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This is the 7th article in the series of Cell C Sharks Squad Contenders for Super Rugby 2014. We do 2 articles per week per South African Super Rugby participating franchise.
We discuss the players IN the Super Rugby Group, and not all the options beyond that.
In this Article we look at the contenders for MIDFIELD in the Cell C Sharks 2014 Super Rugby group, and whether they could force their way into Bok contention.
This is the 7th in the series of the Lions Squad Contenders for Super Rugby 2014. We do 2 articles per week per South African Super Rugby participating franchise.
We discuss the players IN the Super Rugby Group, and not all the options beyond that.
In this Article we look at the contenders for MIDFIELD in the Lions 2014 Super Rugby group, and whether they could force their way into Bok contention.
The Cell C Sharks have named their squad to face Saracens on Saturday 25 January 2014, when they will play in a pre-season friendly at Allianz Park in London.
It will be the first time in a game situation that Jake White will be in charge of the Cell C Sharks and this game is one of 2 scheduled warm-up matches for the Sharks, in preparation of the 2014 Super Rugby season.
The squad is minus a few players, notably with Patrick Lambie, JP Pietersen, SP Marais and a couple of locks not going on tour.
Cheslin Kolbe’s Super Rugby debut has been pushed back after the rising star suffered a serious knee injury during a Stormers training session on Tuesday.
The 20-year-old suffered a torn lateral meniscus in what coach Allister Coetzee described as a “freak accident” and requires surgery that will sideline him for at least eight weeks.
Senior Springboks Jean de Villiers and Schalk Burger will head up the Stormers’ leadership group in the 2014 Vodacom Super Rugby season.
De Villiers, who has led the Springboks with such success in 2012 and 2013, will again captain the Stormers this season, while Burger, back to full health and fitness, will serve as his vice-captain.
The ongoing debate about the Currie Cup format took an intriguing twist with a suggestion that a pre-season play-off series should determine who play in the Premier Division.
According to reports, the latest proposal will be tabled at the a meeting of the general council of the South African Rugby Union on 23 January.
Springbok and Stormers wing Gio Aplon’s preferred destination, if he leaves South African rugby, will be Japan, and not France, as earlier reports had indicated.
Western Province Rugby chief executive Rob Wagner has moved to dismiss reports that Aplon had signed a contract with French team Grenoble.
The Lions Super Rugby pre-season preparations are in full swing and head coach Johan Ackermann says he is happy with the squad’s progress so far.
Uncapped 23-year-old Edinburgh wing Dougie Fife was named in a senior Scotland squad for the first time – ahead of the Six Nations next month.
Fife, a product of Edinburgh’s development system and also nurtured by the Currie club, has been in prolific form for the capital pro-club, scoring five tries in his last seven outings.
Despite their difficult financial situation, Fiji will definitely still take part in the Wellington Sevens tournament next month.
Sevens Wellington general manager Marty Donoghue confirmed that the Fiji team will remain a key feature of the 7 – 8 February tournament at Westpac Stadium.
The Toyota Cheetahs will have to do without Heinrich Brüssow for the opening 6 rounds of their 2014 Super Rugby season after the loose forward tore a ligament in his toe.
The Springbok flank, who was due to return to the Cheetahs to take part in this year’s Super Rugby competition, sustained the injury while playing his first season for Japanese club Docomo Red Hurricanes.
Springbok and Stormers winger Gio Aplon is set to become the next high-profile South African to head to France after it was revealed he was “close to signing” a contract with French club Grenoble.
After seven lean years, in which their highest finish was 10th, the Cheetahs finally made the 2013 Super Rugby play-offs. Now they are ready to raise the bar once more.
Cheetahs assistant coach Hawies Fourie is confident they have the squad to improve on last year’s sixth-place finish – when they were knocked out in the quarterfinal stage by the Brumbies.
Injury concerns are threatening to overshadow Wales coach Warren Gatland’s Six Nations squad announcement on Tuesday.
Wales are bidding to win a third outright title in succession, something never achieved before in the tournament’s history.
Eighteen European Cup clubs are still in contention for silverware, following a pulsating weekend of Round Five action.
In the Heineken Cup race, reigning champions, Toulon, as well as ASM Clermont Auvergne and Munster emerged as winners of Pool 2, Pool 4 and Pool 6 respectively to seal their places in the last eight of the Heineken Cup – while Ulster, Leicester Tigers and Toulouse are also guaranteed coveted spots in the quarterfinals.
Joe van Niekerk, Juan Smith, Bakkies Botha and Craig Burden were part of a dominant Toulon pack that created three penalty tries in the European champions’ win over Cardiff Blues.
Seven South African players were involved in Sunday’s match between Toulouse and Saracens, with Jano Vermaak, Chiliboy Ralepelle and Schalk Ferreira starting for the victorious French side who had Gurthrö Steenkamp on the bench. Neil de Kock, Alistair Hargreaves, Schalk Brits and Ernst Joubert were all on the losing side for the visitors.
Back to back Super Rugby champions the Chiefs have signed up Hawke’s Bay flyhalf Ihaia West as injury cover ahead of the Super Rugby season.
Blues’ high-profile Rugby League recruit Benji Marshall will take time to convert to Rugby Union.
This is the view of New Zealand’s World Cup-winning former All Black coach Graham Henry, who is also assisting John Kirwan at the Blues.
With little over a month to go until the start of the 2014 Vodacom Super Rugby tournament, it’s fun fact time!
The Vodacom Bulls will head into this year’s Vodacom Super Rugby series with only one warm-up game under their belts.
The Bulls, who will face the Stormers in their pre-season friendly in Polokwane on 1 February, have decided that this will be their only warm-up game to prepare for the Southern Hemisphere tournament.
The oldest man to wear a Springbok jersey in the modern era, Johan Ackermann, has given Victor Matfield’s comeback his seal of approval.
The Lions will field a much younger and very inexperienced squad in 2014, compared to their last appearance in Super Rugby in 2012.
However, coach Johan Ackermann said he would lean heavily on a handful of his most senior players – the old hands left over from two years ago – when they start their campaign next month.
The Blues have withdrawn Culum Retallick from their squad for the upcoming Super Rugby season.
The veteran lock was expected to miss the majority if not all of the season after rupturing the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee.
The Western Force will host two pre-season fixtures in Perth this year.
They face Samoa A in Rockingham (Friday 7 February) and Argentinian side, Pampas XV, in Joondalup (Friday 14 February).
Super Rugby teams will step up their preparations for the upcoming season and shake off some rust in pre-season friendlies in the coming weeks.
Preparing for the gruelling Super Rugby tournament, which gets underway on 15 February and culminates on 2 August, is not an exact science.
Samurai beat giant-killers the Unlimited Titans 33-17 in the Cup Final on Sunday to secure back-to-back George Premier League Sevens titles.
Samurai were in a league of their own and stormed through the competition unbeaten to retain their crown and pick up the R1-million cheque.
The IRB made the following statement:
The International Rugby Board has confirmed that it is to suspend all direct financial support to the Fiji Rugby Union (FRU) with immediate effect until the Union adopts key financial reporting, administration and governance reforms.
This is the 6th article in the series of Bulls Squad Contenders for Super Rugby 2014. We do 2 articles per week per South African Super Rugby participating franchise.
We discuss the players IN the Super Rugby Group, and not all the options beyond that.
In this Article we look at the contenders for FLYHALVES in the Vodacom Bulls 2014 Super Rugby group, and whether they could force their way into Bok contention.
This is the 6th article in the series of Cell C Sharks Squad Contenders for Super Rugby 2014. We do 2 articles per week per South African Super Rugby participating franchise.
We discuss the players IN the Super Rugby Group, and not all the options beyond that.
In this Article we look at the contenders for FLYHALVES in the Cell C Sharks 2014 Super Rugby group, and whether they could force their way into Bok contention.
This is the 6th in the series of the Lions Squad Contenders for Super Rugby 2014. We do 2 articles per week per South African Super Rugby participating franchise.
We discuss the players IN the Super Rugby Group, and not all the options beyond that.
In this Article we look at the contenders for FLYHALVES in the Lions 2014 Super Rugby group, and whether they could force their way into Bok contention.
Toulon (15) 43 / 20 (13) Cardiff Blues (Final Score)
Toulon and the Cardiff Blues did battle in the Heineken Cup at
Allianz Riviera at 17:40 SA Time (15:40 GMT, 16:40 Fra Time).
This was the live match discussion Article.
The match was broadcast LIVE on SuperSport 1 & SHD on TV in SA.
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Harlequins (13) 13 / 16 (3) Clermont (Final Score)
Harlequins and ASM Clermont Auvergne did battle in the Heineken Cup at
The Twickenham Stoop at 15:35 SA Time (13:35 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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Former Springbok lock Victor Matfield will make his return to the playing field for the Bulls in this year’s Super Rugby competition, a report indicates.
Die Burger newspaper was reliably informed by three credible sources that Matfield will play for the Bulls.
The Bulls have completed their first week of training in 2014 with a virtually injury-free squad to pick from, according to reports.
Players like Pierre Spies, Arno Botha, Francois Hougaard and Deon Stegmann took full part in training on Thursday as the Bulls concluded their first week back.
The world’s best hooker, Bismarck du Plessis, is among 12 Springboks named in a provisional Sharks squad to play Saracens at Allianz Park on Saturday, January 25.
The reigning Currie Cup champions will play the current Premiership leaders, a unique clash between north and south, between the Heineken Cup in European Cup and Super Rugby.