THE Richards Bay Rugby Club first team ended their debut season in the Fidelity Security Moor Cup competition on a high after beating third placed Amanzimtoti 22-20 in a highly entertaining game on Saturday.
Durban-based Club College Rovers were crowned 2017 champions after ending top of the log, one point ahead of second placed Durban Collegians.
The local side had a phenomenal season in the Premier League, beating all teams at least once.
Richards Bay finished among the top six after round one and had take on the top semi-professional clubs packed with provincial players in the second round .
But their determination and grit proved bigger than provincial names and aided the local side to many home victories in front of jam-packed supporters.
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Toti opened the scoring account on Saturday with an unconverted try before Stevie Meyer crashed over for the home side, with JB Heunis converting to secure a narrow 7-5 lead.
Toti bounced back immediately, scoring two tries for a 17-7 lead at half-time.
A try from Jaco Pretorius, which Heunis converted (17-14), sparked the belief of a possible home victory as the Bay squad stepped up their game in the second half.
Minutes later, substitute Carel Swart dotted down a fantastic individual try to give his side the lead for the second time in the encounter (19-17).
The lead exchanged hands once again when Toti nailed a penalty and took a narrow 20-19 lead with only minutes left on the clock.
With coaches, bench warmers and spectators on the edge of their seats and the Bay boys putting everything on the line for each other, a penalty was awarded in the Bay’s favour.
Heunis stepped up and took the three points on offer to hand his side a well deserved 22-20 victory over a very physical and fit Toti outfit.
In the earlier second teams game, Richards Bay and Toit drew 12-12.
