UWC in Varsity Sports/Varsity Rugby

UWC in Varsity Sports

The University of the Western Cape are one of the founder members of the University Sports Company (USC) which, in 2012, saw the establishment of Varsity Sports – a high performance competition that enables South African universities to compete against one another in a number of different sporting codes.

As it happened, UWC were among the first tournament winners. They claimed the inaugural Varsity Beach Volleyball series in 2012 which took place alongside Varsity 7s Rugby in Plettenberg Bay and Margate. Over the years, UWC established themselves as the powerhouse of university beach volleyball, claiming four of the five titles – 2012, 2013, 2015 and 2016 – before the code was discontinued after the 2017 event.

The men's football team won the Varsity Football title in 2015 in front of a capacity crowd at UWC Sports Stadium – aka the Operation Room. The women, meanwhile, featured in four finals (2015, 2016, 2018, 2019) before – in 2021 – finally claiming another Varsity Sports title for the University. The women then reclaimed their crown in 2023.

UWC have also excelled themselves in other Varsity Sports codes. They reached the final of the 2015 cricket tournament and 2016 sevens rugby competition and individuals have shone during athletics meetings. UWC teams have also competed in Varsity Netball and Varsity Basketball, leaving only hockey and mountain bike as the codes the University has yet to to compete in.

Year-by-year record

Tournament wins

Varsity Beach Volleyball (4) 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016

Varsity Football (1) 2015

Varsity Women’s Football (2) 2021, 2023

Varsity 7s Rugby (1) 2022

UWC in Varsity Cup/Shield

When FNB Varsity Shield was established in 2011, as a second-tier competition below FNB Varsity Cup, UWC (initially coached by current Springboks assistant Deon Davids) were among the five ‘expansion’ teams.

The first two years saw the boys in blue and gold have to settle for third place (to miss out on the final), but in 2012 Charlton van Jaarsveld was named as the Forward That Rocks while Cheslyn Roberts was in a three-way tie as top try scorer courtesy of his six efforts.

With ex-Springboks coach Peter de Villiers taking the coaching reins in 2013, UWC finished second, but FNB CUT used home ground advantage to get the better of the them in the final, triumphing 29-19. Individually, Freddie Muller finished as the top points scorer (70) and was chosen as the Back That Rocks.

Their form tailed off in 2014 when they finished fourth, before improving to third in 2015 when James Verity-Amm scored a tournament-high 11 tries [which remains a single tournament record].

UDubs’ second-place finish in 2016, when Springboks legend Chester Williams took over from De Villiers, handed them the opportunity of promotion to the Varsity Cup, but Wits scuppered that by winning the final 39-2. Again, in part consolation, UWC supplied the Back That Rocks in Aidynn Cupido.

The boys in blue and gold’s spirit wasn’t broken as they claimed the title in 2017 (when the competition expanded to seven teams), convincingly beating FNB UFH 45-2 in a home final. More significantly, with promotion on the line again in 2018, coach Chester’s boys played a perfect season winning all six round-robin matches before thumping FNB WSU 55-10 in the final to set off celebrations at the Operation Room.

UWC may have finished bottom in their debut Varsity Cup campaign in 2019, but they at least broke the winless season ‘hoodoo’ suffered by previous promoted teams by securing a win against FNB UJ.

The untimely death of Chester Williams in late 2019 rocked more than just the UWC rugby community and it was perhaps unsurprising that the team spluttered in 2020, before the season was curtailed by the Coronavirus pandemic.

The arrival of former Springboks Sevens player and coach Paul Treu (and UWC alumnus) has brought renewed energy to the team. This much was in evidence in a 2021 campaign when they finished sixth and Tinotenda Mavesere claimed the Forward That Rocks award and finishing runner-up in Overall Player That Rocks voting.

Unfortunately, UWC fell foul of the combined 2021-22 log and played in the FNB Varsity Shield in 2023.

It was only to be a one-season stay however, as an unbeaten season saw them top the round-robin log and claim automatic promotion before back-to-back semifinal and final (against neighbours CPUT) wins saw them add silverware to end a fantastic campaign.

Year-by-year round-robin record

*2014, 2016, 2018 and 2022 were promotion/relegation years.

Tournament wins

FNB Varsity Shield (3) 2017, 2018, 2023