Cape Town: The rugby club community of Cape Town is in shock as player Naasif Abrahams aged 42, died on Saturday, June 29, 2024 on field in between the match.
Abrahams is a player from Vineyards Rugby Club, during a Super League B game against Hamlets in Mamre, he collapsed and died on the spot, in the field.
According to the narration of an eye-witness, the 42-year-old appeared to go into epileptic shock after an on-field collision. The source close to Vineyards confirmed that Abrahams has served as player-coach of the club’s third team.
After the result of the medical incident, the next two games which were scheduled for the day to be played in Cape Town, were called off and will be rescheduled for a later date. Neither of the two teams has reached for comment in the immediate aftermath of the incident. Both the teams have chalked up 15 logs points but Vineyard’s reached to 11th and pipped Hamlets reached to 12th in the Super League B standings due to a better points differential.
Player/coach for the third side, Abrahams spent most of the match on the bench and did not played the game but decided to join in for the closing stages.
After spending few minutes on the field, Abrahams took the ball into a routine tackle but collapsed after receiving a backup. The actual cause of the death is still unknown, though those who were present at the ground suspected a heart attack, as there was no sign of head impact.
The rugby player was stretched off the field but died shortly afterwards and had been a member of vineyards since his junior rugby days. He played as a first-team fly half in his late teens and early 20s before transitioning to no 8 in the recent years.
Cousin of Abraham, Shukri Moerat, was with him during his final moments. He expressed club’s devastation. The club treasurer at Vineyards, Moerat said on Sunday that he was tackled around the legs and then there was a ruck. He stood up, collapsed and it was fairly an instant reaction from there.
Moerat added to his words that they still hope while had a hope while he was lying next to the field. “But honestly, while sitting next to him, I didn’t want to face it but I think it happened quite quickly. He explained further that Abrahams was not planning to play but joined in for a fun during the last few minutes.
