DIE halfeindstryde van die jaarlikse Super 4 rugbykompetisie word môreaand op Daljosafat stadion beslis en elkeen van dié vier Paarlse spanne wat dan teen mekaar sal kragte meet, sal iets hê om te bewys.

Dit sal veral Young Gardens wees, wat vanjaar laaste in die Premierliga A geëindig het, wat van sy trots sal wil herwin.

Hul teenstanders in die eerste halfeindstryd, Young Peoples, kan dus 'n groot aanslag te wagte wees.

Daarby het Gardens in sy onlangse ligakragmeting die Tiere 12-11 geklop en kan hulle dalk met 'n sielkundige voorsprong op die veld draf.

Daarmee saam sal hul 28-25 oorwinning Polisie verlede Saterdag ook die gemoedere in Gardens-kamp gelig het.

Die Tiere sal beslis die Rose se gedugte pak voorspelers moet tem, en spesifiek die stutte Jeremy September en Coby Wellington met valkoë moet dophou.

Young Peoples het op hulle beurt die seisoen gemengde suksesse beleef en 10 uit 22 wedstryde gewen. Hul onvoorspelbaarheid beteken egter dat hulle geensins gering geskat kan word nie, veral nie agterlangs nie.

Hier sal die spoedvrate Jacques Lategan (vleuel), wat bykans in elke wedstryd gedruk het, en Justin Fortuin (senter) die Rose se verdediging toets, terwyl die losskakel Randall Kenned ook met berekende spel die wedstryd vir sy span kan draai.

Die heelagter, Sam Titus, het Saterdag in die wedstryd teen Korrektiewe Dienste weer eens getoon hoe gevaarlik hy kan wees, toe hy blitsig in die agterlyn ingesny en 'n drie help bewerkstellig het - ook hy sal fyn gemonitor moet word.

In die tweede wedstryd sê Paarl Rangers, wat Korrektiewe Dienste in die kompetisie vervang weens botsende wedstryde, vir Albions, die groot gunsteling, die stryd aan.

Albions wat vierde in die liga geeindig het bo Peoples, is tans in goeie vorm en manne soos Adam Moerat (flank), Ronnie Lottering (stut), Mark Kruger (losskakel) en Ju-Wayne Cyster (vleuel) gaan die lewe vir Rangers moeilik maak.

Rangers sal hulself wil laat geld en wys dat hulle ewe hard indien nie harder nie, kan saampraat met hul boeties in die hoër liga.

Hulle sal op staatmakers soos Philip van Staden (losskakel), Claude Vos (agsteman) en Claude Swarts (voorry) reken om die spel te dryf.

Die hekke open om 17:30 en toegang is R5 (R3 kinders/motors). Die wedstryde begin om 19:00 en 21:00.

'n Super 4 dans sal Saterdagaand 20:00 by die Drakenstein Hotel gehou word. Toegang is R10 per persoon.

THE Golden Bear, Jack Nicklaus, was in town last week once again putting his personal touch to the 18-hole, Pearl Valley Signature Golf Estate and Spa golf course between Paarl and Franschhoek.

On touring the course (this is his sixth visit), Nicklaus was extremely positive about the general shaping of the course, the attention to detail and the overall look which he compared favourably to his pride and joy, The Bear's Club in West Palm Beach, Florida.

With any Signature course, Nicklaus gives much of his personal input and Pearl Valley is no exception.

"Nicklaus made a few changes to the strategy on some of the holes because we lost some trees in a fire some 18 months ago," says Zuraimi Mustapha, project director at Pearl Valley.

"Jack's primary objective for this visit was to approve the back-nine greens for seeding, and except for a few tweeks here and there, he gave the green light."

Significant progress is being made with the construction of the course, which is being developed by the Malaysian conglomerate, MRCB.

Already, most of the fairways and tees on the back nine are lushly covered with "cool season" grasses. It is expected that this nine will be playable early in the New Year.

On the front nine, all the holes are shaped and will be seeded by the end of the year. More importantly perhaps, the major construction operations are complete.

All but one of the estate's nine new lakes has been built and the natural ground water table will ensure that they remain full.  There will be 17ha of water surface in all. 

A state-of-the-art irrigation system (which cost R13-million to install) and an extensive network of storm-water drainage is in place, ensuring not one drop of water is wasted.

The site is on an old game park and it is beginning to look ready for the game: the Nicklaus design is emerging emphatically from the flat, sandy floor of the valley.

 Even at this early stage, it promises to shine like a pearl. Anyone who has played the graceful and subtle undulations of a Nicklaus's signature golf course will see the hand of Jack at Pearl Valley.

The course is going to be demonstrably-friendly for the ordinary golfer - no gimmicks, no extremes - yet offers a challenge for every level of player given the range of tees on each hole (all in all, tees cover 1,6 hectares).

The total length of the course will be in excess of 6600 metres, strong for a coastal course, yet the members length ranges between 5882 and 6154 metres; and the ladies will play a course of 5017 metres.

The course has been designed with both prevailing winds in mind, the winter north-westerly, and the summer south-easterly. All par 3's play in different directions as do all par 5's, ensuring the same advantages (or disadvantages) are not experienced too many times in one round.

Water is omnipresent, but not in your face. A million cubic metres of dirt was moved in eight months, to excavate the lakes; recess the fairways and raise the residential pads.

However the quality of the shaped product will always ensure that visitors and future homeowners believe this site was naturally shaped.

There are abundant and elegantly landscaped bunkers (formal bunkers and waste areas, account for 20 000m2 of the course). Almost every hole is played against the backdrop of mountains, which surround the site.

Imported cool season grasses have been used throughout the course, the fairways are 90 percent Rye, 10 percent Fescue; the rough is a Fescue/Kentucky Blue mix and the greens are Penn A4 Bentgras. Generally the greens are large, averaging 545m2, with slopes and shapes that are strategically designed.

It will be another year before the course will be fully playable - but the deadline for completion is clear.

Nicklaus will be coming to South Africa as captain to the United States golf team competing in the President's Cup in November 2003 and he will certainly want to be showing off the finished article at Pearl Valley.

DIE kranige Paarlse gholfspeler, Trevor Mahoney, is een van vier ontwikkelingspelers wat gekies is om hul talent en vaardigheid te toets tydens die finaal van vanjaar se Sanlam Uitdaagreeks op die asemrowende San Lameer gholfbaan in Natal.

Ná die sukses van verlede jaar se toernooi, het Sanlam weer 'n uitnodiging aan die Suid-Afrikaanse Gholf Ontwikkelingsraad (SAGOR) gerig om vier spelers van sy ontwikkelingsprogram te kies om aan dié toernooi deel te neem.

Behalwe vir die 13-jarige Mahoney, die jongste van die vier, sal Mohau Elijah Mokoena (18) van Gauteng, Sandile Peter Msimango (17) van KwaZulu-Natal en George Khumise (17) van Vrystaat ook hul slag wys.

Die spelers is reeds besig met afrigtingsessies wat weekliks en landwyd deur SAGOR gehou word.

Hoewel die seuns nie in die amptelike toernooi sal speel nie, sal hulle oor twee rondtes teen 'n groep van Sanlam-gaste, eregaste en lede van die media te staan kom in 'n kompetisie wat saam met die hooftoernooi gespeel sal word.

"Die hoofdoel is om SAGOR behulpsaam te wees met die afrigting van spelers van die oefenbane tot op die gholfbane," sê Gary van Loggerenberg, borgskapbestuurder van Sanlam.

"Dit is baie bevredigend om spelers wat merkwaardig opgang maak, 'n geleentheid te gee waar hulle kan wys waartoe hulle in staat is."

Ernie Els is die hoofbeskermheer van die Uitdaagreeks en alle fondse wat ingesamel word, word aan die Kanker Vereniging van Suid-Afrika geskenk.

DIE Paarlse tweemanskap bestaande uit Achmat Cassiem en Easmit Hendricks, het Saterdagoggend in stikdonker hul staptog na Groenpunt aangepak in 'n poging om fondse vir die radiostasie Stem van die Kaap in te samel.

Cassiem sou aanvanklik alleen die sowat 60km staptog afgelê het, maar is deur Hendricks, 'n jeugkoördineerder van die Paarlse Moskee, vergesel.

Die twee het fluks gevorder ná hul wegtrek net buite Paarl op die Agter-Paarl pad en met die burgemeester, Chris Leander, wat hulle voorspoed toewens.

"Tussen Klapmuts en Kraaifontein het dit begin reën en moes ons skuiling soek. Easmit het op sy selfoon sy ouers gebel en hulle het vir ons droë klere op Brackenfell gebring," vertel Cassiem.

Hulle het die dag se skof om 16:00 afgesluit en in Kensington, Goodwood, by familie oornag.

Die volgende oggend het hulle weer om 06:00 die pad gevat, vergesel van die 73-jarige tweelingbroers Moegsien en Goesnie Samie van Mitchell's Plain.

Die vier het omstreeks 08:30 by die Groenpunt Stadion aangekom en sommer besluit om ook die 10km stap af te lê wat as deel van die Stem van Kaap se fees aangebied is.