AMONG the 80 000 fans that packed the Stade de France in Paris for the Rugby World Cup final were two north Durban residents who were lucky enough to witness the Springboks making history.
Sibaya resident Michael Gavran and uMhlanga resident Haig Gibb happened to be seated next to each other when they saw the Springboks beat the All Blacks 12–11.
“We were actually seated in two different sections of the stadium because we had booked separately. But as luck would have it on the day of the 80 000 fans in the stadium, I happened to have a spare seat next to me, and I phoned Michael to come watch the game next to me,” explained Haig. “Booking tickets for the final was a spur-of-the-moment thing – we both had watched the semi-finals at Crusaders Sports Grounds when a couple of our mates said they were going to fly over to Paris. We decided we’d do the same. The hardest thing was buying the actual tickets from the official websites. You had to keep refreshing the website and hope you’d be one of the lucky ones to get through,” he said.
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Haig said the flight to Paris was made up of a majority of South Africans and two injured Springboks, Malcolm Marx and Makazole Mapimpi.
“The vibe on the flight, on the train to the match and in the stadium was just incredible. Malcom and Makazole happened to be on the same flight to Paris. The final itself was phenomenal; I actually had a headache from all the screaming. It was one of the most surreal experiences watching the Springboks play and defend the way they did. It was the sweetest victory,” he said.
For Michael, the final was like watching a Springbok game in South Africa.
“It was one of the most incredible experiences watching your country win a Rugby World Cup. There were points where you kind of wish everyone back at home was there watching with you, too. It was also meant to be that I got to watch the game next to Haig. I would say at least half of the fans at the stadium were South Africans so it was like watching a home game. I do agree with Haig – the Springboks were immense – they played like champions,” he said.
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