The first quarter of the match saw a slow start with neither side troubling the scorers. But then Tumi Mogoje opened the floodgates with a 5-point try backed up with the boot of Darian Hock to put 7 points on the board for the Ikey Tigers.

With only 5 minutes to go before the first half, the explosive gas of UWC winger Kurt-Lee Arendse dotted down a 5-pointer, equalising the scores on 7-7 with Lyle Hendricks’ conversion.

Before going into half time and refusing to give up, the Ikey Tigers secured a 14-7 lead over Udubs during the third minute of added time thanks to Stef de Gouveia and the reliable boot of Darian Hock.

It was an unfortunate blow to the Ikey Tigers as captain, Nama Xaba, had to leave the field due to an ankle injury in the 46th minute. It was only a moment later that FNB UWC equalized once again, to 14-14, with Tristan Leyds planting a 5-point try in the corner and Lyle Hendricks kicking straight through the upright.

UCT took the lead once more with a 7-point try thanks to Cuan Hablutzel and the conversion meant the lead was now 23-14. But the celebrations were short-lived as UWC responded with a converted 5-point try and a penalty kick, meaning UWC snatched a 1-point lead for the first time in the 63rd minute.

With the home crowd on the edge of their seats, the stadium roared once more as Michael Brink crossed the line with a 7-point try, taking back the lead over UWC in the final minutes of the opening Varsity Cup clash.

The 100% kicking accuracy by both teams in windy conditions kept the game exciting and never allowing a team to get away.

The final score was 32-24 in favour of UCT.

Scorers
UCT: 32  Tries: Tumi Mogoje (5-point try), Stef de Gouveia (5 point-try), Cuan Hablutzel (7 point try), Michael Brink (7 point try) Conversions: Darian Hock (4)

UWC: 24 Tries: Kurt-Lee Arendse (5-point try), Tristan Leyds (5-point try), Andre Manuel (5-point try) Conversions: Lyle Hendricks (3) Penalty: Lyle Hendricks (1)

- Varsity Cup