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Reds (17) 27 / 30 (17) Rebels (Final Score)
The Reds and Melbourne Rebels did battle in Super Rugby at
Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane at 11:40 SA Time (19:40 AEST, 09:40 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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Crusaders (13) 25 / 30 (1) Sharks (Final Score)
The Crusaders and Cell C Sharks did battle in Super Rugby at
AMI Stadium, Christchurch at 09:35 SA Time (19:35 NZ Time, 07:35 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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Griquas (16) 30 / 6 (6) Golden Lions (Final Score)
GWK Griquas and the Golden Lions did battle in the Final of the Vodacom Cup at
GWK Park, Kimberley at 19:10 SA Time (17:10 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 Cheetahs have been forced into a late change ahead of their Super Rugby clash with the Brumbies in Bloemfontein on Saturday.
England and Harlequins fullback Mike Brown has been named Aviva Premiership Rugby Player of the Season at the Aviva Premiership Rugby Awards.
Brown has enjoyed a breakthrough season for both Harlequins and England and was acclaimed by his Director of Rugby, Conor O’Shea, as “a model of consistency, and also a match winner.”
The Harlequins man beat a stellar list of Aviva Premiership Rugby players to the award. He was joined on the shortlist by Vereniki Goneva (Leicester Tigers), Samu Manoa (Northampton Saints), Chris Pennell (Worcester Warriors), Jacques Burger (Saracens) and Dan Braid (Sale Sharks).
Danny Cipriani was named in an England squad for the first time in six years on Thursday as coach Stuart Lancaster has decided the mercurial Sale flyhalf is no longer a risk to his team’s esprit de corps.
Cipriani won all seven of his caps under Brian Ashton in 2008 – having been dropped from what would have been his debut against Scotland after being seen outside a nightclub days before a match.
His career then stalled and after he left Wasps for an ill-starred spell in Australia he has been involved in a series of off-field incidents – including being run over by a bus.
Hurricanes (13) 16 / 18 (9) Highlanders (Final Score)
The Hurricanes and Highlanders did battle in Super Rugby at
Westpac Stadium, Wellington at 09:35 SA Time (19:35 NZ Time, 07:35 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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Three Australian sides and the most successful team of all time stand in the way of the four South African franchises in action in Vodacom Super Rugby, as a number of players celebrate personal milestones this weekend.
First up, in Christchurch, the Cell C Sharks will have their work cut out for them against the in-form Crusaders on Saturday morning in what will be a special occasion for the Durbanites’ two Springbok props, Tendai Mtawarira and Jannie du Plessis.
Later on Saturday, the DHL Stormers and the Toyota Cheetahs have home games against the Force and Brumbies respectively, and in Cape Town veteran flyhalf Peter Grant will lead his team out.
On Sunday morning, the Lions will aim for their first ever win over the Waratahs when they take on the team from New South Wales in Sydney in their third tour game.
Tendai “Beast” Mtawarira, who has been anchoring the Cell C Sharks’ scrum since for seven years, will be the first this weekend to reach 100 when the KwaZulu-Natalians take on the Crusaders in Christchurch. He made his debut in Durban on 9 February 2007, when he replaced John Smit late in the match against the Waratahs.
What makes Mtawarira’s 100th Vodacom Super Rugby cap special, is that he will “share” it with fellow Springbok prop Jannie du Plessis, who will play in his 100th Vodacom Super Rugby match for the Cell C Sharks.
Du Plessis though also played 26 times for the Toyota Cheetahs earlier in his career. This weekend he will become the second-most experienced Vodacom Super Rugby player from South Africa as he passes former team-mates John Smit and AJ Venter, who both played 125 times at this level.
Following hot on Mtawarira’s heels, DHL Stormers inside back Peter Grant will run out for his 100th Vodacom Super Rugby match at DHL Newlands when they host the Force on Saturday afternoon.
It is Round 14 of Super Rugby 2014 this weekend! We have 6 games in Round 14, with 1 game on Friday, 4 games on Saturday and 1 game on Sunday.
The Blues, Vodacom Bulls & Chiefs have BYE weekends.
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.
With four teams in the bottom seven of 2014 Super Rugby, South African teams have had what is equating to be the worst Australasian collective touring record since the tournament begun.
The Republic has only two matches left on New Zealand soil to try and avoid what would be the first time in Super Rugby history that one of their franchises hasn’t beaten a Kiwi team in their own backyard during a regular season – while the win record on Australian soil stands at 1-7.
With only four matches remaining in total overseas for South African outfits, a host of contests in front of their daunting coliseums could see the ledger become more favourable.
One cannot doubt that the Australian Conference always serves up a surprise or two every season, a few years ago there was that electric championship season in Queensland, and lately the Brumbies have transformed into one of the leading outfits.
This year the centre of excitement is way out west, with the Force on the verge of a historic maiden final’s appearance, there is a stirring in Sydney while the Reds are revisiting days they thought they had left behind.
After an almost traditional slow start, the New Zealand Conference is now the form group in 2014 Super Rugby.
While this points towards a typically formidable squad for the All Blacks in the coming weeks, the Kiwis will not have it all their own way in the closing stages of the regular season.
The 2 biggest ‘dogs’ in the history of the Vodacom Cup, the Golden Lions and GWK Griquas, take on each other in Kimberley on Friday evening in the grand finale of the competition in 2014.
Between these 2 sides, who will clash at 19:10 SA Time at GWK Park, they have won the Vodacom Cup 9 times since its inception in 1998. That means more than half of all the titles have gone either to Johannesburg or Kimberley.
It’s the Lions’ 2nd visit to Kimberley this year. They lost their Round 5 encounter at GWK Park by 33-18.
The 7-time champions Canterbury Crusaders have slowly quietened the doubters of their Super Rugby title credentials in the past month and a victory over the table-topping Sharks in Christchurch on Saturday should silence them for good.
The Crusaders are the form team of the competition at the moment, having won their last 5 games, racking up 22 tries and 195 points in the process and moved from 13th on the table to 4th.
The Cheetahs remain in the dark over the future of Springbok flyhalf Johan Goosen, amidst escalating rumours that he is to depart from the Cheetahs.
The most recent dispatches from the Bloemfontein media suggest Goosen will make an announcement in the “next few days” – having been linked to French clubs Racing Metro and Toulon, as well as the Stormers.
The Vodacom Bulls may well add Springbok prop Trevor Nyakane to their ranks as their next acquisition when his contract expires at the end of the season.
Nyakane, who became a Springbok last season but was dropped because of disciplinary issues, is known to be on the target list of the Bulls as they look to strengthen their squad ahead of the 2015 season.
Kieran Read and Israel Dagg will be on the sidelines when the Crusaders take on Super Rugby leaders the Sharks in Christchurch on Saturday.
The All Black No 8 Read has missed the Crusaders’ past two matches, including last weekend’s 57-29 win over the Reds in Brisbane, after his second head knock in a month forced him off the field against the Chiefs in mid-April.
Waratahs coach Michael Cheika has made just one change to his starting line-up for their clash with the Lions on Sunday, with giant lock Will Skelton replacing Jacques Potgieter.
After a standout performance off the bench in the win over the Hurricanes, the biggest player in the Waratahs squad will start for the sixth time this season.
The inclusion of two-time Super Rugby winning prop Toby Smith headlines the changes to the Rebels side which heads to Brisbane on Saturday to take on 2011 champions, the Reds.
Smith has missed the past two weeks with a shoulder injury. However, he has recovered to replace Cruze Ah-Nau in the starting line-up and will to go head to head with an experienced Reds front row group – which includes four Wallabies and a former Rebel in Jono Owen.
Ah-Nau drops to the replacement bench after impressing in his first two career starts.
Perth-born inside back Luke Burton will make his Super Rugby debut at inside centre when the Western Force take on the Stormers at Newlands on Saturday.
The 20-year-old re-joined the Force squad for their South African tour after being a part of the Australian Under-20’s side that defeated Samoa U20s, 34-5, late last month. Burton has been selected in the Australian squad for his second IRB Junior World Championship in June.
Henry Speight returns to the wing for his first appearance since fracturing his jaw in Round 5 when the Brumbies take on the Cheetahs at the Free State Stadium on Saturday, the Brumbies’ official website reports.
There was welcome news for the Stormers and Springboks on Wednesday when lock Eben Etzebeth was spotted training at Newlands.
Etzebeth, 22, has been out of action since injuring his ankle playing for the Springboks against France in Paris last November.
A number of English Premiership Rugby clubs ars said to be looking at playing competitive rugby matches in the United States from next season.
The USA are regulars in the global showpiece event the Rugby World Cup and the USA has been identified as a potentially large market for the game.
Should they both play on Saturday against the Crusaders, Jannie du Plessis and Tendai Mtawarira will both reach 100 Super Rugby caps for the Sharks.
With hooker Bismarck du Plessis having already achieved the feat, the Sharks front row is one of the most experienced of all time in the competition.
For Jannie du Plessis, it is a dream come true, having grown up supporting the Sharks.
Scott Fardy and Jesse Mogg remain committed to representing Australia at the Rugby World Cup after re-signing new deals to the end of 2015.
The Brumbies have had a busy week or two retaining players, the likes of Wallabies Nic White, Christian Lealiifano and Matt Toomua have all resigned for the Canberra club.
SANZAR has released the names of the Match Officials for Round 14 of Super Rugby 2014.
Garratt Williamson starts the weekend action in Wellington when the Hurricanes plays the Highlanders.
This weekend sees 6 matches, with 1 on Friday, 4 on Saturday and 1 on Sunday.
The Blues, Vodacom Bulls and the Chiefs have BYE weekends.
Tim Bateman has announced he will head to Japan at the end of the Super Rugby season to take up a two-year deal with the West Red Sparks.
Bateman’s decision to leave New Zealand has nothing to do with rugby and everything to do with family.
Sadly, Bateman’s second stint in the Fukuoka region, is because his wife Laura was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis last year.
Hurricanes coach Mark Hammett was forced to make changes to his starting line-up for Friday’s all-New Zealand Super Rugby derby against the Highlanders.
Injured All Black hooker Dane Coles will miss his first Hurricanes match of the season.
Coles injured his lower back against the Rebels and the status of the injury is unclear.
Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer is impressed by the form Stormers flank Schalk Burger has displayed in this year’s Super Rugby competition and said he would come into consideration for the national team.
Burger, 31, returned to Super Rugby this year after missing most of the past two seasons due to injury and illness.
In an interview, Meyer said Burger’s play this year has really impressed him.
Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer says Japan-based Boks Fourie du Preez, Jaque Fourie and JP Pietersen would be available for the June Test window.
While Pietersen has returned from Japan to play Super Rugby for the Sharks, Du Preez and Fourie finished the season in Japan and are currently in their off-season.
Western Force flyhalf Sias Ebersohn says he has a burning desire to play Test rugby and wouldn’t mind if it’s not for his country of birth.
The 25-year-old is having a stellar season for this year’s Super Rugby surprise packages, who have won seven out of 10 games and currently sit in a healthy fifth spot on the overall Super Rugby log and in with a real shot at making the playoffs.
Former Springbok utility back Franco Smith has been appointed as assistant coach of the Cheetahs.
Backline coach Hawies Fourie has been released to take charge of Griquas.
Springbok prop CJ van der Linde could feature for the Eastern Province Kings in the Currie Cup Premier Division later this year.
The 33-year-old pitched up at the Kings practice on Tuesday.
The Rebels have signed experienced scrumhalf Josh Holmes as an injury replacement for Nic Stirzaker, who suffered his second ankle injury of the season during the club’s 22-16 defeat to the Sharks in Round 12.
Holmes, the younger brother of foundation Rebel Luke, has no shortage of Super Rugby experience and brings with him a strong passing and running game.
The newest addition to Vodacom Super Rugby in 2016 will not be a team of “mercenaries” put together with a big budget.
That’s the word of Sanzar chief executive Greg Peters, who said the 18th team that will go out to tender to join the Southern Hemisphere competition will need to be sustainable, and have the support of the market it bases itself in.
So far Sanzar has received interest from Spain, Singapore, Japan and the USA, but it is doubtful if any of these countries could put together a team that could be competitive over 17 weeks of the competition in 2016.