All Blacks
More than a dozen players who competed in pre-season Vodacom Super Rugby and Vodacom Cup matches, as well as in the FNB Varsity Cup were selected in the South Africa Under-20 squad that will travel to Argentina to participate in a series of internationals against Argentina in March.
The Bulls have named their team to face the Cheetahs this weekend with Jaco Pretorius coming in to the starting line up.
UJ (9) 28 / Shimlas (17) 24 (Final Score)
UJ hosted Shimlas at UJ Stadium, Johannesburg at 19:00 SA Time. This was the match thread for discussion of the game. The match was broadcast live on SuperSport 1 on TV in SA.
UJ fought back, like their bigger brothers at the Lions, but unlike the Lions they managed to make the comeback complete and to record a win over Shimlas by 3 points.
TUT (7) 12 / Maties (15) 44 (Final Score)
TUT hosted Maties at TUT Stadium, Pretoria at 17:00 SA Time. This was the match thread for discussion of the game. The match was broadcast live on SuperSport 1 on TV in SA.
Maties dominated most facets to earn a comprehensive win over TUT who fought bravely but desperately.
Lions (5) 20 / Bulls (24) 24 (Final Score)
The Lions hosted the Bulls at Coca Cola Park, Johannesburg at 19:10 SA Time. This was the match thread for discussion of the game. The match was broadcast live on SuperSport 1, SHD & M-Net on TV in SA.
In the first half it was all Bulls and they built up a 19 point lead by halftime.
In the second half it was all Lions as they clawed their way back to lose only by 3 points.
The Lions look extremely fit…. and better under Mitchell.
Sharks (8) 24 / Cheetahs (3) 9 (Final Score)
The Sharks hosted the Cheetahs at Mr Price Kings Park, Durban at 17:00 SA Time. This was the match thread for discussion of the game. The match was broadcast live on SuperSport 1, SHD & M-Net on TV in SA.
International Rugby Board (IRB) chairman Bernard Lapasset has said that South Africa have a “real chance” of hosting the 2023 rugby World Cup.
“Because of the soccer World Cup (in 2010) there is now a new possibility for South Africa to organise big events like the rugby World Cup and there’s a real chance that in 2023 they can organise it,” he told Reuters.
Stormers coach Allister Coetzee had reason to smile as his team returned to training at the High Performance Centre after the short break they were given to coincide with their first bye week in the 2011 Super Rugby competition.
There is no guarantee that Os du Randt will be the Springboks’ scrum coach during this year’s World Cup in New Zealand.
Vodacom Bulls scrumhalf, Fourie du Preez, describes his pending achievement of 100 Super Rugby matches for the Bulls as a ‘massive honour and milestone”.
Du Preez will become the fourth Bulls centurion in Super Rugby – and their first backline player – when he runs on the field for the Bulls against the Lions on Saturday.
Yet another of the Springboks of yesteryear, Dirk de Vos who represented South Africa in the 1960’s and 70’s has passed away.
Johan Prinsloo has been appointed as the acting Chief Executive Officer of the South Western District Eagles, at the province’s request, it was confirmed by the South African Rugby Union on Wednesday.
South Africa wins the USA 7’s – Fiji 14-24 South Africa
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The Stormers have revealed that winger Gio Aplon will miss the next three weeks of rugby due to injury.
The Bulls will not only be fighting to keep their title as the best team in Super Rugby, they will also be fighting to keep their players. Continue reading
South African concerns that the expanded Super Rugby tournament will lead to players suffering from exhaustion at this year’s World Cup have been laughed off by their Australian counterparts.
With their preparation for their defence of their Vodacom Super Rugby crown complete, the Vodacom Bulls gave their players the best news they could receive ahead of the long season ahead – a five-day holiday to rest.
The annual Boland Cavaliers vs DHL Stormers warm-up match, hosted by Boland Rugby, will take place at the DHL Newlands Rugby Stadium on 12 February 2011, with Kurt Darren & Friends taking care of the pre-match entertainment.
The Lions will be playing Tucuman from Argentina on Wednesday, 9 February 2011 in their second last warm up match ahead of the 2011 Super Rugby competition.
The Lions face the EP Kings on Friday and the team will be announced on Thursday.
A rib injury to Vodacom Bulls fullback, Zane Kirchner, blotted a perfect evening for his team’s 68-5 victory over the Pumas in Mbombela Stadium in Nelspruit on Saturday.
In direct contrast to some of South Africa’s other Super Rugby franchises, the Bulls showed very few signs of rust when they raced to an impressive 68-5 victory over an invitational Premier XV side at Mbombela Stadium on Saturday evening.
Stormers (3) 17 / Sharks (10) 16 (Final Score)
The Stormers hosted the Sharks in the last of the Tri-Series warm-up games in preparation for the Super Rugby Tournament at 17:00 SA Time. This was the match thread for discussion of the game. The match was broadcast live on SuperSport 2 & M-Net on TV in SA.
In an error-ridden game the Sharks took the iniative and controlled most of the game till too many substitutions, to key players, derailed their game and allowed the Stormers to fight back and steal a win near the end.
I would not read too much into this game or the result, except maybe that Patrick Lambie’s goal kicking is still shoddy, that Meyer Bosman and Stefan Terblanche make a fine center combination and that the Stormers do not lie down to be defeated….
Sharks coach John Plumtree has scoffed at suggestions that Springbok captain John Smit is no longer a viable option as a prop.
Speaking ahead of the pre-season Tri-Series finale, against the Stormers in Cape Town on Saturday, Plumtree said he will continue to “rotate” the Bok skipper in all three front row positions.
Well folks, the serious rugby is upon us again, with the Six Nations kicking off tonight, the HSBC Sevens World Series in Wellington already under way, as well as some Super Rugby warm-up matches to be played.
Here’s the schedule for this weekend:
Springbok coach Peter de Villiers and vice-captain Victor Matfield presented the Proteas, South Africa’s national cricket team, with a special banner to wish them luck for the forthcoming ICC Cricket World Cup, to be held in India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh between February 19 and April 2.
Springbok coach Peter de Villiers will travel to the Mbombela Stadium in Nelspruit on Saturday to cast an eagle eye over some of the World Cup hopefuls.
Adidas today unveiled the new DHL Stormers jersey for the 2011 Vodacom Super Rugby season –signalling a new era for Stormers Rugby, who recently secured DHL as their new premier sponsor.
Allister Coetzee, head coach of the DHL Stormers, today named his team to take on the Sharks in the final game of the Neo Africa Tri-Series on Saturday (17h00) at the DHL Newlands Rugby Stadium.
The Lions impressive win against the Sharks in their warm-up match Tuesday night, did not come without a price to pay.
Andre Pretorius injured a hamstring AGAIN, and this yo-yo-man’s run of bad luck just continues.
The Vodacom Bulls heaved a sigh of relief after their inspirational captain Victor Matfield was cleared to play in the opening game of their defence of their Super Rugby crown against the Lions on February 19.
One swallow does not make a summer, but three former Springboks may well help Griquas become Vodacom Cup champions this year.
Griquas have just managed to secure the services of a third former Bok, Ollie le Roux, as consultant for the series. They will use him as a scrum coach.
The South African Rugby Players Union has escalated the fight for the players in the South Western Districts Union, many of whom are still owed salaries from last year.
Mpumalanga’s rugby team, the Pumas, will play all their Currie Cup games at the Mbombela Stadium.
The Sharks have launched their new look Super Rugby jersey in time for die hard supporters to purchase before the start of the new Vodacom Super Rugby season. The official match jersey will be worn by The Sharks for the first time against the Cheetahs on Saturday 19 February to be played in Durban.