SA Rugby
Cheetahs (10) 17 / 18 (3) Reds (Final Score)
The Toyota Cheetahs and Reds did battle in Super Rugby at
Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein at 19:10 SA Time (17:10 GMT, Sunday 03:10 AEST).
This was the live match discussion Article.
The match was broadcast LIVE on SuperSport 1 & M-Net on TV in SA.
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Sharks (3) 10 / 17 (8) Bulls (Final Score)
The Cell C Sharks and Vodacom Bulls did battle in Super Rugby at
Growthpoint Kings Park, Durban at 17:05 SA Time (15:05 GMT).
This was the live match discussion Article.
The match was broadcast LIVE on SuperSport 1 & M-Net on TV in SA.
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Force (6) 6 / 13 (10) Stormers (Final Score)
The Western Force and DHL Stormers did battle in Super Rugby at
nib Stadium, Perth at 13:45 SA Time (19:45 AWST, 21:45 AEST, 11:45 GMT).
This was the live match discussion Article.
The match was broadcast LIVE on SuperSport 1 & M-Net on TV in SA.
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WP Nel
At the end of a trying season of provincial rugby under the sweltering South African sun, Willem Petrus Nel trudged exhausted from the field.
He turned to his coach and mentor, Pierre Ribbens, a distinguished ex-prop for the Bulls in what is now the Super 15 competition, the cream of the Southern Hemisphere game.
“I think I’m done with rugby – I don’t want to play anymore,” he said.
In late 2008, the 22-year-old tight-head had completed his agricultural studies, his certificate signed and stamped. From university some 250 miles to the south, the pull of home, the sheep farm he had been raised tending and the rolling mountains of the Northern Cape was strong.
“Give me a week,” replied Ribbens.
It is Round 10 of Super Rugby 2015 this weekend.
There is only 1 game on Friday 17 April but we have 6 games on Saturday 18 April.
The Emirates Lions have a BYE weekend.
There is only 1 South African derby on the weekend, between the Cell C Sharks and Vodacom Bulls, but the DHL Stormers play their last match on tour against the Western Force and the returning Toyota Cheetahs also takes on the battling Reds team in Bloemfontein.
Only 1 undefeated team still remains prior to the start of the weekend, the Hurricanes, and they are up against lasst year’s champions Waratahs side in Wellington.
On Friday, the lone game is the exciting derby between the Crusaders and Chiefs in Christchurch, at 09:35 SA Time (19:35 NZ Time, 17:35 AEST, 07:35 GMT).
On Saturday morning the Hurricanes host the Waratahs at 06:30 SA Time (16:30 NZ Time, 18:30 AEST, 04:30 GMT), whereafter the Highlanders host the Blues in Dunedin at 09:35 SA Time (19:35 NZ Time, 07:35 GMT). At 11:40 SA Time (19:40 AEST, 09:40 GMT) the Brumbies play the Melbourne Rebels in Sydney.
Slightly later and a couple of hours in time zones to the West – in Perth at 13:45 SA Time (19:45 AWST, 21:45 AEST, 11:45 GMT), the Western Force host the DHL Stormers.
Over to South Africa and next up, at 17:05 SA Time (15:05 GMT), the Cell C Sharks host the Vodacom Bulls in Durban, before the last game of the Round where the Toyota Cheetahs host the Reds in Bloemfontein at 19:10 SA Time (17:10 GMT, Sunday 03:10 AEST).
The game between the Crusaders and Chiefs should be a thriller on Friday, and calling a winner is difficult to do.
On Saturday one would suspect that the high-flying Hurricanes will beat last year’s struggling champions, the Waratahs in Wellington.
The Highlander sshould trounce the Blues and the Brumbies should easily dispatch the Melbourne Rebels.
In Perth the DHL Stormers will look for another win and to end their tour on the perfect note against the Western Force… and looking at recent results they should beat a struggling Force team.
The Cell C Sharks against the Vodacom Bulls is probably shaping up to be the game of the weekend and once again the question is asked who will be victorious… the sometimes unspectacular Bulls or the back-paddling “Gold-fish” (Cell C Sharks)… this one too tough to call.
In Bloemfontein all logic would suggest that the Toyota Cheetahs should beat the Rubble Reds.. and convincingly so, as the Reds have truly been diabollically bad in 2015!
Coach Franco Smith has been forced to make changes to his Varsity Cup Dream Team which will tackle the Baby Boks in Stellenbosch next Tuesday evening.
UP-Tuks players Dan Kriel and Jaco Visagie are not available for selection and had to be replaced.
Kriel’s spot at inside centre has been taken by Johan Deysel who will now link up with his NWU-Pukke team-mate Rowayne Beukman in midfield.
Visagie was due to start as a replacement and experienced UFS-Shimlas hooker Elandre Hugget will now take his spot on the bench.
The 2015 season is shaping up as the most-closely contested South African Conference title race since the expansion of Vodacom Super Rugby in 2011.
The leadership of the SA Conference is up for grabs once more this weekend after 4 teams have already topped the local log so far this season, with anyone of the Vodacom Bulls, DHL Stormers and Cell C Sharks that could be on top on Saturday night.
A mere 4 Log Points separate the Top 4 South African teams, with the Vodacom Bulls on 24 (after 8 matches), DHL Stormers on 22 (after 8 matches), Emirates Lions on 21 (after 9 matches) and Cell C Sharks on 20 (after 9 matches).
And even the 5th-placed Toyota Cheetahs are not out of the running as they trail the Cell C Sharks by only 7 points with a game in hand and a host of local derbies to come.
Last year at a similar stage, the difference was a massive 21 points, but only the Cell C Sharks ended up making the playoffs.
In 2013, the difference between teams 1 and 4 in South Africa was 8 points at roughly the halfway stage of the competition, with the Vodacom Bulls and Toyota Cheetahs eventually proceeding to the playoffs and the DHL Stormers and Cell C Sharks just missing out in positions 7 and 8.
In 2012, a total of 12 points separated the teams from 1st to 4th at a similar stage and in the end the DHL Stormers, Vodacom Bulls and Cell C Sharks made the playoffs – South Africa’s most successful season yet in terms of representation in the Top 6.
Halfway through the season in the 1st year of Vodacom Super Rugby in 2011, the difference between the 1st and 4th South African teams was 20 points and in the end, only the DHL Stormers and Cell C Sharks progressed to the knock-out stages.
The Emirates Lions have a BYE.
Note: Teams still got 4 Log Points for every BYE between 2011 and 2013, but for this comparison we subtracted those “free points”.
Handré Pollard
Vodacom Bulls coach Frans Ludeke reshuffled his pack of forwards and recalled Handré Pollard at flyhalf for his team to face the Cell C Sharks in Durban on Saturday.
Pollard, who replaces Jacques-LouisPotgieter in the only change to the backline that won against the Reds in their Vodacom Super Rugby clash last weekend, was rested last week as per SARU arrangement.
In the pack, Ludeke has Adriaan Strauss back after the hooker was also rested against the Reds, while he also picked a new loose trio, lock combination and front row to face the coastal side in the visitor’s 1st return match in the South African conference.
In the front row, Strauss and Marcel van der Merwe will start with Dean Greyling, with Callie Visagie and Trevor Nyakane moving to the bench. The lock combination of Flip van der Merwe and Grant Hattingh will pack down together for the 1st time this year, with Jacques du Plessis moving to the side of the scrum, where he will partner Deon Stegmann and Pierre Spies.
Bongi Mbonambi
Head coach Allister Coetzee has announced 4 personnel changes to the DHL Stormers starting 15 ahead of their final 2015 Vodacom Super Rugby tour match on Saturday – against the Western Force in Perth (kick-off 13:45 SA Time).
Hooker Bongi Mbonambi, lock Ruan Botha, flanker Siya Kolisi and scrumhalf Louis Schreuder will all start this week, with prop Ali Vermaak and loose forward Sikhumbuzo Notshe the new faces on the bench.
Notshe joins the matchday 23 this week as a replacement for Kolisi, who will start at No 6 – with Schalk Burger moving across to No 7 – in the absence of Michael Rhodes, who flew home with a hamstring tear suffered against the Waratahs last weekend.
The only other injury-enforced change from the Waratahs game – won 32 / 18 by the DHL Stormers – is Botha in for Manuel Carizza in the No 5 jersey, with the latter still battling with a cut on the inside of his mouth.
The Cell C Sharks team named to play the Vodacom Bulls on Saturday shows nominal changes to the side that was picked last weekend, with 2 Springbok additions.
The only changes to the starting 15 are in a front row that this week features the Springbok prop duo of Jannie du Plessis and Beast Mtawarira, who return after an enforced rest last week as part of the agreement with the Springboks to provide regular breaks to the players.
Marco Wentzel retains the captaincy of a side that will look to build from the positives they took out of their clash with the Lions last weekend. The backline remains unchanged.
With the prospect of facing the Highlanders and Hurricanes in New Zealand and the Waratahs and Reds in Australia before returning to Durban for 2 final home games, Saturday’s derby against the Bulls comes at a vital time.
In sport, teams will have strengths and weaknesses and this often dictates where their scoring threat comes from and Super Rugby is no different. This week we take a more in depth look at where tries originate from, and which teams are more likely to score from certain scenarios.
The Set Piece:
Scrums and lineouts are often the best facets of the game to put training pitch moves into action. The Brumbies boast the best lineout success rate in Super Rugby this season (91%) and it is no surprise that they have scored the most tries this season when possession has begun with a throw-in.
However, what is surprising is just how many of their tries come from the lineout. Of the 22 tries the Brumbies have scored this season, 18 have started with the Canberra-based side winning their own lineout – a staggering 82% of their total. No other side has reached double figures for the same aspect of the game, however the Cheetahs are the next-best team when it comes to making the most off ball secured from their lineout.
The Bloemfontein side has scored 9 tries after beginning possession with a lineout, making up 53% of their overall tries, whilst the Rebels (46%) and the Lions (45%) aren’t far behind when their tallies are broken down into percentages.
Reniel Hugo
The Toyota Free State Cheetahs and Toyota Cheetahs have secured the services of FNB UP-Tuks lock, Reniel Hugo.
The 24-year-old lock has signed a deal which will keep him in Bloemfontein until the end of the 2016 season.
Hugo represented Tuks for the past 2 years after joining from Maties.
He was earlier this week also named as captain of the Varsity Cup Dream Team to play against the Junior Springboks in Stellenbosch, next week Tuesday.
Tendai ‘Beast’ Mtawarira
Jannie du Plessis
The return of the 2 experienced Springbok props, Beast Mtawarira and Jannie du Plessis, are the only things that the Vodacom Bulls should take for granted about the Cell C Sharks team they will clash with in their Super Rugby derby in Durban at the weekend.
The Sharks did not train on Monday, as was the case the previous week, and at Tuesday’s training session those who watched it struggled to make out what director of rugby Gary Gold is planning for Saturday – except that the 2 Bok props will definitely be back.
No 8 Ryan Kankowski missed last week’s clash with the Emirates Lions in Johannesburg after pulling out following the captain’s practice. He is fit to face the Bulls but apparently he and Renaldo Bothma, who played at No 8 against the Lions and did well there, rotated during the training session. It is also not clear if JP Pietersen, the other fit Bok to miss the Lions clash, will be back in the starting team.
What does appear clear is that hooker Kyle Cooper and fullback SP Marais, 2 stalwart foot soldiers at the Sharks over the past few seasons, have fallen out of favour. Even though Bismarck du Plessis is out suspended and will be for another week, Cooper did not feature in the match day 23 last week – and it looks like he will miss out again for the Bulls.
Schalk Burger receives the Laureaus World Comeback of the Year Award 2015
DHL Stormers and Springbok flank Schalk Burger has won the Laureus World Comeback of the Year Award at the ceremony in Shanghai on Wednesday.
Burger had a cyst next to his spinal cord and went into hospital for treatment, but developed life-threatening meningitis and was taken to intensive care. Miraculously, he battled for his life and returned to the sport he loves to win his place back in the Springbok rugby team.
Reflecting upon the most serious stage in his time in intensive care, Burger said: “I remember the day where my wife phoned and everyone said, listen, this is probably it, it’s time to say goodbye. I wasn’t ready to say goodbye.
“It was super scary if you think back now.
“But when you’re going through the middle of this and there’s no time to think really, there’s no time to think about consequences; it was pretty much just me versus something.”
The 6 teams occupying positions 2 to 7 on the South Section log clash in 3 encounters this weekend, which will have a major impact on the eventual standings in the Vodacom Cup.
First up on Friday evening, the SWD Eagles (4th) host the Cell C Sharks XV (6th) at scenic Outeniqua Park in George, where both teams will be looking for their 2nd win of the season.
On Saturday, 2nd-placed GWK Griquas – 1 of only 3 unbeaten teams left in the competition – travel to Velddrif to take on the Boland Cavaliers (7th), before the Toyota Free State XV (3rd) host the 5th-placed EP Kings in Bloemfontein.
The other South Section clash is in Cape Town between the table-topping DHL Western Province, also unbeaten in 2015, and the Border Bulldogs, who are still looking for their 1st log points after 3 Rounds.
With the top side in the North Section, the Xerox Golden Lions, having a BYE this weekend, the big match is on Friday afternoon between the Leopards XV and the Steval Pumas in Potchefstroom.
The Vodacom Blue Bulls will have an opportunity to move to the Top of the Northern Section log when they host the Down Touch Griffons in Pretoria on Friday afternoon, while the FNB Welwitschias and Assupol Limpopo Blue Bulls take each other on in a bottom-of-the-table clash in Windhoek.
It’s PUB NIGHT again…
The heading suggests we talk about the South African Super Rugby sides… err I mean about the successful ones on the weekend, after a weekend where 4 South African sides recorded wins in Super Rugby and I think that qualifies as a good weekend of rugby!
Fortunately the DHL Stormers and Toyota Cheetahs also won in Australia, the Lions beat the Sharks and the Bulls monstered the Rubble Reds. Good on Ya all!
This next weekend, Super Rugby will continue, 1 game on Friday and 6 games on Saturday.
I guess this makes for a few good discussions!
It is time to straddle a bar stool and order a drink or 2.
Let’s focus on the PUB tonight…. the idea with PUB NIGHT is to lighten up our dull Tuesday evenings with music, comedy and fun.
Rugby takes a backseat tonight as the clan and fellow rugby nutters gather and wheel in their old friends…
Read the rules below carefully, or you WILL get burnt!
Just for clarity sake, when someone does not adhere to the Rules of the PUB, EVERYBODY jumps on them and pummels them, right… understood?
Here’s how it works:
SANZAR has announced the names of the Match Officials for Round 10 of the 2015 Super Rugby season.
There will be 7 games on the weekend and the Emirates Lions is the only side to sit out on a BYE weekend.
There will be only 1 game on Friday 17 April but a full 6 games on Saturday 18 April.
The weekend action is kicked off by Nick Briant is the Friday game between the Crusaders and Chiefs in Christchurch at 09:35 SA Time.
On Saturday at 06:30 SA Time Glen Jackson will be in charge of the game in Wellington between the unbeaten Hurricanes and the Waratahs, followed at 09:35 SA Time by Chris Pollock who will officiate the game between the Highlanders and Blues in Dunedin.
From there we move over to Australia where Andrew Gardiner is in charge of the whistle between the Brumbies and Melbourne Rebels in Canberra at 11:40 SA Time, followed by the game between the Western Force and DHL stormers in perth at 13:45 SA Time, where Mike Fraser will preside.
2 Games are played in South Africa on Saturday, the 1st of which will be the derby between the Cell C Sharks and Vodacom Bulls at 17:05 SA Time in Durban, where Jaco Peyper will be in charge. In the last match of the Round, at 19:10 SA Time, the Toyota Cheetahs host the Reds and the match will be handled by Jaco van Heerden in Bloemfontein.
Hopefully dicipline amongst players and match officials improves this weekend and we do not have to witness a dearth of Cards, citings and suspensions!
Willie le Roux
Springbok fullback Willie le Roux will sit out the Toyota Cheetahs clash with the Reds this weekend due to the rest agreement with SA Rugby.
Le Roux will be replaced by Coenie van Wyk in the starting line-up as the only change to the team that beat the Western Force last Saturday in Perth.
This will mark the 9th Super Rugby encounter between the Cheetahs and the Reds, since their 1st match in March 2006.
The Reds are leading the way with 5 wins to 3.
It will also be the 5th time the teams meet at the Free State Stadium in Bloemfontein, since the 1st encounter.
The Cheetahs has won 3 previous matches in Bloemfontein to the Reds 1.
André Watson
Some members of the South African Rugby Referees Association (SARRA) are at loggerheads with SARU’s manager of referees, André Watson, and this has now come to a head at a meeting with an independent arbitrator.
The result is that there was a hearing on Thursday and Friday of last week involving the arbitrator and members of the SARRA, including Watson and other members of the SARRA’s staff and panel referees. At the heart of the matter is the unhappiness of some SARRA members with Watson’s management over the 11 years that he has been in office.
There is as yet no official outcome to the meetings but the meetings are likely to be resumed at some stage this week and perhaps run over into next week.
Adriaan Strauss
Jan Serfontein
Handré Pollard
Incumbent Springboks Adriaan Strauss, Jan Serfontein and Handré Pollard is fit again and will be considered for Saturday’s Vodacom Super Rugby match against the Cell C Sharks in Durban.
According to Vodacom Bulls team doctor Org Strauss, all 3 are ready to travel to the East Coast, along with Lappies Labuschagne, who recovered from the shoulder injury which kept him out of action for the matches against the Crusaders, Emirates Lions and Reds.
Adriaan Strauss was rested against the Reds according to the SARU agreement, while Jan Serfontein last played against the Western Force and Pollard against the Crusaders.
A number of players, Jacques-Louis Potgieter (hamstring), Marcel van der Merwe (ankle), Burger Odendaal (contusion), Bjorn Basson (ankle) and Morné Mellett (back spasm) did not train on Monday, but will be back on Tuesday, Strauss confirmed. Akona Ndungane has also recovered from a broken hand.
Johan Ackermann
Emirates Lions coach Johan Ackermann is pleased with the physical condition of his players after 9 Rounds of Super Rugby action.
The Lions have won 5 of 9 matches this season and sit 7th on the overall standings.
The men from Johannesburg have a welcome BYE this week, with their next match at home against the Toyota Cheetahs on 25 April.
After 9 consecutive games, they only have a few injuries, which leaves Ackermann a happy camper.
FNB UFS-Shimlas beat FNB NWU-Pukke 63 / 33 in an epic final in Bloemfontein on Monday to claim their 1st Varsity Cup title.
The hosts outscored their old rivals by 9 tries to 4 in a breathless match to end the season unbeaten and hand NWU-Pukke their 2nd consecutive final defeat.
The visitors made a determined start to the match, and drove UFS-Shimlas deep into their own territory where they were able to force a penalty which was slotted by Rhyno Smith.
However, they were reduced to 14 men shortly afterwards when flank Marno Redelinghuys was shown a Yellow Card for a dangerous tackle, and the home side took advantage immediately with lock Johan van der Hoogt barging over for the opening try which put them 8 / 2 up once converted by flyhalf Niel Marais.
They did not have that lead for long though, as Marais’ clearance from the restart was charged down by NWU-Pukke scrumhalf Malherbe Swart, who scored under the poles to put his side back in front.
The Potchefstroom students were not done there and added a 2nd try straight away, with inside centre Johan Deysel running a great line, off a lineout in their own half to race away and score to stretch their lead out to 18 / 8, despite being a man down.
SANZAR has tactfully sidestepped the latest attack on their integrity, telling South African Rugby Union President Oregan Hoskins to “follow the proper channels” if he has grievances.
Hoskins, in a report published in a weekend newspaper, launched a scathing attack on SANZAR, the organisation that controls Southern Hemisphere competitions – Super Rugby and the Rugby championship.
The SARU boss took aim at what he regards as “the inconsistency of recent rulings at disciplinary tribunals” and also targeted SANZAR Chief Executive Greg Peters.
However, the SANZAR boss remained mum on the matter.
Instead a spokesperson said Hoskins is welcome to contact them to raise his concerns.
“Hoskins is aware of the correct channels to air his concerns,” a SANZAR spokesperson said.
Shimlas (26) 63 / 33 (20) Pukke (Final Score)
FNB UFS-Shimlas (University of the Free State) and FNB NWU-Pukke (Nort West University) did
battle in Super Rugby at Shimla Park, Bloemfontein at 19:00 SA Time (17:00 GMT).
This was the live match discussion Article.
The match was broadcast LIVE on SuperSport 1 & CSN on TV in SA.
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Pierre Spies
The Vodacom Bulls may be on top of the South African Super Rugby conference, but they know there’s a tough road ahead until the end of regular season play.
The Bulls thrashed the Reds 43 / 22 at Loftus Versfeld at the weekend, but out of their 8 remaining league matches, only 2 will be at home.
They tackle the Cell C Sharks and DHL Stormers away over the next 2 weeks, before facing the Emirates Lions at home.
After that, 4 games in Australasia await against the Blues (15 May), Chiefs (22 May), Brumbies (29 May) and Melbourne Rebels (6 June).
Their last league game is at home against the Toyota Cheetahs on 13 June.
Pat Howard
Western Province back Pat Howard has reportedly signed a deal with English Premiership club Northampton Saints.
While the news is yet to be officially announced, it is reported that Howard will leave the Cape union later this year.
The 23-year-old Howard, who can play wing and centre, is contracted with WP until 31 October.
This means he will in all likelihood be asked to stay until the end of this year’s Currie Cup.
Michael Rhodes
Utility forward Michael Rhodes will return home from the DHL Stormers’ Vodacom Super Rugby tour of Australasia after suffering a hamstring tear in his team’s 32 / 18 bonus point win over the Waratahs at the weekend.
The tough-tackling forward was forced to leave the field in the 33rd minute on Saturday and he now faces a 6 to 8 week lay-off – Rhodes’s 2nd injury blow of the season after picking up a knee injury against the Lions in late February.
Rhodes will be replaced in the DHL Stormers tour party by DHL Western Province Vodacom Cup star Sikhumbuzo Notshe, who left for Perth late on Sunday evening.
DHL Stormers boss Allister Coetzee told the www.iamastormer.com website: “Michael has a Grade 2 or 3 hamstring tear and will be out of action for at least 6 weeks.
Oregan Hoskins
South African Rugby Union President Oregan Hoskins has spoken out strongly against the inconsistency of recent rulings at disciplinary tribunals.
Hoskins is incensed by what he believes to be the unfair handling of cases involving South African players – compared with their New Zealand and Australian counterparts.
He referred to the recent harsh bans handed to Sharks players Bismarck du Plessis (4 weeks), Frans Steyn (5 weeks) and Jean Deysel (7 weeks) – while similar offences by Kiwi and Aussie players received more lenient treatment.
“I didn’t intend to go to the media on this,” Hoskins said.
“But frankly, I’ve just had enough.
South African referees boss Andre Watson is in hot water after several officials voiced complaints against him.
According to reports, a list of grievances was signed by 24 officials. This led to Watson attending a disciplinary hearing.
Some of the grievances are believed to be: verbal abuse, victimisation, Watson’s abrasive management style and financial impropriety.
The newspaper says it was Watson’s fallout with senior referee Rasta Rasivhenge that galvanised the disenchanted. Watson allegedly told Rasivhenge last year: “I’ll f**k you up, I’ll destroy you.”
Rasivhenge has since left South Africa to pursue a refereeing career in Australia.
The Vodacom Bulls held onto their leadership of a ferociously contested South African Conference on a weekend of success at the expense of Australian teams.
The Vodacom Bulls maintained their 2-point advantage over the DHL Stormers on the Log – as both recorded bonus point victories over the Reds (43 / 22) and Waratahs (32 / 18) respectively – while the Toyota Cheetahs showed enormous character to finish their tour on a high in Perth, with a win over the Western Force (24 / 15).
In the South African derby at Emirates Airlines Park, the Emirates Lions underlined the seriousness of their challenge for the Conference title with 2-point victory (23 / 21) over a significantly improved Cell C Sharks, who missed a long-range last-kick penalty, which could have snatched the victory.
The upshot of the weekend was that the Top 4 SA teams are separated by just 4 Log Points – in contrast to their fellow conferences where the Hurricanes top the standings as New Zealand’s Top 4 are spread by 11 points, while an even more clear-cut Australian race sees the Brumbies head a Log in which 17 points cover the Top 4 Australian contenders.
3 Of SA’s winners had to overcome halftime deficits to record victories, with the most notable being those of the DHL Stormers and Toyota Cheetahs who achieved it on Australian soil.
However, the margins were small – both trailed by 2 points – while the Emirates Lions turned round 3 points adrift of the Cell C Sharks, as all 3 teams showed fitness and character to ‘win’ the 2nd half.
In the other match, the Vodacom Bulls’ recent home success over the Reds continued, as they stomped to a 6-try victory, with Francois Hougaard scoring 2 tries from the wing to take his tally to 4 for the season and therefore joining Marcell Coetzee as the leading South African try scorers.
Both the FNB UFS-Shimlas and FNB-NWU-Pukke will be gunning for their 1st title when they meet in the FNB Varsity Cup presented by Steinhoff International final in Bloemfontein on Monday.
For hosts UFS-Shimlas it will be their 1st-ever final, while NWU-Pukke will be looking for redemption after having the title snatched from them by FNB UCT in dramatic circumstances at home last year.
The 2 teams have taken contrasting routes to the final, with the unbeaten UFS-Shimlas seeing off the defending champion Ikeys in their home semifinal and NWU-Pukke sneaking into the play-offs before knocking out the table-topping FNB UP-Tuks in their Pretoria semifinal.
There was not much to choose between the sides when they met in the Final Round of action before the play-offs, with UFS-Shimlas dominating the 1st half and NWU-Pukke fighting back to clinch the 2 bonus points which secured them 4th spot on the standings.
On top of all that there is the old rivalry between the teams which is well understood by both coaches who experienced the intensity of the Shimlas-Pukke Intervarsity in their playing days.
Franco Smith and Robert du Preez both played for the Springboks, but before that they did duty for the universities they currently coach and are expecting another huge battle on Monday.
Smith has turned the UFS-Shimlas’ fortunes around dramatically in his 1st season in charge, and he is expecting an electric atmosphere at Shimla Park with far more than just bragging rights at stake.
“The excitement around it has been enormous, a lot of old Shimlas have got involved again so there is a lot of hype in Bloemfontein around the home final.
“I have been involved previously in my career in a lot of these intervarsities and there is a big sense of that in Bloemfontein, it has definitely added a bit of spice to what is already a big game,” he said.
Du Preez is expecting a strong contingent of NWU-Pukke supporters to make the trip down to Bloemfontein with his side and create an occasion to rival anything from the past.
“I believe there are a lot of supporters going down which is always nice. Even from my days when I played the Pukke-Shimlas intervarsities were great affairs, and this one won’t be any different,” he said.
It was business as usual at the top of the North and South Section logs with 4 of the top 5 in the divisions recording victories, to remain on course for home play-off’s.
The ‘best’ result of the day was secured by North Section leaders, the Xerox Golden Lions, who recorded a hard-fought 24 / 16 victory over the Steval Pumas, the only team among the top 5 not to win, having started Round 5 in 2nd place.
The Lions’ 5th successive win allowed the Vodacom Blue Bulls to leapfrog the Steval Pumas into 2nd position on the North Section Log, courtesy of a 44 / 0 victory in Windhoek.
In the South, DHL Western Province and GWK Griquas both maintained their 100% records with their 3rd successive victories, the former edging the EP Kings by 6 points in Port Elizabeth while GWK Griquas had an easier time of it, beating the Border Bulldogs by 12 in Hartswater.
The Toyota Free State Cheetahs XV stayed in contention in the South Section with a 35 / 18 win over the Cell C Sharks XV in Kokstad, while in the North the Hino Valke recorded their 1st victory at the 4th attempt, with a 38 / 17 victory over the Down Touch Griffons.
Allister Coetzee
An elated DHL Stormers coach Allister Coetzee heaped the praise on his coaching team and all the players in the aftermath of their excellent 32 / 18 Vodacom Super Rugby win over the defending champion Waratahs earlier today.
The DHL Stormers overturned a 13 / 15 half-time deficit to record their 1st tour win of 2015 against the reigning champs – also scoring 4 tries in the process in Sydney.
Bulls (24) 43 / 22 (5) Reds (Final Score)
The Vodacom Bulls and Reds did battle in Super Rugby at
Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria at 19:10 SA Time (17:10 GMT, Sunday 03:10 AEST).
This was the live match discussion Article.
The match was broadcast LIVE on SuperSport 1 & M-Net on TV in SA.
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Lions (11) 23 / 21 (14) Sharks (Final Score)
The Emirates Lions and Cell C Sharks did battle in Super Rugby at
Emirates Airline Park, Johannesburg at 17:05 SA Time (15:05 GMT).
This was the live match discussion Article.
The match was broadcast LIVE on SuperSport 1 & M-Net on TV in SA.
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