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Information reaching Kossyderrickent has it that Botha Msila and Mama Joy raised South African flag during Springboks vs Scotland game at the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France.
Scottish hearts were in mouths when Finn Russell went down injured after attempting a no-arms tackle, but there were sighs of relief when he got back to his feet and escaped with a penalty rather than a trip to the sin bin.
Scotland’s attack almost came to life when Darcy Graham broke clear down the left wing but couldn’t get the ball out to Duhan van der Merwe to finish, but a penalty won at scrum time gave Russell the chance to kick three points in the final act of the half.
Momentum shifted after the break when Du Toit barged through a wall of Scottish defenders to notch the opening try, before a wonderful no-look cross-kick from Libbok fell into the grateful arms of Arendse for an inspired second score three minutes later.
A 15-point lead proved insurmountable for the Scots as they were kept at bay by a Boks side who many have down as favourites to retain the trophy.
South Africa kicked off their Rugby World Cup defence with an 18-3 win over Scotland thanks to a dominant second-half display.
Only three points split the sides after a physical first half, but the Springboks pulled away after the break thanks to Pieter-Steph Du Toit and Kurt-Lee Arendse tries.
Not many can claim to have attended three major World Cup tournaments in less than a year, apart from Mzansi superfan Joy Chauke, fondly known as Mama Joy in the sporting circles.
In December, she went to the 2022 Fifa World Cup in Qatar, was with Banyana Banyana at the recently concluded Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand in July and on Tuesday, she jetted out to France to cheer for the Springboks as they defend the Webb Ellis trophy they won in Japan in 2019.
“I have been to three World Cups in four countries in the space of 10 months. I have four visas from those countries on my passport. Not a lot of people can put that on their CVs. I have pushed so hard to be able to be afforded the opportunity and to be chosen to travel to these tournaments,” said Mama Joy before her departure.
Scotland will be disappointed they couldn’t keep up their first half performance in the second 40 minutes, but the moment the Bomb Squad came off the bench for the Boks the momentum changed.
Next up for Gregor Townsend’s men is a date with Tonga next week, while the Boks play Ireland in a titanic clash a day earlier.
We’ll have more reaction from Marseille and live coverage of Wales’ clash with Fiji, but for now this is all from us.
People wonder how she manages to juggle work and finances to attend all these matches and tournaments. The new “face of SA national teams”, has eclipsed the usual suspects that include Saddam Maake, Botha Msila, Masilo Machaka and others who used to be at the forefront.
“Obviously, it is very expensive to travel and to pay for accommodation in these countries and tournaments. The federations, like Safa, and now South African Rugby Union, help us with the travelling and other costs.
The government also assists us in terms of visas and other travelling documents and paperwork. So, the federations, the sponsors and the government pay for us. We are also on national duty because we are representing the nation and helping our athletes to fly the SA flag high.”
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