Player Movements
Former Chiefs wing Sailosi Tagicakibau is set to join the Stormers on the Australasian leg of their Super Rugby tour.
The 31-year-old Samoan international has played 24 Tests (21 for Samoa and three for the Pacific Islanders) and has played in the last three World Cups.
Jacques-Louis Potgieter will earn a first Vodacom Bulls start at flyhalf since 15 May 2010 when the home side host the Lions in their first home match of the Vodacom Super Rugby competition at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday.
The 29-year old pivot is one of four changes made to the starting side that came up short in Bloemfontein last weekend, with Grant Hattingh (as no 8), Victor Matfield (at no 5) and Frik Kirsten (as starting tighthead) the others to earn a start on the weekend.
Simon Hickey will make his Super Rugby debut when he starts at flyhalf for the Blues against the Crusaders at Eden Park on Friday.
The New Zealand Under-20 playmaker and Auckland player of the year is in the Blues Wider Training Group but has impressed head coach John Kirwan enough to believe he should be given an opportunity to guide the team ahead of Chris Noakes who struggled against the Highlanders last week and falls out of the match-day squad completely.
Colin Slade will start at fullback ahead of Israel Dagg in one of four changes to the Crusaders team to face the Blues at Eden Park on Friday.
Kieran Read returns for his first start of the season to play at No 8 and captain the side. Richie McCaw and George Whitelock are the starting openside and blindside flankers, and Matt Todd will again provide support from the bench.
Hurricanes prop Ben Franks will earn his 100th Super Rugby cap against the Stormers at Newland on Friday.
The Hurricanes face the Cape Town-based outfit in the second match of their South African tour.
Experienced flyhalf Peter Grant will hook up with the Stormers again in either the first or second week of their Super Rugby overseas leg … straight from his completed commitments in Japan.
This was confirmed by coach Allister Coetzee, who will relish adding “Bash’s” street wisdom to the tour mix as he is low on truly hardened, assertive characters and decision-makers in both the key slots of No 10 and scrumhalf this season.
The Vodacom Bulls are set to make radical changes to their team to face the Lions this weekend in order to get themselves onto the winning path in this year’s Vodacom Super Rugby series.
While Flip van der Merwe is set to captain the side once again, the team named on Wednesday will in all likelihood see Victor Matfield and Jacques-Louis Potgieter in the starting line-up and a bold move for regular lock Grant Hattingh to No 8.
Springbok Elton Jantjies will have to wait a while longer before he will make his comeback to Super Rugby.
Jantjies, with just two Tests but more than 80 first class games to his credit, made a successful return to the playing field with the with the Golden Lions Vodacom Cup team last week – following shoulder surgery in the off-season.
France coach Philippe Saint-Andre has dropped number eight Louis Picamoles from his squad to face Scotland next weekend because he showed a lack of respect towards referee Alain Rolland during Friday’s loss to Wales.
The Highlanders will be without their most experienced forward in Brad Thorn, who will miss three to four weeks with a rib injury.
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.
Billy Vunipola will take no further part in the Six Nations due to a sprain to his right ankle.
The Saracens No 8 had a scan on Monday which revealed some ligament damage that will keep him out of action for the rest of the tournament.
French centre Wesley Fofana is unlikely to play any further part in this season’s Six Nations Championship after suffering a broken rib in the 27-6 defeat in Wales according to Clermont.
The Vodacom Bulls will be without regular captain Pierre Spies for a large part of the 2014 rugby season after he was ruled out of rugby due to an arm injury on Monday.
Spies again suffered a bicep muscle injury to his upper arm, the same injury that sidelined him in June last year, resulting in the no 8 missing the remainder of the 2013 season.
Blues coach John Kirwan will have to dig deep into his midfield reserves ahead of their Round Three Super Rugby encounter with the Crusaders.
Star centre Francis Saili, one of the Blues’ best players in his team’s mostly lacklustre performance in their 21-29 loss to the Highlanders in Dunedin at the weekend, has joined All Black midfielder Ma’a Nonu on the sidelines.
Captain Luke Braid is another key player likely to miss the Eden Park showdown.
There was a mixed bag on the selection front for the Crusaders on Monday – Kieran Read set to return, but Richie McCaw likely to be ruled out.
McCaw is in doubt for Friday’s Round Three encounter against the Blues at Eden Park.
The openside flank is nursing a tender calf, after the Crusaders’ 10-18-10 loss to the Chiefs at Christchurch Stadium at the weekend.
After their humiliating loss to the Lions, the Stormers received more bad news with injuries to two key players.
According to reports, Argentine lock Manuel Carizza and flank Schalk Burger could miss Friday night’s match against the Hurricanes after picking up injuries in their 34-10 loss at Ellis Park on Saturday.
The defending champion Chiefs are counting the cost of their 18-10 win over the Crusaders in their Super Rugby showdown in Christchurch on Friday.
Chiefs coach Dave Rennie admitted his team’s depth is being tested in the early stages of the season, but felt he will have sufficient cover as the men from Hamilton look for a hat-trick of titles.
Forwards Ben Afeaki, Brodie Retallick, Kane Thompson, Tevita Koloamatangi and All Black Mils Muliaina were all forced off the field in the brutal clash in Christchurch.
Sharks scrumhalf Charl McLeod has confirmed on Twitter that he’ll be joining Top 14 side Grenoble at the conclusion of the current Super Rugby season.
South African scrumhalf and kicker, Rory Kockott, has committed his future to Castres, with the French champions announcing that he had signed a new three-year deal.
Australia backrow forward George Smith has signed a two-year deal with rising French second division side Lyon, the ProD2 club announced on Friday.
All Blacks captain Richie McCaw says he is unlikely to continue his international rugby career after the 2015 World Cup.
Coach Todd Blackadder has named four Crusader debutants in the match-day squad to face the Chiefs in their Super Rugby opener in Christchurch on Friday.
Loosehead prop Tim Perry, who played his first Super Rugby game last year for the Blues, will make his first start for the Crusaders in the No 1 jersey. Midfielder Rey Lee-Lo is another player who made his Super Rugby debut last year (for the Hurricanes) but will run out for the Crusaders for the first time on Friday.
Wales scrumhalf Mike Phillips has been demoted to the bench for Friday’s crunch Six Nations international against unbeaten France in Cardiff.
Kick-off is at 22:00 SA Time (20:00 GMT).
Top-14 outfit Grenoble are confident that they will have Stormers and Springbok wing Gio Aplon on their books for next season, club sources have said on Wednesday.
The Vodacom Bulls confirmed on Wednesday that regular captain, Pierre Spies, has been withdrawn from the team to play the Toyota Cheetahs in a Vodacom Super Rugby match in Bloemfontein on Friday.
Spies suffered a blow to the elbow in last weekend’s match against the Cell C Sharks and it did not recover as hoped. He will be replaced by Jacques Engelbrecht, who moves up from the bench. Wiaan Liebenberg will replace Engelbrecht on the bench.
Should he take to the field, Liebenberg will make his Super Rugby debut.
Flip van der Merwe takes over the captaincy.
Vodacom Bulls lock Grant Hattingh will make his first appearance for his team this season on Friday against the Toyota Cheetahs after being included in the side for the Bloemfontein clash.
Hattingh replaces Paul Willemse in the only change to the side that came up short against the Sharks in Durban last weekend.
Flanker Deon Stegmann remains unavailable for selection due to a groin strain and will again miss the match, with Jono Ross donning the number six jersey.
Scotland have made three changes to their forward pack for Saturday’s Six Nations match against Italy in Rome.
The Lions medical staff have released an injury update, following the Lions’ 20 / 21 victory over the Cheetahs on Saturday.
Springbok flyhalf Johan Goosen should be ready to play for the Cheetahs when they host the Bulls in Bloemfontein on Friday night.
Goosen went for a scan after slightly injuring his arm in the Cheetahs’ 21 / 20 home defeat to the Lions at the weekend.
The DHL Stormers have been the South African side to be hit with the most pre-season injuries of all 5 Super Rugby Franchises. It has left them lean at lock and in the backline at wing and fullback.
Jaco Taute is rported to be out for 2 more weeks,as a result of which the Stormers have had to scramble to sign more depth, which now comes in the form of signing Shakes Soyizwapi from the EP Kings.
In addition, speculation is rife around what the constitution of the back three will be to run out against the Lions in Super Rugby on the weekend and the likelyhood is that Allister Coetzee would entrust a midfield spot next to Jean de Villiers to Michael van der Spuy.
Former England and British & Irish Lions prop Matt Stevens has agreed to return home to Durban and play Super Rugby for the Sharks at the end of this season.
Alan Solomons has lured former IRB Junior World Championship-winning Baby Bok prop Allan Dell to Edinburgh.
Educated at Queens College in Eastern Cape, the promising young prop, who can play on both sides of the scrum, qualifies for Scotland through his grandmother, Joan Carmichael, who was born in Paisley and brought up in Edinburgh.
Ulster have signed 26-year-old loosehead prop Ruaidhri Murphy from the Brumbies on a two-year contract.
Injured Wales centre Jonathan Davies has been ruled out of the Six Nations Championship match against France in Cardiff on Friday.
Springbok hooker Chiliboy Ralepelle will be out “for a long time” after suffering a knee injury at the weekend, French club Toulouse have said on Monday.