That sporting fairytale - a Varsity Tournament victory for the first time in 10 years - did not materialise for Tuks's men's soccer team on Friday night.
TUT defeated Tuks 3-2. This marks the fifth time they have won the tournament. The Tuks players could be forgiven for still wondering what went wrong in the second half. With the halftime score at 1-0 in Tuks' favour, the team appeared in control.
Tuks's first goal came from a brilliant team effort. Risen Albert delivered a perfect cross, connecting flawlessly with Ntokozo Madela, who headed it into the bottom corner. It was his sixth goal for Tuks, and he was awarded the Suzuki Golden Boot award.
Yet the saying that nothing in sport is certain until the "fat lady sings" proved true. TUT sealed the match in the second half with two goals in 10 minutes. The third goal was the proverbial final nail in the coffin.
Tuks still deserves credit, however. One standout characteristic of the 2026 team was its never-say-die spirit. Friday night's final was no exception; every player gave their all right to the very end. That led to Jason Cox scoring Tuks' second goal in the dying moments of the match.
"I think it's a bitter way to end our journey. Although we broke the nine-year record to reach the final, it was disappointing that we couldn't go all the way in front of our fans," said Cox.
"In the second half, we didn't want to change much because we were on top of them in the first half. The main change was pressing them higher up the field, which was normal for us as we often did this going into the 2nd half. I do think we could've dealt a lot better with the goals we conceded, as I feel they were very soft to give away, all three.
"But I must commend the boys on how far they've come from not qualifying for semis the previous year to being in touching distance of the trophy. These are the kind of memories that will stick with all of us for the remainder of our lives."
All in all, Tuks can be satisfied with its 2026 Varsity campaign. They are the only university to boast reaching the semifinals in all six tournaments.
The rugby team was crowned Varsity Cup champions. They were defeated only once in eight matches, beating North-West 31–3 in the final. This marks the sixth time Tuks has been crowned Varsity Cup champions.
Tuks's women's football team lost in the final against UJ. Tuks's women's rugby team, the Young Guns team, and the netball team all lost in the semifinals.