The NMI Toyota Noord Suid rugby festival delivered absolute carnage across four days of pulsating schoolboy rugby action, and when the dust settled on the A field battles, the South claimed bragging rights by the narrowest of margins. Using the Vaal River as the border between North and South, the southern schools edged the honours by a single result, a statistical dead heat that perfectly captured the competitive intensity of this year’s festival.
But beyond the numbers, two seismic upsets will echo through South African schools rugby corridors for years to come: Garsfontein’s stunning triumph over Paarl Boys High and Stellenberg’s magnificent conquest of Grey College. These weren’t just victories. They were giant-killings that announced both victorius schools as genuine forces in the 2026 schoolboy rugby landscape.
Garsfontein steal late thriller from Boishaai
In one of the matches of the season so far, Garsfontein edged a pulsating encounter with Paarl Boys High 31-28, overturning a late deficit to claim a famous victory built on superb line speed and relentless breakdown pressure when it mattered most.
Garsfontein took a 21-7 halftime lead and, looked commanding.
Paarl Boys stormed back through Aleit Stander’s pace and Ruben De Jager’s forward power, before their bruising pack bashed the door down to take a 28-24 lead with time running out.
But Garsfontein had one final trick. From a middle scrum with eight minutes remaining, Drewyn Baron showed the defenders a clean pair of heels, racing away to restore the lead at 31-28. When the final whistle sounded, Garsfontein had secured a famous victory that will live long in the memory.
Stellenberg’s maul monsters demolish Grey
Shortly after toppling Paarl Gimnasium, Stellenberg claimed another massive scalp with a bruising 26-21 victory over Grey College.
Grey’s Lamla Mgedezi tried every bit of magic he could conjure, But Stellenberg’s set-piece weapon proved devastating, with Yanos Molnar at the forefront leading the charge.
Grey’s Christoff Crous kept his side in the hunt with nerveless penalty goals, Grey threw everything at Stellenberg, but the Cape side held firm to secure a famous double giant-killing result.
Monument shatter records in try-fest
In the most extraordinary attacking display in Noord Suid history, Monument demolished HTS Drostdy 75-41 in a try-fest that shattered every record. Sixteen tries. One hundred and sixteen points. Pure, unadulterated attacking brilliance.
Riaan Genis proved the star with multiple tries, whilst Blessing Monareng completed a brilliant hat-trick. Juandre Ehlers and Ryno van Der Westhuizen powered through defenders, whilst Drostdy’s Willvino Paultin, Darren Makeza and Anwill Jacobs showed electric pace in response.
When the final whistle sounded on the 75-41 scoreline, the match had produced the most points ever scored at Noord Suid.
Stars shine bright
Lamla Mgedezi (Grey College) emerged as the tournament’s most electrifying performer, producing moments of individual brilliance that defied description. Lehan Barnard (Paul Roos) completed a superb hat-trick as the Stellenbosch pack proved unstoppable in their 43-12 demolition of Pretoria Boys High. Danie Botma (Menlo Park) announced himself as one of the tournament’s most lethal finishers with a sensational hat-trick in Menlo’s 46-28 comeback victory over Boland Landbou. The outside centre’s blistering pace left defenders clutching at air, whilst his vision and offloading created opportunities for teammates.
Fagon Hendricks (Outeniqua) produced the moment of the tournament, scorching 70 metres after the final siren to score in the corner. Taylor Maree’s nerveless conversion sealed an improbable 24-24 draw with Waterkloof that will be replayed for years.
