Saints Sports Festival 2023

SAINTS SPORTSFEST 2023

Our annual Saints Sports Festival is a much-loved and highly anticipated event on the St Stithians College calendar and this year it did not dissappoint. The St Stithians family of eight schools was honoured to welcome One and All to the 2023 Saints Sports Festival. This year we celebrate the 70th birthday of the College and our theme is ‘A Legacy of Happy Fulfilment’ as inscribed on our foundation stone. This Festival embodies this in every way, a celebration of life, fulfilment and of the joy of school sport. We relished the opportunity that this Festival offered us to see our Campus fields, courts and astros filled with happy and fulfilled students.

The Festival is an eagerly awaited opportunity for our community of belonging of current and past parents and students to come together, to gather, meet and reminisce - this weekend offered this in spades. Our Alumni Games, which was launched in 2019 has become a firm favorite at the Festival and adds a wonderful opportunity for our Old Stithians to step back onto the fields where they once represented Saints and again represent their school with pride. The Alumni Games this year was a massive success - tennis was first up and served up an awesome display. Games then took place in both the mens' and womens' hockey, netball, rugby, football and squash - thank you to our Alumni for joining us back on Campus and for some entertaining displays of sport.

The 2023 edition of our Saints SportsFest ran over two consecutive weekends and began with the Prep Festival which ran from 30 March to 1 April followed by the College Festival which ran over the Easter weekend on 5, 6, 8 and 10 April. As always, the Festival was jam-packed, offering something for everyone to enjoy. As the oldest schools’ sports festival of its kind, it has been incredible to watch this event go from a rugby festival in its inception year of 1984, to a festival including all of our schools on campus across multiple sporting codes thirty-nine years later. This year we celebrate 10 years of tennis being a part of the Festival and the tennis courts played host to some fun festivities in acknowledgement of a decade of tennis at Saints SportsFest. And speaking of anniversaries, we look forward to celebrating the 40th Anniversary of the Festival in 2024.

In this year’s Prep Festival, we had over 1000 participants, made up of 103 teams from over 60 schools and it was epic. For the College Festival, over 1100 participants made up of 88 teams and representing 87 schools. The Prep Festival schools competed in Rugby, Squash, Tennis and Netball in this year’s edition and we welcomed our Grade 2 children from Junior Prep into the Festival for 2023 – they played interhouse hockey on the Saturday of our Prep Festival and it was all action on our Astros, The Colleges played Football, Hockey, Netball, Rugby, Squash and Tennis with a Fun Run on Family Day, Easter Monday, (which unfortunately needed to be cancelled due to inclement waether). We were delighted to welcome back our Thandulwazi Maths and Science Academy to the Festival in 2023 and even more so as they entered both a girls’ and boys’ team this year - they had a great festival and we congratulate them, One and All.

As a Methodist school, we are mindful that the Sports Festival takes place over the Holy Easter weekend,. As Christians mark the crucifixion of Christ and his resurrection, we welcomed members of any denomination to worship with us as our services which were held on Good Friday in the Chapel (07h45 – 08h30) and Sunday in the Chapel (09h00 to 10h00) with a children’s ministry offered in the Boys’ College Quad.

Our Saints Sports Festival is the biggest event on our annual calendar and takes an enormous amount of planning and effort to bring it to life. Our behind the scenes teams work tirelessly to make the Festival the legendary event that it has become. We express our profound gratitude to our staff from so many different campus and school departments for their commitment and enthusiasm. We certainly could not achieve the success that we do without our passionate parent organisers and many volunteers that give of their time, talent and treasure to the Festival. Finally, we extend our gratitude to our sponsors, in particular our major partner Standard Bank who has been a part of the Festival for many years. All of our sponsors, along with our suppliers and service providers play an integral role in the ensuring a well-run, fun and fulfilling Festival.

We have relished hosting both our Prep Festival and our College Festival - it has been an epic two weekends and a true celebration of sport. As the sun sets on #SaintsFest2023, we thank all or our participants for taking part, our supporters for joining us and our staff, service providers, partners and volunteers for making it all happen. We couldn't have done it without you. To those who are travelling, travel safe. Until next year...

College_edit_crop_2 — The iconic Saints SportsFest College Festival Group Photograph for 2023.

COLLEGE FIXTURES

Rugby Fixtures

Netball Fixtures

Boys' Football Fixtures

Girls' Football Fixtures

Boys' and Girls' Hockey Fixtures

Squash Fixtures

Tennis Fixtures

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

Saints Sports Festival Entrance Gate Times, tickets and Important Information

Click here for all of the details pertaining to Festival Entrance Gate Times and Important Information

Parking and road safety

For the safety of all on Campus, please obey traffic signs and park in demarcated areas only. The speed limit on Campus is 25km/h. Parking areas are indicated on the map below.

The following areas offer additional parking:

Lower Dam Field (the pitch protection is not to be removed)
Henning Field
Under the Pylons opposite the Junior Prep/Astros
East section of Ridgway Field

Girls’ College Parking Area

To be strictly for drop off and pick up for parents
Service providers and organising officials

Drop Off Areas (Including Ubers):

Bishop Malinga Gate (Previously known as Peter Place Gate)
Higher Ground Restaurant Parking
Outside Morolo Gate (previously known as Hurlingham Gate)

Pick-up Areas (Including Ubers):

Old Stithian Gate (previously known as Medferm Gate)
Outside Morolo Gate (previously known as Hurlingham Gate)
Higher Ground Restaurant

Egress (Exit) – 17h00pm onwards:

Morolo Gate (previously known as Hurlingham Gate)
Corlett Gate

It should be noted that to ensure the safety of those being dropped off and picked up, security officers will be deployed to the above pick-up and drop areas,

Click here to download a PDF of the SportsFest 2023 Map.

N.B. - The gravel Road between Higher ground and Corlett Gate is closed

Cashless

Saints SportsFest 2023 is CASHLESS with Standard Bank.

Once again, our #SaintsFest2023 will be a cashless event with the help of our title sponsor, Standard Bank. Cards will not be issued this year – each person will need to have their own banking card for purchases. Our visitors are able to pay in a number of safe and convenient ways:

Debit Card
Credit Card
SnapScan

SnapScan allows you to pay for items using the SnapScan app on your phone. Simply download the app (free of charge), sign up, and use it to pay using the QR code at our various vendors at the Festival.

Tickets and Accreditation

Tickets or accreditation is required for Saints Sports Festival on the following dates:

Saturday 1 April 2023
Thursday 6 April 2023
Saturday 8 April 2023
Monday 10 April 2023

Tickets are not available to be purchased ahead of the Festival but will be available to purchase at the gates at a cost of R60 per ticket (one ticket is valid for one person). A ticket will be required for each day of attendance at the Festival. Please note that for safety and convenience Saints Sports Festival is a CASHLESS environment. We will be making use of SnapScan and all major debit and credit cards for all ticket sales. Please ensure that you have one of these payment options ready at the gates to avoid any delays. SnapScan is our preferred and most efficient payment method, so please be sure to download the app before arriving. Looking forward to welcoming One and All.

Official Festival Programme

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD : OFFICIAL SAINTS SPORTSFEST PROGRAMME 2023

Hospitality

Standard Bank Hospitality Marquee

This year the Saints SportsFest Standard Bank Hospitality Marquee will once again be situated above Baytopp Field. Access tickets will be sold daily at the Marquee on a first-come, first-served basis. Numbers will be limited. No pre-bookings will be taken.

Alumni Events and Hospitality

Click here to RSVP.

Family Fun Run

Every year our Saints SportsFest ends on Easter Monday – Family Day – and in celebration of this special day, we invite our Saints families and One and All to join us for our annual family run which takes place on Campus, leaving from Chapel Drive at 08h30 (Monday 10 April 2023). Runners/walkers are invited to take part in the 2.5km, 5km or more enthusiastic 10km options – this is one for the whole family. There is no entry fee for the race but runners need to pay entry of R60 to the Festival at the gate (no cash accepted). We thank our sponsor Standard Bank for their support of this event. Prize-giving will be at 10am.

Looking forward to welcoming #OneAndAll.

Streaming

Streaming with SuperSport Schools Live

For both Prep and College Fest, limited streaming will be offered at each of the sports codes. With so much action on offer, it is just impossible to stream it all. Our main rugby field will be streamed, one Girls' and Boys' football field, 3 netball courts, the main tennis court and two squash courts. The two hockey Astros have their own streaming technology and all games will streamed. Please click here to access the streaming for the hockey.

Below is the SuperSports Schools App and instructions flyer - be sure to download the App on your device in advance to not miss out on any of our sporting action.

Social Media

We encourage you all to join the conversation on our social media platforms.

Facebook: https://facebook.com/ststithians

Twitter: @ststithians

Instagram: @ststithianscollege

Our hashtags for 2023 are #SaintsFest2023 #HappyFulfilment #InspiriingExcellence #MakingAWorldOfDifference #StrongerOneAndAll

Our Standard Bank hashtags for #SaintsFest2023 are #SBLove and #SBSchoolsFest

Easter Services

As a Methodist school, we are mindful that the Sports Festival takes place over the Holy Easter weekend. As Christians mark the crucifixion of Christ and his resurrection, we welcome members of any denomination to worship with us. Services will be held on Good Friday in the Chapel (07h45 – 08h30) and Sunday in the Chapel (09h00 to 10h00) with a children’s ministry offered in the Boys’ College Quad. We look forward to welcoming One and All.

Lightning Policy

It is very important that all of our participants, coaches and spectators are aware of the St Stithians College lightning policy. For details on the policy, please click here.

Saints SportsFest 2023 Programme

SAINTS PREP FEST 2023

prep_cropped_2 — The iconic Saints SportsFest Prep Festival Group Photograph for 2023.

WHAT MEMORIES ARE MADE OF…

It is hard to believe that our Saints Prep Fest has come and gone. The event might be over, but the memories will last a lifetime. Thank you our sponsors and special thanks to Standard Bank - South Africa for your incredible support of youth sport. Belowe we share a few snapshots taken throughout the PrepFest which depict the comraderie, community and collaboration of our wonderful event. There were so many special moments between friends, visitors, colleagues and teams. What a memorable PrepFest it was. Thank you to #OneAndAll that played a part. For those traveling home - be safe.
Until next year…
#Saintsfest #prepfest2023 #happyfulfillment #InspiringExcellence #SBLove #saintsfest2023 #SBSchoolsFest

HIGHLIGHT PHOTOGRAPHS

776.CR2_copy — Click on this link to see the highlight pics from Saints PrepFest.

Thank you to Official Photographer for the Festival - Debbie Adcock.

A few photographs taken by our Head of Maths in the Boys' Prep and Boys' Prep Photographer - Mr Sean Ward. Thank you for these beautiful images!

STANDARD BANK VIDEOS

Thank you to the Standard Bank activations team for joinind us on site and for adding to the fun of the Saints SportsFest 2023. Not just a sponsor, a partner and adding value to our festivities and vibe.

#SBSchoolsFest #SBLove #SaintsFest2023 #HappyFullfilment #InspiringExcellence #MakingAWorldOfDifference

PREP ACTIVATIONS

We were happy to welcome a great crowd who enjoyed all of the fun that Prep SportsFest 2023 had to offer. Parents relaxed and watched the tennis and netball at our Girls' Sports Pavilion enjoying the hospitality on offer. The Old Stithian Association Hospitality Tent situated above the rugby fields was also a firm favourite offering entertainment and hospitality with a spectacular view over the Ridgeway. Our entertainment area offered a casual vibe for our visitors where they could grab a bite to each and enjoy the music and vibe. Thank you to Gourmet Foods who offered breakfast buns, burgers, wraps, milkshakes, boerewors rolls and slush puppies and much more... Thank you also to our Thandulwazi Maths and Science Academy who ran the cold drinks stand at the Festival.

ShadowBall is an innovative and exciting way to improve your rugby ball skills. The ShadowBall Team ran the ShadowBall challenge at the Saints Prep Festival – they had lots of interest in their stand and had tons of visitors to their stand, testing their skills and seeing where their score ranked - thank you for being with us.

There was lots on offer and Saints Prep Fest kept the entire family entertained. Thank you to our fabulous vendors who brought such cool activities to be a part of our Fesitval. There was beading, slime making, galaxy jars and cap decorating, personalising of hoodies and rugby and football balls. These activities filled the time between matches and our participants and visitors loved the opportunity to get creative.

PREP FIXTURES

Below is a list of the fixtures that took place as part of the Saints Prep Fest 2023. What a great showcase of prep sport talent, camaraderie and fun. Well done to all of the participating schools for being with us and showcasing some great performances - we loved watching you all in action.