Poorte put the spring back in their Gold Cup campaign
The match was a must-win if Poorte wanted to further their Gold Cup run.
Roodepoort Rugby Club earned a vital victory over Springs Rugby Club at Emirates Airline Park on Saturday, 16 March, after closing down an eight point half-time deficit.
Poorte went into the clash on what is not only the Lions’, but possibly South Africa’s most hallowed rugby field, needing a win to keep their hopes of progressing to the quarterfinals alive having lost to Rustenburg Impala the week before. Springs found themselves in the same boat as they had lost to Swallows Rugby Club, with the loser in the Poorte-Springs clash most likely being knocked out of the tournament.
Once both sides had soaked up their surroundings in the stadium, and had worked the nerves off in a warm-up, the encounter was kicked off by Springs at 11.45am. Poorte seemed a far better side at the start, with Stokkies Hannekom dotting down a try inside the first 10 minutes. Despite Poorte scoring a try with five minutes left in the half, Springs dominated possession for the remainder of the half as they cruised to a 22–14 half-time lead.
Roodepoort needed to urgently settle their nerves and get back in the game if they wanted to emerge victorious at the end of the 80 minutes. They seemed to do just that, as they put in a much better performance in the second half and managed to reduce the gap to three points inside the first 10 minutes of the half, before finally taking the lead.
Roodepoort managed to see the game out until the 80th minute when they found themselves 12 points ahead with Springs knocking on their doorstep in the dying moments in search of a consolation losing bonus point. Springs managed to get their much-needed try and bring the score to where it would stand at the end of the fixture, with Poorte emerging 41–34 victors.
Poorte’s victory brings them level with Swallows, who narrowly lost to Rustenburg, but behind on points difference, while Springs will need the biggest miracle in the history of the Gold Cup if they are to progress to the quarterfinals. Roodepoort will be making the trip to East London for the clash with Swallows this weekend, with the winner being the lucky side that will progress in the competition.
