On 16 May, a friendly football game was played between Rustenburg and a group of students visiting South Africa to study English at Bayswater Centre. Thirty young girls and boys arrived in three buses, excited to play some football. Most of them did not speak much English, but luckily sport is a universal language and the rules of play remain the same regardless of which part of the world you live in!
This was an afternoon filled with great laughter and making new friends. Thank you to the Rustenburg Football players for representing the school so well.
Squash
The Western Province Youth Squash League continued on 29 May. While Rustenburg A1 had a bye game, Rustenburg A2 played against Fairbairn High School. Despite the challenges of load shedding, and exams, the players showed up and gave their best performance. Well done to the players. Thank you for your commitment and for always showing up and representing the school well. Rustenburg A2 won all their games and won with an overall score of 14-0.
The results were as follows:
| Player | Games | Player | Games |
| Rustenburg A1 | Fairbairn High School | ||
| Isla Barbour | 3 | Player 1 | 0 |
| Morgan Hunter | 3 | Player 2 | 0 |
| Jocelyn Chen | 3 | Player 3 | 0 |
| Grace Bowley | 3 | Player 4 | 0 |
Football
The Schools Soccer League continued on Thursday 1 June with Rustenburg’s 2nd team playing against the 2nd team of Wynberg Girls’ High School. The day was cold and it had been pouring with rain the entire week. Despite the cold wet weather, Rustenburg was ready to face their very strong competitors. The team got on the football field and gave a nail-biting performance. The first half saw Rustenburg leading 3-0. This however motivated the Wynberg team as they pushed in the 2nd half to equalize. Before the last whistle blew, they scored the winning 4th goal which gave them the chance to win the match. The 2nd team lost 3-4. Regardless of the score, the team gave it their all and we are proud of them.
Result:
| School | Games | School | Games |
| Rustenburg 2nd Team | 3 | Wynberg High School 2nd Team | 4 |
Netball
Monday 29 MAY: FISH HOEK HIGH SCHOOL – LEAGUE MATCH 3
It has been an incredibly cold and wet season so far with many games having been postponed. The fixture against Fish Hoek was no different as all B, C and D team games were cancelled due to the inclement weather expected on Monday 29 May. Fish Hoek High had arranged that only A-teams would play in their indoor centre to fulfil the fixture. It wasn’t without any challenges either, as the last 2 matches suffered at least an hour of load shedding as well. Nevertheless, games took place and some awesome Netball was on show from our A-teams.
Our four A-teams travelled to Fish Hoek early on Monday afternoon to compete in the second last round of the league, where only our U15A’s walked away with a win. We had two close finishes from the First team and the U16A team. All results vs Fish Hoek High are as follows:
Results vs Fish Hoek High School:
| Opponent | Result | Scores |
| U14 A | Lost | 5 – 16 |
| U15 A | Won | 16 – 6 |
| U16 A | Lost | 8 – 10 |
| U19 A | Lost | 10 – 18 |
Thursday 1 June: REDDAM HOUSE CONSTANTIA SCHOOL LEAGUE MATCH 4
On a lovely sunny afternoon, after all the week’s rain, we hosted Reddam House Constantia to play the fourth and final league matches of the season.
Six matches took place on RGHS courts, where we picked up superb wins from the U14B and U16B’s. The quality of Netball on display was fantastic, especially within the A-team games. Our players needed to step up to the challenge and found it difficult to shake the opposition’s composure on the court. There were some valiant efforts by our U14 and U16 A teams who lost narrowly at the final whistle. A few mistakes here and there cost us some valuable turnovers, but nothing that can’t be fixed in training with our U15As. A tough defeat for our First Team, with some work to look forward to in the build-up to Term 3 Derby’s and the PGSGU Tournament.
Results vs Reddam House Constantia:
| Opponent | Result | Scores |
| U14 A | Lost | 19 – 20 |
| U14 B | Won | 23 – 6 |
| U15 A | Lost | 13 – 18 |
| U16 A | Lost | 11 – 13 |
| U16 B vs U15B | Won | 26 – 9 |
| U19 A | Lost | 17 – 39 |
Friday, 2 June: CTHSN – PLAY-OFFS U14B, U16B & U19B AT RUSTENBURG GIRLS’ HIGH
Our U14B, U16B and U19B teams finished top of Pool A of the Southern Zone First league of the Cape Town High Schools Netball and played in a play-off against the winners of Pool B. The winners would then go on to compete against the Northern Zone First League winners to determine outright winners of the First League.
The U16B’s and U19B’s both lost their games, but the U14B’s won their match and went on to reach the finals. All three teams played incredibly well in the playoffs, despite a windy afternoon at RGHS. Well done to all players in those three teams on an incredible effort. We are proud of every team who showcased their talents and represented the school with tenacity and hard work.
Results: CTHSN PLAY-OFFS [POOL 1 vs POOL 2] AT RUSTENBURG GIRLS HIGH
| Opponent | Result | Scores |
| U14B vs Herschel | Won | 14 – 13 |
| U16B vs Herschel | Lost | 13 – 21 |
| U19B vs Herschel | Lost | 12 – 13 |
Saturday, 3 June: CTHSN – FINALS U14B vs MELKBOSTRAND HIGH AT FISH HOEK HIGH (INDOOR CENTRE)
After an incredible match the day before, and advancing to the finals, the U14B’s had to contest against the U14B Melkbosstrand side. RGHS entered the gates with only 6 players on the day. The game continued as scheduled and our Rustybugs were not so Rusty. The RGHS U14B team put in a considerable effort to stay in the game, coming back from a first half 10-5 to Melkbos, and reaching the full-time whistle 18-all. Our gritty Grade 8’s took the game to extra time until a winner could be determined by a 2-point lead. The quality of Netball was wonderful to watch, especially from our B side as the underdogs of the day. The match ended 24-22 to Melbosstrand in the end, but what a fight from our young stars.
Results: CTHSN FINALS [SOUTH VS NORTH] AT FISH HOEK HIGH:
| Opponent | Result | Scores |
| U14B vs Melkbostrand | Lost | 18 – 18 (FT) 22 – 24 (extra-time) |
PROVINCIAL NETBALL SELECTION
Congratulations to our very own Eliora Kanku (Grade 9) and Bohlale Lesoetsa (Grade 8) on their selection in this year’s Provincial Netball teams. Eliora was selected for the Western Cape U15 Oakes Team, while Bohlale was selected for the CTHSN Inter-District U14 Team. Both learners will be competing in the respective teams during the June-July school holidays. We would like to wish them all of the best in their preparations and competition.
Hockey
The nights are getting longer and colder, but the action on the field is most certainly not. After a few tough results for our teams in recent weeks, it was time for a change in fortune, but the opposition was not going to let us have it easy.
We welcomed our PGSGU neighbours from St Cyprian’s to Rustenburg for our third league matches of the season on Friday 26 May and Saturday 27 May. An awesome team of Rustenburg parents once again had spectators salivating with the smell of burgers being braaied and delicious hot chocolate being sold on Friday evening.
The stage was set for some hockey action. Our weekly load-shedding woes continued, and we were forced to play some games at St Cyprian’s, and some games were played on Saturday morning.
Sadly, our incredibly keen U16D team was unable to get a match, as St Cyprian’s doesn’t have a U16D team.
The U19A team played some scintillating hockey, particularly in the second half, bouncing back from successive defeats to win their first league game of the season.
Please see results vs St Cyprian’s below.
| Date | Team | Opposition | Result | Scorers |
| 27 May 2023 | RGHS U14A | SCS U14A | RGHS lost 0-3 | |
| 26 May 2023 | RGHS U14B | SCS U14B | RGHS won 2-1 | Nuha Khan & Kayla Malherbe |
| 27 May 2023 | RGHS U14C | SCS U14C | RGHS won 3-0 | Riley Bester, Molly Ellard & Philippa du Toit |
| 27 May 2023 | RGHS U16A | SCS U16A | RGHS lost 0-2 | |
| 26 May 2023 | RGHS U16B | SCS U16B | RGHS won 3-0 | Isabella Webber, Maya de Villiers & Robyn White |
| 27 May 2023 | RGHS U16C | SCS U16C | RGHS drew 2-2 | Zoe Bailey x 2 |
| 26 May 2023 | RGHS U19A | SCS U19A | RGHS won 4-1 | Amber de Villiers x 2 & Lucy Kane x 2 |
| 26 May 2023 | RGHS U19B | SCS U19B | RGHS drew 0-0 | |
| 26 May 2023 | RGHS U19C | SCS U19C | RGHS lost 2-3 | Robyn-Lee Solomon & Caitlyn Barrable |
The hockey hero of the week is Loren-Kate Dicks. Unable to play for her U19B team, Loren bravely put on a goalkeeper kit to help out the U19C team who were stuck without a goalkeeper. Despite having never played keeper before, Loren put on a display that might have her stuck with that goalkeeper kit for a while. Thank you to Loren for saving the day. You are the Hero of the Week.
RGHS vs Fairmont/Bellville
With illness continuing to wreak havoc among schools, we found ourselves in a situation where some matches had to once again be postponed. U14A and U19A fixtures against Fairmont have been postponed to term 3.
The games that were played brought about excitement for those supporters who braved the icy winds, with the storm looming. As a result of Fairmont not having sufficient teams to play against us, friendly matches were organized against Bellville High School on Saturday morning. We are grateful to Bellville for allowing all of our teams the opportunity to play a match on the weekend.
Results vs Fairmont and Bellville below:
| Date | Team | Opposition | Result | Scorers |
| RGHS U14A | POSTPONED | |||
| 2 June 2023 | RGHS U14B | FAIRMONT U14B | Won 2-0 | Kayla Malherbe & Nuha Khan |
| 3 June 2023 | RGHS U14C | BELLVILLE U14B | Won 3-1 | Saffa Baderoen x 2, Hannah Laughton |
| 2 June 2023 | RGHS U16A | FAIRMONT U16A | Lost 0-1 | |
| 2 June 2023 | RGHS U16B | FAIRMONT U16B | Lost 0-1 | |
| 2 June 2023 | RGHS U16C | FAIRMONT U16C | Won 2-0 | Zoe Bailey x 2 |
| 3 June 2023 | RGHS U16D | BELLVILLE U19C | Lost 0-7 | |
| RGHS U19A | POSTPONED | |||
| 2 June 2023 | RGHS U19B | FAIRMONT U19B | Lost 0-1 | |
| 3 June 2023 | RGHS U19C | BELLVILLE U19B | Lost 1-3 | Caitlyn Walter |
This week’s hockey heroes are a combination of people. A special mention and congratulations must go to the U16A and U19A teams who by virtue of being ranked in the top 25 teams in the country, have been invited to play in the Rising Challenger’s Cup. This tournament features teams from across South Africa who based on performances and results have qualified. The U16 tournament is going to be hosted by DSG in Makhanda from 4-7 August. The U19 tournament will be hosted by HMS La Rochelle from 11-14 August. With over 120 teams in the rankings in each age group, this is a massive achievement. Congratulations to both teams and to Ms Sasha Sivertsen (U16A Coach) and Mr Olu Ncukana (U19A Coach).
Self-Defense
Naila Pandit (Grade 8) achieved an Orange belt in the Krav Mega Grading. On 9 June, Naila displayed proficiency and an unwavering pursuit of excellence in the art of self-defense. With the Orange belt now firmly secured, Naila sets her sights on further advancing her skills, knowledge and understanding of Krav Mega. We applaud her hard work and dedication.
Dance
Six Rustenburg learners who dance for K&J Dance Unlimited, took part took part in the Dancestar World Dance Masters Championships in Porec, Croatia in May. They competed against 20 other countries and proudly represented South Africa. The Dance Company brought home 9 Golds (1st place), 6 Silvers (2nd place) and 3 Bronze (3rd place).
The RGHS dancers from left: Isabella Gomes (Grade 10), Cadince Willenberg (Grade 8), Peyton Witten (Grade 8), Kristen McGregor (Grade 11), Ziah Bobbs (Grade 11) and Jami Fredericks (Grade 9).
Medals:
- Jami, Kristen and Ziah are part of the senior contemporary team called Equilibrium – they won their section (Gold)
- Peyton is part of the junior contemporary team called Equipoise – they came second in their section (Silver).
- Kristen and Isabella are part of one of the senior hip-hop teams called Da-Furure – they came second in their section (Silver)
- Kristen and Jami are part of one of another senior hip-hop team called Mobility – they won their section (Gold).
- Cadince and Peyton are part of the junior hip-hop team called Cosmic – they won their section (Gold).
- Peyton was part of a junior hip-hop trio – they came second in their section (Silver)
- Jami was part of a junior hip-hop trio – they won their section (Gold)
- Kristen and Ziah were part of a contemporary trio – they came second in their section (Silver)