Poorte narrowly misses out on a shock win
After some nail-biting action from the two sides, Pirates narrowly beat Roodepoort 22–21 at the death.
Saturday, October 9 saw the Roodepoort Rugby Club host Pirates Rugby Club in their last home match of the season at Scorpion Park (Die Burger).
The Memorial Cup clash between the two sides provided the expected fireworks as both sides put their trust in a handful of young players blossoming under the guidance of experienced senior players.
Poorte had a mix of youth and experience with the dependable Selwyn Barnard on the bench, while Pirates proved to have the most stubborn defence on the day.
Under the leadership of Ronald Strydom and Ruan du Toit, the Roodepoort outfit led 21–12 at the break with a shock win a definite possibility.
Du Toit scored twice for Poorte while Joa van der Westhuizen scored the third, and Tiaan Naudé converted all three.
The visitors responded through their try-scoring machine Ilumda Mukendi who went on to score one of Pirates’ three tries.
After some nail-biting action from the two sides, Pirates narrowly beat Roodepoort 22–21 at the death when ace kicker Divan Nel landed yet another match-winning kick to secure victory for the visitors.
“In a great show of rugby, our boys looked good and are constantly improving on the critical areas of our game plan,” said Roodepoort Rugby Club President, Mathys Booyens.
At the beginning of the season Roodepoort suffered a 78–10 loss to Pirates, and Saturday’s match showed great improvement from the side.
Poorte have three matches left in the season and will be hoping to finish off with victories over the University of Johannesburg (UJ), Raiders Rugby Club and Germiston Simmer Rugby Club.
