And then it rained...

The match never quite lived up to the occasion. The FNB UCT First XV and a touring Cambridge team squared up to each other for the centrepiece match on the UCT Family Sports Day on September 18. After the pre-game hoopla, where vice-chancellor Prof Njabulo Ndebele unveiled a plaque to commemorate the contest, the spectators who weathered the day's storms may have had high hopes for a spectacular showing of rugby. Sadly, it was a stop-start affair, riddled with handling errors - and hail - as players struggled to hang on to the slippery ball. The match would have fizzled early but for UCT sticking to their credo of playing running rugby - "Varsity rugby," as rugby director Spencer King describes it - no matter what the elements. That gamesmanship saw them notch up three tries to one, even though Cambridge had the bulk of the possession. Penalty kicks made up the rest of the tally as UCT shut out their English rivals 24-11.