SuperSport Schools News | Menlopark will take it a game at a time at the Fairtree Super 12

Menlopark is ready to take on the best in the country at the Fairtree Super 12. Photo: Supplied.

Hoërskool Menlopark won’t take anything for granted from the moment they reach Bloemfontein for the Fairtree Super 12 Tournament.

“I feel that the Super 12 is a very good opportunity for young players to express themselves fully,” Chanette Jansen van Vuuren, the Menlopark captain, told SuperSport Schools News.

“There are no easy games, and that really pushes you to give it your all every second. I am looking forward to my fifth Super 12, especially with this talented group by my side.”

The ladies from Pretoria have some warm-up games lined up ahead of the showpiece, which runs from 6-9 August.

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“We know we have to work for every moment, every quarter, every game. We are looking forward to the challenge,” Brad Brook, the Menlopark head coach, said.

While they won’t get ahead of themselves by dreaming about glory, replicating the achievement of their 2018 side, which won the tournament, is a goal they’ve surely considered.

“We haven’t been happy with our results [in the Super 12] over the past few years, but we are ready to rectify that,” Brook reckoned.

Menlopark finished 12th in 2024 and ninth in 2025. They know taking on the best teams in the country requires excellence and consistency, and they’ll be quietly confident that they have what it takes to go all the way. They’ve flown under the radar in 2026, quietly building an impressive CV.

Brook’s charges dominated the Northerns A-League and won the title. They were also unbeaten in the competition, conceding only one goal on their way to lifting the trophy.

They demonstrated their quality against top opposition when they reached the final of the St Mary’s Waverley Festival, where they failed to topple a resurgent Oranje side.

Brook’s charges also scripted an unbeaten run at the St Stithians Easter Hockey Festival and added the NWU Puk Series trophy to their collection of silverware.

“It’s a privilege to have qualified for the Super 12. But it’s a testament to the hard work the girls have put in this year,” Brook said.

Menlopark’s teamwork has been a leading cause of their success. However, three players have been mainstays of their efforts, with that trio earning national recognition.

Annika Kloppers, their goalkeeper, was selected for the SA u18A team, Monique Gerber cracked the SA u16A nod, and their captain, Chanette Janse van Vuuren, was included in the SA u18B squad.

Menlopark is in Pool B, where they will face the Western Cape’s Rhenish and Herschel ahead of the knockout stage of the tournament. To prepare for the Super 12, they’ll take on a North West University Invitational side and the NWU 2nd XI.

“We are looking forward to testing ourselves against the best in the country. With the new format, every game is a knockout. But the girls are ready for the challenge,” Brook said.

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CS Chiwanza

CS Chiwanza is a former poet and now a full-time storyteller of Southern African sports. He jokes that those who can't do a thing well enough either teach or write. He knows the right way to hold a cricket bat and the right grip for the wobbleball, but can't do either well enough to be picked for a good team. So he writes. However, he mastered the best dart grip and spends hours stat-padding against his wife and kids.