The Association of Public Boys’ Schools of South Africa (APBSA) Football Festival kicked off on Wednesday morning at Pretoria Boys High (PHBS), with teams from the Eastern Cape, Free State, KwaZulu-Natal, Western Cape, Northern Cape, and Gauteng gathered in Pretoria for three days of football.
Grey College, from the Free State, opened their account with a close 1-0 victory over Potchefstroom High School for Boys.
The hosts, PHBS, faced a challenging start and fell to a 0-1 defeat to Wynberg Boys’ High. In the afternoon, they were held to a goalless draw by Kimberley Boys’ High.
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Unpredictability is the name of the game at the APBSA Football Festival. At last year’s event, Grey College didn’t reach their usual lofty standards. On Wednesday, though, it was Glenwood High, the champions of the Mancosa KwaZulu-Natal High Schools Football Association (KZNHSFA) Coastal A-League, who found themselves in that boat, unexpectedly falling to a 1-3 loss to Parktown Boys’ High.
Following that match, Kimberley Boys’ High scored a 2-1 victory over Rondebosch Boys’ High. Jeppe High School for Boys, whose performance has fluctuated in recent seasons, picked up a 3-1 win over Bloemfontein’s St Andrew’s School.
Queen’s College and Dale College brought their longstanding rivalry to Pretoria, with Queen’s, from Komani, securing a 3-0 victory over Dale.
Just before lunchtime, King Edward VII (KES), last year’s hosts, mustered a narrow 1-0 win over Wynberg Boys’ High, while Northwood recorded a convincing 3-0 victory over Springs Boys’ High.
Following a midday break, Parktown Boys’ High shared a 1-1 draw with Potchefstroom High School for Boys.
Beaten by Parktown in their first match, Glenwood’s Green Machine suffered a second defeat, losing 0-3 to Springs Boys’ High in the afternoon. Grey College, however, secured a second win, edging out Queen’s College 1-0.
Northwood’s Knights bagged a second victory, beating Dale College 3-0, while Jeppe finished the day with two wins from two starts after downing Rondebosch Boys’ High 4-2.
St Andrew’s School concluded the day with a resounding 3-0 win over KES.
RESULTS
Day One: Wednesday, 15 July
Grey College 1-0 Potch HSB
Wynberg Boys’ High 1-0 Pretoria Boys High
Parktown Boys’ High 3-1 Glenwood
Kimberley Boys’ High 2-1 Rondebosch Boys’ High
Jeppe 3-1 St Andrew’s School
Queen’s College 3-0 Dale College
KES 1-0 Wynberg Boys’ High
Northwood 3-0 Springs Boys’ High
Parktown Boys’ High 1-1 Potch HSB
Springs Boys’ High 3-0 Glenwood
Grey College 1-0 Queen’s College
Northwood 3-0 Dale College
Pretoria Boys High 0-0 Kimberley Boys’ High
Jeppe 4-2 Rondebosch Boys’ High
St Andrew’s School 3-0 KES
