Rugby vs Saint Andrew’s School

UHS 1st XV vs St Andrews

On Saturday, 12 March, the 1st XV played against Bloemfontein’s Saint Andrew’s School at home.

After 5 minutes, Union won a free kick at a scrum on the half way line. Quick play by Kwande Mhlabeni saw the ball shifted to Sisipho Arnols who put Alutho Cekiso into space.

Sisipho ran a very good supportive line and received the inside pass back from Alutho to dot down for the 1st try.

Ill-discipline and unnecessary mistakes kept the score 5-0 for about 26 minutes. Sisipho broke the defence from a scrum and carried on scoring a fine try. This was converted by Hlaki Skepe. Union led 12-0 at half time.

A poor start to the second half, saw Saint Andrew’s score their first try after some miscommunication on defence. Hlaki Skepe converted a penalty to take the score to 15 – 7.

Union scored another try from the restart with Sisipho Arnols completing his hat-trick to take the score to 20-7 in our favour. Some terrible defence and perhaps poor decision-making saw Saint Andrew’s run in two quick tries to lead 21-20. Hlaki Skepe converted another penalty kick leading 23-21.

With 5 minutes to go, the Union boys had a chance to score after Sisipho Arnols broke the line once more. The team, however, failed to capitalize on this wonderful opportunity. In turn, Saint Andrew’s breached Union’s defence one more time to snatch it at the end and win the match 26-23.

“Although the loss was heart breaking, the lessons learned from it will be invaluable towards building the team for the season ahead,” said coach, Mr Christopher Felix. “I am proud of the boys, and I believe we can only get better from here onwards. I wish to congratulate our junior teams with some fine results achieved, well done to the players and coaches. Lastly I wish to extend our heartfelt thanks to our super crowd, the team sincerely appreciates the support.”

Union’s U/16A rugby team enjoyed a 30 – 5 𝗩𝗜𝗖𝗧𝗢𝗥𝗬 over Saint Andrew’s School.
𝗪𝗲𝗹𝗹 𝗱𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗠𝗮𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗠𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵, 𝗨𝗻𝗶𝗼𝗻’𝘀 𝗝𝗮𝘆𝗱𝗲𝗻 𝗢𝗱𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗮𝗹.
Match summary: Union won the toss and elected to play with the wind in the first half to get an early advantage. This worked in the team’s favour.
Despite the first 22 minutes of the game being riddled with penalties, the score started to climb as the game started to flow.
𝘈𝘭𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘢 𝘭𝘰𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘯𝘦, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘮 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘸𝘴 𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘱𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘢𝘭.
U/𝟭𝟱𝗔 won their match 22 – 0.  Well done to Issy Ahmed who delivered a stand-out performance.
Well done to our U/14A rugby team who won their match 31 – 0.
The young rugby lads really enjoyed their first big fixture for the season.
Although the boys struggled to find their rhythm at the start of the match, it was a wonderful display of team rugby when they eventually got going.
Fantastic defense and tackling by the Union side meant that the St Andrew’s offense couldn’t break through.
𝗠𝗮𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗠𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝗴𝗼𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗨𝗻𝗶𝗼𝗻’𝘀 𝗦𝗶𝗯𝗮𝗯𝗮𝗹𝘄𝗲 𝗠𝗯𝘂𝘁𝘆𝗲.
The 𝗨/𝟭𝟯𝗔 team played their first official rugby game of the 2022 season.  The Union team played against the wind in the first half, during which one try was scored against them. The second half went much better and Union managed to score two tries, with a strong defence and solid ball running leading to Union eventually clinching the game 12-10.
𝘞𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘥𝘰𝘯𝘦, 𝘣𝘰𝘺𝘴!
𝗨/𝟭𝟭 𝗯𝗼𝘆𝘀 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘆 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗯𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗲
On Saturday, 12 March, Union’s u/11A rugby side played their very first match of the season against the boys from Saint Andrew’s School, Bloemfontein.
The game was played on Union’s Murray Field, with the visitors eventually winning 15 – 5.
Jordan Maritz was the try scorer for Union.
The Union boys must be commended, as, not only did they display great team spirit, but a lot of heart and a never-say-die attitude, showing that they have the potential to play great rugby in the years to come.
𝘞𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘸𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘥𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘱 𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘮!

Hockey Results: 12 March

This past Saturday, 12 March, Union High School’s 1st hockey team travelled to Gqeberha to participate in an 𝗘𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗹𝘀 weekend.
Our team was drawn with some tough opposition, coming up against Collegiate, Pearson and Brandwag, but this served to bring out the best in the girls, who went on to play very attractive hockey, setting them up for what promises to be an exciting season to come.
• The 𝘂/𝟭𝟰𝘀 participated in the u/14 EP trials held at DSG in Makhanda on Sunday, 13 March.
The girls played in an Invitational Festival Team, so they had to adjust as quickly as possible to new teammates.
Congratulations to Leigh-Ann Murray, Mecoli Vorster and Mischa Newton, who played exceptionally well throughout the day.

Thank You Brian Bands!

Union High School extends a grateful word of 𝗧𝗛𝗔𝗡𝗞𝗦 to Old Unionite Mr Jason Chad Jacobs of Brian Bands Sports Graaff-Reinet for his kind donation of 𝙂𝙞𝙡𝙗𝙚𝙧𝙩 𝙧𝙪𝙜𝙗𝙮 𝙢𝙖𝙩𝙘𝙝 𝙗𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙨 for the 2022 rugby season.
𝘞𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘦𝘹𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘭𝘺 𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘧𝘶𝘭!
Mr Jacobs is seen here with Mr Christopher Felix, Union High School’s 1st team rugby coach.

Pianists Excel In Piano Examinations

Congratulations to Grade 12 learners 𝗝𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗲 𝗝𝗮𝗳𝘁𝗵𝗮 and 𝗕𝗮𝗿𝗯𝗮𝗿𝗮 𝗠𝗰𝗡𝗮𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝗼𝗻, who recently participated in the Rockschool Classical Grade 7 Graded Examinations.
Jamie Jaftha was awarded 91% (Distinction) for her efforts, while Barbara McNaughton achieved 83% (Merit).
Both learners have been playing piano for five to eight years and have extended their advanced level playing.
They have mastered the key skills up to Grade 6 and developed notable security of appropriate techniques, use of expressive devices, rhythmic complexity, fluency and musical understanding.
𝘍𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘴𝘵 𝘦𝘹𝘢𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘩𝘢𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮 𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘛𝘦𝘤𝘩𝘯𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘌𝘹𝘦𝘳𝘤𝘪𝘴𝘦𝘴, 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘚𝘵𝘺𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘤 𝘚𝘵𝘶𝘥𝘺 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘗𝘦𝘳𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘗𝘪𝘦𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘶𝘰𝘶𝘴 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘮𝘮𝘦.
According to Ms Zelda van Rooyen, their music educator, they demonstrated strong musical form and structure, mature and authentic stylistic awareness and excellent interpretation of each piece.
𝙏𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙠 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙙𝙞𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙘𝙞𝙨𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙠, 𝙜𝙞𝙧𝙡𝙨!

7-to-5 Golden Rule

Dear Parents

Please take note of Union High School’s new “7-to-5 Golden Rule”.  This involves not sending a school-related message or e-mail to teachers or our admin staff before 07:00 in the morning and after 17:00 in the evening, and preferably not over a weekend (unless there is a specific school-related activity taking place).

Thank you!

Hockey results: 5 & 6 March

2022 Spar Schoolgirls’ Hockey Challenge

This past Sunday, 6 March, saw Union High School’s 1st team hockey girls participate in the annual Spar Schoolgirls’ Hockey Challenge hosted by DSG in Makhanda.

The opening match saw Union take on DSG in what was a heated encounter.  The match started at high speed with DSG putting Union under early pressure, however, they couldn’t find the back of the net.  The Union team showed great determination and stuck to its defensive principles. They created seven counter attack opportunities, but DSG’s goal keeper had a good performance and kept a clean sheet.  The match saw DSG beat Union 1-0.

Union’s next match was against VGHS.  Due to lack of concentration, and underestimating the opposition, Union started the game poorly. With Kendall Krige injured in the first match the girls struggled to adapt to new positions. VGHS pounced on this and scored early in the first half.  Throughout the match Union created a lot of opportunities – 14 short corners and 34 circle entries – but couldn’t score.  VGHS struggled against the pace and skill of the Union player.  The match saw lose 0 – 1 to VGHS.

Union’s final match was against Brandwag.  Based on the previous game’s result, the girls had a point to prove. Union created numerous goal scoring opportunities but could not find the net.  The second half saw the girls focused and determined to win. They were rewarded with 4 great goals.  Union won this encounter 4 – 0.

Well done to Kendal krige for winning the Bravery award and Misha Newton for winning a Spar gift bag.

Captain Chloe Shires and her team must be commended on their performance throughout this tournament.  

Union High School’s u/16B and second team 𝗛𝗢𝗖𝗞𝗘𝗬 girls travelled to Somerset East on Saturday morning, 5 March, to participate in Gill College‘s annual Sports Day.
The day saw the 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺 draw 1-all against Victoria Girls’ High School, beat Brandwag’s 2nds 4 – 0 and draw 1-all against Burgersdorp’s first team.
The 𝘂/𝟭𝟲𝗕’𝘀 faced off against Hangklip and Templeton’s first teams, losing them 0-3 and 0-2, respectively.
𝘎𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵 𝘦𝘧𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘵, 𝘨𝘪𝘳𝘭𝘴!

Rugby Results: 5 March 2022

UHS 1st XV vs Andrew Rabie: 5 March 2022

On Saturday, 5 March, Union High School’s 1st XV travelled to Somerset East to participate in the Gill College Sports Day.

After two years of Covid, fifteen boys finally played their very first match in the treasured white jersey.

After a slow start to their match against their Andrew Rabie counterparts, Union found their rhythm and produced waves and waves of attack, which they, unfortunatelty, couldn’t convert.

Twenty minutes in, Andrew Rabie scored the first points of the match. This, however, fired the Union boys up and they responded almost immediately with a try through JJ Liebenberg, leaving the halftime score to stand at 5-5.

The Union team enjoyed a much better start to the second half.

They were relentless on attack and resolute in defence. After a brilliant passage of play where captain Sisipho Arnols broke the line, a ruck was set up just outside the 22 of Andrew Rabie. Alutho Cekiso produced a moment of magic, dancing around the defenders, which resulted in a try being scored by Xhamla Magubeni.

Union ran in another two tries through Siya Badiwe and JJ Liebenberg.

Well done to the 1st XV on winning the match 20 – 5.

Union’s u/16A team also participated in the Gill College Sports Day, winning their match against Cradock 8 – 7. Well done, boys!

 

Cricket: U/13A vs Muir College

On Saturday, 5 March, Union’s 𝗨/𝟭𝟯𝗔 𝗖𝗥𝗜𝗖𝗞𝗘𝗧𝗘𝗥𝗦 travelled to Uitenhage to play a match against Muir College.
Union lost the toss and were put in to bat first. 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗞𝗿𝗮𝗮𝗶 and 𝗥𝗶𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗠𝘂𝗿𝗿𝗮𝘆 consolidated the innings after an early wicket, making a partnership of 50 runs.
Union managed to score 122 runs. Union’s best batsmen were 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗞𝗿𝗮𝗮𝗶 (44) and 𝗥𝗶𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗠𝘂𝗿𝗿𝗮𝘆 (39).
Muir then went in to bat and got off to a good start, however, disciplined bowling from the Union side led to a fall of wickets in quick succession. The Muir batsmen were all bowled out for 70 runs.
Union’s best bowlers were 𝗥𝗶𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗠𝘂𝗿𝗿𝗮𝘆 and 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗞𝗿𝗮𝗮𝗶 who each took three wickets.
𝗨𝗻𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘄𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝗯𝘆 𝟱𝟮 𝗿𝘂𝗻𝘀.
𝘞𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘥𝘰𝘯𝘦, 𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴!

Young Leaders Empowered

On Wednesday evening, 2 March, Union High School’s prefects joined those from Nqweba Secondary School, Hoër Volkskool, Spandau Secondary School and Asherville Secondary School, at the second annual 𝗬𝗢𝗨𝗧𝗛 𝗟𝗘𝗔𝗗𝗘𝗥𝗦𝗛𝗜𝗣 𝗦𝗨𝗠𝗠𝗜𝗧 in Graaff-Reinet.
The event, which was held at the Profcon Resort, was a Prescient Foundation SCI project, organised by Mrs Hestie Clegg.
The 𝗔𝗜𝗠 of this annual summit is to gather the young leaders of Graaff-Reinet in a single forum to share their contributions, experiences, and knowledge on pertinent issues and to motivate these youngsters to be good leaders in their respective schools and communities.
Through the course of the afternoon, Mr Luphumlo T Joka, founding director of Global Leadership Consultants, a leadership and business development firm based in Port Elizabeth, introduced the learners to various qualities and challenges of leadership. The day was filled with fun, exciting and challenging moments to help these learner leaders identify and maximize their leadership skills, create a local network of peers, and obtain the tools and training to make positive change happen in their community and school.
𝘜𝘯𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘪𝘴 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘵𝘰𝘸𝘢𝘳𝘥𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘍𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯, 𝘢𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘢𝘴 𝘔𝘳 𝘑𝘰𝘬𝘢, 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘷𝘢𝘭𝘶𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘦 𝘰𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘢𝘧𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘨 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴.

Speech Competition

“𝘞𝘦 𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘬 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬. 𝘚𝘱𝘦𝘦𝘤𝘩 𝘪𝘴 𝘢 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩𝘵.” – 𝗢𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗦𝗮𝗰𝗸𝘀
Having the confidence to speak well is such an important life skill. While for many, the idea of public speaking may invoke a sense of trepidation, that certainly wasn’t evident among the many learners who took to the stage these past two weeks to deliver their prepared speeches to the audiences at Union High School’s 𝗦𝗘𝗡𝗜𝗢𝗥 𝗔𝗡𝗗 𝗝𝗨𝗡𝗜𝗢𝗥 𝗦𝗣𝗘𝗘𝗖𝗛 𝗘𝗩𝗘𝗡𝗜𝗡𝗚𝗦.
Overall the standard of the learners’ speeches were very high, and, regardless of the age group, their confidence was astonishing.
𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙩𝙤𝙥 𝙤𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙨 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙖𝙨 𝙛𝙤𝙡𝙡𝙤𝙬𝙨:
Grade 8: Endinako Jadezweni
Grade 9: Erin Gedult
Grade 10: Sobuhle Njambali
Grade 11: Caitrin Spence
Grade 12: Kendall Krige
𝗪𝗘𝗟𝗟 𝗗𝗢𝗡𝗘!