False Bay RFC storm the Mile

A league match it was, but with so many facets it was almost guaranteed to be a massive occasion, and Motorvaps False Bay RFC took the M3 south back home with an unbeaten run on not only Saturday, but Friday night too.

The Bay First XV was the headline victory, their thrilling 35-29 victory over the Ikey Tigers at the Green Mile enthralling.

With the added edge of the Mark Jordaan Challenge, the silverware on offer was more honour than motivation and opposing head coaches, Ashley Wells of False Bay and Wes Chetty of UCT, long-time teammates, now locking horns from the sidelines.

Starting on Friday night, the Bay’s under-20 Badgers held out for a 24-9 victory and False Bay’s Women’s team kept a varsity theme with their 8-5 win over the University of Western Cape. The next day, opening the programme on what was anticipated to be a crackerjack day of exciting running rugby, False Bay’s enigmatic, talented band of rugby entertainers, their under-20As, stunned the highly rated UCT outfit in their 22-9 victory.

The Bay’s Third and Second Teams then followed suit with convincing victories.

Referee Jaco Smith, celebrating his 20-year anniversary as a Super League A referee to the day, started proceedings of a thoroughly entertaining, action-packed, and tense encounter between two clubs with a rich history.

The first 35 minutes belonged to Motorvaps False Bay, playing into an at-times-stiff breeze. They dominated the scrums and stood tall in the lineouts. They swarmed the point of breakdown; rushed the lines of defence and hassled their opponents in general play, subduing one of the most exciting outfits in Varsity Cup 2024.

UCT showed their mettle with a fightback just before the break. Having worked their way into the Bay quarter, centre Tom Nel scored, exciting wing and deadly goalkicker, Ntokozo Makhaza converting

At this stage, False Bay had stunned the students, building a 20-3 lead through tries by Mustaqim Jappie, who heralded his return to action with an exciting performance, and wing Daniel Hayes, with fullback Grant Hermanus contributing 10 points through two penalties and a brace of conversions.

Regarding Hayes, the diminutive pocket-rocket buys into the “size no longer matters” belief promoted by the Springbok dynamos of our national team. His guts and sheer determination to cross that line with ball in hand was rewarded in the second half with a second try.

That late try was the taste of blood UCT required to invigorate themselves while re-strategising at the break. The storm they unleashed on False Bay had the double-edged effect of showing their capacity.

The Tigers broke free and Motorvaps False Bay scrambled, initially absorbing pressure mostly to good effect, but eventually capitulating to a try by hooker, Keagan Blankenberg.

Was this the moment the dam wall crumbled for the Constantia team? It could so easily have been, but there is a commitment to the cause and each other within this team, and a try by standout hooker Jacques Goosen, converted by Hermanus, increased the lead of the visitors to 27-12.

Sufficient daylight on the scoreboard perhaps, but not with 20 minutes to play against a determined, not to mention viciously proud ambush of Tigers. They attacked the Bay lines, their guests scrambling in defence, pushing the limits of the law. These resulted in three yellow cards in total, two of which overlapped, which meant False Bay were furiously defending against a marauding Ikeys outfit with two short for some minutes. Tough it was indeed, two of the cards justified for negative play, but the third could so easily have been avoided as it was simple petulance, as a Bay player allowed his emotions to overflow.

Ikeys exerted unbearable pressure on their opponents, The pressure told and Ikeys were justifiably awarded a penalty try, bringing the score to 27-22 to Motorvaps False Bay.

UCT scored again, almost aptly by Makhaza, who converted too.

The Ikeys took the lead, their experience in these situations immense, not least in the recent Varsity Cup, and the hearts of the Bay supporters were dropping. With a noticeable breeze at his back, Hermanus converted a penalty for False Bay, giving them a slender one-point lead, insufficient to wind the clock down against this Ikeys team.

Ignoring cries from the Bay stands to “take the points” for a series of penalties in the UCT half, captain Thabo Ngcongo on the back of another outstanding performance, relentlessly called for the line kick. The resulting lineouts were inevitably met by determined UCT defence, blunting these attacks. The omnipresent spectre of a breakaway Ikey counter attack weighed heavily on the visitors but their defence stood firm.

False Bay’s relentless attacks on the Ikey line eventually paid dividends when “Cheslin” Heyns scored his second, much to the chagrin of the home side.

It was a magnificent battle between two well-prepared teams ultimately paying homage to the game of rugby and one of its true gentlemen, Mark Jordaan.

Motorvaps False Bay travel to Florida Park on Saturday to face fifth-placed Tygerberg, two above the Bay. First games are at 1.25pm with the main at 4pm.

• Jon Harris is a member of False Bay Rugby Club.