- The Stormers left it late, but they have booked their spot in the United Rugby Championship final.
- They will now meet the Bulls in Saturday's title decider.
- Head coach John Dobson said the achievement was "surreal".
Stormers coach John Dobson said he was in disbelief following his side's thrilling, last-gasp win over Ulster in the United Rugby Championship (URC) semi-finals in Cape Town on Saturday.
Poor for most of the evening, the Capetonians struck after the hooter through a Warrick Gelant try and a Manie Libbok conversion to claim a 17-15 win.
The Stormers will now host the Bulls in the tournament final next Saturday.
It is a dream fixture for South Africa at the end of their first season in the European-based tournament, where no teams from Ireland, Scotland, Wales or Italy could progress into the last two.
The Stormers have been the form South African side for much of the competition, while the Bulls have hit their straps at the business end. But few would have predicted earlier that the trophy would be heading to these shores.
Now, we are set for a repeat of the 2010 Super Rugby final, where two of the nation's historical rugby strongholds face off.
"It's surreal," said Dobson after the match. "I can't believe it.
"The Bulls were outstanding last night (they beat Leinster, away, in their semi-final), and it was really important for us to get the result tonight, because we would have lost all that hard work we put in if we weren't there.
"I felt the pressure ramp up a bit for this one. We did a lot of work to win the South African Shield, which was close, and we didn't want to not be at the sharp end of the tournament."
Skipper Steven Kitshoff agreed, praising his side's character in the final 15 minutes of the match despite being down to 14 men after forward Adre Smith was red-carded.
"I think in the last 10 minutes, we showed absolutely brilliant character," the Springbok prop said.
"I think guys realised what was at stake and somehow got the energy and motivation to come away with the win. I'm extremely proud.
"We'll have a couple of beers tonight, and then on Monday, when we get back, we'll do our review and start preparing for the Bulls. I think then the guys will start realising how important this game is."
Saturday's humdinger was played in front of around 30 000 spectators, and for Dobson, that is as significant as anything else.
"I think what's really important is that we got the people back in the stadium," said Dobson.
"To suddenly have the demand for tickets we had this week can't be bad for rugby. To have 30-odd thousand for a brand new competition here is absolutely magic."