The best in the west face off at the House of Pain
With the hosts having a good season and Poorte’s young side always proving to be a tough and a well-coached team under the leadership of Neil Kalify, supporters could not contain their excitement when the referee blew the whistle for the match to start.
It was an instant classic between two of the West Rand’s rugby powerhouses on Saturday, August 27 when they faced off in a Gauteng Lions Rugby Union (GLRU) Memorial Cup match at Greenhills Stadium in Randfontein.
EcoRubber Roodepoort Rugby Club were hosted by Randfontein Rugby Club at the House of Pain with both sets of players motivated by the presence of former Springbok player Albert van den Bergh who is one of GLRU’s coaches.
Before the start of the match a moment of silence was observed for the late Poorte under 20 player Brandon Bowker.
With the hosts having a good season and Poorte’s young side always proving to be a tough and a well-coached team under the leadership of Neil Kalify, supporters could not contain their excitement when the referee blew the whistle for the match to start.
The return of Khyle Verwey in the Randfontein back line with the Tiedt brothers was a major boost for the hosts as they constantly challenged the Poorte defence.
Poorte’s Ruan du Toit was not available for the encounter and team captain Ronald Strydom started at inside centre.
The Teine Boys wasted no time in proving to be the tougher opponents on the day while Poorte struggled to fin their rhythm.
The two teams weighed up very well but at the final whistle the hosts had the final say and won the match convincingly.
“It was a tough day at the House of Pain with EcoRubber Roodepoort going down 47–13 to Randfontein in a very physical encounter.
“Thank you to everyone who came to support the boys today,” said Poorte Club Chairman Theuns Naude.
The loss meant that Poorte were not successful in keeping the Castle Cup that was on the line. This floating trophy will spend the next year in the cabinet of the Teine Boys.
EcoRubber Roodepoort Rugby Club sponsored a floating trophy for the Roodepoort and Randfontein 2nd Teams to play for each year on the same basis as the 1st teams play for the Castle Bowl.
The Roodepoort 2nds won their match against Randfontein 29–20 and will keep the trophy until the teams play again next year.
Randfontein Rugby Club will today (September 3) host a provincial amateur game day.
The fixtures are below:
- Randfontein U/20 vs UJ U/20 kickoff at 12:45
- Golden Lions Rugby Union (GLRU) Sub Union vs Leopards Sub Union kickoff at 14:25
- Golden Lions Rugby Union (GLRU) Amateur vs Griffons Amateur kickoff at 16:00
