This past Saturday, Union High Schoolโs 1st XV traveled to Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth) to face a well-prepared Victoria Park side. The opposition had clearly studied our previous matches and executed a smart defensive plan, shutting down many of our attacking opportunities.
Despite this, Union managed to break through. Qhama Solomon calmly slotted a penalty to put us on the board, and soon after, Dwaine Koeberg produced a brilliant break, supported by excellent team play, to score the only try of the match. Although the performance was not polished, the boys showed composure under pressureโan important lesson that will serve them well later in the season. The 1st team secured a hard-fought 8 โ 0 victory.
The 2nd XV also impressed, sticking to their game plan and delivering a strong performance. Their discipline and teamwork paid off with a convincing 31โ7 win.
Well done to both teams on a tough but rewarding day of rugby. The grit and determination shown will undoubtedly strengthen the squad as the season progresses.
Several of Union High School’s chess players participated in the ๐ฆ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ต ๐๐ฎ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐๐บ๐ฎ๐ป ๐๐ถ๐๐๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฐ๐ ๐๐ต๐ฒ๐๐ ๐ง๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฎ๐น๐ in Graaff-Reinet on Saturday, 11 April, competing in a strong and competitive field.
Union High Schoolโs players performed exceptionally well, achieving the following results: U12 Girls: Zanke Bellingan โ 2nd Place (Silver Medal) U14 Boys: Matthew Jacobs โ 12th Place U16 Boys: Caron Goliath โ 1st Place (Gold Medal); Mason Knoesen โ 11th Place U18 Girls: Gerda Clarke โ 1st Place (Gold Medal) U18 Boys: Konke Gawula โ 9th Place
Overall, the trials highlighted the strength and talent of chess players in the district. Union High School can be incredibly proud of its learners for their impressive performances and commitment.
A heartfelt ๐ง๐๐๐ก๐ ๐ฌ๐ข๐จ to Justin and Liesl Kingwill of Blaauwater Farms & Guesthouse for their generous donation of PRINCESS hockey backpacks to our U11A girls.
Gestures like this mean so much, not only in a practical sense, but in the way they uplift and encourage our young players.
It is always incredibly special to see members of our community stand behind our teams, investing in their journey and sharing in their passion – and ๐๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฒ ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ฝ๐น๐ ๐ด๐ฟ๐ฎ๐๐ฒ๐ณ๐๐น.
Our junior hockey girls enjoyed a productive morning on home turf today, taking on a visiting side from Sunridge Primary School in cool, rainy conditions that added a gentle challenge to the proceedings.
๐ง๐ต๐ฒ ๐จ๐ญ๐ญ ๐๐ฒ๐ฎ๐บ๐ ๐๐ฒ๐ ๐ฎ ๐๐ผ๐น๐ถ๐ฑ ๐๐ผ๐ป๐ฒ ๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐น๐ ๐ผ๐ป, with U11A recording a 9-0 win and U11B following up with a well-deserved 5-2 victory. In the U13 age group, U13C were narrowly beaten 1-0 in a closely contested match, while U13B showed good composure to edge their opponents 1-0. ๐จ๐ญ๐ฏ๐ ๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐ป๐ฑ๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ผ๐ณ๐ณ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐บ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ป๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐๐ถ๐๐ต ๐ฎ ๐๐๐ฟ๐ผ๐ป๐ด ๐ฒ-๐ฌ ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ๐บ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ.
Overall, it was an encouraging set of results that reflects the steady growth of the programme.
On Friday, 10 April, Union High School celebrated its ๐ฆ๐จ๐ ๐ ๐๐ฅ ๐๐ช๐๐ฅ๐๐ฆ ๐๐ฆ๐ฆ๐๐ ๐๐๐ฌ, marking a momentous occasion to honour our learners’ accomplishments across various summer sporting activities.
Additionally, we recognised the talents and contributions of our learners in Culture and Service.
As we step into a new term, we are grateful to welcome another special contributor to our ๐๐ข๐๐๐ฆ ๐๐ข๐ฅ ๐๐ข๐ข๐ campaign – someone whose impact on our hockey programme has been felt quietly, consistently and meaningfully over many years.
๐๐ป๐ฎ ๐๐ผ๐๐ต๐ฎ, of the Karoo Hockey School, has, since 2018, been a familiar and valued presence within Unionโs hockey structures.
Through her dedication to coaching and development, she has played a role in shaping countless players, with many of our current 1st team girls having benefitted from her guidance along the way. Whether through refining skills, building confidence, or simply sharing her love for the game, Inaโs influence reaches far beyond the field – it is seen in the growth, composure and passion of the players she has helped nurture.
Pictured alongside her are just a few of the girls whose journeys she has been part of – a small reflection of the many young sportswomen who have crossed paths with her over the years. ๐๐ต ๐ช๐ด ๐ต๐ฉ๐ช๐ด ๐ญ๐ฐ๐ฏ๐จ-๐ด๐ต๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ ๐ค๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ฎ๐ช๐ต๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ต ๐ต๐ฐ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐จ๐ข๐ฎ๐ฆ ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ต๐ฐ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐จ๐ช๐ณ๐ญ๐ด ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ฎ๐ด๐ฆ๐ญ๐ท๐ฆ๐ด, ๐ต๐ฉ๐ข๐ต ๐ฎ๐ข๐ฌ๐ฆ๐ด ๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ ๐ช๐ฏ๐ท๐ฐ๐ญ๐ท๐ฆ๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ต ๐ช๐ฏ ๐๐ฐ๐ข๐ญ๐ด ๐ง๐ฐ๐ณ ๐๐ฐ๐ฐ๐ฅ ๐ด๐ฐ ๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ข๐ฏ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ๐ง๐ถ๐ญ.
Ina will be supporting GRAWS through her contribution – a cause that speaks to compassion and care in a different, but equally important, way. GRAWS continues to do vital work in rescuing, rehabilitating and rehoming abandoned, neglected and stray animals in our community and we are proud to see this initiative being supported through the campaign.
We are incredibly pleased to welcome ๐ ๐ถ๐๐ ๐ฆ๐ต๐ฎ๐๐ป๐ฎ ๐๐ฎ๐ฝ๐ต๐๐ฎ to Union High School, Graaff-Reinet, as she joins our staff at the start of this term.
Miss Japhta will be teaching Grade 10 English, Grade 11 Life Orientation and Creative Arts to our Grade 8 and 9 learners.
๐๐ ๐๐ต๐ฒ ๐ท๐ผ๐ถ๐ป๐ ๐๐ ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐๐ต๐ถ๐ ๐๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฟ, we look forward to the contribution she will make during her time at Union and trust that her time here will be both rewarding and memorable.
We are delighted to welcome ๐ ๐ถ๐๐ ๐๐ถ๐รฉ-๐ ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ถ ๐๐ผ๐ฒ๐ด๐ฒ๐น๐ฒ๐ป๐ฏ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ด to Union High School as she joins our Intermediate Phase teaching team.
Stepping into the role following the retirement of Mrs Yvette Cloete, we are grateful to have such a passionate young educator continue the important work within this space.
A recent Bachelor of Education graduate from UNISA, specialising in Intermediate Phase Teaching, ๐ ๐ถ๐๐ ๐๐ผ๐ฒ๐ด๐ฒ๐น๐ฒ๐ป๐ฏ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ด ๐ฏ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ป๐ด๐ ๐๐ฎ๐น๐๐ฎ๐ฏ๐น๐ฒ ๐ฒ๐ ๐ฝ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ถ๐ฒ๐ป๐ฐ๐ฒ ๐ถ๐ป ๐ฏ๐ผ๐๐ต ๐ฐ๐น๐ฎ๐๐๐ฟ๐ผ๐ผ๐บ ๐๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ต๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐น๐ฒ๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ป๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐๐๐ฝ๐ฝ๐ผ๐ฟ๐ ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐ ๐ฎ ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ป๐ด๐ฒ ๐ผ๐ณ ๐๐๐ฏ๐ท๐ฒ๐ฐ๐๐ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ฎ๐ด๐ฒ ๐ด๐ฟ๐ผ๐๐ฝ๐, with a particular strength in Mathematics and Natural Sciences. Beyond the classroom, her experience in coaching and instructional environments has strengthened her ability to motivate, instil discipline and build meaningful relationships with learners. ๐๐ฆ๐ณ ๐ข๐ฑ๐ฑ๐ณ๐ฐ๐ข๐ค๐ฉ ๐ช๐ด ๐ด๐ต๐ณ๐ถ๐ค๐ต๐ถ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ฅ ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ด๐ถ๐ฑ๐ฑ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ต๐ช๐ท๐ฆ, ๐ง๐ฐ๐ค๐ถ๐ด๐ช๐ฏ๐จ ๐ฐ๐ฏ ๐ฆ๐ฏ๐จ๐ข๐จ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ ๐ญ๐ฆ๐ด๐ด๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ด ๐ธ๐ฉ๐ช๐ญ๐ฆ ๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ด๐ถ๐ณ๐ช๐ฏ๐จ ๐ฆ๐ข๐ค๐ฉ ๐ญ๐ฆ๐ข๐ณ๐ฏ๐ฆ๐ณ ๐ง๐ฆ๐ฆ๐ญ๐ด ๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ค๐ฐ๐ถ๐ณ๐ข๐จ๐ฆ๐ฅ ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ท๐ข๐ญ๐ถ๐ฆ๐ฅ.
Alongside her professional strengths, Miss Koegelenberg brings a warm, engaging – and truly sparkling – personality, which is sure to make a meaningful impact within our school community.
Originally from Cradock, she has recently relocated to Graaff-Reinet and is excited to become part of the Union family. She will be teaching Grade 6 and 7 Mathematics, as well as Grade 7 Natural Sciences, where her enthusiasm for these subjects is sure to inspire curiosity and a love of learning in her classroom.
๐ช๐ฒ ๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐บ๐น๐ ๐๐ฒ๐น๐ฐ๐ผ๐บ๐ฒ ๐ ๐ถ๐๐ ๐๐ผ๐ฒ๐ด๐ฒ๐น๐ฒ๐ป๐ฏ๐ฒ๐ฟ๐ด ๐๐ผ ๐จ๐ป๐ถ๐ผ๐ป and look forward to the positive contribution she will make to our school and our learners.
Well done to our young Union High School, Graaff-Reinet rugby players, ๐จ๐๐ต๐บ๐ฎ๐ฎ๐ป ๐ฆ๐๐ฒ๐ฒ๐น๐ฒ, ๐๐ฟ๐ฎ๐ป๐ ๐ ๐๐ฟ๐ฟ๐ฎ๐, ๐ฌ๐ผ๐น๐ผ ๐ฉ๐๐๐๐น๐ฎ, ๐๐๐ถ๐ฝ๐ต๐ถ๐น๐ฒ ๐๐ฎ๐น๐ฒ๐น๐ฎ, ๐ฃ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐๐๐ผ๐ป ๐ข๐๐๐๐ and ๐ฆ๐ถ๐ป๐๐ฎ๐๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ถ๐๐ฟ๐ผ, on their selection to the U13 Karoo Rugby Team for 2026.
This is a wonderful achievement and a proud moment for both the boys and our school.
We wish them all the very best as they represent the Karoo at the EP Rugby Sub-Union Tournament taking place on 16 and 17 April in Kariega – ๐ข ๐ง๐ข๐ฏ๐ต๐ข๐ด๐ต๐ช๐ค ๐ฐ๐ฑ๐ฑ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ต๐ถ๐ฏ๐ช๐ต๐บ ๐ต๐ฐ ๐ด๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ธ๐ค๐ข๐ด๐ฆ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ช๐ณ ๐ต๐ข๐ญ๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ต ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ ๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ซ๐ฐ๐บ ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฆ ๐ฆ๐น๐ฑ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ช๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ค๐ฆ.
๐ง๐ต๐ฒ ๐จ๐ญ๐ฏ๐ ๐ต๐ผ๐ฐ๐ธ๐ฒ๐ ๐ด๐ถ๐ฟ๐น๐ ๐ฒ๐ป๐ท๐ผ๐๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ฎ ๐ฏ๐๐๐ ๐ฎ๐ป๐ฑ ๐ฟ๐ฒ๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฑ๐ถ๐ป๐ด ๐ณ๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐๐ฎ๐น ๐ฝ๐ฟ๐ผ๐ด๐ฟ๐ฎ๐บ๐บ๐ฒ, securing wins over Hudson Park (2-0) and Herbert Hurd (3-0). While results didnโt always go their way against tough opposition in Summerwood (4-0), Stirling (2-1) and Sunridge (1-0), the team showed resilience and steady improvement across the weekend.
