Player Movements
This week Bakkies Botha returned to the Springbok team and very soon his long-time second row partner Victor Matfield may be back on the playing field as well.
Reports suggest that both Matfield (Big Vic) and Bok flyhalf Derick Hougaard (Liefling) are on the comeback trail with the Bulls, hoping the experienced duo can play a role in their 2014 Super Rugby campaign.
Fullback Juan Martin Hernandez is out of Argentina’s squad to face England at Twickenham on November 9 with a torn right thigh muscle, the Argentine Rugby Union (UAR) said on Thursday.
Joel Tomkins will make his England debut in Saturday’s international against Australia at Twickenham Stadium.
The centre will be joined by Saracens teammate Billy Vunipola and London Irish wing Marland Yarde, who both won their first caps in Argentina in June and make their first starts at Twickenham.
James Horwill has been axed as Wallaby captain amid a radical leadership overhaul which has swept controversial playmaker Quade Cooper into the vice-captaincy.
Back row forward Ben Mowen will captain Australia for a second time in Saturday’s Cook Cup clash against England at Twickenham.
The Stormers could have two Argentine players in their squad for next year’s Super Rugby competition.
Experienced Springbok tighthead prop Jannie du Plessis has been ruled out of the forthcoming Castle Lager Outgoing Tour to Wales, Scotland and France because of injury.
His place in the touring team will be taken by the uncapped GWK Griquas prop Lourens Adriaanse, a member of the Springbok squad during the Castle Lager Rugby Championship who was on the official standby list and will play with Du Plessis for The Sharks next season.
The All Blacks have named four uncapped players in their matchday squad for the historic Test at Prince Chichibu Memorial Stadium in Tokyo on Saturday
The starting XV sees bustling Counties-Manukau and Blues wing Frank Halai selected in an All Blacks side for the first time, with massive Crusaders and Canterbury lock Dominic Bird also making his debut.
The five New Zealand Super Rugby franchises have named their squads for the 2014 Super Rugby season including their Wider Training Groups.
Former Springbok coach Nick Mallett has backed current coach Heyneke Meyer NOT to rest his key players on the end of year tour, despite the risk of player burn-out.
Speaking to BallzRadio, Mallett said that the Springbok Tests should take precedence over the Currie Cup and Super Rugby, and said franchise coaches should take responsibility for managing players better. Mallett also praised Sharks Director of Rugby Brendan Venter as one of the few coaches using proper player rotation.
England lock Geoff Parling has been ruled out of Saturday’s opening November international against Australia at Twickenham with concussion.
Parling was concussed during a training session at England’s training base in Bagshot, south-west of London, on Tuesday and will now follow the standard procedure for players who’ve suffered head injuries.
Captain Sergio Parisse and popular prop Martin Castrogiovanni are closing in on a century of caps after the Argentine-born pair were named in Italy coach Jacques Brunel’s 30-man squad for next month’s international tests.
Both Stade Francais No 8 Parisse and Toulon’s Castrogiovanni have 98 caps and could surpass the century landmark during tests against Australia, Argentina and Fiji in November.
Siyabonga “Scarra” Ntubeni is one of four uncapped players who will join three stalwarts of the Rugby World Cup winning squad of 2007, JP Pietersen, Jaque Fourie and Bakkies Botha, in 32-man Springbok squad for the forthcoming Castle Lager Outgoing Tour to Wales, Scotland and France.
It will be Botha and Fourie’s first involvement with the Springboks since the previous Rugby World Cup, in 2011 in New Zealand, while Pietersen is back in the squad for the first time this year.
Scotland wing Tim Visser will be sidelined for up to four months after breaking his shin and damaging ankle ligaments in a club game.
Argentina will be without their captain Juan Martin Fernandez Lobbe on their upcoming European tour after he injured himself playing for Toulon.
France and Toulouse No 8 Louis Picamoles has been ruled out of a French training camp due to heavy bruising – but is relieved not to have suffered a recurrence of a hip injury.
England prop Alex Corbisiero has been ruled out of his side’s opening November Test against Australia at Twickenham on Saturday.
Corbisiero twisted his left knee playing for club side Northampton just over a fortnight ago and won’t be fit to face the Wallabies.
London Irish confirmed that the club has signed Australian international James O’Connor on a short-term deal until the end of the season.
Sharks centre Francois Steyn is set to undergo minor surgery that will rule him out of action for at least three weeks.
Steyn, 26, underwent surgery in May this year after he injured his leg playing for the Sharks against the Highlanders in the Super Rugby competition.
Western Province forward Michael Rhodes has been cited for a dangerous tackle in the Currie Cup Final against the Sharks at Newlands.
Springbok scrumhalf Jano Vermaak was the hero for Toulouse as he scored a crucial try in Saturday’s top-of-the-table clash against Toulon in the Top 14.
With the clubs level at the summit of the standings at kick-off, the match was the highlight of the French rugby weekend as Toulouse came back from 12-0 down at half time to win 13-12.
Western Province and the Stormer are looking to add depth to their scrumhalf, lock and wing positions with the eye on next year’s Super Rugby competition.
James O’Connor is expected to make a decision on his future in the “next 24 or 48 hours”, according to London Irish coach Brian Smith.
O’Connor has been linked with a move to the English Premiership side after the Australian Rugby Union terminated his contract following a string of embarrassing off-field incidents earlier this month, culminating with the talented 23-year-old being escorted from Perth airport for drunken behaviour.
Kieran Low is not one to beat about the bush. The 22-year-old was born in the south of England and grew up in Chichester with a Welsh-born father and mother who hails from Scunthorpe, but if he is handed an opportunity to stride out on to Murrayfield this autumn, one that he never grew up dreaming of, it will be the highlight of his life so far.
This weekend saw the conclusion of the ABSA Currie Cup, with The Sharks upsetting overwhelming favourites, before the game, DHL Western Province, by playing the better tactical game and winning by a handsome 33 / 19. This leaves us with the International window opening again and all Southern Hemisphere sides getting ready to travel north, for the End Of Year Tours.
It would however not be fitting to move our attention over to the Internationals, without paying tribute to those domestic stars, who performed out of their skins for their respective Unions in the Currie Cup. For this purpose and although the Springboks took part in the latter rounds of the Currie Cup, we decided to compose 2 Player-by-player sides of the best candidates in their positions, but purposely excluding the players of the Springbok group from the equasion.
Chief writers, Rudi Geldenhuys and Timothy Bornman takes a look at these players… and it appears that in most positions the same logic applies, however there are certain positions where we differ on exactly who performed best. We chose not to pick players out of position but rather to choose players in the positions they regularly played during the Competition.
The End Of Year Tours (Autumn Internationals) starts this coming weekend and this week we should see a lot of news in preparation of these Tours. The New Zealand NPC is over, the South African Currie Cup has a new Champion, now the International stage lights up again!
The New Zealand All Blacks believe Dan Carter will be ready to face Japan and has also sent an S.O.S. call to prop Jeff Toomaga-Allen as cover for Joe Moody who was injured in the NPC Final.
Welsh international scrumhalf Mike Phillips has been sacked by French club Bayonne after being accused of turning up drunk at a training session, a source at the club said.
Prolific try scorer and Blitzbok stalwart, Cornal Hendricks, finally gets to don the Cheetahs jersey. The Toyota Cheetahs iniatially contracted Hendricks for this year’s Super Rugby, but a dispute arose with SARU, as Sevens coach Paul Treu wanted Hendricks for the Sevens circuit. It now seems that Hendricks’ wish of playing for the Cheetahs will come true.
Cheetahs coach Naka Drotske has confirmed that Hendricks has signed a contract for the 2014 Super Rugby and Currie Cup season.
Pumas coach Jimmy Stonehouse made six changes to his team for the Currie Cup promotion-relegation Round Two match against Griquas on Friday.
Griquas take a narrow two-point advantage into the return match in Nelspruit, after their 21-19 victory over the Pumas in Kimberley last Friday.
Bismarck du Plessis has been cleared of his stamping charges and would in all likelyhood be included in The Sharks team to face Western Province in the Currie Cup final on Saturday.
New Zealand Rugby (NZR) and the Blues have confirmed that All Blacks midfielder Ma’a Nonu has signed with NZR and the Blues for 2014 and 2015.
South African scrumhalf Conrad Hoffmann has signed two-year contract with the Brumbies.
Another South African is making his way accross to Australia to play Super Rugby! The Twitterverse reports that MTN Lions utility backline player, Lionel Cronjé, has signed and is is off to Canberra to join the Brumbies for next year’s Super Rugby competition.
Deon Fourie may not get the opportunity to lift the Absa Currie Cup for a second consecutive time at Newlands on Saturday.
DHL Western Province coach Allister Coetzee confirmed at an early Monday morning press conference at the High Performance Centre in Bellville that his talismanic skipper, who led the team to victory as underdogs in last year’s decider in Durban, may be a doubtful starter for the final against the Sharks. There is also an element of doubt over lock De Kock Steenkamp.
There are four new All Blacks in New Zealand’s squad for their year-end tour to Japan and Europe.
Crusaders forwards Joe Moody, Dominic Bird and Luke Whitelock along with Blues wing Frank Halai will all go on their first international tour, although all have spent time within the All Blacks environment this year.
Lions coach Johan Ackermann says that unless someone gives them a lot of money he will not be doing any recruiting ahead of Super Rugby.
After being knocked out of the Currie Cup in their semifinal defeat to the unbeaten Western Province at Newlands, focus for the Johannesburg franchise now shifts to their re-entry into Super Rugby.