Super Rugby
Exciting outside back Israel Folau has rebuffed a return to the National Rugby League by signing a two-year deal with the Australian Rugby Union.
The ARU said Thursday that Folau, 24, had committed to the code after a stellar first season with the Waratahs that led to his outstanding Test debut for the Wallabies against the British and Irish Lions.
Australian rugby boss Bill Pulver has backed a proposal for Australia and New Zealand to form part of a two-conference Super Rugby competition in 2016.
The much-talked about showdown between the champion teams from the Northern and Southern Hemispheres seems to be back on the table.
Reports from France seems to suggest plans are afoot to arrange a match between European Cup champions Toulon and Super Rugby champions the Chiefs.
Hurricanes midfielder Rey Lee-Lo will be moving south to join the Crusaders on a two-year deal next season.
A host of players have signed with Griquas for the 2014 season, attracted by the lure of Super Rugby. The fact that relatively unknown players such as Lourens Adriaanse and Willie le Roux have experienced meteoric progress and been selected for the Springboks has enhanced the Griquas Union as a gateway to higher honours.
The reports suggesting that flyhalf Demetri Catrakilis has signed a two-year deal with Western Province Rugby, has now officially been confirmed by Western Province Rugby, which will see him remain in the Cape for a further two years after the 2013 Absa Currie Cup tournament.
Flyhalf Demetri Catrakilis has reportedly signed a two-year deal with Western Province.
Heinrich Brüssow says the quality of club rugby in Japan can be compared with that of the Currie Cup in South Africa.
Wallabies and former Melbourne Rebels fullback has agreed to return to New South Wales and play Super Rugby for the Waratahs in 2014.
Twenty-four-year-old Beale has signed a one year contract with his former Super Rugby team the Waratahs and the Australian Rugby Union.
2013 Will end with a sad farewell to dedicated current Team Manager Wynie Strydom. But with farewells, come promotions and so Blue Bulls Company would like to welcome new Super Rugby and Currie Cup Team Manager come 2014, Tim Dlulane.
All Blacks and Hurricanes winger Julian Savea has revealed that the Crusaders are trying to sign him for the 2014 Super Rugby season.
Media analysts love to roll out the stats. They point to the number of missed tackles by one team or the percentage of territory of the other, but the surface numbers are utterly meaningless. They tell coaches next to nothing about the game. The stats are often numerical fiction.
The Sharks have secured the services of Griquas prop Lourens Adriaanse from next season.
New Zealand’s star flyhalf Dan Carter will take an extended break from the game next year to ensure he is fit for the 2015 World Cup.
The 31-year-old, the highest points scorer in international rugby, is under contract with New Zealand until the end of 2015.
However, like All Black captain Richie McCaw – who sat out the first six months of this year – Carter has a clause allowing him to take a sabbatical.
The open secret which has already done all the rounds, has been confirmed.
Apart from Waylon Murray and Jacques “Vleis” Engelbrecht joining the Blue Bulls, Bandise Maku and David Bullbring (both Kings) and Callie Visagie (Golden Lions) have signed and will join the Blue Bulls with immediate effect, in deals stretching to the end of 2016.
All Black back Beauden Barrett revealed he has resisted overtures from the Blues and will stay with the Hurricanes for next year’s Super Rugby season.
Omar Mouneimne has become the latest member of the Southern Kings squad to walk away from the relegated Super Rugby franchise.
Mouneimne, the Kings’ defence coach, has joined Alan Solomons on the Edinburgh coaching panel.
The player exodus at the Southern Kings is continuing, with Kings scrumhalf Shaun Venter the latest player to secure a contract with a Super Rugby franchise. Venter has signed a two year deal with the Cheetahs, commencing on the 1st November 2013.
The Blue Bulls have further bolstered their ranks with the signing of Kings loose forward Jacques “Vleis” Engelbrecht who joins them on a three-year deal.
The hard-working Engelbrecht impressed for the Kings in their debut Super Rugby season this year, and he joins teammate Waylon Murray in heading to Loftus Versveld following the Eastern Cape side’s relegation from Super Rugby.
The newly promoted Golden Lions will formally sit down with prop Jacobus (Bees) Roux on Tuesday to see if they can sign him on a short-term Currie Cup contract.
Roux, better known as ‘Bees’, hit the headlines for all the wrong reasons in August 2010 – when he was arrested in connection with the death of a South African police officer in Pretoria.
Roux was given a five-year suspended jail sentence in 2011 over the beating to death of Tshwane metro police officer Johannes Mogale the year before.
Springbok and Bulls flank Jacques Potgieter has signed a two-year deal with the Waratahs.
Potgieter will this week join Japanese outfit Fukuoka Sanix Blues on a six-month sabbatical, but was expected to return to the Pretoria-based franchise for next year’s Super Rugby tournament.
As the Southern Kings lick their wounds after their narrow exit from Vodacom Super Rugby they will now face a massive exit as players and coaches look to greener pastures both locally and abroad.
EP Kings president Cheeky Watson has played down the exit, focusing on the glass-half-full scenario, but up to 10 Kings players are likely to announce moves to other franchises and abroad in the next few days.
Lions (8) 18 / 23 (9) Kings (Final Score)
The MTN Lions and Southern Kings did battle in the 2nd and last Super Rugby
Promotion / Relegation game at Ellis Park, Johannesburg at 17:0 SA Time (15:00 GMT).
This was the live match discussion Article.
The match was broadcast LIVE on SuperSport 1, SHD & CSN on TV in SA.
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Chiefs (9) 27 / 22 (16) Brumbies (Final Score)
The Chiefs and Brumbies did battle in the Final of Super Rugby 2013 at Waikato Stadium, Hamilton at 09:35 SA Time (19:35 NZ Time, 07:35 GMT, 17:35 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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Here are the Super Rugby team sheets for the two teams contesting the Final of Super Rugby 2013, as they were announded.
Brumbies coach Jake White has named an unchanged team for this Saturday’s Super Rugby Final showdown against the Chiefs at Waikato Stadium.
It’s the third week straight White has named the same 22 and the first time that’s happened since he took over the coaching reigns, two and a half years ago.
Some thoughts for you to chew on…
I was asked yesterday by someone at Sky what my feeling was on the future of SuperRugby and I said, all three Unions of SANZAR have recently released their year end figures and none of them made any real profit. They are all close to borderline break even.
The current number Super Rugby matches per annum is 125, so any reduction of matches would no doubt mean a reduction in broadcast money.
The talk is about South Africa splitting from SANZAR in terms of Super Rugby only. However the South African time zone goes a long way to pushing up the money that is earned from the broadcast deal.
If SA leave, more matches will be played in New Zealand and Australian time zones (according to the reports). This has no global appeal.
MTN Lions head coach Johan Ackermann has announced his side to face the Southern Kings in the second leg of the Super Rugby promotion / relegation series.
The match will take place on Saturday 3 August at 17:00.
The defending Super Rugby champions, the Chiefs, were on Thursday sweating on the fitness of star wing Lelia Masaga in the countdown to Saturday’s Final against the Brumbies.
It is the time of the year I always dread the most. This is the time where every Player Agent licks his lips and rubs his grubby little hands at the prospect of selling his wares to the highest bidder, with no regard to the welfare of the rugby of any Player, Country, Club, Union or Franchise.
It is the time of the year that the greedy pigs grin!
It is reported that the Stormers are chasing the signature of the mercenary called Lionel Mapoe, who’s been about everywhere now, Cheetahs, Sharks, Lions, Bulls… and possibly now heading for his 5th SA Super Rugby Franchise.
The Western Force announced today that they have signed 2 more South Africans, WP’s Marcel Brache and Chris Heiberg.
The Bulls seem to be investing, or rather re-investing in another ton of Young Guns, to replace the loss of 8 Springboks in one heap but seemingly giving no heed to the warning sirens that seriously flawed players like Dean Greyling and Werner Kruger now seem to be their most experienced players! The Blue Bulls have re-signed players like Paul Willemse (lock) and Under 20 SA star, Jacques du Plessis (looseforward) as well as a host of others… and the name Lood de Jager jumped at me, with me initially thinking that it might be the Cheetahs Super Rugby lock but alas it is the junior Blue Bulls centre who has suffered quite an injury run. See the details below on the rest of the Blue Bulls signings. In the last 3 years the Bulls have lost the services of 18 Senior Springbok players, whilst purchasing only 4 senior players from elsewhere.
The Chiefs will play the Brumbies at home in Hamilton in front of a sold out Waikato Stadium as the fixture is officially sold out.
Anything you can do, we can do better! This is the message, loud and clear, from Lions fans to their Southern Kings rivals.
The Kings have been praised for their good crowd attendances at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth, but the Lions will well and truly upstage them.
Lions president Kevin de Klerk is confident that his team will take what he believes is their rightful place in Super Rugby.
This is what really happened behind the scenes…
[youtube]http://youtu.be/_APSHxnTZp8[/youtube]
You know we’re joking, of course
The Irish Rugby Football Union today announced the appointment of John Plumtree as Ireland forwards coach.