Flair and speed set the tempo, but clinical precision proved to be the winning recipe in Saturday’s King Price Derby Series match between SACS and Wynberg Boys’ High on Memorial A Field in Cape Town.
Wynberg Boys’ High flyhalf, Achmat Behardien, scored the first of his two tries and put in a cheeky chip, which sat up kindly and led to a try for eighthman Esa van der Schyff, to help the visitors into a 24-19 lead at the break.
While the SA U18 flyhalf sparkled, it was SACS lock, RJ Cunningham, who was crowned the King of the Match. He got through a mountain of work on defence, excelling especially at stopping the rolling maul.
The big second rower, along with props Deen Fortuin and Luca Liebenberg, also powered over for a try.
In the end, solid basics beat flair and finesse as the Newlands school won the southern suburbs’ derby 44-29.
It was the first win for SACS over Wynberg since June 2024. The visitors had won four in a row before Saturday’s setback.
The ‘Berg rolling maul started strongly, with hooker Naeem Mohammed going over for five in typical fashion early on. SACS adapted, however, and pretty much shut down the maul threat after the opening 10 minutes.
Once the hosts had taken the lead in the second half, flyhalf Jake Dave managed the game brilliantly. He kicked deep downfield towards the corners of enemy territory, thus forcing them to attack from poor positions.
Inside centre James Sale was another star who burnt brightly. His contribution included breaking the Wynberg defensive line with a well-worked run before putting left-wing Luke McKenzie into space for a try in the left corner.
At the final whistle, SACS had secured a sweet victory after demonstrating plenty of grit in some tight defeats against tough opposition.
They finished their 2026 campaign with nine wins and nine losses, but will take plenty of positives out of the season.
As for Wynberg, they’ll feel frustrated to have lost their final match. That left them with four wins in the southern suburbs’ derbies, second to Rondebosch Boys’ High, who beat Wynberg the previous weekend and won for the fifth time by beating Bishops on Saturday.
SACS won three from six, while Bishops went winless against their traditional rivals.
Looking at the bigger picture, Wynberg won 10 of their 16 matches in 2026, scoring notable victories over Rondebosch, SACS, Grey High School, and Boland Landbou.
Scorers:
SACS 44 (19) – Tries: Deen Fortuin, Luke McKenzie, RJ Cunningham, Luca Liebenberg, Luca Orgill, James Sale. Conversions: Jake Dave (4). Penalties: Dave (2). Wynberg Boys’ High 29 (24) – Tries: Achmat Behardien (2), Naeem Mohammed, Esa van der Schyff. Conversions: Behardien (3). Penalty: Behardien.
Other results:
U19
II: SACS 7 Wynberg 33.
III: SACS 17 Wynberg 17.
IV: SACS 20 Wynberg 19.
V: SACS 22 Wynberg 22.
VI: SACS 12 Wynberg 41-12.
VII: SACS 17 Wynberg 15.
U16
A: SACS 7 Wynberg 31.
B: SACS 21 Wynberg 34.
C: SACS 13 Wynberg 7.
D: SACS 17 Wynberg 5.
U15
A: SACS 7 Wynberg 31.
B: SACS 5 Wynberg 14.
C: SACS 28 Wynberg 12.
D: SACS 12 Wynberg 12.
U14
A: SACS 17 Wynberg 17.
B: SACS 13 Wynberg 15.
C: SACS 10 Wynberg 17.
D: SACS 8 Wynberg 14.
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