30am to 11am.

We look forward to hosting a fun and competitive day of sport as we welcome Kearsney, our community, Northwood friends and family to our beautiful school.

The Northwood 1^st XI opened their season with a clinical display of mature, passing hockey against DHS on Saturday. The first 15 minutes DHS applied several waves of sustained pressure, however the Northwood defence maintained their composure and discipline to keep the ball moving away from the pressure points. Once the Northwood boys found the back of the net after a well-executed drag flick from captain Ross Venning-Pridham, the DHS team’s defence seem to fracture and more opportunities presented themselves. Slater Capell finished off a short corner move that left the ball in the top left hand corner, he then followed that with a crashing reverse stick finish and Jordan Edy tapped a ball in at far post on his debut to leave the hosts 4-0 down at the half.

The second half followed similar fashion with the Northwood boys enjoying all the possession, territory and chances. Ross Venning-Pridham was deadly from top D, scoring another two drag flicks, Slater Capell sent another reverse stick shot past the hapless DHS keeper to get his hat trick along with Ross’ and to end off the scoring. Cade Leaity rounded the DHS keeper on a 1v1 to walk the ball over the line to complete a superb performance and 8-0 win.

In the other matches, Northwood were brutal in all the games. In summary, played 6, won 6, 50 goals for and 0 against. This weekend will be a different approach against Kearsney on Saturday but the intensity and work rate will remain the same.

Report Courtesy of Mr Baker, Northwood Director of Hockey

Photo Courtesy of Mr Gow, picturing 1st XI player Tyronne Laaks