Paarl Gim opened its doors on 12 January 1858 as private school after the initiative of a Dominee van der Lingen, who desired the school to be controlled by the church, due to the fact that Dutch as a medium of instruction and religious education were forbidden in all state schools. At first, the school boasted with five pupils and was further supported by public subscription. Afrikaans was first recognized as a teaching medium in 1914 and was given recognition as an official language in 1918.

Paarl Gimnasium grew rapidly and became a government school in 1920, five years before Afrikaans replaced Dutch as the official language. The school sports a rich rugby heritage and tradition and has been played at the school since 1895. Paarl Gim’s first rugby honours came in 1902 when its Under–17 team won a shield. And in 1903 the school developed its own distinctive colours. The school’s first rugby field was on a vlei near the present day primary school fields. Back then, the school’s staff played frequently with the pupils in club competitions. One of Gim’s former principals, FC Wahl, even captained the First XV and at one stage the school tackled the rest of Paarl in a friendly and won. Interestingly, Paul Roos’ Springbok team of 1906–07 boasted with four Paarl Gim Old Boys in its ranks. The school has long since become a powerful force in SA schoolboy rugby and has produced well over 100 Western Province Schools players. Several great sides have been produced at Paarl Gim with its first team being unbeaten in 1927, 1929, 1936, 1938, 1954, 1968, 1970, 1978, 1979, 1981, 1983 and 1997, which considering the standard of competition in the Western Cape, is certainly an admirable feat.

The unbeaten side of 1983 was especially notable, producing five Western Province Schools players and the captain, Balie Swart, who went on to play SA Schools. Kobus Wiese was also a member of that team and although he did not go to Craven Week, he eventually went on to achieve national honours. In four seasons, between 2004 and 2007, Paarl Gim conceded defeat in only six encounters, which speaks volumes of the school’s dedication to and pride in its wealthy rugby history.

Gim has had its share of dedicated coaches, with Bokkie Blaauw being the most recent coach to continue with Gim’s winning ways. Paarl Gim is widely respected for having produced a host of Springbok players and famous names in this regard include, Boy de Villiers, Schalk Burger (Senior and Junior), Pierre de Villiers, Pieter and Chris Rossouw, Jean de Villiers and De Wet Barry. Francois Roux, a Junior Springbok who went on to play rugby for six different provinces is also a Gim Old Boy as is Marius Schoeman, rated as one of the best Sevens players in the world. More than 100 Old Boys left Paarl Gim to play provincial rugby and this tally includes three players named Pally Carstens. Pally Carstens played for Western Province and both his sons, also nicknamed Pally, went on to provincial honours. The eldest played for Western Province and Namibia while his younger brother played for South Western Districts. Several Old Boys have captained provincial teams, the most famous perhaps being Jan Pickard who captained Western Province from 1953 to 1960. As things stand at the moment, Paarl Gim fields 20 teams a week from a pupil base of about 500 and has also run a successful Sevens tournament as well as an Easter rugby festival for Under–16 teams.

Paarl Boy’s High was the result of a public meeting held in February of 1868 that determined that a “first–class public school” was needed in Paarl. The result of the meeting was that in July of that year The Paarl First Class

Public School opened its doors in a privatelyowned barn to four pupils and a headmaster – the Reverend George Jeffreys of Mowbray. The school moved a year later into a house on Paarl’s Church Square. Here it remained for a year before shifting to a building in Zion Street where it remained for a further four years before relocating to Lawaaimaak Street in Rozenfontein. It remained there until 1900 when it moved to Auret Street, its present location. The school’s move to Auret Street coincided with the appointment of its first long–serving headmaster – PJ du Preez le Roux – who served from 1901 to 1924. The school’s small pupil compliment resulted in attempts to amalgamate with Paarl Gim in 1868, 1870 and 1897. An attempt was made to merge the school with Paarl Girls High in 1970, but this plan was later abandoned in 1975. Rugby tradition at Boys’ High was started in 1901 by an Irish teacher – Billy Middleton. An enthusiastic member of Paarl rugby club, Middleton was known for his extended celebrations following a home victory. At the turn of the 20th century, the Paarl club and school shared the same colours with pupils and teachers often playing together in club teams. Paarl Boys’ High has had its fair share of colourful coaches and apart from Middleton, there was Chum Ochse – a Springbok on the 1961–62 tour to the UK. Two other Springboks have also coached the First XV, namely Dawie Ackermann and Mike Jennings. Despite the competition in Western Province rugby, Paarl Boys’ High have fielded unbeaten teams in a number of seasons and is certainly a rival not to be easily dismissed in the theatre of SA schools rugby. Paarl Boys’ High has made its fair contribution to Craven week and of those, 16 have played for SA Schools, including the former Western Province and Springbok captain, Corne Krige, who played SA Schools in 1983.

The school is not short of rivals and the intense rivalry between Paarl Boy’s High and Paarl Gim is legendary and is played out every August when the two schools meet in an Interschools contest. This match has been played since 1915 and Springbok great Boy Louw captained the Boys’ High side in the 1924 encounter. Former headmaster Tom Engela has said that the criteria for measuring a Boys’ High side is measured in terms of its results against Paarl Gim, Grey College (first played in 1947) and Bishops, whom Boys’ High first encountered in 1929. Paarl Boys’ High bitter rivalry is perhaps best expressed in its Interschool clash with Paarl Gim, the former from the town’s south side and the latter north. In 1926, about 3 000 spectators turned for the match and in recent times, crowds in excess of 20 000 have been drawn to this schoolboy rugby festival.

Great moments have been plenty and Boys’ High forever remember Theuns Briers in 1947 running the length of the field to score; Koos du Toit’s intercept tries in 1952, Mannetjies Roux and his magic in 1956 and the sublime skill of Carel du Plessis in 1978. Both Boys’ High and Paarl Gim have an honoured ceremony before the encounter in which the members of the First XV are capped by their fathers. A great number of respected players have been schooled at Boys’ High over the decades, the greatest of which is arguably Boy Louw, who is reverently known as “the master”. The school has produced 18 Springboks and two have even taught at the school – the legendary Chum Ochse and Dawie Ackermann