Defiant All Blacks fans won't go green

Andisiwe Makinana|Published

While the rest of the country is in a "Bok-craze" ahead of tomorrow's Rugby World Cup final, there is a small group who are still mourning the shock defeat of the tournament's top favourites, the All Blacks, in the quarterfinal against France.

While traditional All Blacks supporters in the country have switched loyalties to South Africa for the final after their team's loss, members of the All Blacks Supporters' Club of SA remain defiant.

"Form is temporary while class is permanent. Consistency is the greatest measure of success," said the club's chairperson, Capetonian Nigel du Preez, who claimed his club has almost 4 000 members.

Saturday game has no significance to them. "It's irrelevant who wins as we do not support any of the teams playing in the final," said Du Preez.

"We will definitely not be shouting for either one and we will not be making any special plans to watch the game."

Du Preez said the All Blacks Supporters' Club had started as an email forum about five years ago and had become an official club this year.

The club is based in Parow and draws membership from "people from all walks of life around the country".

Du Preez said they supported the All Blacks for various reasons and these had nothing to do with the Springboks.

"The development structures from pre-school to the professional levels are all superior to any other in the world.

"They play a great brand of rugby and are most gracious even when they lose."

He also argued that they were patriotic members of the South African society. "We pay our taxes and love Cape Town and this country."