The 2019 edition of the Under-13 SA Rugby Craven Week and Under-16 SA Rugby Grant Khomo Week came to an exciting end at High School Rob Ferreira in White River on Friday, with the Sharks and DHL Western Province respectively being crowned the top sides.

The Kwa-Zulu Natal side outplayed DHL Western Province 26-24 in a nail-biting U13 SA Rugby Craven Week final match, while the Cape side had the upper hand in the U16 SA Rugby Grant Khomo Week, beating the Sharks 34-10.

SWD was the only other team in U16 showpiece that did not to taste defeat, playing to two draws and a win. 

The Under-16 SA Rugby Grant Khomo Week also saw the introduction of the SA Iqhawe team, with the newcomers winning two of their three matches, justifying their invitation.

The two tournaments again gave an exciting perspective of the talent in the school boy ranks as the crowds were treated to a solid display of skill, speed and tries. 

No less than 1323 points were scored in the Under-13 SA Rugby Craven Week and 1471 in the U16 SA Rugby Grant Khomo Week. 

Match summaries of the U13 SA Rugby Craven Week can be found here and the U16 SA Rugby Grant Khomo Week here.

U13 SA Rugby Craven Week match summaries:

In the grand finale of the Under-13 SA Rugby Craven Week, the Sharks edged DHL Western Province 26-24 in a nail-biter of a match.

The KwaZulu-Natal side started very strongly, crossing the DHL WP tryline in the opening minutes to jump to a 7-0 lead. The Capetonians struck back soon after with a try by winger Bena Barthelemie, who was put in space by a delightful pass from flanker Zylan Fortuin, and David Simon (centre) converted.

The Sharks picked up a penalty try when the Cape side took out a defender without the ball to edge them seven points up again, and they extended that lead even further when lively flyhalf Sisonke Ndiela ran through a gap after a tactical move at the back and scored near the poles. That gave them an encouraging 19-7 lead at the break.

DHL WP struck back with two quick tries after the restart, the first by No 8 Chris Cloete and the second by Simon who pounced on a loose ball in the Sharks in-goal. He could not convert his own try and that left his team trailing by two. Cloete, however, earned his second five-pointer under the sticks with a long-range run to nudge the side ahead for the first time in the match. 

The Sharks got the lead back again with minutes left when Ndiela got his second and the conversion by fullback Luke Davidson split the uprights. That handed the Sharks a 26-24 lead, and they managed to hang on for a hard-fought win.

In other matches, Bidvest Waltons Golden Lions outplayed the Itec Blue Bulls 12-0, as they scored the only tries of the match thanks to one in each half, with No 8 Jamaal Feldman and centre Shelton-ray Primo the providers.

The EP Elephants finished strongly with a 26-7 win over Itec Griquas, with the team from the Bay scoring four tries, while the Kimberley team had to settle for only a penalty try.

Boland left their best for last and scored a run-away 71-5 (36-0 halftime) win over Thepa Trading Griffons, as they touched down an impressive 11 times, with winger Cheswill Jooste bagging four of those.

Namibia kicked a late penalty goal to squeeze past Border Country Districts with their 20-17 win being their second of the tournament. Border CD scored three tries, but while Namibia had an excellent kicker in Waldre Kotze, the Eastern Cape side could only convert one try and that cost them dearly.

Old Mutual Zimbabwe fell short against Border, who posted six tries in their 40-17 victory. The Eastern Cape side held all the aces and dominated from the start, and they took advantage of their point-scoring opportunities with centre Qiqa Qwesha scoring twice and flyhalf Likhona Kepe kicking five conversions.

The Leopards outplayed their more fancied opponents, the Free State Cheetahs, and their 26-12 win was well deserved. They outscored the Free Staters four tries to two and finished the week in the top five.

SWD Eagles are another team that will enjoy the trip home after they outplayed Forever Resort Limpopo Blue Bulls 45-15, but it was their rewarding second-half display that will stay in the memory bank. 

They scored six tries in the half and left the Limpopo side in their wake as they raced to the win.

The ITS Valke also recovered well after a slow start to the tournament as they beat Phakisa Pumas 22-12, scoring four tries in the process - two of which were scored by lock Marcel Coetzee.

Under-13 SA Rugby Craven Week final round results:

Sharks 26-24 DHL Western Province

Bidvest Waltons Golden Lions 12-0 Itec Blue Bulls

SWD 43-15 Forever Resorts Limpopo Blue Bulls

EP Elephants 26-7 Itec Griquas

Boland 71-5 Thepa Trading Griffons

Border 40-17 Old Mutual Zimbabwe

Namibia 20-17 Border Country Districts

Leopards 26-12 Free State Cheetahs

ITS Valke 22-12 Phakisa Pumas

U16 SA Rugby Grant Khomo Week match summaries:

DHL Western Province scored 18 tries in their opening two matches and added six more in the closing match of the tournament as they outplayed the Sharks 34-10 after holding a slender 12-10 halftime lead. Four of those tries came in the second half and more importantly, unopposed as they broke the shackles the Sharks had on them in the opening stanza.

The KZN team started well with an early penalty goal, before the Cape side's Coetzee le Roux barged over. The East Coast team took the lead again with a splendid try by fullback Munashe Dukuswa, but they were overhauled again just before the break with another five pointer by the Capetonians.

The second half was a one-way street as the DHL WP strike-runners started to find space, with the likes of winger Bevan Simons and lively No 8 Abulele Ndabambi getting well-deserved tries, with scrumhalf Michael Kock setting up Hakeen Kunene before dotting down himself as the Cape skill became too much for the Sharks to handle.

SWD also finished the tournament unbeaten with a very impressive 46-20 win over the Bidvest Waltons Golden Lions, in which scrumhalf Neil le Roux again proved influential as he scored a fine try after a sniping break. He also converted five of their seven tries and kicked two penalty goals for a personal tally of 16 points. 

The Southern Cape side will look back at this tournament with mixed feelings as they played to draws against the Free State Cheetahs and Sharks before outplaying their Gauteng opponents. 

For the Gauteng team, fullback Kelly Mpeku, looked dangerous with ball in hand, and he earned a brace for his efforts. 

The SA Iqhawe team got their second win of the tournament, scoring seven tries to one in their 45-7 win over Border Country Districts. The invitational team – who were debutants at the event - won hearts with their attacking display, with Xhanto Wakie and Endikano Myosana earning braces.

Old Mutual Zimbabwe outplayed Namibia 41-14 in their international clash, with their potent attack proving too much for their African counterparts, which saw them score six tries to two. Flyhalf Alex Nyamunda had a good day as he scored a brace.

The Free State Cheetahs delivered a commanding performance in their best match of the week, beating EP Elephants 45-12 after building up a 12-0 halftime lead.

Lively Free State hooker, Jan Meyer, got three tries as his pack used the rolling maul to good effect. Twinkle-toed fullback, Dwanye Pharo, scored EP’s two tries, but they were comprehensively outplayed in the second half, with the Bloemfontein side posting five tries.

Boland finished strongly after a slow start to the tournament, outplaying the Leopards 25-10. The Winelands side showed some good pace at the back and that created numerous opportunities, and they scored four well-worked tries in the end. 

The Everest Wealth Pumas XV finished the tournament with a narrow 28-25 win over Ford Human Griquas. The Kimberley side held the lead at the break, but the home side came back strongly in the second, scoring 21 points to beat their opponents. The home side's No 8, Corne Jansen van Rensburg, scored a brace and was named man of the match.

The accurate kicking of Phakisa Pumas flyhalf, Christiaan Gates, helped his team in their close 29-24 victory over Thepa Trading Griffons. Both teams scored four tries, with Gates converting three and kicking a penalty goal to provide the edge. Fullback Kherwin Erasmus also got a brace.

The Blue Bulls versus Border match delivered an exciting 13 tries as both teams threw the kitchen sink at each other. The Blue Bulls prevailed 44-43 in the end and had to hang on in the second half as Border attacked from all corners of the field.

The eight tries to five scored by the Pretoria team rewarded them with the nail-biting win, with centre Wian Faber and wing Keanu Peters each getting brace.

The Valke also finished their campaign on a high note beating the Limpopo Blue Bulls 35-12. Both teams entered the match with an attacking mind-set and the East Rand side came out tops thanks to a solid second half effort. Hard-working flanker, Riekerd Bornman, scored twice for his side, while Eduard Oliver slotted over all five conversions.

Under-16 SA Rugby Grant Khomo Week final day results:

Free State Cheetahs 45-12 EP Elephants

SWD Eagles 46-20 Bidvest Golden Lions

DHL Western Province 34-10 Sharks

Boland 25-10 Leopards

Phakisa Pumas 29-24 Thepa Trading Griffons

Blue Bulls 44-43 Border

Old Mutual Zimbabwe 41-13 Namibia

Everest Wealth Pumas XV 28-25 Ford Human Griquas

Valke 35-12 Limpopo Blue Bulls 

SA Iqhawe 45-7 Border Country Districts