CAPE TOWN - My first experience of Treviso was not a good one. It was early December 2014 when I landed at the airport, located about 31km outside the tourist-attraction city of Venice.
I had covered the Springboks’ end-of- year tour to Europe, which ended with a whimper as they lost 12-6 to Wales in a very chilly Cardiff.
That was the Test where I could clearly hear Jean de Villiers scream in anguish from my seat in the press box at the Millennium Stadium, as he suffered multiple knee injuries that ruled him out for eight months.
It was terribly tough for the Bok captain, who had to work incredibly hard to be fit for the 2015 World Cup – which he did, but his bad luck at the tournament continued as he sustained a fractured cheekbone against Samoa.
But back to Treviso. My wife Sakeena was able to join me in London after the Bok tour, and we made it to Italy. But upon arrival at Treviso airport, the Italian authorities were not impressed with me – I don’t know if it was my hairstyle, my rugged bad looks, or my name ...
The guy who was supposed to stamp my passport instead told me in stern broken English to “Wait”, and he disappeared into a back office with my passport.
Panic started to set in, and I told my wife in Afrikaans that I didn’t know what was going on – her passport had already been stamped by someone at a different booth.
What seemed like an eternity – about 45 minutes – had passed before the officious guy returned with my passport.
He marched straight up to me, handed me my passport and walked away – without saying a word. I checked inside, and thankfully, it had been stamped … and we were on our way.
Once we got to Venice, which was about 40km away, we had a memorable time. Despite the cold and rain of mid-winter, we also had the best gelato ever.
So, I fully understand how the Bulls must be feeling now following their 35-8 capitulation at the hands of Benetton in the Rainbow Cup final in Treviso on Saturday.
Their official business – the rugby match – was a nightmare. They were scrappy in the lineouts, their ball-carriers were knocked backwards by the physical Benetton forwards, and their kicking and handling was not up to scratch. It was a total disaster, considering how they had performed all season.
Coach Jake White was right in saying afterwards that his players hadn’t made those mistakes all season long, and Benetton captain Dewaldt Duvenage made the point that the “stars were aligned” for his team to win. They certainly were – home-ground advantage in what was supposed to be a neutral venue; the Bulls were missing their Boks and a few others due to injuries and call-ups to the Blitzbok and SA Under-20s; and there was even a small crowd of 1 000 that spurred on their heroes to victory.
It was a perfect storm, and the Bulls bore the brunt of it.
But off the pitch, it looked like a good time was had. A first trip overseas in a long time – due to Covid-19 – for a largely young group of players who probably haven’t been to Italy before, hot summer’s days, boat cruises, pizza, gelato … what’s not to like.
And after all the success they achieved in South Africa, they deserved to let their hair down a bit – even though captain Marcell Coetzee warned before the match that it was “not a holiday trip”.
Yes, it was a disappointing performance and result, but the sun came up in Pretoria – and Treviso – the next day. Don’t worry Bulls fans: your team will be back, and White will be plotting his revenge in the United Rugby Championship.
@AshfakMohamed
IOL Sport