Australian Rugby
Rebels (17) 35 / 14 (0) Cheetahs (Final Score)
The Melbourne Rebels and Toyota Cheetahs did battle in Super Rugby at
AAMI Park, Melbourne at 10:40 SA Time (19:40 Melbourne Time, 08:40 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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Super Rugby is already in Round 3! We have 7 games in Round 3, with 3 games on Friday and 4 games on Saturday.
The Cell C Sharks have a bye weekend and of course Bye Points fall away in 2014.
In June / July 2014 the Antipion teams will catch up in played games with the South African counterparts, when the South African sides sit out for 1 Round.
The Combined Log will therefore be skewed for the majority of the competition and one has to question why individual countries are allowed to start such a long competition ahead of it’s rivals. In 2013 the Australian sides started a week early, but at least they had the excuse that they needed an extra week in the middle of the year to prepare for the British & Irish Lions series, which they lost.
Lock Hugh McMeniman and flanker Chris Alcock have returned to the starting XV for the Force’s clash against the Brumbies at nib Stadium on Saturday night.
McMeniman’s selection in the starting lineup completes his return from a shoulder injury that sidelined him for the second half of 2013. McMeniman will pack down alongside Sam Wykes on Saturday.
The Waratahs and Reds have been forced to make late changes to their respective squads with Dave Dennis and Mike Harris both failing to overcome injury niggles.
Dennis is ailing from a knee complaint following his side’s win over the Force on Sunday while Harris was ruled out with an ankle injury.
Robbie Coleman will make his first appearance in 2014 when the Brumbies travel to Perth to take on the Force this Saturday night.
Coleman was one of two changes to the starting side, with just one switch occurring on the bench.
Looking back on Round 2 of Super Rugby 2014, the first full Round where all three participating nations took part in Super Rugby, it might be good to look at some key factors coming to light in the Round.
The official SANZAR website, www.sanzarrugby.com brings you the seven key statistics over the second round of the 2014 season.
SANZAR has released the names of the officials for Round 3 of Super Rugby 2014. Mike Fraser starts the action this weekend in Auckland with the Blues vs Crusaders match.
This weekend sees 7 matches with 3 on Friday and 4 on Saturday.
The Sharks have the bye weekend.
Reds flank Liam Gill said his side is not worried by the Israel Folau factor, and hopes both teams bring an attacking game plan when they meet the Waratahs on Saturday.
Gill admitted that the Reds were nervous when they saw that their Super Rugby season would begin with away games against major Australian conference rivals the Brumbies and Waratahs.
Former All Black captain Taine Randell is against the idea of South Africa getting six Super Rugby teams.
A scheduled meeting of SANZAR’s Executive Committee took place in Sydney last Thursday where the future of Super Rugby was among the agenda items.
Former Springbok and Bulls forward Jacques Potgieter has been promoted to the Waratahs starting team for their Super Rugby clash against the Reds in Sydney on Saturday.
According to the Waratahs’ official website, it is the only change made by coach Michael Cheika from the team that earned a 43-21 bonus-point win over the Force last Sunday.
Potgieter will start in place of Will Skelton at lock, with the 21-year-old dropping back to the bench.
Michael O’Connor has resigned from his position as Australian Rugby Sevens head coach citing family considerations as the contributing factor behind his decision.
“I tended my resignation to Anthony Eddy [General Manager – Rugby Sevens] and the ARU earlier this week.
It was a weekend of firsts in South African Vodacom Super Rugby history, with bragging rights in two derbies going to the Lions and the Toyota Cheetahs, while the Cell C Sharks cemented their position at the top of the standings.
On Friday evening, the Toyota Cheetahs turned around an 11-match losing streak against the Vodacom Bulls for their first-ever win over the team from Pretoria in this competition. It wasn’t pretty and the conditions were dire, but the side from Central South Africa would not have been too bothered by that as they won 15-9.
Saturday afternoon saw the Cell C Sharks dismantle a spirited Hurricanes side by 27-9 in Durban, after which the Lions were responsible for yet another upset when they trashed the DHL Stormers by 34-10 in Johannesburg – their first win over the Capetonians in 10 attempts.
The backlash to Super Rugby being expanded again has begun with double Super Rugby winning coach Dave Rennie amongst others slamming the idea.
Super Rugby organisers SANZAR issued a limited statement on Thursday saying that they had agreed on a proposed format to include a sixth South African franchise and a team from Argentina.
The addition of two further Super Rugby teams will take the number to 17 teams when the next broadcast agreement comes into effect in 2016.
Waratahs (22) 43 / 21 (11) Force (Final Score)
The Waratahs and Western Force did battle in Super Rugby at
Allianz Stadium, Sydney at 07:05 SA Time (16:05 Sydney Time, 05:05 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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Brumbies (9) 17 / 27 (17) Reds (Final Score)
The Brumbies and Reds did battle in Super Rugby at
Canberra Stadium, Canberra at 10:40 SA Time (19:40 Canberra Time, 08:40 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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Australia backrow forward George Smith has signed a two-year deal with rising French second division side Lyon, the ProD2 club announced on Friday.
Super Rugby is already in Round 2, with the Antipodion teams also taking part this weekend. We have 7 games in Round 2, with 2 games on Friday, 4 games on Saturday and 1 game in the early hours (SA Time) on Sunday morning.
The Melbourne Rebels have a bye weekend, right at the outset, but of course Bye Points fall away in 2014.
In June / July 2014 the Antipion teams will catch up in played games with the South African counterparts, when the South African sides sit out for 1 Round.
The Combined Log will therefore be skewed for the majority of the competition and one has to question why individual countries are allowed to start such a long competition ahead of it’s rivals. In 2013 the Australian sides started a week early, but at least they had the excuse that they needed an extra week in the middle of the year to prepare for the British & Irish Lions series, which they lost.
(The Weekend Teams are also up under the Main Menu, Super Rugby, 2014, Weekend Teams.)
Super Rugby organizers SANZAR have announced that they have a “preferred model” including Argentina for the future Super Rugby format beyond 2015 that will be put forward for approval.
SANZAR’s Executive Committee met in Sydney on Thursday to discuss the future of Super Rugby including possible formats that could be presented to broadcasters.
Reds head coach Richard Graham has named his team to play the Brumbies in their Super Rugby opener against the Brumbies with Quade Cooper at No 10 and Aidan Toua at No 15.
Cooper was in doubt for the match but was given the all clear earlier this week and will start in Canberra.
In his first Super Rugby match since the Reds vs Hurricanes in March last year, Aidan Toua will start in the Reds’ fullback jersey.
Bernard Foley has won the initial battle for the Waratahs flyhalf berth while Kurtley Beale will start at inside centre in their Super Rugby opener against the Force.
The two players were expected to contend for the playmaker role, but after some impressive pre-season outings coach Michael Cheika has decided to start both players.
The Lions celebrated their return to Vodacom Super Rugby with a good win over the Toyota Cheetahs in Bloemfontein before the Cell C Sharks showed they mean business in 2014 with a bonus-point victory over the Vodacom Bulls in Durban.
For the Cell C Sharks, under a new coach in former Springbok mentor Jake White, it was a perfect start to the season. They got their 4th try at the death of their 31 / 16 win after scoring 3 five-pointers in the first 40 minutes.
Wallabies flyhalf Quade Cooper is set to start in the Reds’ Super Rugby opener against the Brumbies this weekend despite pain in his neck.
The Brumbies are expected to name Wallabies centre Tevita Kuridrani in their starting line up for Saturday’s Super Rugby opener against the Reds.
The international centre was sent off lifting flanker Peter O’Mahony in the Wallabies Test victory over Ireland and was banned for five matches.
Herewith a Full Media Guide, detailing ALL Super Rugby 2014 Teams, Players, Management, Staff and Statistics, for all the Super Rugby participating teams, from all 3 countries.
With talks of proposals to shift the current Super Rugby format well underway, news from Australia is that the Waratahs, Reds and Rebels are considering merging to form a unified coastal team.
The Reds were dealt a double blow ahead of the start of the Super Rugby season, with Wallaby vice-captain Quade Cooper the biggest concern.
Cooper was stretchered off Ballymore as the Rebels produced a shock 18 / 13 pre-season upset of the Reds on Friday.
Dumped Australia cricket coach Mickey Arthur on Friday ruled out applying for the vacant England job after being appointed head of the Super Rugby Western Force development programme.
The South African, who was ousted just before the start of the Ashes series in England last year with two years left on his contract, said he was settled in Perth.
Super Rugby is finally upon us, with Round 1 of the 2014 season starting this weekend. Only 2 games are played in Round 1, and only 4 South African sides are involved in Round 1.
The DHL Stormers have a bye weekend, right at the outset, but of course Bye Points fall away in 2014.
The New Zealand and Australian sides will only join up as from Round 2, as the South African sides will only be hauled in in June when the New Zealand and Australians play a Round where the South African sides sit out.
The Combined Log will therefore be skewed for the majority of the competition and one has to question why individual countries are allowed to start such a long competition ahead of it’s rivals. In 2013 the Australian sides started a week early, but at least they had the excuse that they needed an extra week in the middle of the year to prepare for the British & Irish Lions series, which they lost.
SANZAR has decided to do away with the hugely unpopular system whereby teams get awarded ‘bonus’ points when they have a bye in Super Rugby.
SANZAR CEO Greg Peters said on Thursday they listened to “feedback from the fans” and trust this makes it easier for all to track their team’s log progress throughout the season.
This weekend sees the start of Super Rugby, but only with 2 games in South Africa. For the rest of the Super Rugby Francises, including all New Zealand and Australian franchises, it’s another weekend of preparation matches for Super Rugby.
In New Zealand, the Hurricanes report that Tim Bateman has suffered a grade one medial knee ligament injury at training and will miss 2 to 6 weeks of rugby. Also in New Zealand the Crusaders have named Richie McCaw on the bench for their warm-up encounter with the Hurricanes.
In Australia, the Reds have made some changes amongst their props, with James Slipper in at loosehead and Greg Holmes in at tighthead and a few changes were made in the backline too, for their warm-up clash against the Melbourne Rebels. Also in Australia, Hugh McMeniman returns from injury and will run out for the Force A side to face the Pampas XV and Samoa A.
Big Brumbies loose forward Fotu Auelua has been ruled out for 10-12 weeks with a knee injury that will see him miss eight Super Rugby matches.
Australian Rugby Union chief executive Bill Pulver has revealed that Super Rugby in Australia will lose money in 2014, but they are putting together plans to address the problem.
The 2014 Super Rugby season starts later this week and Pulver has revealed that the tournament will run at a loss this year.
The match officials for the 1st and 2nd Rounds of the 2014 Super Rugby season have been released.
South African teams alone will contest the opening round and the Stormers have a bye in the first week.
Australian and New Zealand teams will start their Super Rugby seasons in Round 2.
SANZAR is proud to announce a two-year extension of its long-standing partnership with GILBERT to continue its role as the exclusive Vodacom Super Rugby ball supplier.
With the Super Rugby season less than 6 days away, here is a bit of history on the Competition.
Super Rugby is run by SANZAR and consists of franchise teams from South Africa, New Zealand and Australia, 5 teams each, devided into 3 Conferences.
Super Rugby is the Southern Hemisphere’s prime Franchise tournament and part of the reason why the Southern Hemisphere currently dominate world rugby, with the New Zealand All Blacks 1st on the IRB World Rankings, the Springboks from South Africa comfortably in 2nd spot and the Wallabies from Australia in 3rd spot.
Super Rugby gets underway in South Africa first in 2014, on 15 February 2014 and a week later the Antipodion sides join in.