A legion of enthusiastic rugby fans went down to Cecil Emmett Park on Saturday afternoon to watch Vryheid face arch rivals, Piet Retief in an intrepid clash between the opposing sides who were equally hungry for the victory.
The atmosphere was electrifying as, on the field, the players responded to the magnificent energy of the crowd who watched intently from the banks or cheered animatedly from the pavilion for each outstanding play, each triumphant tackle and every awe-inspiring and daring display of dominance.
The second teams from Vryheid and Piet Retief met first and it was Piet Retief who put the first points on the board, with an unconverted try in the first half leaving the host side from Vryheid trailing at the halftime whistle, 0 – 5 in Piet Retief’s favour.
In the second half, Vryheid came back with two tries, one by George Fritze and one by Sfundo Mhlongo and a conversion by Juan Booyens. But it was not enough to snatch victory from the visitors, who responded with another three tries, one converted, in the second half. At the final whistle, the score was 22 – 12 to the Piet Retief second team squad.
Man of the match for the forwards went to Mauritz Viljoen while George Fritze took the honour for the backline.
As the winter sun began its descent over Cecil Emmett Park and the air took on an icier ambiance, the Vryheid and Piet Retief first teams marched into battle as the stands came alive with roars from the excited spectators who waited in eager anticipation for the main match of the day.
At halftime, the score stood at 19 – 7 to the hosts, with Vryheid managing to put three tries and two conversions under their belts before the halftime whistle blew. Piet Retief could only respond with one converted try in the first forty minutes.
It was a no holds barred encounter as both sides grappled hungrily for glory, each squad absolutely mindful that winning was their only option. But in the end, there can be only one winner and, after a ruthless 80 minutes of intense combat, it was Vryheid who seized the glory.
Piet Retief put another 17 points on the board in the second half with two converted tries and a successful penalty kick. But it was the men in maroon who emerged triumphant, adding to their halftime lead with another converted try and two well-placed penalty kicks in the second half to cement their victory.
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As the final whistle blew, the score stood at 32 – 24 to the host side, with tries coming from Simpiwe Mbentshe, Zakes Dlamini, Marnu Crathorne and Lwazi Mdluli contributing to the score, as well as two conversions by Morné Hattingh and one conversion and two penalty kicks from Chris van Rooyen, securing the Vryheid Rugby Club victory.
Man of the match for the forwards went to Scorra Nzuza while Zakes Dlamini was named man of the match for the backline.
Vryheid will travel to Newcastle for their next match on June 8 against the Newcastle Highlanders.
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