:: Far Beyond Zebra ::: Rugby Is The New Hockey?

We all know I am not an athlete.

However.

You may not know that I really enjoy watching sports. Perhaps it is directly because I cannot do that I like to watch. I have even been known to voluntarily switch golf onto the T.V! And everyone knows that is the true test of a spectator's commitment to sport.

Before last night there was one sport that I -- ashamedly -- had never been privy to even one second of. Even though my friend Strokan suffered a horrific broken arm on its field and the game itself is played by a good number of my girlfriends, I had managed to go 23 years without watching a proper game of rugby.

Rugby is huge in SA.

Well, no, perhaps I need to clarify that a wee bit. When I asked Justin if rugby was the most popular sport in the country, he pointed out that it is for the Whites (along with cricket), while soccer is more popular overall as it is a poor-man's game and is commonly played by Blacks. As sad as it is to have to factor race into such a simple question, it is a disappointing reality in this country.

The match we were about to watch was a part of the Currie Cup, which is a national tournament where each South African province represented by a single team. On the docket was the Lions versus Western Province, with the Lions being Justin's province of Gauteng and the latter encompassing Roxy's hometown, Cape Town.

The Currie Cup began on the heels of the Super 14 -- a tournament in which the Lions lost all 13 of their games.

Needless to say, expectations for the Lions pulling out a win were low going in..

To their credit, the Lions had won their last 3 games and thus instilled hope within their fans that perhaps, just perhaps, they could put up a decent fight against one of the better teams in the league.

We drove about 20 minutes from Justin's house to downtown Joburg where I finally understood why Cape Tonians dislike the "big city" so much. The downtown area is very industrial. Buildings are decrepit and deteriorating for the most part, while even the most modern towers are plagued with reputations of filth, drugs, and murder.

But by the time we reached the stadium, I was more concerned with what I was seeing in the streets than the architecture surrounding them.

Dozens of black men donning neon pinnies were running alongside cars, standing dead still in the middle of the highway, or frantically threading their bodies in between running vehicles.

What the hell?? Talk about dangerous!

When I asked why these men were in such a frenzy to grab the attention of motorists, Nick and Justin kindly explained that they were car attendants who desperately try to usher cars into their specific parking lot. They then monitor the lots so that thieves are deterred from breaking into your car. Except their 'monitoring' is notoriously useless. They aren't defensively armed in any way and most of the time they fail really keep an eye on your car at all, or, they actually help facilitate the stealing of it. Yet they still expect a tip once you retrieve your vehicle at the end of the night. Hmmm.

Lucky for us, the University of Joburg was right around the corner from the stadium. Since Nick and Just are attending students, we were able to park the car in safety there.

It was in the parking lot that we met up with Rob, Brandon, and Chase for some pre-drinks on the grass before the game.

We had on our red Lion gear and were ready to see how they would fare against their blue-striped opponents! But no vuvuzelas in sight. They are banned from rugby games, much to my dismay.

Rob, Me, Nick, Chase, and Brandon

Prices for tickets and food were extremely reasonable, especially once translated into Canadian dollars (check out the beer price and compare that to the last one you bought in the MTS Centre!):

Ticket (student): 20 Rand = $3
Chocolate bar: 8 Rand = $1
Beer: 15 Rand = $2

The game was wicked.

I am officially a rugby lover. Its speed and physicality reminded me a lot of hockey, to be honest. And I loved that play didn't stop-and-start like football or baseball. The game is full of contact, skill and best of all -- 30 sweaty, muscley, good-looking men. Complete with no padding to obscure the view :)

I think my favorite part was when three replacement players sauntered up to the sidelines in front of our seats to do a set of warm-up stretches. Yummm.

The boys would argue, however, that the best part was the final score. The Lions WON, and won handedly. 44 to 28, to be exact. It was an exciting match full of ups, downs, injuries, and suspect reffing calls. I loved it all and look forward to watching the next game!