Bars and restaurants in the Octagon and other parts of the city were brimming with rugby supporters last night as the city filled with visitors for the sold-out game at Forsyth Barr Stadium.
Among the black jerseys were Springboks fans Dawie Eastham, originally from Cape Town, and Kirsti Kay from Pietermaritzburg.
Mr Eastham, a Cadbury employee, said he had been to 69 Springboks tests throughout the world, the first of which was against the New Zealand Cavaliers, at Cape Town in 1986.
"There is not a bad seat in the stadium. If it was Carisbrook, we wouldn't be going, because it would be too cold and wet," Mr Eastham said.
He had attended three World Cup finals and had no plans to start watching games on television.
"It's all we have - I love my rugby.
"But going to games is not all about the rugby. It's the atmosphere and the people you meet," he said.
Thousands of rugby fans from outside Dunedin are expected to converge in the city today, when part of the Octagon and lower Stuart St will be closed to traffic.
