Zimbabwe champions Old Georgians registered their second win of the SARU Gold Cup with a 38-22 victory over South African side Durban Collegians at Old Georgians Sports Club on Saturday.

The Gold Cup is the top competition for non-university rugby union clubs in South Africa, Namibia and Zimbabwe, with one slot for Zimbabwe for the first time.

Old Georgians started their Gold Cup campaign with an 18-20 win over South African side White River and lost 38-25 against False Bay in the second round.

Old Georgians then put up a commendable show in their third game, which their coach Grant Mitchell said was a bold statement to the region about Zimbabwean club rugby.

“This is a big statement for Zimbabwe rugby. One of our objectives in this tournament is to show the region that Zimbabwe can compete," said Grant.

“The match against Collegians was non-negotiable on our part because we had to win at all costs. We were really prepared for this match and our mental approach was good, we showed so much character. The guys played well, it was a good display.”

The Zimbabwean side had an improved display from last week's defeat to False Bay in which they gave soft tries to their opponents in the second half.

Old Georgians started the match well going to the breather on top 19-15 but threw away the momentum a bit allowing the South Africans back into the match.

However Old Georgians seemed to have learnt from their defeat to False Bay when they summoned their character to score more tries as the game wore.

Georgians will now travel to South Africa next week for a fixture against a Springs side from the Valker qualifier.