Steven Kitshoff helped South Africa to hoist the Rugby World Cup in 2019, an achievement that defers only to leading the Stormers to the Vodacom United Rugby Championship title.
“This win is definitely up there,” the Stormers captain said after beating the Vodacom Bulls in the final at Cape Town Stadium on Saturday night. “Looking back, when we started our home leg and were just thinking of getting a top-eight spot and qualifying for the European Cup.
“We pushed those goals further and further, got a home semi and then a home final. It’s been an incredible journey and it’s in the top two of my achievements.”
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The Bulls made an electric start to the final when two powerful driving mauls resulted in inside centre Harold Vorster powering over the line to score the opening try just two minutes into the contest. Despite coming under immense pressure, the Stormers did their best to hang in there and then started to claw their way back into the contest from the 30-minute mark.
“The chat behind the poles was mostly just to get back on task and focus on the next job,” Kitshoff said. “They were scoreless for quite a while after that. That we didn’t get flustered was quite amazing, but also shows how mature we were and got back to the plan.”
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The Stormers skipper also paid tribute to the crowd of 31 000 who motivated the hosts to give their all.
“It was special. The faithful, they were definitely the extra man on the field. It was properly loud and a cheerful and great atmosphere. I am very grateful for the supporters we have as a team and a union.”
