Jesse van Wyk scored a brace in Durban High School’s (DHS) thrilling 3-2 win over Jeppe High School for Boys on the Blue and Gold AstroTurf at DHS on Saturday morning.
“Our ability to counterattack was good. It’s something we have been speaking about,” Keegan Hezlett, the DHS coach, said afterwards.
“Sometimes, we are a little bit too slow when it’s our main threat. So, coming into this match, we spoke about being more direct in our counterattacks.”
Jeppe arrived at DHS seeking their second win over a KZN team in the week after scoring a 2-0 victory at Michaelhouse on Thursday. However, DHS had the answers to the questions Jeppe posed.
The Horseflies played with a plan, trying not to play too much hockey in the middle of the field in their own half. Instead, they spread it wide to the flanks. Once in the opposition half, they either went direct or utilised the wings to put pressure on Jeppe.
Their preference for the wide channels quickly reaped rewards. Christopher Abrahams, who enjoyed a stellar outing, made a brilliant run down the wing to the baseline before laying off to Matt Potgieter, who slapped it cross to Jesse van Wyk for a tap-in goal.
Entertaining but goalless hockey followed, all the way into the fourth chukka. Jeppe made industrious runs into the DHS half, and the hosts made their own forays into the opposition half without success.
“We were a little bit rusty defensively, not having played as a team in a while. That showed a little. But guys had big moments and made big contributions in defence,” Hezlett said.
Jeppe, who enjoyed extended periods of possession, eventually pierced the Horseflies’ defence three minutes into the final quarter, when Kgotso Lehloenya threaded the ball from close to the top of the circle into the back of the net.
With enthusiastic backing from their supporters, DHS restored their lead less than two minutes later through Sandi Mazibuko. Elshaan Lubbe created the opportunity, forcing a turnover in the midfield before sending a precise pass through a gap to Mazibuko, who flipped the ball into the far corner.
Stung, Jeppe was unrelenting in their quest to leave DHS with a positive result, and their heavy pressure yielded a goal from Jarryd Gordon-Watt with eight minutes left on the clock.
The leveller breathed new life into the visitors, who threw everything at the DHS defence, but the home side stood firm. Oyinthanda Ngejani, who operated on the right side of the Horseflies’ defence, put in an incredible shift, denying Jeppe opportunities to enter the circle while forcing numerous turnovers.
Then, in the final moments of the game, the DHS counterattack worked perfectly. Again, Abrahams was to the fore. He carried the ball down the left channel, eliminated two in-field players, and then sent the scoring pass across for Jesse van Wyk to tap it in on the far post.
Result
Durban High School 3-2 Jeppe High School for Boys
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