A lot was said already and a lot more will be said in the psychological war of words this week. No one wants to be the favorite this week. It is quite funny how every team digs up stats to show that their opponent is the favorite.
Some of todays best cricket news. India wins series 2 nil against Australia. The ICC has approved the creation of a league-style Test Championship and redrawn the lines of one-day cricket as part of an extensive restructuring of the international game
Outspoken All Black centre Ma’a Nonu has let rip again, this time without the controversial F-word.
However, the veteran midfielder did not hold back when he criticised the Wellington Lions coaching staff for their inconsistent selection policy.
The Free State Cheetahs will tackle Western Province in their Currie Cup semifinal on Saturday with a Springbok prop on the bench.
Vodacom Blue Bulls coach Frans Ludeke named an unchanged side for Saturday’s Absa Currie Cup semi-final clash against the Sharks in Durban.
Newlands will host three semi-final clashes on Saturday 16 October. The rugby action kicks off at 12h30, when Vodacom WP u19 take on the Leopards u19. The u21 semi-final between Vodacom WP and the Vodacom Cheetahs follows at 14h25.
From the Official Blue Buls site. Spies and Stegmann declared fit.
I’ve just watched the semi finals of the common wealth seven’s tournament played between New Zealand/England and Australia/South Africa respectively.
NZ won relatively easily against the Poms and South Africa lost 17-7 against the Aussies. While watching these matches I penned down 7 observations. Continue reading
Front page allegations of racism at the KwaZulu-Natal Rugby Union have clouded the Sharks’ build-up to the Currie Cup semi-final against their perennial rivals, the resurgent Blue Bulls, on Saturday.
New Zealand and Australia will compete for the gold medal at the 2010 Commonwealth Games after beating England and South Africa in their respective semifinals.
The strength of the situation the Sharks were in when they found themselves with an unassailable lead at the top of the Currie Cup log with one match to play was that they could use their final league match to ask the questions that needed answering.
Top South African referees Marius Jonker and Mark Lawrence have been handed this weekend’s crucial Absa Currie Cup semifinals.
Cape Town – Vodacom Western Province hooker Deon Fourie was on Monday found not guilty of foul play at a SARU judicial hearing held in Cape Town. Continue reading
The Western Province celebrations of their excellent 33-21 win over the Sharks in the final Absa Currie Cup league match have been tempered by the doubt hovering over the participation of the two Fouries, Jaque and Deon, in Saturday’s semifinal against the Cheetahs.
Vodacom Blue Bulls loose forwards Deon Stegmann and Pierre Spies will know on Tuesday whether they will be given the green light to play in Saturday’s Absa Currie Cup semifinal against the Sharks in Durban.
Western Province’s prospects of reaching their first Currie Cup Final in almost a decade may be dealt a crippling blow.It was confirmed on Sunday that hooker Deon Fourie will appear before a South African Rugby Union judicial hearing, after he was cited for foul play during the Premier Division game against the Sharks on Saturday.
The Lions’ Kiwi coach John Mitchell has become the latest international victim of the crime wave sweeping South Africa … and he is lucky to still be alive.
In a report that has already reverberated around the world, it was revealed that the former All Black coach, Mitchell, was stabbed in the leg and arm in his Hyde Park Apartment in South Africa on Sunday.
WP jou leka ding! That chant reverberated through Newlands on Saturday as Vodacom Western Province clinched a home semifinal in the Absa Currie Cup by beating the Natal Sharks 33-21. Continue reading
Rugby-Talk can confirm that Ryan Kankowski will continue his career at the Durban franchise as he has signed a new 3 year deal.
10 July 1976 – SA Invitation XV 24 / All Blacks 31
Newlands, Cape Town. Weather, fine, dry, cool in the shade. Crowd 35 000.
The referee: Steve Strydom (Orange Free State).
The SA invitation XV side was assembled or finalized just two days before the match and was a blend of formidable players eight of which would later become Springboks. Continue reading
WP (20) 33 / Sharks (7) 21 (Final Score)
Vodacom Western Province hosted the Sharks at Newlands, Cape Town at 17:05 SA Time. This is the match thread for discussion of the game. The match was broadcast live on SuperSport 1 & SuperSport HD & M-Net on TV in SA.
WP were clearly the hungrier team in this game and the Sharks played a strange lacklustre attacking game, with both teams scoring 3 tries each in the process.
With this last game in the regular Currie Cup season, the semi-finalists and where they will play is now determined, with the Sharks taking on the Blue Bulls in Durban and the WP taking on the Cheetahs in Cape Town.
The Final Currie Cup Log Standings list the top 4 as follows:
- Sharks 52
- WP 48
- Cheetahs 47
- Bulls 47
The VRYSTAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT hammered the Leopards 78-7 to ensure 3rd spot on the Currie Cup Log. Continue reading
Griquas (15) 36 / Blue Bulls (22) 48 (Final Score)
The GWK Griquas hosted the Blue Bulls at GWK Park, Kimberley at 15:00 SA Time. This is the match thread for discussion of the game. The match was broadcast live on SuperSport 1 & M-Net on TV in SA.
The Blue Bulls started slowly as a spirited Griquas took the early initiative but the Blue Bulls ran in 7 tries against the 5 tries from Griquas, which included 2 pearlers by Bjorn Basson, the man who now holds the all time Currie Cup record for tries in a season with 21 tries.
Lions (17) 27 / Pumas (17) 34 (Final Score)
The Xerox Lions hosted the Barloworld Toyota Pumas at Coca-Cola Park, Johannesburg at 19:10 SA Time. This is the match thread for discussion of the game. The match was broadcast live on SuperSport 1 on DSTV in SA.
The Pumas showed guts and determination and a very good mauling and scrumming game to beat the Lions at Lions headquarters.
Final score Pumas 34 / 27.
The recent acquisition of just about half of the Golden Lions Rugby Union’s commercial arm is a move long overdue. Continue reading
We can look forward to the following rugby on TV in SA this weekend:
Here are the Teams as anoounced.
The Lions were forced to make four late changes to their team that will face the Pumas in a Currie Cup clash in Johannesburg on Friday.
Centre Doppies la Grange, who pulled a hamstring early in last week’s 37-43 loss to the Cheetahs, has been ruled out – forcing a complete reshuffle in the backline.
Former Springbok training squad back Earl Rose will play rugby out of Kimberley from 2011 after he has agreed to join the Griquas on a one year deal.
Vodacom Blue Bulls hooker Gary Botha has been ruled out of the remainder of the season due to an ankle injury.
Botha underwent a procedure in Pretoria on Thursday and although there was no need for an operation to repair ligaments as expected, the player will be out of action for the next two months.
A recent report suggested that following the contracted Springboks’ conditioning program, Peter de Villiers might reconsider his plans to rest some senior Springboks and include them on the End of the Year tour in November.
The Sharks travel to Cape Town this weekend to take on Western Province in the final pool match of the Absa Currie Cup ahead of next week’s semi-finals with top spot already buttoned down but a good performance wanted for continuity. Continue reading
A full afternoon of rugby awaits Newlands fans on Saturday, with four matches being played. There are limited standing and single seated tickets still available, and these can be purchased from the Newlands Box Office and Computicket.
Free State Cheetahs coach Naka Drotské has resisted the temptation to rush both his returning Springboks back into the starting XV for their final Currie Cup league match of the season.
The Cheetahs, who can still finish second on the standings and secure home ground advantage in the play-offs, face the Leopards in Phokeng on Friday.