SA Rugby
Constant change of personnel as a consequence of regular injuries has taken its toll on the Stormers, according to coach Allister Coetzee.
The Stormers have now replaced the Cheetahs at the bottom of the Super Rugby log following their 22-11 loss to the Waratahs at Newlands on Saturday, marking a sixth defeat in seven matches this season.
“We’ve had to change personnel week in and week out and many of the players coming in lack experience,” Coetzee said after the game in Cape Town.
Lions coach Johan Ackermann gave a damning assessment of his side’s performance in their 28-7 loss to the Crusaders in their Vodacom Super Rugby match at Ellis Park on Saturday, calling on his players to “take responsibility” for their own performances.
A visibly angry Ackermann wasn’t impressed with the way the Lions imploded against the street-smart Crusaders, who simply fed off the home side’s mistakes and scored two late tries to inflate the scoreboard in their favour.
The Vodacom Bulls will limp into Queenstown on Monday to nurse their wounds and get themselves up and ready for Saturday’s second tour challenge against the Highlanders in Dunedin.
The Bulls have chosen the holiday resort for a few days before heading to Dunedin on Thursday, and it couldn’t come at a better time as they lost both Dewald Potgieter (torn bicep) and Deon Stegmann (torn groin muscle) on Saturday.
Die Skotse rugbyklub Edinburgh se Suid-Afrikaanse spens raak al hoe voller. ’n Amptelike aankondiging word eers later verwag, maar Alan Solomons (afrigter) het glo ’n sewende Suid-Afrikaner na Edinburgh gelok.
Die slot van die Haaie, Anton Bresler, sal hom glo ná die Super Rugby-reeks by Edinburgh aansluit. Bresler kan hom as plaasvervanger vir die oud-Cheetahs slot, Izak van der Westhuizen, wat op pad terug na Suid-Afrika is, daar aanmeld.
Stormers (8) 11 / 22 (10) Waratahs (Final Score)
The DHL Stormers and Waratahs did battle in Super Rugby at
Newlands, Cape Town at 19:10 SA Time (17:10 GMT, 02:10 AEST).
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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Lions (0) 7 / 28 (6) Crusaders (Final Score)
The Lions and Crusaders did battle in Super Rugby at
Ellis Park, Johannesburg at 17:05 SA Time (15:05 GMT, 03:05 NZ Time).
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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Cheetahs (34) 43 / 43 (10) Chiefs (Final Score)
The Toyota Cheetahs and Chiefs did battle in Super Rugby at
Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein at 15:00 SA Time (13:00 GMT, 01:00 Sunday NZ Time).
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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Hurricanes (16) 25 / 20 (13) Bulls (Final Score)
The Hurricanes and Vodacom Bulls did battle in Super Rugby at
McLean Park, Napier at 08:35 SA Time (19:35 NZ Time, 06:35 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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The South African Rugby Union (SARU) on Friday named a reduced SA Under-20 training squad of 36 players for the remainder of the 2014 IRB Junior World Championship (JWC) training camp following two trial matches in Stellenbosch this week.
An large group of almost 50 players were selected for the camp as SA Under-20 coach Dawie Theron opted to cast his net wide in search of the best players to represent the country at the JWC in Auckland, New Zealand, from May 27 to June 20. This will be the first time the country hosts the tournament.
Former Springbok scrumhalf Neil de Kock is set to play his 200th match for Saracens, the English club’s official website reports.
De Kock, 35, is on the bench for their Heineken Cup quarter-final away to Irish club Ulster on Saturday and will reach the milestone if he makes an appearance.
Vox Telecom, a leading South African telecoms provider, has signed an associate / extended sponsorship agreement with the Golden Lions Rugby Union (GLRU).
The agreement allows Vox Telecom one title sponsor game during the Super Rugby tournament and also gives the company branding rights for the remainder of the competition and Currie Cup.
It is Round 8 of Super Rugby 2014 this weekend! We have 7 games in Round 8, with 2 games on Friday and 5 games on Saturday.
The Cell C Sharks have their 2nd bye weekend.
In June / July 2014 the Antipodian 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.
Springbok and Bath flank Francois Louw’s ankle injury does not require surgery, which means he will be able to play again this season.
Lions head coach Johan Ackermann has named his 23-man team to take on the Crusaders at Ellis Park on Saturday evening.
Ackermann has made just one forced change in the forwards and two changes in the backline for the encounter.
The Cheetahs will soon be able to call on the services of Springbok flank Heinrich Brüssow.
According to reports, Brüssow joined up with his team-mates in Bloemfontein on Monday after returning from his duties in Japan.
SANZAR has released the names of the Match Officials for Round 8 of Super Rugby 2014.
Chris Pollock starts the action this weekend in Dunedin when the Highlanders host the Melbourne Rebels.
This weekend sees 7 games, with 2 on Friday and 5 on Saturday.
The Cell C Sharks have a BYE weekend again, their 2nd one.
Trevor Nyakane will start his first game of Super Rugby this weekend as the Cheetahs take on the Chiefs in Bloemfontein.
The Springbok prop, who can play either tighthead or loosehead, has warmed the bench for the Cheetahs in the competition so far but has been selected to start over other front rowers who have been struggling with injury niggles.
No 8 Duane Vermeulen will captain the DHL Stormers in their Vodacom Super Rugby, Round Eight encounter against the Waratahs at DHL Newlands on Saturday night (kick-off 19:10).
Vodacom Bulls coach Frans Ludeke included fit-again lock and regular captain, Flip van der Merwe, for his side’s Vodacom Super Rugby match against the Hurricanes in Napier on Saturday.
The 67 cap lock takes over the captaincy and number five jersey from Victor Matfield in one of two changes to the starting pack that played against the Chiefs. In the other, Jacques Engelbrecht comes in at number 8, with Dewald Potgieter moving to the side of the scrum in place of Jacques du Plessis, who moves to the bench.
The International Rugby Board (IRB) has defended its decision to allow controversial French referee, Romain Poite, to take charge of a Springbok Test later this year.
The Springboks start their season with a match against a World XV on 7 June (venue to be confirmed but believed to be in Cape Town).
No, this is no April Fools joke, it is true… the IRB has released the names of the Match Official Appointments for the June International Test window!
Romain Poite (FFR), hated by most South Africans, will referee the match between South Africa and Wales on 14 June 2014 at Growthpoint Kings Park and will be assisted by Steve Walsh (ARU), Francisco Pastrana (UAR) and Vinnie Munro (NZR).
One could be forgiven to believe, despite our assurances, that this MUST SURELY be an April Fools joke, because apart from the run-in with Romain Poite, South Africans have had run-in’s by Steve Walsh too and just recently Francisco Pastrana was taken off the Super Rugby officiating lists till further notice for his abhorrent and totally inept refereeing performance against yet another South African side.
Let’s cut to the chase and just place the Official Appointments list here for you…
The rules caught up to ALL of us. We never intended the DRAWS to be so dominating. All 8 remaining players left after the last Round, never expected a Bulls draw, so they all fall out and we have nobody left standing!
A draw is not a win and that is exactly how it feels after the Bulls disasterous draw against the Chiefs! It feels like the Bulls lost.
If one changes the Rules and count losses and draws together as NO WINS we will have all 8 players living to fight another day.
Lions coach Johan Ackermann has received a massive boost ahead of Saturday’s Vodacom Super Rugby clash against the Crusaders at Ellis Park as a host of players are available again for selection.
The week off has really worked in the Lions’ favour as Ackermann now needs to decide who of the returning players to use before he chooses his team.
However, one injury is still causing headaches, and Coenie van Wyk’s knee problems will determine just how the Lions team will look for the weekend.
SANZAR has released and updated the official injury list of all the particpating Super Rugby franchises in 2014.
Updated 31 March:
Return dates are best estimates and subject to change.
Exciting Maties flyhalf Robert du Preez has signed a contract with Western Province Rugby, which will see last year’s SA Under-20 pivot play his rugby in Cape Town until 2016 at least.
Vodacom Bulls coach Frans Ludeke said his side’s 34-all draw with the defending Vodacom Super Rugby champions, the Chiefs, will set the standard in terms of what to expect for their four-week away leg of the competition.
Springbok prop Trevor Nyakane is likely to start his first game for the Cheetahs in this year’s Super Rugby competition.
The Eastern Province Kings again dipped into the Sharks Tank’s resources to bolster their Currie Cup squad.
The EP Kings revealed on Monday that they have signed Springbok and former Shark Shaun Sowerby as their new forwards coach.
The Cell C Sharks continued to stamp their authority in the Vodacom Super Rugby competition this weekend as they secured their fifth victory of the season, while the Vodacom Bulls allowed a fourth successive victory to slip through their fingers and the DHL Stormers stumbled in their final tour match.
A strong second-half showing by the Cell C Sharks combined with a flawless kicking performance by flyhalf Fred Zeilinga, who punished the Waratahs indiscipline, earned the team a 32-10 victory at Growthpoint Kings Park.
The victory allowed the team to remain in pole position on the combined log table.
The Vodacom Bulls, meanwhile, had their fourth consecutive victory in their sights until the last minute of their clash against defending champions, the Chiefs, at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday, but a last-minute try by Chiefs captain Aaron Cruden and successful conversion by Gareth Anscombe forced them to settle for a disappointing 34-34 draw.
The team departs for their Australasian tour knowing that their defence, in particular, needs attention after allowing a 31-15 lead to slip against the Chiefs.
In Brisbane, the DHL Stormers were unsuccessful in their mission to complete their Australasian tour with a victory against the Reds as they went down 22-17 following defeats against the Crusaders, Chiefs and Brumbies.
Vodacom Bulls captain Flip van der Merwe has been declared fit following a hamstring injury and will travel with team on their Australasian tour.
The vastly-experienced Gert Smal will join Western Province Rugby as the new Director of Rugby, with effect from April 1, 2014.
A new era is set to dawn on Western Province with John Dobson likely to be named Currie Cup coach, according to reports.
The Western Province Rugby Union (WPRU) will hold a press conference on Monday, where Gert Smal is expected to be appointed as Director of Rugby.
SANZAR has handed out two one-week bans to players for foul play, while the Sharks’ Springbok centre Frans Steyn was given an off-field yellow card.
Jannie Lubbe, the SANZAR judicial officer, accepted a guilty plea from Waratahs midfielder Rob Horne for contravening Law 10.4 (e): Dangerous tackling.
The Bulls’ 34-34 draw with defending Super Rugby champions, the Chiefs was akin to defeat, stand-in captain Victor Matfield said after the match at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria on Saturday.
The hosts allowed the Chiefs to enforce the draw in the final 10 minutes of the match despite a 16-point advantage.
“Anything else than a victory at home feels like a loss, we’ll take the two points, it is against the champions but we should have had five,” Matfield said.
Sharks director of rugby Jake White felt his decision to select Lwazi Mvovo at fullback was justified after his performance in their comfortable 32-10 Super Rugby victory over the Waratahs on Saturday.
The coastal side consolidated their position at the top of the table at Kings Park after 19 points from stand-in flyhalf Fred Zeilinga, who turned in a faultless kicking display, while Ryan Kankowski and Keegan Daniel added second-half tries.