“YOU APPLIED TO UCT BUT YOU DID NOT GET IN!!!!!!!!”
Was stuck in my head for roughly 43 hours. That is a long time to have a song stuck in your head. It has also felt like quite a long time for those in my company, as at random yet quite frequent intervals I tend to burst into song. Funnily enough it is yet to be followed by applause.
On Monday night was intervarsity. I’m not the greatest rugby fan, although I do appreciate a good (looking) rugby player, but something strange happened on Monday night. Something very strange. Actually, stop. Let’s go through some background information.
Prior to studying at Red and Yellow I was at UCT. I had never been to an intervarsity match before as I figured that it just wasn’t really my vibe. This year however, when all my friends said they were going I had a major case of FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) and decided it was time.
From the moment I whipped on my UCT Ikey Tiger supporters T-Shirt and slapped some blue stripes on my face and rummaged through the cupboard to find the blue Vuvuzela, I became a different person. Never before have I been so excited to watch rugby in my life. A few of us began the trip to Stellenbosch together and as soon as we crossed what UCT students call the “boerie curtain” the fear kicked in. For every Ikey supporter, there were at least 50 burgundy clad Maatie supporters rambling on in Afrikaans (and for a Durbanite, Afrikaans may as well be Ancient Gaelic).
After standing/pushing/bumping/whining/sweating/waiting in what was supposed to be a queue for about 30minutes inside we were. 20000 people. 5000 from UCT. As if via pure magnetism off we flocked to the swarm of blue and then the magic happened. No matter whether or not you knew one another, if you were wearing blue, you were best mates. Those in burgundy you eyed suspiciously, sometimes even throwing out a childish remark about how awful Stellenbosch/burgundy/the Maaties are.
From “YOU APPLIED TO UCT BUT YOU DID NOT GET IN!!” to “WE WON THE BOER WAR!” and even “F*** YOU STELLENBOSCH, F*** YOU STELLENBOSCH!” It was as if we were one person, one large, blue, rude person.
UCT may have lost the rugby (although I stand by the fact that we shouldn’t have) but I realised something very important: When people come together to support a common cause, no matter who you are, you become united. Gender, age, race and social standing become insignificant when you are grabbing shoulders with a sweaty, beer-drenched stranger, whilst jumping up and down to the chorus of “A U! A U! A UCT!”.
Nice! Very easy to read and fun.
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