Sixty-two years of rugby tradition in the small Overberg town of Greyton was washed away in a few seconds of frenzied madness when players and followers of the Young People's Rugby Club attacked a referee last month.
The club and the rugby-mad community of Greyton were this week coming to terms with the punishment meted out by the Boland Rugby Union - a six-year ban from all rugby imposed on the club and a life ban handed down to 19 Young People's rugby players for their part in the assault on Charles Titus.
The 35-year-old Genadendal referee underwent reconstructive surgery to repair a smashed jaw and cheekbone suffered during the attack.
On Sunday, James Saville, a former member of the Young People's Rugby Club executive and a die-hard supporter, bemoaned the "harsh sentence" imposed on the club.
"Here in Greyton, rugby is the only sport we have and now everything is gone," he said.
Club spokesperson Ronnie Martin would only say: "The club and Greyton 'voel seergemaak' (we have been hurt by this)."
The club faces the prospect of closing down or losing players to clubs from surrounding areas as it serves out the ban - one of the longest handed down in the Western Cape or the Boland.
The incident stemmed from a match between the club and Primrose of Grabouw which spiralled out of control when Titus sent off a Young People's players after the player had sworn at him and thrown a rugby ball in his face.
When the player stormed over and hit him, Titus blew his whistle to signal the premature end of the game, but the worst was yet to come as more Young People's players and supporters crowded in on the referee.
Boland Rugby Union president Jacky Abrahams said: "I can fully understand that rugby is the only sporting activity in Greyton and I have sympathy for (them), but it boils down to the fact that we have a responsibility as the Boland Rugby Union to maintain discipline and to ensure the safety of players, referees and spectators."