JOHANNESBURG - Thousands of Soweto residents were left disappointed on Thursday after being locked out of the Orlando Stadium where the Springbok rugby team made an appearance as part of their world cup trophy tour.
The residents, from surrounding areas such as Pimville, Dobsonville, Ormonde and Orlando said they were "livid" that the team merely came for a briefing to meet outgoing Johannesburg mayor Herman Mashaba, the Orlando Pirates soccer team and a delegation from the city.
Ntombizodwa Hlongwane, 60, accompanied by her granddaughter, told African News Agency (ANA) she felt "extremely hurt" by the treatment she received.
"We were monkeys during the apartheid times and now we still are. We are made to stand at the gate... actually who are the Springbok supporters, us or Mashaba? I even bought the T-shirt, for what? It's really not nice that we came all the way to see them and we didn't, how disappointing." she said.
A crowd of children said they were "angry" they did not get to see the winning team
The fans were left outside the gate while a briefing took place inside.
The Boks' five-day victory tour kicked off in Pretoria on Thursday morning, after which they visited Johannesburg and Soweto, parading the Webb Ellis Cup from an open-top bus.
The team is set to visit Durban, Eastern Cape and Western Cape in the coming days.