UWC proved their critics wrong when they clinched this year’s Varsity Football title against a much more fancied TUT side.
The Cape side came back from a goal down to win 2-1 in front of a record crowd at the UWC Sports Stadium in Bellville.
“I am extremely proud of my boys and I am extremely proud of what we achieved here today. No one backed us and no one gave us a chance,” UWC captain Reon October told varsitysportssa.com.
“We were the underdogs throughout this tournament. Even when we topped the log it was still the same.
“We showed character and motivation after all the negativity that surrounded us and I just want to say thank you to the institution. As a captain I cannot thank them enough.
“The supporters gave us the energy when went down early and in the second half they started singing and I could feel the energy and I got goosebumps and the boys felt it as well. We went on to score two goals and we won this tournament. What more can we ask for.”
UWC head coach Salie Adams praised his players for their remarkable fight back in the second half.
“I was a little bit disappointed in the first half with the individual performances because everybody wanted to do well for the team and they forgot that as a team we do well,” said Adams.
“We rectified it at half-time and got them to play a little bit together and they made more passes to one another and it worked out fine in the end.
“I am proud of the togetherness and the brotherhood. They worked hard for it and they set the targets. I was just there to guide and to help them and to add a little bit of my experience of being in the top level in football.”
Adams’ decision to bring on forward Josh Silent off the bench in the second half also proved to be a masterstroke with the player getting the winner in the second half after Keenan Davis got the equaliser.
“I told my other coach to speak to Josh because he was not starting and he was a little bit down.
“I always knew he would make a difference in the second half because I was sure TUT was a little bit scared of his height and his presence and he made a difference. He took the shot very well and we were actually shocked, but at the same time we always knew he had it in him,” Adams added.
Photo supplied by Jaco-Louis Groenewald
