On Saturday, 15 February, Union High School hosting the first round of the ๐ฆ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ต ๐๐ฎ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐๐บ๐ฎ๐ป ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐๐ ๐ง๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฎ๐น๐.
This event has attracted 130 chess players, ranging from u/10 to Open categories, from across the district.
Among the competitors are 28 talented young Unionites who are ready to showcase their skills and represent their school.
Representing your school is always a major honour, but reaching the milestone of 50 first team caps is something that does not come around too often.
That being said, two members of the Union High School’s 1st cricket team had the honour this morning of taking the field in their 50th match for their school!
Prior to their encounter against Muir College Boys’ High School, Kariega on Saturday, 15 February, ๐ ๐ฎ๐ธ๐๐ธ๐ต๐ฎ๐ป๐๐ฒ ๐ฑ๐ฒ ๐๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ฟ and ๐ฌ๐ผ๐ป๐ฒ๐น๐ฎ ๐ช๐ฎ๐ป๐ฎ were presented with their official 50th cap by Headmaster, Mr William Pringle.
๐ ๐ฎ๐ธ๐๐ธ๐ต๐ฎ๐ป๐๐ฒ ๐ฑ๐ฒ ๐๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ฟ with Headmaster, Mr William Pringle๐ฌ๐ผ๐ป๐ฒ๐น๐ฎ ๐ช๐ฎ๐ป๐ฎ with Headmaster, Mr William Pringle
In an exciting day of cricket, Union High School’s senior cricketers faced off against Muir College Boys’ High School, Kariega today, Saturday, 15 February.
While the 2nd XI traveled to Kariega for their match, both the 1st XI and the u/15As took the field at home.
๐ช๐๐๐ ๐๐ข๐ก๐ to the 1st XI who secured a resounding victory by 100 runs.
Meanwhile, the 2nd XI also came away with a victory by 33 runs against their opponents in Kariega.
Not to be overshadowed, the u/15As also claimed a win by 3 wickets.
As the sun shines brightly over Bloemfontein this week, our ๐จ๐ญ๐ฏ๐ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐จ๐ญ๐ญ๐ ๐๐ฅ๐๐๐๐๐ง ๐ง๐๐๐ ๐ฆ are facing off against some of the top cricketing schools in the region: Grey College, Willem Postma and St Andrews’ School.
The teams are participating in a series of matches that are sure to test their mettle and sportsmanship. With a mixture of T20, 30-over and 40-over formats on the schedule, our players will have the chance to demonstrate their versatility and adaptability on the field.
RESULTS
U11A vs Grey College Union fought hard but lost to Grey College, gaining valuable experience for future matches.
U11A vs Willem Postma Union fell short chasing 185, losing the match but showing determination.
Union vs St Andrews (Friday) St Andrews set 153, and Union scored 117, despite good bowling from Mark Copeman (4-22).
Union vs St Andrews (Saturday) Union posted 96 runs; despite strong bowling from Copeman (3-12) and McEwan (2-20), St Andrews chased it down to win by 4 wickets.
U/13A
Vs Grey Bloem
Union bowled first, conceding 174-3, with Grant Murray taking 2 wickets. In reply, Union managed 86-9, with Josh Kingwill top-scoring on 23.
Vs Willem Postma Union won by 18 runs. Batting first, they posted 158 all out, with Dante Mills scoring 29. Grant Murray (4-31) led the bowling, and Willem Postma were bowled out for 140.
Vs St Andrews Bloem Union won by 17 runs. Batting first, they scored 131, with Josh Kingwill making 25. St Andrews were restricted to 114, with Hendricks, Murray, and Kingwill each taking 2 wickets.
Vs St Andrews St Andrews scored 102-6, with Cayden Thompson and Nathaneal Phillips taking 2 wickets each. Union were bowled out for 37, losing by 65 runs.
Summary U/13A won 2 out of 4 games against tough competition.
While on tour in Bloemfontein, Union High School and Union Preparatory School’s young cricketers had the privilege of participating in a training session at St Andrew’s School’s ๐๐ถ๐ป๐ฑ๐๐ฎ๐ ๐ง๐๐ฐ๐ธ๐ฒ๐๐ ๐๐ถ๐ด๐ต-๐ฃ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ๐บ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ ๐๐ฒ๐ป๐๐ฟ๐ฒ in Bloemfontein.
The boys were joined by rugby players from the ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐ฒ๐๐ฎ๐ต๐, athletes from the ๐ ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐๐บ๐ผ ๐๐ฎ๐น๐น๐ฎ๐ป๐๐ soccer team and cricketers from the ๐๐ป๐ถ๐ด๐ต๐๐.
This past Saturday, 8 February, the District Schools’ trials gala was successfully held at the Newton Park Swimming Pool in Gqeberha.
๐๐ข๐ก๐๐ฅ๐๐ง๐จ๐๐๐ง๐๐ข๐ก๐ฆ to the following Union High School swimmers who qualified to compete at the Eastern Cape Provincial Schools’ Swimming Championships scheduled to take place on 22 February in Newton Park. ๐๐ฉ๐ช๐ด ๐ค๐ฉ๐ข๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ช๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ด๐ฉ๐ช๐ฑ ๐ธ๐ช๐ญ๐ญ ๐ถ๐ฏ๐ฅ๐ฐ๐ถ๐ฃ๐ต๐ฆ๐ฅ๐ญ๐บ ๐ฑ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ด๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ต ๐ง๐ถ๐ณ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ ๐ฐ๐ฑ๐ฑ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ต๐ถ๐ฏ๐ช๐ต๐ช๐ฆ๐ด ๐ง๐ฐ๐ณ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ด๐ฆ ๐ข๐ต๐ฉ๐ญ๐ฆ๐ต๐ฆ๐ด ๐ต๐ฐ ๐ด๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ธ๐ค๐ข๐ด๐ฆ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ช๐ณ ๐ข๐ฃ๐ช๐ญ๐ช๐ต๐ช๐ฆ๐ด.
In addition to qualifying for the provincial championships, the swimmers who excel at this upcoming event will have the opportunity to be selected for the prestigious South African Schools’ Team. This national competition will take place in Bloemfontein from 6 to 9 April, presenting a significant milestone for any young athlete aspiring to reach greater heights in competitive swimming.
๐๐๐ฆ๐ง ๐ข๐ ๐๐จ๐๐ to the qualifiers as they prepare for the provincial championships.
The Union batsmen struggled to find their rhythm, managing to score a modest total of 64 runs before being bowled out.
However, the tide turned dramatically as Union took to the field for their bowling innings. Unionโs bowlers put on an impressive display, dismissing Volkskool for just 33 runs.
๐ง๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ๐ผ๐๐ ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ๐บ๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ฑ๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ ๐ง๐ถ๐บ๐ป๐ฎ ๐ค๐ผ๐บ๐ณ๐ผ, whose exceptional bowling figures included 4 overs, only 12 runs conceded and 5 wickets.
๐๐ถ๐๐ฎ ๐ ๐ฐ๐๐๐ฎ๐ป, competing in her second B-Age gala, made remarkable strides by achieving two significant personal bests. She improved her time by an impressive 1.62 seconds in the 100m Freestyle and 2.49 seconds in the 50m Freestyle.
Similarly, ๐๐ฎ๐๐ฒ ๐ฆ๐ฐ๐ผ๐๐ also participated in her second B-Age gala and made her mark by achieving a personal best in the 50m Backstroke. Her determination was evident, and her performance reflected her growth as an athlete.
๐จ๐๐ถ๐ฎ๐ต ๐ช๐ถ๐น๐น๐ฒ๐บ๐๐ฒ stood out in the competition, swimming personal bests in all four of his events. His consistent improvement signals a bright future in the sport and showcases the hard work he has invested in his training.
๐ฅ๐ฒ๐ฏ๐ฒ๐ฐ๐ฐ๐ฎ ๐๐ผ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐บ๐ฎ๐ป had a strong showing as well, securing a personal best in her 50m Breaststroke.
๐ญ๐ผรซ ๐ ๐ถ๐น๐น๐ demonstrated her competitive edge by placing in the Top 10 for all five of her events. Notably, she achieved commendable third-place finishes in both the 100m Breaststroke and the 200m Freestyle.
๐๐น๐๐๐๐ฎ ๐ง๐ฟ๐ผ๐น๐น๐ถ๐ฝ also had an outstanding day, placing in the Top 8 for all five of her events. Her impressive third place in the 100m Backstroke and a personal best of 2.26 seconds in the 100m Freestyle, where she took fifth place, showcased her dedication and skill.
Due to overwhelming demand, we’ve decided to host a second showing of our 1st team hockey girls’ highly anticipated movie night!
Join us on Tuesday evening, 18 February, at the John Rupert Theatre for the second showing of ‘Mufasa: The Lion King’.
๐ก๐ฒ๐ ๐ง๐ถ๐ฐ๐ธ๐ฒ๐ ๐๐๐ฎ๐ถ๐น๐ฎ๐ฏ๐ถ๐น๐ถ๐๐: Tickets will go on sale starting tomorrow morning, 12 February, at Union High School’s front foyer. Donโt wait too long – these tickets are expected to sell just as quickly as the first batch!
TICKETS FOR 20 FEBRUARY SOLD OUT
Join the Union High School 1st team hockey girls on Thursday evening, 20 February, for a movie night at the John Rupert Theatre in support of their 2025 fundraising efforts!
๐ง๐๐๐๐๐ง๐ฆ cost R50 each and will be available as of Monday morning, 10 February, from Ms Elsabรฉ Moos in the Union High School foyer.
Please note that ticket numbers are limited to 140, so all those wanting to attend are advised to get their ticket soonest! No tickets will be sold at the door.
This evening’s ๐๐ก๐ง๐๐ฅ๐๐ข๐จ๐ฆ๐ ๐ฆ๐ฃ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ข๐ก๐ง๐๐ฆ๐ง was a celebration of the spoken word with some extra spice thrown in due to the fact that for the first time in a while, Arnott and Daly were pitted against one another.
This year was also unusual in that the Head Prefects of Union and Arthur Kingwill House were invited to participate. With a wide range of topics to choose from, our Grade 11s and 12s spent the week writing and preparing their speeches – an admirable feat during such a very busy time.
๐ ๐ถ๐น๐ฎ๐ป๐ถ ๐ฃ๐ผ๐ป๐ด๐ผ๐บ๐ฎ’s poignant speech on ‘Choosing the Middle Seat’ had us all inspired and earned her third place. ๐ง๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฎ ๐๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐ถ๐ฟ๐ฎ’s ‘last minute’ speech on Procrastination took a well-deserved second place with ๐๐๐ถ๐๐ฒ ๐๐๐ฎ๐ป๐ฒ’s brilliantly executed speech on the Power of Storytelling earned him a standout first position.
Mr Langmead concluded the evening by sharing some valuable tips on speechmaking and all that was left was to announce ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐๐ถ๐ป๐ป๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ต๐ผ๐๐๐ฒ ๐๐ต๐ถ๐ฐ๐ต ๐๐ฎ๐ ๐๐ฎ๐น๐ ๐๐ต๐ผ ๐ฝ๐ถ๐ฝ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐๐ฟ๐ป๐ผ๐๐ ๐ฏ๐ ๐ฐ ๐ฝ๐ผ๐ถ๐ป๐๐.
This past Friday morning, 7 February, Union High School’s Top 4 senior boys’ and girls’ tennis players set off for the Van Niekerk and Koen Tennis Tournament in Burgersdorp.
Over the two days that followed, the team faced off against competitors from Middelburg, Burgersdorp, De Aar, Cradock and Hoรซrskool Jim Fouchรฉ.
The next morning, the players were once again relieved to find that the courts were dry enough for matches to start at 07:30. The boys had two remaining doubles matches against the second teams of Burgersdorp and Jim Fouchรฉ. They triumphed over Burgersdorp, winning 12-2, but faced defeat against Jim Fouchรฉ, losing 5-9.
This achievement earned them a spot in the semi-finals, where they faced Jim Fouchรฉ again. Unfortunately, Union lost this round by a narrow margin of eight games. However, due to their strong performance in the previous day’s matches, they advanced to the final round against De Aar.
The players had to start their matches immediately without a warm-up, which, combined with high stress levels, led to poor decision-making and unnecessary mistakes. De Aar ultimately claimed the trophy, winning four out of the six matches played in the final round.
