Border U18 and Hudson Park loose-forward Sibabalwe Mahashe has described his selection as South African Schools captain as the proudest moment of his rugby career.
The 18-year-old powerhouse loose-forward from East London took the reins of the SA Schools captaincy after Zachary Porthen was ruled out with a concussion. In his first game as skipper, Mahashe led the side to an impressive 49-17 victory over France at Hoërskool Paarl Gimnasium on Wednesday.
“It was an unbelievable moment. I could not even describe how I felt. My first game as captain and for us to win by that margin.
“It was a great feeling, I could not complain. The guys made me very proud and the coaches backed me all the way until the end.
“I could not even feel the responsibility of captaining the side,” Mahashe said.
The SA schools side had too much class for the French, with wing Sha-Jehaan de Jongh and Litelihle outside-centre Bester scoring two tries apiece, while flyhalf Thurlon Williams landed eight from his nine attempts at goal for a contribution of 19 points.
Mahashe became the first black player from Hudson Park and the fifth player from Border to captain SA Schools following in the footsteps of Mayberry’s Craig Moyle (1984), Hudson Park’s Scott Kemp (1992), Dale College’s Kaunda Ntunja (2000) and Selborne’s Jacques Goosen (2019).
“It is a great milestone for my family, school and for me to be the second captain of colour who hails from Border is a proud moment. To be beside the late legendary Kaunda Ntunja is an honour,” he said.
Mahashe’s charges will shift their focus to their next game against England on Saturday (3.30pm) in Paarl.
“Everyone knows how difficult it is playing against England. We beat them in the first game; they will be looking for revenge and want to prove themselves on Saturday.
“They will come hard at us but we will prepare as much as we can to ensure that we come back with another win and end the three-match series unbeaten,” he said.
The first encounter between the sides last Friday saw SA rampant over the English to win 40-24 with tries from Ethan Bester, Caleb Abrahams, Luca Bakkes and Jack Waterhouse.
Earlier on Saturday, Lwazi Zangqa’s SA A school team will take on France in a curtain raiser.
The second-string SA Schools team will be looking to bounce back after their heartbreaking 36-34 defeat to England on Wednesday.
The English side put in a late fightback and scored a penalty goal after the buzzer to secure a victory that looked unlikely at the break as the SA team led 29-10 at halftime.
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