For the first time in five years, the SASHOC National Week title will not be heading back to the Western Cape.
It took a remarkable and unforgettable performance from KwaZulu-Natal Coastal A to beat Western Province A in the boys’ final at St Anne’s DSG in Hilton on Saturday.
The KZN outfit trailed 1-4 with five minutes to play in the final chukka but showed outstanding guts, grit, and character to score three goals and send the match to a penalty shootout.
They then won the shootout 3-1 to dethrone Province A and win their first inter-provincial title since 2018.
Both teams had similar runs to the final after being paired in Pool A.
In their group stage meeting on Thursday, Coastal A defeated Province A 2-1, so the belief that they could do it again on the biggest stage was there.
In the semifinals, Coastal A edged out Boland A 3-2, while Western Province relied on a sudden-death penalty shootout to beat Eastern Province A 5-4 after their match ended in a 2-2 draw.
It was the first time since 2022 that Western Province and KZN Coastal had met in a final. That year, Province won 4-1. For a long time, it appeared as if that result would be repeated on Saturday.
The final delivered drama and more than one twist in the tail, with opportunities being missed, some cracking goals being scored, and plenty of cards being dished out.
The locals got off to a cracking start and opened the scoring with only a minute played. Christopher Abrahams made a storming run inside the circle, and his pass across was met by Daniel Holliday, who calmly converted to set the partisan home crowd roaring.
Western Province took some time to get into the game. They won some short corners, but their execution in the final third let them down.
Coastal thought they had made it 2-0 late in the first chukka when Luc Boyall scored a cracker, but his effort was disallowed for obstruction.
It was just a matter of time before WP equalised, though, as they pressed hard. Their opener came in the second chukka.
Georg Wolhuter made some good saves in the Coastal goal, but when Luc Dicey latched onto a loose ball after a dangerous run inside the circle by skipper Mohlodi Maseko, he was unable to prevent the goal.
At the break, the teams were deadlocked 1-1, but coach Jody Erasmus’s half-time message sparked Western Province to life.
They scored two goals in the third chukka, both by their impressive captain, Maseko, to open up a 3-1 lead and give themselves some breathing room.
Discipline inhibited Province, though. They were shown two yellow cards and three green cards, but Coastal couldn’t capitalise on the numbers’ advantage.
Early in the fourth chukka, Province made it 4-1 through a Jacques van Dyk thunderbolt drag flick across the ‘keeper.
It looked to be all over bar the singing, with Western Province set to lift a sixth successive title. However, coach Harold Siyaya‘s boys hadn’t conceded the game. That deficit served only to spur them to greater heights.
The comeback started with a tap-in goal by Jessie van Wyk after some lacklustre defending by Province.
A minute later, Tyhil Naidoo could hardly t believe his luck when the ball bobbled in front of him, and his stick connection was good, resulting in his side’s third goal.
By then, the atmosphere around the ground had changed, and Coastal believed a fourth goal was in reach.
They quickly played the ball upfield, and Luc Boyall won a short corner, which then resulted in a penalty stroke.
Coach Siyaya turned to Tye Milne, who has been “Mr Reliable” from the penalty spot. He showed composure and made no mistake, dispatching the ball past Arin Spiller to level matters at 4-4 with time almost up on the clock.
Province, though, forced a penalty corner of their own in the dying seconds, but Coastal goalkeeper Georg Wolhuter denied Maseko’s strike, and the game went to a penalty shootout.
Wolhuter then stood tall in the shootout, with Callum Anderson, Jacques van Dyk, and Maseko all failing to score, while Milne and Ryde Brisset scored for Coastal A.
Daniel de Wet converted his attempt to make it 2-1 before Christopher Abrahams was fouled by Spiller, resulting in a stroke.
Milne stepped up again and converted to win the title for his side and break Western Province hearts.
“I couldn’t be prouder of this team. We worked hard for this,” Coastal A captain Ryde Brisset said after the match.
“In November last year, we said we’re not leaving IPT without winning anything, and to come out with the trophy is special.”
Despite trailing by three goals heading into the final chukka, the skipper said he and his team were up for the challenge. “There was always belief,” he reckoned.
“After the third chukka talk, we believed that we had to keep pushing, and the only way they could beat us was by going 5-0 up. We just kept pushing, and we eventually came back.
“It’s incredible.”
Results:
Western Province B 1: Noah Jansen. Northern Gauteng A 0.
Eastern Province (3) 1: Zacharee McLean. Boland A (2) 1: Luka Meets.
KZN Coastal B 3: Dylan Forbes, Caleb Phipson, Murray Wicks. Southern Free State A 2: Eben Stander, Ethan Seager.
Southern Gauteng A 2: Kamohelo Tsoka, Blaine Candy. Boland B 0.
KZN Inland A 2: Andile Lembethe, Oyena Zulu. Mpumalanga 1: Mohammed Cassiem.
KZN Coastal A (3) 4: Daniel Holiday, Jessie van Wyk, Tyhil Naidoo, Tye Milne. Western Province A (1) 4: Mohlodi Maseko (2), Luc Dicey, Jacques van Dyk.
2026 final standings:
KZN Coastal A
Western Province A
Eastern Province A
Boland A
Western Province B
Northern Gauteng A
Southern Gauteng B
Boland B
KZN Inland A
Mpumalanga A
KZN Coastal B
Southern Free State A
