Springboks
Springbok lock, Eben Etzebeth has been found Not Guilty of the alleged eye gouging he was cited for after the clash between the Springboks and Scotland. The Judicial Officer ruled that the contact was accidental and therefore did not constitute foul play.
Golden Lions prop JC Janse van Rensburg will fly to London on Tuesday evening to replace the injured CJ van der Linde in the Springbok squad.
The Vodacom Bulls on Tuesday confirmed the appointment of Victor Matfield as their new Forwards and Attack Coach for the 2013 Vodacom Super Rugby season, while also naming Derick Hougaard as a skills and kicking coach and Handrè Pollard as part of their extended playing squad for the new season.
Springbok lock Eben Etzebeth has been cited for allegedly making contact with a the eye of a Scotland player in the Test match played at Murrayfield on Saturday.
The Springboks may have to do without one of their few experienced in-form backline players in Saturday’s final test of the year against England at Twickenham.
Ian Kirkpatrick, great rugby man, died suddenly at his home in Helderberg Village on Sunday. He was 82. His influence on South African rugby over six decades cannot be overestimated.
On Friday he complained of a ‘stomach upset’ and cancelled a meeting with an overseas company about to make a documentary on the 1974 tour, when Kirkpatrick was a national selector.
His playing career was great. He left Kimberley Boys’ high and at the age of 19 and played for Griquas. The next year he went to the Springbok trials at Newlands when the great Springbok team was chosen for the 1951-52 tour. In 1953 he made his Springbok debut against the Wallabies at Newlands, playing flyhalf.
Kirkie played for South Africa in 13 Tests. Of the 13 two were lost, and on each occasion it was at Newlands (against Australia and France) and he was at flyhalf. In 10 Tests he was at centre in partnership with John Gainsford.
The Cheetahs are doing everything within their powers to try and stop loose forward Juan Smith from moving to France.
Patrick Lambie missed his opportunity to stake a claim for the Springbok No.10 jersey at Murrayfield at the weekend.
This was Lambie’s chance to shine. The wet European conditions had stayed away for the Springboks’ Edinburgh encounter against an ordinary Scottish outfit fresh off a 51-22 hiding from New Zealand.
Nick Mallet during his tenure as Springbok coach made himself very unpopular by saying that he is not too concerned about criticism from South African rugby fans because in his opinion they don’t know much about the game anyway.
Good second half against Ireland, good first half against Scotland … warts and all, the Springboks continue unbeaten on their season-ending tour of the northern hemisphere.
News from Cape Town is that Tendai “Beast” Mtawarita is recovering from a successful minor medical procedure to correct an intermittent irregular heart rhythm he experienced last weekend.
Scotland (3) 10 / 21 (14) Springboks (Final Score)
Scotland and the South African Springboks did battle in the End Of Year Tours at Murrayfield, Edinburgh at 16:30 SA 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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Seems that the planners of the End Of Year Tours all colluded to make it as difficult as possible for us to see all the games. This afternoon no less than 3 important Tests takes place at the same time, being Italy vs All Blacks (16:00 SA Time), England vs Wallabies (16:30 SA Time) and Scotland vs Springboks (16:30 SA Time). The other matches following are the Ireland vs Fiji (19:30 SA Time) and France vs Pumas (22:00 SA Time) matches.
ESPN Classic has produced two original one-hour documentaries focusing on the careers of ex-Springbok rugby captains, John Smit and Victor Matfield.
Former Springbok and Sharks lock Mark Andrews is worried about current Bok second rower Eben Etzebeth’s commitment at the breakdown area.
Centre Nick De Luca insists a victory over South Africa is not essential for Scotland’s World Cup hopes.
The Scots host the Springboks after losing to New Zealand last Sunday. They need to win, and beat Tonga a week later, to secure a second seed berth for England in three years’ time.
Scotland have made two changes from their starting XV and a further four alterations to their bench for Saturday’s EMC Test against South Africa at Murrayfield. Euan Murray, the 32-year-old tighthead prop who was man of the match when the nations clashed at Murrayfield in 2008, is restored at tight-head prop having missed the New Zealand game due to his religious observance, with Geoff Cross moving to the bench.
Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer has stuck with his guns and pretty much as expected gone for continuity, in selecting the same team as last weekend accept for two changes to the starting fifteen and one on the bench.
While not everybody’s cup of tea, the fact remains that next year established Springbok No 8 and known occasional game-breaker Pierre Spies will return to contention for the national team.
Scotland forward David Denton today looked ahead to the next round of the EMC Autumn Test rugby series and insisted it is a case of “bring on the Boks”.
Undeterred by the fact that Scotland opened their programme with a 51-22 home defeat by New Zealand, the 22-year-old Edinburgh back rower insisted a bucketload of rust has come out of the team’s system.
Scotland and France may both have played tests this past weekend and will play again in the coming weekend. However, the two teams are in quite different places at the moment with France pulling off a very good win against Australia while Scotland suffered a big defeat to New Zealand.
Furthermore, Scotland have numerous players on the injury list ahead of their game against South Africa on Saturday which is great concern for head coach Andy Robinson. On the other hand, France’s coach Philippe Saint-Andre was able to announce an unchanged squad for their game against Argentina.
The Springboks may have an alternative captain leading them onto the field for their second tour match against Scotland at Murrayfield in Edinburgh on Saturday.
The Springboks have moved into second spot on the International Rugby Board’s rankings after their 16-12 win over Ireland in Dublin on Saturday.
News from the UK is that Tendai “Beast” Mtawarira is returning home due to his recurring heart problem.
It’s SuperBru time again, this time for the End Of Year Tours!
This competition’s FIRST matches kick off this coming weekend, in fact on Saturday 10 November 2012.
Get your BUTTS into gear and register!
We have registered a Super Pool with the following details:
Pool Name: Rugby-Talk EOYT 2012
Pool Code: grabgage
What the hell is going on with our beloved Springboks? I believe this is the main question every SA rugby supporter wrestles with at this moment!
Wrong players in key positions, an unbalanced back row, injuries to key players and playing an outdated game plan has all been voiced as probable reasons.
Heyneke has responded to most of these criticisms by making changes to the team but still the team seems to be tentative and almost scared to do anything. They played like a golfer obsessed with his golf swing, so focussed on getting it exactly right that he forgets to hit the damn ball. The ‘Boks in the first half was overly careful, almost scared that they would make mistakes (not getting it exactly right). The result of that –and it has been the case in some of The Rugby Championship test matches as well- was that they became tentative and pedantic when going into contact.
Ireland (12) 12 / 16 (3) Springboks (Final Score)
Ireland and the South African Springboks did battle in the End Of Year Tours at the Aviva Stadium, Dublin at 19:30 SA Time (17:30 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 Springbok Team to take on Ireland in the 1st Test of the Springbok End Of Year Tour to the Northern Hemisphere, taking place on Saturday 10 November, was announced at about 13:40 SA Time on Wednesday 7 November 2012.
Francois Louw will turn down offers from South African teams and opt for a contract extension at Bath, believes the English club’s head coach, Gary Gold.
Ireland’s South Africa-born hooker Richardt Strauss is set to come face-to-face with his cousin Adriaan in Saturday’s Test match in Dublin.
Ireland wing Andrew Trimble is hoping that South Africa star JP Pietersen will be only too aware of his abilities after Saturday’s Test in Dublin. Pietersen struggled when asked to talk about the opposition backs on Tuesday and suggested that France’s David Skrela could be in the Ireland team.
The customary time of the year when Southern Hemisphere International teams descend on the Northern Hemisphere is now upon us. We can look forward to four action packed weekends with twenty matches involving the various international teams (nineteen of which will be test matches).
The Springboks took part in a scrum study conducted by the International Rugby Board (IRB) in conjunction with the University of Bath in Dublin on Tuesday.
Everyone seems to be aspiring coaches and selectors and week after week we watch matches and air our views where we either slate the coach or sing his praises.
So, I would like to invite every Blogger to post his or her 23 players for the First upcoming Springbok Test against Ireland. Also I will put this up for each Test so we can eventually see who gets it right overall as well as each individual Test.
Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer is reportedly targeting tighthead prop Brian Mujati as his 32nd squad member for their European tour.