DHL WP centre Damian de Allende and coach Allister Coetzee were on Monday rewarded for their achievements in the 2013 Absa Currie Cup during the month of October.
De Allende walked off with the Player of the Month honours for October, whilst Coetzee won his second successive Coach of the Month Award – with media voting having closed in the week leading up to Saturday’s final.
Both De Allende and Coetzee pocketed R10,000 for their efforts, with De Allende joining teammates Cheslin Kolbe (August) and Scarra Ntubeni (September) as the only other Player of the Month winners in the 2013 Absa Currie Cup.
DHL Western Province finished in first place on the 2013 Currie Cup log, having emerged unbeaten through the 10-game league stages before winning their semifinal against the Golden Lions to claim a first home final since 2001.
Province – boasting an average age of just 24,9 in their matchday squad – were unable to go all the way in Saturday’s Grand Final at DHL Newlands, but the DHL WP Under-21 team showed great commitment and ability in winning their Absa Provincial Under-21 Final against a star-studded Blue Bulls U21 team earlier in the day.
WP, meanwhile, also boasted a successful year at schools level, tasting success in the Under-13, Under-16 and Under-18 age-groups, and the union has also secured ten SA Schools players as part of next year’s intake at the WP Rugby Institute in Stellenbosch.
Western Province Rugby CEO Rob Wagner commented: “Saturday was obviously not the result we wanted for the thousands of supporters in Blue & White who filled DHL Newlands.
“In all my time at WP Rugby I have never experienced such an atmosphere at the stadium. The singing of the national anthem was absolutely amazing and I am so, so proud to be a part of the most wonderful supporters’ group.
“Our supporters are the very best in the country and they demonstrated this on Saturday by creating
an unforgettable atmosphere at DHL Newlands. Their support over the past season has been fantastic across the board and we, at WP Rugby, are indeed privileged and extremely humbled to have this kind of support.”
