Internationals
Sharks hooker Craig Burden has replaced injured hooker Bismarck du Plessis in the 26-man Springbok squad that will travel to Argentina for their second Rugby Championship match this coming weekend.
Wallabies vice captain Will Genia has defended his fullback Kurtley Beale by saying that the whole team should be criticized instead of singling out Beale.
Wallabies captain David Pocock is in doubt for Australia’s Bledisloe Cup rematch with the All Blacks and the rest of tournament after after he sustained a knee injury in their 19-27 in the Rugby Championship opener.
For my 2 cents worth, I thought this was a good game from South Africa without it being a commanding one.
Only the 4th match into the Heyneke Meyer era, and after a very long and hard Super Rugby season, the number of injuries, the tiredness of the Sharks players in the Springboks and the short preparation time, these are all contributing factors that will always make the early games in The Rugby Championships seem a bit loose.
This was also very evident in the Australian Wallabies vs New Zealand All blacks match where a number of balls were spilled, knock-on’s, errors, etc was the prevailing trend.
This will improve, and I expect to see a much better performance in the next set of matches.
I have penned my feelings, lets open the debate and have your reactions to the match.
Springboks (20) 27 / 6 (6) Pumas (Final Score)
The South African Springboks and Argentinian Pumas did battle in The Rugby Championship Newlands, Cape Town at 17:05 SA Time.
This was the live match discussion Article.
The match was broadcast LIVE on SuperSport 1, SHD & M-Net on TV in SA.
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Wallabies (10) 19 / 27 (18) All Blacks (Final Score)
The Australian Wallabies and New Zealand All Blacks did battle in The Rugby Championship at ANZ Stadium, Sydney at 12:00 SA Time.
This was the live match discussion Article.
The match was broadcast LIVE on SuperSport 1, SHD & M-Net on TV in SA.
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Keegan Daniel’s inclusion into the Springbok team at No 8 was one of five changes to the Bok side which last played against England at the end of June.
Daniel comes in for the injured Pierre Spies, and coach Heyneke Meyer said the young player would provide the team with “that X-factor”.
The All Blacks have named their team to face Australia in the opening Bledisloe Cup and Rugby Championship match at ANZ Stadium in Sydney with Ma’a Nonu coming in for the injured Conrad Smith.
Springbok centre Frans Steyn will on Saturday play in his 50th Test for South Africa when they take on Argentina in the opening round of The Castle Rugby Championship at DHL Newlands in Cape Town.
England Under 18 were outdone by northern hemisphere rivals France in George, South Africa, losing 20-13 at Outeniqua Park Stadium in a bruising encounter, but Head John Fletcher was satisfied that his side “gave their all”.
Springbok No 8 Pierre Spies has been ruled out of The Rugby Championship due to an injury he sustained playing Super Rugby last month.
Prop Rodrigo Roncero will start for Argentina in the Pumas’ four-nations Rugby Championship opener against South Africa in Cape Town.
Although the Springbok side will only be announced on Wednesday, indications are that the composition is the squad is largely decided, bar maybe a tough choice at lock and finalisation of the replacement bench.
The Wallabies have named their team to face the All Blacks in the opening game of The Rugby Championship and Bledisloe Cup clash with Quade Cooper missing out completely.
Newcomers Argentina may be the weakest outfit by IRB ranking in the Castle Rugby Championship, but the novelty of their first match in the competition looks like luring a full house to Newlands on Saturday.
Herewith some nice short audio clips from the Bok camp, as they prepare for this weekend’s clash at Newlands, Cape Town in the Springboks opener in The Rugby Championship.
The SA Schools selectors have made wholesale changes for the team’s second outing in the Under-18 International Series against Wales at Outeniqua Park in George on Tuesday.
The Pumas left for South Africa on Sunday ahead of their opening Rugby Championship match against the Springboks at Newlands in Cape Town without Agustín Creevy.
Sonny Bill Williams’ new Japanese club have cleared the Rugby World Cup and Super Rugby winning centre to play for the All Blacks in their opening Four Nations Rugby Championship matches against Australia.
Wallabies halfback Will Genia has backed Berrick Barnes instead of Quade Cooper to start for Australia in the opening match of the Four Nation Rugby Championship this weekend.
Will simply recapturing his metronomic best place-kicking standards against Argentina at Newlands on Saturday be enough to cement Morne Steyn’s ongoing place in the Springbok side?
England Prop Matt Stevens has announced that he has decided to stand down from International Rugby with immediate effect.
The national selectors have named the SA Schools team for the Under-18 International Series opening match on Friday against France at the Hugenote High School in Wellington. The match starts at 17h00 while Six Nations rivals England and Wales will get the Series underway in the first match at 15:00.
The inaugural Rugby Championship will feature the trial of the Pitch Side Concussion Assessment (PSCA) Protocols, part of a new global initiative designed to further enhance player welfare.
SANZAR have revealed the new trophy that will be awarded to the winner of the Four Nation Rugby Championship which replaces the TriNations.
Argentina coach Santiago Phelan has showed his hand when he named a 26-man squad that will travel to South Africa next week for the opening round of the inaugural Rugby Championship.
The Pumas face the Springboks at Newlands on August 18, as they joined the SANZAR giants of South Africa, New Zealand and Australia in the Southern Hemisphere showpiece.
The Wallabies have named Drew Mitchell and Radike Samo and Under-20 captains Liam Gill and Jake Schatz in their 30 man squad for the upcoming Four Nation rugby Championship.
Mitchell and Samo both missed the June Tests, where Australia was upset by Scotland before clean sweeping the Six Nations champions 3-0 in the Wales Tour, but worked their way back into the Test arena.
DHL Western Province centre Juan de Jongh has been called up to the Springbok squad in the place of the injured JP Pietersen.
Cape Town – Quickly freshening up the significant Sharks contingent in his Springbok squad is going to be a key, fairly formidable task for coach Heyneke Meyer ahead of the home-and-away Castle Rugby Championship Tests against Argentina.
Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer has said he takes full responsibility for out-of-form flyhalf Morné Steyn and believes the No.10 will soon be back to his brilliant best.
He wasn’t selected into the 30-man Springbok squad for the Argentina leg that starts the competition, but Ryan Kankowski might yet get to play in The Castle Rugby Championship.
Two new faces in the form of Siya Kolisi and Pat Cilliers make up a squad including 5 uncapped players – the others being JJ Engelbrecht, Elton Jantjies and Jano Vermaak. The full squad is:
Although he would have learned a lot in recent weeks, how many changes can we expect to see in Heyneke Meyer’s Rugby Championship squad?
The Bok coach will reveal his squad on Saturday after the Super Rugby Final, and faces some big selection decisions in key positions given the differing fortunes of the major contenders in the last few weeks.
Sonny Bill Williams has confirmed his availability for the All Blacks in the upcoming Four Nations Rugby Championship which starts in August.
All Black centre Conrad Smith will miss the opening rounds of the new Four Nations Rugby Championship at least due to an eye injury.