SA Rugby
Deon Stegmann
Deon Stegmann may make his long-awaited return to action when the Vodacom Bulls head for Windhoek for a friendly match against the Namibian national team this weekend.
While Stegmann was only expected to make a return to Currie Cup action later, his inclusion in a team for the breakaway trip may well mean that he will get some game time. It also means he could be back for the last few games in this year’s Vodacom Super Rugby series.
Patrick Cilliers
Brok Harris
Western Province and the Stormers look likely to lose the services of props Pat Cilliers and Brok Harris.
According to reports, Cilliers is heading to French club Montpellier, while Welsh club Newport are believed to be hunting the signature of Harris.
Lawrence Sephaka
Springbok Women’s coach Lawrence Sephaka on Tuesday named 11 players with World Cup experience in his 26-member squad for the IRB Women’s Rugby World Cup in France from 1 to 17 August.
The team’s participation in the tournament has been made possible by a R2,3m grant from the National Lotto Distribution Trust Fund.
The squad will be led by experienced captain and No 8 Mandisa Williams, who guided the team in the 2010 showpiece in the UK as well as the 2013 IRB Women’s Rugby World Cup Sevens in Moscow.
Vlok Cilliers
Western Province and the Stormers are reportedly hunting the services of Bulls kicking consultant Vlok Cilliers.
Cilliers, a former flyhalf who played one Test for the Boks in 1996, started working as the Bulls’ kicking coach in 2004.
Gary van Aswegen
Western Province flyhalf Gary van Aswegen is set to join the Eastern Province Kings for a trial period.
Van Aswegen joined up with the Port Elizabeth-based team on Tuesday.
The trial period will be for one month, but if all goes well, the 24-year-old could represent the EP Kings in this year’s Currie Cup.
Tinus Linee
Former Springbok Tinus Linee’s motor neuron condition has stabilised thanks to his recent use of a ventilator, said his wife Diana on Monday.
Speaking at a Youth Day benefit in her husband’s honour at the Daljosaphat Stadium between Wellington and Paarl, Diana Linee said Tinus’s mind was “still positive” about the illness. But for the use of his hands, however, Linee, the 44-year-old former Stormers and Springbok centre, remained completely paralysed.
“He can only scratch his cheek,” she said.
Luke Watson
After a lengthy layoff through a foot injury, Luke Watson is excited to be back in the EP Kings team to face the Bulls in a Super Rugby friendly at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth on Friday.
The 30-year-old loose forward was named by coach Carlos Spencer as captain of the team and would lead the side from the back of the scrum.
Watson has been out of rugby since the Super Rugby competition last year, having been hampered by a broken foot bone.
Marnitz Boshoff
The win his Junior Springbok team scored in Sunday’s exciting age-group semifinal in New Zealand may have prevented Handre Pollard from making his senior debut much quicker than he may have anticipated.
Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer has made no secret of how highly he regards Pollard and has indicated that the Bulls pivot is definitely under consideration for next year’s World Cup. There were whispers earlier this month that Pollard could find himself getting an opportunity for the Boks as early as sometime during the June series if the Junior Boks got knocked out early, with everything hinging on their pool game against the Kiwis 10 days ago.
Had the Junior Boks made an early exit, Pollard could have been the solution to a potential flyhalf crisis in the squad now that Johan Goosen is doubtful for the rest of the series because of a knee injury sustained in this past weekend’s 38-16 win over Wales in Durban. Goosen limped off not long after coming onto the field and Meyer admitted afterwards that Goosen was the big concern looking ahead to next week’s second test in Nelspruit.
Morné Steyn
South African coach Heyneke Meyer dished out a swipe at the ongoing criticism of Springbok flyhalf Morné Steyn.
The 55-Test veteran was a pivotal player in the Boks’ 38-16 (5 tries to 1) demolition of Wales in Durban at the weekend, but still haven’t convinced his detractors that he is the real deal.
Not only did he produce a 100 percent goal-kicking performance (5 conversions and a penalty), but the 37 times he handled the ball he kicked just 10 times – with 21 passes and 6 runs.
The Bok coach, Meyer, pointed out that the high attrition rate among flyhalves makes Steyn an even more valuable asset to the national team.
Heyneke Meyer
Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer had every reason to be beaming on Saturday night as he reflected on a performance against Wales that spoke volumes about how far his team has travelled since he took charge in 2012.
In the end a sloppy second half and a more committed Welsh defensive line saw to it that the Boks didn’t complete the massacre that threatened at halftime, when the hosts led 28-9 and had already scored four well taken tries. Just 10 points were added after the break against a Welsh try to George North, but who would quibble about a 38-16 win over Wales.
It was the most complete performance turned in at the weekend by the big three southern hemisphere teams, and was arguably better than Australia’s annihilation of France the previous week. There was always going to be a step up in the Bok performance once the test matches arrived and they’d left the ambiguity of playing a World XV that included several of their countrymen behind, and they provided it.
It was at the same Kings Park a just a week out from being a year ago that the Boks first started to show indications that under Meyer they weren’t going to be stuck in the conservative rut they had been in the previous season. They thumped Italy fairly comprehensively, and afterwards everyone was talking about the pace that had been injected out wide.
The Semi-Final Play-off Round of the IRB Junior World Championship is a thing of the past, with South Africa Under 20 and England Under 20 advancing to contest the FINAL and leaving Ireland Under 20 and New Zealand Under 20 to contest for 3rd place.
South Africa, the top seeds, beat New Zealand by 32 / 25 in a hard-fought game, socring the winning try with 2 minutes left on the clock.
England trounced Ireland by 42 / 15 and of course is the defending champions, looking to successfully defend their title.
Other results:
- France beat Wales 19 / 18
- Australia demolished Samoa by 53 / 16
- Scotland narrowly beat Italy by 21 / 18
- Argentina saw off Fiji by 38 / 12
Willie le Roux was electric against Wales!
Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer praised his team’s character and commitment in Durban after they defeated Wales 38-16 in the first of two tests in the Castle Lager Incoming Series at Growthpoint Kings Park on Saturday.
The coach admitted that they had a tough week leading up to the Test match, as they had to take to the field with a number of new combinations and debutants.
“It was a tough week with a lot of disruptions. I asked the guys to put their bodies on the line today as it was important for us to start well. I am very pleased with their response and effort, especially in the first half. I am very proud to be coach of this team,” Meyer said.
The Leopards and Griquas maintained their dominant form in the second round of the Currie Cup Premier Division qualifying round as they secured back-to-back victories to remain in the top two positions on the log table.
The Leopards thumped the Valke 45-22 in Kempton Park on Friday, while Griquas beat the Boland Cavaliers 21-3 in Wellington on Saturday, to remain the only unbeaten teams in the series.
The Leopards’ bonus-point victory, however, allowed them to leapfrog the Kimberley side for the top spot on the log.
In the other match, the SWD Eagles pipped the Griffons 40-37 in George.
South Africa U20 (10) 32 / 25 (15) New Zealand U 20 (Final Score)
The Junior Springboks and Baby Blacks did battle in the one semi-final of the 2014 Junior World Championship at
QBE Stadium, Albany, Auckland at 09:35 SA Time (19:35 NZ Time, 07:35 GMT).
This was the live match discussion Article.
The match was broadcast LIVE on SuperSport 1 & SHD on TV in SA.
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Springboks (28) 38 / 16 (9) Wales (Final Score)
The South African Springboks and Wales did battle in their 1st Test of the June Internationals at
Growthpoint Kings Park, Durban at 17:05 SA Time (16:05 BST, 15:05 GMT).
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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Handré Pollard
Junior Springbok captain Handré Pollard will be hoping to continue his unbeaten run against the Baby Blacks when they square off in their semifinal on Sunday.
The Bulls flyhalf has not lost to the New Zealand Under-20 side in three previous encounters and will play in his third consecutive semifinal after making his Junior World Championship debut in 2012 on home soil in South Africa. In 2012 he won the JWC title as a schoolboy while last year he was in the exciting Junior Boks team that finished third in France.
The South Africans head into the game with something of a psychological advantage having beaten the Baby Blacks in the pool stage last week, and they will have to repeat that this weekend if they are to progress to the final at Eden Park.
Paul Jordaan
Wynand Olivier
Paul Jordaan and Wynand Olivier have been called up to the Springbok squad in the places of Juan de Jongh and Frans Steyn.
The uncapped Jordaan, a former star for the SA Under 20 and Springbok Sevens teams, has impressed for the Sharks this season.
Olivier is a veteran of 37 Tests for the Springboks. He made his Test debut in 2006 and his last match in the Green and Gold was in 2012 against England in Port Elizabeth.
Brett Gosper
IRB chief executive Brett Gosper has revealed that while an IRB committee is working on it a global season is unlikely to happen before 2019.
Super Rugby and Rugby Championship organisers SANZAR have requested that the IRB move the current June Test window to July in order to allow their Super Rugby tournament to run without a break for internationals.
July does not currenly fit in with the European season as the climax of the Northern Hemisphere tournaments take place in May and the June Internationals follow on.
Moving the mid-year internationals to July would therefore not work for Northern Hemisphere teams as the players would not get sufficient rest and the season would have a “dead” month in June.
Juan de Jongh
Springbok centre Juan de Jongh was on Friday ruled out of the three tests in the Castle Lager Incoming Series this month following a severe chest infection which saw him being hospitalised for four nights.
De Jongh was admitted to hospital on Sunday evening, treated for pneumonia and discharged on Thursday morning.
According to Springbok team doctor Craig Roberts, the decision to withdraw the DHL Stormers midfielder was in consultation with specialists and with the player’s own wellbeing in mind.
Francois Steyn
The SA Rugby Union (Saru) has denied reports that it had reneged on a contractual promise made to Springbok fullback Frans Steyn which led to his sudden withdrawal from the national squad on Tuesday evening.
“I can confirm that there was a dispute over mechanisms by which one element of Frans’s Springbok remuneration was to be paid,” Saru chief executive Jurie Roux said in a statement on Thursday.
“That issue was addressed. Some minor details remain to be sorted out, but they are not of such a scale as to be a cause for a major upheaval.”
The South African Rugby Union (SARU) today unveiled the official free Springbok smartphone app for android.
The simply-titled Springbok app is the first mobile product devoted solely to our rugby heroes, and is available for free on all Android smartphone and tablet devices immediately.
An IOS version will be made available next week.
To download the app please copy here: http://www.immedia.co.za/apps/springbok.html
Adam Jones
Adam Jones will make his 100th International appearance in the game at Growthpoint Kings Park in Durban, in a match that will be his 95th cap for Wales (five appearances for the British and Irish Lions).
Gatland has named two uncapped players in his match day squad with Scarlets scrum-half Gareth Davies and Ospreys’ Matthew Morgan, who both impressed in recent outings, named as replacements.
Heyneke Meyer
Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer says he has faced some of his toughest days in the job recently, leading up to the announcement of his team to play Wales in the first of two Tests in Durban on Saturday.
“It’s definitely been the toughest few weeks for me,” Meyer said in Durban on Wednesday.
“You plan for five months, you can’t wait to get going and then suddenly you get curve balls from all over.”
“It’s been tough … losing some quality centres within the space of a week or a week and half.”
The South African camp was hit by the news of Francois Steyn’s withdrawal from the squad late on Tuesday.
Lood de Jager
The value of having veteran Bakkies Botha in the Springbok squad could be measured by how much time it takes new cap Lood de Jager to settle and become comfortable at international level.
The influence that the likes of Botha and now Victor Matfield could have on the development of the young players in the squad has often been referred to as one of the main reasons for having them in the mix.
It was when he saw the awe with which the youngsters regarded Botha when he joined the Boks in Wales last year that coach Heyneke Meyer made the decision to get the one half of the legendary “Blood Brother” combination into the mix more regularly.
But there is nothing quite like hearing it direct from the horse’s mouth, and De Jager left little doubt after his announcement in the match day 23 for Saturday’s first test against Wales here in Durban on Saturday that the presence of both Botha and Matfield has added even greater impetus to what has already been a special time for him.
Gurthrö Steenkamp
South Africa’s Player of the Year in 2010, Gurthrö Steenkamp, will make his 50th Test appearance for the Springboks when they take on Wales at Growthpoint Kings Park in Durban on Saturday (kick-off 17:00 SA Time, 15:00 GMT).
Steenkamp has been included in the starting line-up for the first Welsh Test in one of six changes to the match-day squad from the team which comprehensively beat the World XV last weekend in Cape Town, four of which are positional shifts.
Cornal Hendricks, who shone for the Springboks last weekend at DHL Newlands, will make his Test debut on Saturday, while his provincial team mate from the Toyota Free State Cheetahs, the uncapped Lood de Jager, has been selected on the bench.
The two changes in the backline are at inside centre, where Jan Serfontein will earn his first Test start for South Africa, and scrumhalf, where Fourie du Preez will start with Ruan Pienaar on the bench alongside Tendai Mtawarira, who has swapped places with Steenkamp.
Luke Watson
Luke Watson is eyeing a return to rugby when the Kings tackle the Bulls in a friendly in Port Elizabeth next Saturday.
The 30-year-old loose forward has been beset by injuries in the last year, and hasn’t played any competitive rugby since last year’s Super Rugby competition.
Watson’s injury woes started when he fractured a bone in his ankle towards the latter part of the 2012 season. He returned to play for the Kings in their debut Super Rugby season last year, but was immediately sidelined after taking a blow to the throat in their first game against the Western Force.
Bryan Habana
Schalk Brits
Cornal Hendricks
Cheslin Kolbe
Warren Whiteley
Springboks Bryan Habana and Schalk Brits have been included in the South African sevens rugby squad for the upcoming Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland.
Regular Blitzbokke coach Neill Powell will take charge of the squad, which features several household names in South African rugby.
Apart from Habana and Brits, experienced sevens campaigner Cornal Hendricks was also included. He made his Springbok debut in the 15-man code against the World XV last week.
DHL Western Province and the Vodacom Blue Bulls have both announced that they will be playing against Saracens, at Allianz Park, London, England.
In the case of WP, they will play Saracens at the end of the Currie Cup season in 2014, whereas the Blue Bulls will play Saracens late January 2015.
Quin Roux
The Irish Rugby Football Union, Connacht and Leinster have agreed a loan deal that will see two high-profile players swap provinces.
Scrumhalf John Cooney and lock Quinn Roux will play at Connacht next season.
Roux will move to Connacht on an initial deal until December 31 and will link up with coach Pat Lam’s squad next month for the beginning of the pre-season period.
Meanwhile, Cooney, whose terms have been agreed for the full 2014/15 season, will continue his shoulder rehab with Leinster during the off-season before departing for Galway.
EP Kings (0) 12 / 34 (17) Wales (Final Score)
Eastern Province Kings and Wales did battle in a mid-week game during the June Internationals at
Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth at 19:00 SA Time (18:00 BST, 17:00 GMT).
This was the live match discussion Article.
The match was broadcast LIVE on SuperSport 1, SHD & CSN on TV in SA.
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Dawie Theron
The Junior Springboks finished top of pool C at the IRB Junior World Championship in New Zealand on Tuesday, beating a spirited Samoa 21-8 in Pukekohe. Samoa had a 8-7 lead at the break.
The South Africans scored three tries, two of them in the second half, as they battled poor playing conditions and a very committed Samoan team to finish as the top qualifier at the tournament.
It was a frustrating evening for the Junior Boks, who lacked the sharpness and edge that highlighted their play against New Zealand on Friday. They could not execute on a number of occasions, but finished strongly.
The South Africans were held over the line on three occasions, lost the ball over the line twice and had two penalties to the poles drifted wide.
Francois Steyn
Frans Steyn was released from the Springbok squad at his own request on Tuesday and will not appear in Saturday’s match against Wales at Growthpoint Kings Park, Durban.
The player advised SARU officials that that he did not wish to be considered for the Castle Lager Incoming series. “The environment in the Springbok squad is fantastic and I would like to state categorically that my relationship with Heyneke Meyer, the rest of the management and my team-mates is very good,” said Steyn.
Steyn – who is expected to take up a contract in Japan at the end of Vodacom Super Rugby Series – said that he wished for time to reflect on his Springbok future.
Romain Poite, Carding Bismarck du Plessis in 2013 against the All Blacks
The Springboks have no problems with the appointment of the man who may have cost them the chance of winning last year’s Castle Lager Rugby Championship for Saturday’s test against Wales in Durban.
French referee Romain Poite was almost as big a talking point at one stage of 2013 as New Zealand match official Bryce Lawrence was towards the end of 2011. Poite’s decision to first yellow card Bismarck du Plessis during the opening half for a dangerous tackle on All Black flyhalf Dan Carter was followed by a red when Du Plessis was found guilty of another offence at the start of the second.
Elton Jantjies
Lions flyhalf Elton Jantjies is set to head to Japan and won’t be available for the Currie Cup later this year.
According to reports, the 23-year-old Springbok has signed a deal with the NTT Shining Arcs.
Referee: Marais van Zyl
A referee from the Blue Bulls referees association is recovering in hospital after allegedly being assaulted following a club game in Gardens, Pretoria.
Marais van Zyl was hit over the head by a crash helmet and is recovering in the Montana hospital in Pretoria.
It is believed he was attacked by two supporters who were upset with his performance during the game.