DUBAI // Thousands of South Africans flocked to Jebel Ali yesterday to see their team trounce their long-standing rugby rivals the British Lions while feasting on traditional home-cooked fare.
At least 5,000 South Africans turned out at the Jebel Ali Shooting Club to sample potjie, a traditional stew, and watch the South African Rugby Legends in action against the British and Irish Lions Legends.
The event is among the first of the celebrations ahead of the country's Freedom Day on April 27.
They packed into stands, sat at tables set up alongside the field or simply leaned up against barriers shouting: "Come on South Africa. Go boys!"
"It's nice to make friends here, hang out, hear the banter," said Sofie Verbruggen from East London, who has lived in Dubai since November. Her team, the Cast Iron Kings, participated in a potjie cookout, ladling chicken and prawn into a pot as it simmered on hot coals. They hoped a "Thai twist" would set their dish apart from the competition, along with the oxtail meat in the stew.
The cookout helped many stave off bouts of homesickness. "We use the same recipe every year, we just keep improving it," said Cassie Flowers, wearing a white T-shirt emblazoned with the team name Ama Pot-Pot in a stall decorated with the South African flag.
"We come each year to pretend we're at home."
For rugby fans, the day was particularly sweet, with their side roaring to a 26-14 victory.
"We're the best and yes, we always win," said Shaun Little, who works at the Masdar Institute of Science and Technology, as his wife watched over their child in a stroller. "We've grown up with rugby. It's a family culture."
People headed to the ground hours before the game with friends bunching under cream umbrellas and mothers watching their children play football and rugby on a vast expanse of green.
Many came to be among fellow South Africans.
"It's lovely to see fellow South Africans, recognise the accents. It's a feeling of being home," said Anneret Maguire, who is from Johannesburg and has lived in Dubai for four years.
"Plus we're huge sports fans. It's fast paced and everyone enjoys it."
The ambience led many to wax nostalgic about home.
"We miss the people, the trees, the grass," said Hope Lephoko, a mother of two from Kathlehong, near Johannesburg.
"So it's great to just be around other South Africans. We don't know each other but we are here for each other. You don't know how much you like fellow South Africans unless you live away from home."