Tinus de Beer slotted a 79th-minute penalty as Griquas claimed a morale-boosting 23-22 win over the Pumas on Saturday.

The Pumas and Griquas have enjoyed competitive campaigns in the Preparation Series, and both teams have also come a long way since the start of the extended Currie Cup last year.

And although not many would have paid attention to this clash between the two small unions, Griquas’ passionate celebrations at the final whistle said a lot about how much the result meant to them.

As it turned out, despite two yellow cards in the second half, Griquas somehow managed to fight their way back into the contest despite staring defeat in the face at one point.

In the dying seconds, the Pumas also had a shot to snatch the win with a tricky penalty, but the kick sailed wide to hand the result to the hosts.