Daily Archives: 13 August 2014
SARU CEO, Jurie Roux
SARU’s General Council has unanimously approved the extension of the contract of Jurie Roux as the Chief Executive Officer of the organisation on Wednesday.
The council accepted the recommendation of the SARU Executive Council (Exco) to a five-year extension of Roux’s contract, which was scheduled to expire in September 2015.
“Jurie Roux has been an outstanding CEO of SARU and we are very happy to have extended his contract with the organisation,” said Oregan Hoskins, SARU President.
Steve Hansen has sprung a Bledisloe selection surprise of his own, picking the in-form Ben Smith at fullback and dropping a fully fit Israel Dagg for the first time since he became the first-choice All Blacks No 15 three years ago.
The All Blacks coach has decided to stick with the back three that played the last two tests against England in June, which means there’s no room for Dagg in the squad of 23 to open the Rugby Championship against the Wallabies in Sydney on Saturday night.
Patrick Lambie
Cell C Sharks Coach Brad Macleod-Henderson has stuck largely with the same team that defeated Griquas for this Friday night’s ABSA Currie Cup clash against the Pumas at Growthpoint Kings Park.
“We’ve taken a lot of confidence out of our away win last week and we’re very excited about being back home, it’s fantastic to play at Growthpoint Kings Park,” he explains.
The big news is the surprise availability of Pat Lambie who has been released to the Cell C Sharks to get some game time under the belt (much like the case of Eben Etzebeth who represented Western Province last weekend). He will play off the bench with Fred Zeilinga looking to put in the same kind of dominant performance he delivered last week.
Oregan Hoskin
The South African Rugby Union (SARU) has reportedly broken a confidentiality clause after CEO Jurie Roux was shown a forensic report which implicates him in fraud.
According to reports, this comes after SARU president Oregan Hoskins promised not to show the report, which belongs to the University of Stellenbosch, to any party.
The university had requested the forensic investigation after suspicious transactions between the Maties Rugby Club and the university were found.
Coach under siege: Frans Ludeke
Vodacom Blue Bulls coach Frans Ludeke named fit-again flank Jacques du Plessis in his starting line-up to face DHL Western Province at DHL Newlands on Saturday.
This round two match in the Absa Currie Cup Premier Division will see two new faces in the Blue Bulls starting pack that lost their season opener against the Xerox Golden Lions in Johannesburg last weekend.
Du Plessis comes in at flank after recovering from a broken jaw sustained in a pre-season match, with Jono Ross moving to no 8 and replacing Jacques Engelbrecht, who moves to the bench with Wiaan Liebenberg dropping out of the match 22.
Canterbury will be looking to seal a magnificent seven straight ITM Cup titles when New Zealand’s provincial competition kicks-off this Thursday.
For the third time, the red and blacks defeated Wellington for the 2013 silverware at the final hurdle as they ran out 29-13 at Westpac Stadium.
But will they triumph in 2014? Here we look at the runners and riders this season, with Auckland and Wellington set to be their challengers.
Following a successful return to the Currie Cup Premier Division last weekend, Pumas coach Jimmy Stonehouse has opted for continuity in his selections for Friday’s match against defending champions the Sharks in Durban.
Stonehouse made a single change to the run-on side that beat the Free State Cheetahs 28-21 in Mbombela over the weekend.
Twickenham will play host to its fifth European final.
The final of the inaugural 2014-15 European Rugby Champions Cup will be played at Twickenham.
Had the Heineken Cup still been in existence, that final would have taken place in Milan but the new tournament organisers European Professional Club Rugby, who replace European Rugby Cup Ltd, have opted to take the match to Twickenham on 2 May.