DHS finished 5^th out of 10 schools:

1.    Westville

2.    Pretoria Boys

3.    St Davids

4.    Kearsney

5.    DHS

6.    KES

7.    Glenwood

8.    College

9.    St Stithians

10. Parktown

Round 1:

DHS Senior Team 2 vs Fatima

Result: DHS Won

(Mikhale Singh was overall best speaker in the entire debate)

DHS Senior Team 1 (new team) vs Clifton Senior Team 2:

Result: DHS lost

On a totally different path, our first weekend of sport was a very successful one. There is no doubt that the teams in the major sports - Aquatics, Basketball and Cricket - were well prepared and very competitive. It was particularly pleasing to see the number of boys playing Water-Polo, and the level of Polo being played. It appears that the new coaching team, assisted by old hands Alan Burt and Nico Lamprecht, is going to have a significant effect on our Polo. There were some outstanding individual performances in the Cricket games, with the 1^st XI recovering well to have Northwood fighting to clinch a draw. The U15A side continued their good form, and the U16A side won a tight match by one run. The success story of the day though has to be Basketball. They won every game they played, with the 1^st side winning by over 100 points. It appears as though the juggernaut continues to roll! Well done to all the boys on a good start to the season.

The newbies appear to have settled well, and I am delighted to see their manners. I must greet boys a thousand times a day! I must say that I would happily do so ten times over. Good manners are an integral part of what we believe in at this school, and as far as I am concerned we can never have enough.

Last weekend was a “ballies’ weekend for me. I attended Mr Bennison’s 70^th Birthday celebrations on Saturday, and on Sunday I was with Allan ”Snakes” Chandler for his 60^th. Both are good friends, and it was fabulous to see old mates and swap stories of bye-gone years. But it does remind us all that we are mere mortals! Tempus Fugit!

“Reputation is for time; character is for eternity.”

J B Gough

Have a great week.

Dave Magner    

Class of 1973

The week’s events at Durban High School have been totally overshadowed by one significant announcement. The Department of Education informed us on Monday night that Kashmeel Bisseru, our Dux of 2011, was the top candidate in South Africa in the Matriculation Examination!

He was incorrectly given a mark of 74% for Science on his initial statement of results. This was immediately challenged by the school, and by 1pm on the day after the results were issued, the administration error had been rectified, and Kashmeel now had 100% for Science.

When the Sunday paper published the results of the young man from College who was placed second in the country, we knew there was another issue to address - Kashmeel’s results were better than his. It has taken a while to gain the acknowledgement, but we are so happy for this humble, committed young man. He has done all of us proud! Well done Kashmeel! We are incredibly proud of you. We believe this is just the first step on a long and varied path of success for you.

On Wednesday 25 January 2012 a special assembly was held to honour the achievements of the cleverest boy in South Africa for 2011 - KASHMEEL BISSERU!!

The assembly was attended by every boy in the School, the entire staff, members of the press, Mr Neave from DPHS (where Kashmeel went to primary school) and the entire Bisseru family, all gathered to congratulate Kashmeel on his outstanding results - 1^st in South Africa - WOW!!!

Kashmeel, as modest as always, accepted all the praise, accolades and numerous photographs with grace, humility and good humour.

This is what Mr Neave had to say in the DPHS news letter The Patter:

“How proud I felt this morning as the DPHS representative when I attended the special assembly held at DHS in honour of DHS and DPHS old boy Kashmeel Bisseru who was placed first in South Africa in the 2011 Matric exams. Kashmeel’s accomplishment is the ultimate and most distinguished scholastic high school achievement possible.

The tone of the assembly was one of humility and dignity and I not only felt proud but also inspired by the spirit of the DHS boys and the school. Headmaster, Dave Magner’s address and the speeches by Kashmeel and his Mathematics teacher, Narenee Mewalal reminded me of a quotation attributed to Albert Einstein:

‘Try not to become a man of success but rather try to become a man of value’.

Kashmeel, in his address to the school, was very humble and gracious, thanking his teachers for their dedication and hard work and the part they played in helping him achieve his goals.

I was able to congratulate DHS, Kashmeel and his family on our school’s behalf. They very kindly and generously acknowledged DPHS’s part in preparing Kashmeel for high school and setting him on the path towards fulfilling his dreams. We wish Kashmeel well for his engineering studies in KZN.”

Well done Kashmeel - we’re so proud of you!

The Matric results were very good. A fuller discussion of the results features elsewhere in this edition, but I must make mention of our 2011 Dux, Kashmeel Bisseru. Kashmeel produced outstanding results. He was awarded 100% for three subjects and was the top candidate in Mathematics and Maths 3 in KZN. Absolutely phenomenal, and a fitting tribute and reward for this brilliant and humble young man. I know he will go on to even greater things. Well done young man-we are so proud of you!

The Cricket season is off to a great start. Our U15 team travelled to the Queen’s College Festival, and returned with an outstanding set of results. They were unbeaten, and a number of boys produced outstanding performances. New coach Kurt Donaldson took the 1^st XI to Grey College. Again the team did really well. They lost one game, to hosts Grey College, and again turned in some fine individual performances. Well done guys. Staying with Cricket, congratulations go to Jared Van Heerden, 1^st XI 2011, who represented KZN Coastals at Coke Week. After a fine week he was selected for the SA Colts’ XI. Well done Jared.

It is a pleasure to welcome a number of staff this year. Messrs Capper and Cornew Ms Steytler, after filling in last year at various stages, have joined the staff in permanent capacities. We are delighted to welcome back Mr Roy Cowgill, who will bring his immense experience to the Life Science department. Mr Alan Burt has re-joined the staff to assist in Aquatics. He is a welcome addition to the staff. Ms Byres joins the Mathematics department, Ms Nell Afrikaans, Ms Sibisi, Isizulu and Mr Greef the History department. All in all we are very pleased with the additions to the staff, and wish them a long and happy association with the school.

It has been a hot and sweaty start to the year, and it is difficult to teach and learn in these conditions. I have been impressed with the approach of everyone, and we are indeed fortunate to have the calibre of boy we have. Head Boy Damian Perkins has been outstanding, ably supported by his team of prefects. Well done guys. Let’s hope the heat eases soon, and we can experience more palatable teaching conditions.

Finally I have an announcement to make. As you all know, I have decided to retire at the end of this term. What some of you may not know is that at the end of 2011 I experienced some health problems. Over the Xmas break I decided that my health was my most important attribute, and that it was best for me to go even earlier. I have leave due to me from the department, and I have decided to take two months of it, in February and March. This means I will be leaving DHS at the end of January. I trust the DHS community understands and accepts my reasons, and I leave knowing the school is in a good place.

“There are no mistakes. The events we bring upon ourselves, no matter how unpleasant, are necessary in order to learn what we need to learn; whatever steps we take, they’re necessary to reach the place we’ve chosen to go.”

Richard Bach

Have a good week.

Dave Magner  

Class of 1973

Well done to Jared van Heerden, who matriculated from Durban High School last year, as he has been selected for the South African Colts U19 squad for Cricket.

DHS would like to congratulate him for his achievement!

Picture: S&A Marketing

Basketball Results vs Northwood

Cricket Results vs Northwood

1^st

DHS

183

(Makhanya 59, Maharaj 38)

Northwood

71/8

(Ndlovu 4/20)

Draw

2^nd

DHS

209/6

(Chetty 55, Pillay 44, Perkins 37)

Northwood

119

DHS won by 90 runs

3^rd

DHS

146

Northwood

70

(Naidoo 4/7)

DHS won by 76 runs

4^th

DHS

122/8

(Mbembe 61)

Northwood

120/9

(Mbembe 3/16)

DHS won by 2 runs

16A

DHS

164

Northwood

163

DHS won by 1 run

16B

Northwood

130

DHS

90

DHS lost by 40 runs

16C

DHS

98/7

Northwood

87

DHS won by 11 runs

15A

DHS

288/6 

(Fletcher 97*, Koekemoer 68)

Northwood

50

DHS won by 238 runs

15B

DHS

109

Northwood

57

DHS won by 42 runs

15C

DHS

76

Northwood

71/9

(George 4/15)

DHS won by 5 runs

15D

Northwood

106/5

(Farrell 4/28)

DHS

78

(Moodley 39)

DHS lost by 27 runs

14A

DHS

176

(Khan 44)

Northwood

180/3

DHS lost by 7 wickets

14B

Northwood

168

DHS

169/8

DHS won by 2 wickets

14C

Northwood

129/5

DHS

98/9

DHS lost by 30 runs

14D

Northwood

129

DHS

99

(Boyd 33)

DHS lost by 30 runs

14E

Northwood

145/5

DHS

60

DHS lost by 85 runs

14F

Northwood

192/6

(Pillay 49)

DHS

84

(Madoda 35)

DHS lost by 108 runs

14G

Northwood

118

DHS

121/2

DHS won by 8 wickets

1^st XI vs Pretoria Boys High (60/50 format)

DHS won the toss and elected to bat on a good wicket with hot sunny skies overhead. Austin Prutharb batted sensibly for a well compiled 44.Tylor Trenoweth, after struggling early in his innings, played some superb shots before being run-out for 52. He shared in a good partnership with the captain, Aatish Maharaj, who made 33. 15 year Jordan Kisten batted with maturity to end with 17 which enabled DHS to declare on 218 for 8 off 60 overs.

DHS got off to a great start with Aatish Maharaj picking up a wicket in the 1^st over of the PBHS innings and Sibonelo Makhanya doing likewise in the 2^nd over of the PBHS innings. They never recovered from those early set-backs and were bowled out for 99. Aatish Maharaj ending with 2 for 12 off 5 overs, Sibonelo Makhanya 2 for 15 off 8 overs, Ainsley Ndlovu 2 for 11 off 8 overs and Cameron van Rensburg bowling superbly with lots of turn bagging 4 for 35 off 11 overs. Some sharp catches were held and a good run-out effected which had School playing some really attractive, disciplined cricket. The end result was a win by 119 runs.

2^nd Game vs St Stithians (120 over captains declaration format)

School lost the toss and were sent in to field on a very hot morning. Again Aatish Maharaj got an early wicket but unfortunately School did not take advantage of that and soon the Saints batters were looking comfortable at the crease. The bowlers toiled hard in the heat, none more so than young Kyne Innes who bowled 7.4 overs for 10 runs with 2 wickets before having to leave the field with cramps. Of those overs 6 were maidens. Saints ended up on 215 all out with Cameron van Rensburg getting 2 for 28 and Ainsley Ndlovu 2 for 30.

By the time School came to bat the overhead conditions had changed remarkably. The light was deteriorating fast as a huge storm approached.  Schools’ batting was a bit disappointing to say the least as boys had their eyes on the weather and not the ball and day ended pre-maturely with DHS 80 for 5 with Aatish Maharaj not out on 35. Bad light stopped play and the result was a draw.

3^rd Game versus Woodridge College (50 over limited over format)

School won the toss and elected to bat on a turning wicket under hot skies. After a slow start School got going nicely until a middle order wobble was saved by the tail. Cameron van Rensburg did well up front to get 23 and young Jordan Kisten again doing well for 22 at the end. However the batting highlights were shared by Sibonelo Makhanya and Ainsley Ndlovu. Sibs was superb in the middle of the innings mixing aggression with good running and shot selection to rescue the innings. He was needlessly run out for 51 but it could have been so much more. Ainsley also batted very intelligently mixing big shots with well taken singles to end on 33 not out and help School post a respectable 178 for 7 off 50 overs.

The boys came back from lunch really focussed and set about bowling Woodridge out. JJ de Wet was the destroyer in chief with a fantastic 4 for 25 off 10 overs and Ainsley Ndlovu bagging 3 for 11 off 6 overs. It was a good clinical display by School resulting in a win by 76 runs.

We stayed on for an extra game after the festival to play our hosts, Grey College.  Again we lost the toss and were put into field on another really hot day. After having Grey in early trouble at 45 for 4 they recovered somewhat to eventually be bowled out for 210 in 68 overs. Sibonelo Makhanya and Ainsley Ndlovu again underlined their huge potential by bagging 3 for 38 and 4 for 64 respectively. A few chances went begging in the field but the boys stuck to their guns and worked really hard for their wickets.

Schools response was disappointing. After a really slow but relatively solid start we lost wickets in batches and nobody bar Sibonelo Makhanya (42) really applied themselves. From a position of relative comfort , being in no danger of losing, School lost wickets in a hurry and left the tail too much to do and were eventually bowled out for 110 with only 4 overs left in the days play. A disappointing end but lots of lessons learnt.

A great time was had by all the boys and I was really happy with the way the boys played and conducted themselves. Thanks to the parents who made the long trip to Bloemfontein to support the boys.

8 January vs Pretoria Boys’ High

(60/50 format):

  DHS            218 (declared in 60 overs)

  (Trenoweth 52, Prutharb 44, Maharaj 33)

  PBHS          99 all out

  (Van Rensburg 4/35, Ndlovu 2/11, Makhanya 2/15, Maharaj 2/12)

  DHS won by 119 runs

8 January vs St Stithians

(120 overs captains’ declaration format):

  St Stith       210 all out

  (Innes 2/10, Ndlovu 2/30, Van Rensburg 2/28)

  DHS            90 for 5

  (Moodley 21, Maharaj 35*)

  Draw - Bad light stopped play

10 January vs Woodridge College

(50/50 limited overs format):

  DHS            174 for 7

  (Makhanya 51, Van Rensburg 23, Kisten 22, Ndlovu 33*)

  PBHS          98 all out

  (De Wet 4/25, Ndlovu 3/11)

  DHS won by 76 runs

11 January vs Grey College

(120 overs captains’ declaration format):

  St Stith       215 all out

  (Ndlovu 4/66, Makhnya 3/32)

  DHS            110 all out

  (Makhanya 45)

  Grey won by 106 runs

K Donaldson

1^st XI Coach

Highlights from Old Boys v 1^st XI game on 14 January

Old Boys XI:

Kurt Donaldson(1991)

Ryan Jacobs (1997)

Jp Hean (1996)

Rob Macqueen (1996)

Lance Klusener (1989)

John Grewer (2011)

Viyshal Daya (2009)

Blake Raubenheimer (1994)

Justin Fuller (1994)

Greg Williams (1995)

Warren Broughton (1994)

Russell Symcox (1999)

Old Boys batted first and amassed 258 for 5 in 45 overs

(John Grewer 52, Ryan Jacobs 36, Russell Symcox 50, Lance Klusener 45 not out

DHS 1^st XI 119 all out

(Tylor Trenoweth 30, Taariq Booley 19, Ainsley Ndlovu 19, Greg Williams 4/31, Rob Macqueen 2/12, Justin Fuller 2/18)

A really good, fun day was had by all.  The first weekend back in the New Year is now officially the Old Boys weekend where the 1^st XI will play an Old Boys XI.

Next year we would like to expand on the idea and have braai’s going all day etc, and invite as many Old Boys and their families down as possible.