Felixton get a taste of France
French Rugby Club, Provins visited Felixton College during their South African Rugby Tour.
FELIXTON College had a little je ne sais quoi about them, which attracted French Rugby Club Provins to add the local school to their South African rugby tour itinerary.
The club, which is from the small town of Provins with roughly 4 000 people and situated approximately one hour south of Paris, previously toured South Africa in 2010 and 2012.
They arrived on Felixton’s doorstep on Thursday afternoon, when they played an U14 and U16 rugby game before being hosted by the local pupils.
The two teams and coaching staff left on Sunday morning after attending the Felixton Fair and having participated in the Felixton College Seven’s Rugby Tournament on Saturday.
The U14s kicked-off the action on Thursday afternoon, which saw the visitors playing with French flare, running the socks of the local side which resulted in a 19-0 victory.
The visitors played a free-flowing game, keeping the ball continuity going by utilising the support players and with superior fitness levels ended up winning the game.
Felixton College played a very controlled and structured game, throwing the entire kitchen sink at the French lads, but failed to crack their defensive structures.
The U16 game was very exciting and tightly contested, which saw the home side walk away 12-7 victors.
The trio of Giann Ludike, Jason Loosemore and Tristan Fernandes had solid stand-out performances which aided the team’s win.
The French boys went 7-0 up into the half time break after a very physical first half.
After some stern words from both coaches, the teams stepped it up a notch in the second half, which resulted in a high quality of rugby being played.
The French were very productive at the breakdown points, turning a lot of ball over, with Felixton thriving on attack.
Giann Ludike and Nhlonipho Sibiya dotted down for the home side with captain James-Dean Baillache kicking one conversion to give their side 12 points.
