Stormers v Bulls still the biggest derby south of the border

Sharp Turn column by Zaahier Adams

The SA20 cricket tournament is wild. Every night is a high-energy affair.

Walking around the stadiums, there are children and adults having a jolly good time.

Then there’s the executive suits, where you can bump into anyone from Sports Minister Gayton McKenzie to Afrikaans pop icon Kurt Darren on any given night.

For the past couple of weeks, though, I’ve shared the company of former Springbok rugby players Juan de Jongh and Rudy Paige.

The duo have reinvented themselves as social media content creators, with their podcast ‘Behind the Ruck’ proving hugely popular.

In fact, their unique humour and charm has seen pay-channel SuperSport call on their services during the SA20 to add some colour and off-field entertainment to the action out in the middle.

For anyone who has ever met this duo, it’s a bit like watching a comedy show on energy drinks.

On Saturday evening, the conversation, however, turned serious very quickly.

Paige was leaving the refurbished Newlands media centre and passed the security guard at the door and said, “Julle gaan weer volgende week verloor!” (You are going to lose again next week), in reference to the Stormers v Bulls United Rugby Championship clash at Cape Town Stadium on Saturday.

Although hailing from the Western Cape, Paige played the majority of his senior provincial rugby up north for the Bulls out of Loftus. His blood is proudly sky blue.

But he was now in Stormers territory. And without hesitation, the security guard responded with “Nog nooitie!” (Never ever!).

Paige and the security guard proceeded to get embroiled in a heated conversation about the fact that the Stormers had beaten the Bulls in the first-ever URC final, and the Bulls have now lost two out of three finals.

All the while, De Jongh – who of course represented the Stormers with distinction for many years – smiled and sat back before responding with a chirp of his own: “Daar is niks soos Stormers teen die Bulle nie.” (There’s nothing like the Stormers versus the Bulls).

And that immediately took me back to days of yore, when I drove all the way from Cape Town to Soweto to watch the Stormers face off against the Bulls in their first-ever Super Rugby final at Orlando Stadium in 2010.

Apart from the Soweto Derby between Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs – which emphasised its status as a special occasion on the South African sporting calendar again last week – there is nothing that compares to the Stormers and Bulls clash.

It is a rivalry steeped in legacy when the north and south gets properly divided. And like any derby, it’s filled with passion that creates legends for years to come.

The Bulls head to Cape Town filled with confidence as they sit handily placed in third position on the URC table, while the Stormers languish in 12th spot.

But form counts for nothing in this derby, as the Stormers faithful have displayed, with nearly 50 000 people expected to stream into Cape Town Stadium for the early 2pm kickoff on Saturday.

It’s all set up to be another cracker.

My only disappointment is that Rudy, Juan and I will be watching it all the way from the Wanderers from the SA20 final, but I’m sure the banter will up there will be right up there with the high-octane rugby action.