[Image: WikiCommons]
A social media video of what Newlands Stadium looks like these days has drawn a few unexpected tears from us here at 2OV.
The video posted to Instagram shows the once-famous stadium neglected and overgrown. Where roars once shook the walls, the empty stands now only echo with some of WP’s most epic battles.
Only the sound of birdsong rings around the stadium these days, and wild bushes grow in the tunnels where Die Streeptruie used to emerge to the roar of faithful white and blue-clad fans. It’s enough to make supporters cry, and perhaps best said with a poem:
Ivy climbs where heroes battled, rust corrodes the empty seats,
The wind, once drowned by joyous passion, now echoes in the hollow stands.
A greater palace stole the fire, leaving broken stone and sagging wire,
But in the hush of forgotten stillness, you may still hear a final try.
For though the past is left in ruin, the ghosts still linger, driven by the battle cry,
The lights went out, the crowds departed, leaving only silence where dreams still lie.
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Now that we’ve had a good cry, let’s talk business. SA Rugby Magazine reported last week that despite the Western Province Rugby Football Union having secured a buyer, Newlands Stadium right be headed for auction.
The WPRFU offered its real estate, including the former home of the WP and Stormers, as security for the R250 million it owes Dreamworld Investments. That includes the R112 million the union borrowed under then president Zelt Marais to settle debts with Remgro and Investec.
According to Rugby365, Dreamworld has called up the bonds, which means property could be sold at auction to the highest bidder.
Peter Jooste, administrator of the WPRFU, said in a statement that they were still hoping to sell the stadium to a prospective buyer.
“Since I was appointed administrator, we have worked diligently to prevent the foreclosure of Dreamworld. The Western Province Rugby Football Union has secured a buyer who has completed their due diligence, and we are currently finalising the legal and contractual aspects of the proposed transaction.”
Whoever ends up purchasing the former home of WP Rugby, we kindly ask that you refrain from turning it into just another luxury apartment complex with Tiger’s Milk and Zara. Newlands is sacred ground, please treat it with the respect it deserves.
