Force (0) 14 / 40 (26) Blues (Final Score)
The Western Force and Blues did battle in Super Rugby at
nib Stadium, Perth at 13:45 SA Time (19:45 AWST, 23:45 NZ Time, 11:45 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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Waratahs (14) 39 / 8 (5) Brumbies (Final Score)
The Waratahs and Brumbies did battle in Super Rugby at
ANZ Stadium, Sydney 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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Adam Ashe (picture SNS/SRU)
Never can a nightmare have turned good as quickly as Adam Ashe’s. He spent almost the entire season fighting a recurring hamstring injury and though he did recover in time to win the chance to go training at the Canterbury International High Performance unit in Christchurch, New Zealand, everything was in reality geared to trying to make an impression next season.
He has not had to wait that long for his chance. Even though he had hardly played any rugby during the Scottish season and had managed only 36 minutes of pro play as a replacement for Glasgow, he has been propelled from the fringes of the game to centre stage as the starting No 8 against South Africa.
The magnitude of the step up is huge. For example, among the Springbok back row is Schalk Burger. Ashe was just ten when Burger started playing for South Africa in the 2003 Rugby World Cup, scarcely any older when Burger won the World Player of the Year award. No wonder that, with his strong ball carrying and kamikaze tackling style, Burger was one of teenage Ashe’s heroes.
Hurricanes (11) 16 / 9 (3) Crusaders (Final Score)
The Hurricanes and Crusaders 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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Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium
A capacity crowd is expected at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium on Saturday when the Springboks take on Scotland.
EP Rugby CEO, Charl Crous, said there were roughly 3 500 tickets left by Thursday afternoon and tickets were selling fast.
“We have seen an upsurge in ticket sales this week and we are encouraging those who have not yet got tickets to please get them as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.”
Crous said it would be great to be able to put up “sold out” signs ahead of the Test match and called on Nelson Mandela Bay residents to come out and support the Springboks.
He also advised people to come early to ensure that everyone would be able to get into the stadium before kickoff at 17:00 SA Time.
We run through some key players that went down in action during the June Internationals for Southern Hemisphere nations, that might impact some team’s Super Rugby chances.
South Africa and Australia are severely hit but things look a lot better for the New Zealand Franchises.
It is fast heading to crunch time in Super Rugby, with Round 17 on this weekend. The South African sides are of course excluded from Round 17 due to the fact that they started a week earlier than their Antipodian counterparts.
Including Round 17, there are only 3 weeks of the open Rounds left, before the weekend of Play-Off games ensue for the Top 6 Super Rugby sides and the margins for error is so small, specially for those Franchises still on the fringes of making the Play-Off’s.
After the 2 Play-Off games, featuring No 3 against No 6 and No 4 against No 5, there is one weekend of Semi-Finals (2 games) and a week later the Final.
Greg Peters
SANZAR on Friday said it will immediately introduce a strengthened concussion test for players in Super Rugby and the Rugby Championship in line with moves made by the International Rugby Board.
SANZAR, which runs the Super Rugby competition and the southern hemisphere Rugby Championship, said player welfare was paramount.
Andy Ellis
Crusaders scrumhalf Andy Ellis has committed to the Crusaders for 2015, but will first play a season for the Kobe Steel Kobelco Steelers rugby club in Japan.
Ellis said he was excited about the opportunity to play in a new environment and a new competition for a season but remained committed to his teams here in New Zealand.
“I love playing for Canterbury and the Crusaders and I would love the chance to represent New Zealand again if the opportunity ever came up.”
Rebels (3) 20 / 36 (22) Reds (Final Score)
The Melbourne Rebels and Reds did battle in Super Rugby at
AAMI Park, Melbourne 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 & CSN on TV in SA.
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Highlanders (10) 29 / 25 (13) Chiefs (Final Score)
The Highlanders and Chiefs did battle in Super Rugby at
Forsyth Barr Stadium, Dunedin 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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Johann Sadie
The Cheetahs were hit by another massive blow when they lost their ninth player of the season, with midfielder Johann Sadie heading to Japan to join the NTT Docomo Red Hurricanes at the end of the current Super Rugby season.
Sadie will make the move to the Japanese club, which also has South Africans Heinrich Brüssow and Riaan Viljoen on their books, after again missing on the Springbok training squad.
The Cheetahs midfielder has had a good season despite his team’s poor form in this year’s competition and will definitely be able to use his attacking skills in the pacy Japanese league.
Joe Tomane
Wallaby coach Ewen McKenzie believes Joe Tomane will soon be back in the selection frame for the national team.
The Wallaby and Brumbies wing, Tomane, signed a new two-year deal with the Australia Rugby Union that will take him through until at least the end of 2016.
His signature further bolsters the rich talent available to the Wallabies in the outside backs with Tomane determined to add to the nine caps he has earned since making his debut in 2012.
Phil Burleigh
Edinburgh’s backline resources for the new season were boosted with the signing of Highlanders utility back Phil Burleigh.
Burleigh signed a two-year deal with the Scottish outfit.
The 27-year-old playmaker came through the ranks with Bay of Plenty, before becoming a regular star in the Southern Hemisphere’s top flight Super Rugby competition.
It is Round 17 of Super Rugby 2014 this weekend, the first Round after the June Test break! We have 5 games in Round 17, with 2 game on Friday and 3 games on Saturday.
All 5 the South African sides sits out this weekend, still in the last week of their June Test window, however this at the same time makes up for the fact that the South African sides started a week earlier than the rest in February.
After this Round it will mean that the Antipodian teams will have caught up in played games with the South African counterparts.
As a result, the Logs and Combined Log will no longer be skewed and will reflect a much more accurate accont of the Super Rugby season thus far.
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.
The Brumbies have named their team to play the Waratahs in Sydney with Robbie Coleman winning his 50th cap and prop Ruaidhri Murphy making his first start at hooker.
In the backs Robbie Coleman will celebrate his 50th game on the wing after making his debut against the Reds back in 2010 and has since gone on to cement a spot in the top squad in 2014.
Ruaidhri Murphy will make his first appearance as a hooker on Saturday when the Brumbies travel to Sydney to take on the Waratahs.
The Western Force have named their team to play the Blues at the ‘Force Field’ (nib Stadium) including six players who have all returned from injury to start this weekend.
Hugh McMeniman (collarbone), Ben McCalman (groin), Alby Mathewson (ankle), Marcel Brache (ankle), Tetera Faulkner (back) and Solomoni Rasolea (wrist) will all return to the Western Force line-up in the club’s first match back following the three-week Test break.
McMeniman will return at blindside flanker in place of Angus Cottrell, who suffered a season-ending ankle injury in the Western Australian club’s last match against the Crusaders in Christchurch.
The two leading attacking teams of the 2014 Super Rugby season, the Hurricanes and Crusaders are facing off this weekend in what is expected to be a super-charged match at Westpac Stadium.
Statistics suggest a close encounter is on the cards, with both teams averaging 29 points per game. The Hurricanes have managed to score 407 points in 14 matches, while the Crusaders have generated 381 points in 13 fixtures.
Steven Luatua returns to the starting fifteen of the Blues for Saturday’s clash against the Force in Perth.
The 23-year-old blindside flanker has not featured in the run-on side since Round 10 against the Hurricanes after being squeezed out by the in-form Peter Saili, but head coach Sir John Kirwan said it was time to give Luatua an opportunity.
“He’s been away with the All Blacks and he’s come back full of energy and I think he needs an opportunity to push his way back into the side,” Kirwan said.
Dan Carter
Crusaders head coach Todd Blackadder has named his team to play the Hurricanes this weekend. The team will head to Wellington on Friday to prepare for the game at Westpac Stadium on Saturday night.
Eight players have returned from the All Blacks to make the team, including prop Wyatt Crockett who will pack down with Corey Flynn and Nepo Laulala in the front row. Owen Franks will provide front row cover alongside Joe Moody and Ben Funnell on the bench.
Locks Dom Bird and Sam Whitelock will pair up in the second row, and Matt Todd will wear the No 7 jersey with Richie McCaw ruled out with a broken rib. Jordan Taufua and Luke Whitelock join him in the loose forwards with Kieran Read and Jimmy Tupou named in the reserves.
Rebels head coach Tony McGahan has named exciting youngster Sean McMahon in the starting line-up and Jack Debreczeni for his run-on debut as Super Rugby returns to AAMI Park for the final time in 2014 as the Rebels host the Reds on Friday night.
Debreczeni, who has played in the Rebels previous two matches as a replacement, recently re-signed with the club and is part of a backline shuffle that also sees flyer Jason Woodward move to the right wing.
McGahan was excited to unleash the youngster from the first minute against the Reds.
Highlanders head coach Jamie Joseph has named his team to take on the reigning champions in Dunedin on Friday.
All three All Blacks, along with Patrick Osborne, who joined the All Black’s squad as injury cover, have returned to the starting line-up while both Brayden Mitchell and Tom Franklin have played their way into the team after stellar performances in Invercargill against the NZ Barbarians.
Flip van der Merwe
Flip van der Merwe’s season ended with a whimper rather than a bang as the big lock was ruled out for the rest of the year with a knee injury.
Van der Merwe, who hurt himself in the closing minutes of the one-point victory over Wales in Nelspruit this past weekend, underwent a scan and was sent for a specialist opinion by the Springbok management on Monday.
And the news was not good.
The specialist ruled that Van der Merwe had to undergo surgery on his posterior cruciate ligament, and will therefore be out for six months.
Springboks vs Wales June 2014: Alun Wyn Jones & Steve Walsh discuss the Penalty Try incident
There is always something to discuss after a rugby Test match, especially one as thrilling as this.
There are the action and the special moments to discuss, the performance of players and all to frequently the Laws of the Game, the ever-changing, confusing and after controversial Laws of the Game and the demands of applying them accurately.
There were two tries especially discussed after the Nelspruit Test – one a try by the Welsh hooker and the other the definitive penalty try near the end – and penalty tries are rare and always debated.
Teboho Mahoje
The running joke may be that Heyneke Meyer is selecting his best side for the 2007 Rugby World Cup with the number of Springbok veterans in his side, but the inclusion of Teboho “Oupa” Mohoje for Saturday’s Test against Scotland may suggest otherwise.
The versatile loose forward had experienced a meteoric rise in his career and could make his Springbok debut playing off the bench against Scotland in Port Elizabeth only a few months after playing Varsity Cup rugby for Shimlas.
While a patch of grey hair in his primary school years secured him the Afrikaans nickname “oupa”, meaning grandfather, the versatile forward is anything but a geriatric.
Heyneke Meyer
Oregan Hoskins
Tank Lanning
Tank Lanning, former WP tighthead prop and head of Tankman Media has an interesting look at the Springbok team chosen to play against Scotland as well as the words of the uber-opportunist, Oregan Hoskins earlier this week regarding supposed instructions to Bok coach Heyneke Meyer.
This is pretty much they way I feel about it too and for once I am able to agree with something Lanning said, without hesitation!
Good piece, Tank!!
Owen Williams
Wales centre Owen Williams suffered a potential career-ending injury at the weekend.
The player’s club, the Cardiff Blues have confirmed, and the Welsh Rugby Union confirmed that Williams has “significant” neck and spinal injuries – sustained during the inaugural World Club 10s in Singapore.
Williams was hurt on Sunday, while playing for the Blues in a third-place play-off match, but the club waited until Wednesday to confirm his injuries.
Handré Pollard
Junior Springbok captain Handré Pollard is one of five uncapped players who have been named in the Springboks’ match-23 for Saturday’s final encounter of the Castle Lager Incoming Series against Scotland in Port Elizabeth.
In total, the Springbok starting team shows six changes from the side which beat Wales by 31-30 in Nelspruit last weekend.
The four uncapped players on a new-look bench are Marcel van der Merwe (prop), Stephan Lewies (lock), Teboho “Oupa” Mohoje (loose forward) and Marnitz Boshoff (flyhalf). Also on the bench are Adriaan Strauss, Trevor Nyakane, Francois Hougaard and Zane Kirchner, none of whom have played any Test rugby yet this season.
Two players, Pollard and Marcell Coetzee, have not yet featured for the Springboks this year, while four of these are replacements who have been promoted to the starting team, namely Lwazi Mvovo, Schalk Burger, Lood de Jager and Coenie Oosthuizen.
Adam Ashe, the 20-year-old Glasgow Warriors No 8, will become the seventh new cap of Scotland’s summer tour when he takes to the field against South Africa in Port Elizabeth on Saturday.
Ashe, a product of the Hillfoots and Stirling County clubs, was preparing for club training at Lincoln University in Christchurch one week ago, having been domiciled for a couple of months in New Zealand’s South Island as recipient of the John Macphail Scholarship.
Others have graduated to full international honours and have cited the “invaluable” experience the scholarship has bequeathed them, for example, John Barclay, Grant Gilchrist, Jonny Gray and Kevin Bryce.
The match is played at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth at 17:00 SA Time, 16:00 BST, 15:00 GMT.
Dan Parks
Former Scotland international flyhalf Dan Parks has announced his retirement from all forms of rugby after retiring from international rugby in 2012.
Australian born Parks played for Scotland over an eight year period in which he won 67 caps.
John Muggleton
Aviva Premiership Rugby club Gloucester have added to their coaching team by signing former Australia defence coach John Muggleton and England Under 20’s coach Nick Walshe.
Muggleton will be taking on the role of Defence Coach. The 54 year old is a former Australian Rugby League international, part of the 1982 touring team which became known as ‘The Invincibles’ when it won all 22 games on its tour of England and France.
Once his playing career was over, Sydney born Muggleton moved into coaching and was Defence Coach with the Wallabies for 10 years. His time in post covered the Rugby World Cup triumph in 1999 and a series victory over the British and Irish Lions.
A two year stint with the Scarlets was followed by a spell coaching Georgia at Rugby World 2011, before taking on the role of Defence Coach with the Melbourne Rebels from 2011 to 2013.
Louis Fouché
Vodacom Bulls flyhalf Louis Fouche has become the latest player to leave Loftus Versfeld after signing a one-year deal with the Ricoh Black Rams in Japan.
Fouche, who had a tough season with the Bulls, being dropped after the second game of this year’s Vodacom Super Rugby, has struggled to get back into the team with the likes of Jacques-Louis Potgieter and Handre Pollard ahead of him in the pecking order.
Since then, Fouche has played just a handful of games in the Vodacom Cup and decided to take up an offer in Japan to further his career there.
Fraser McKenzie
Edinburgh Rugby are pleased to announce that Scotland A lock Fraser McKenzie has returned to the club where he began his professional career.
The lock, who can also play on the blind-side, made his Scotland 7s debut in November 2008, represented Scotland A in 2010 and 2011, and was included in the extended Scotland squad for the 2012 RBS 6 Nations.
Moving from Edinburgh Rugby to Sale Sharks in 2011, McKenzie then joined Newcastle Falcons last summer, making a total of 41 English Premiership appearances before earning a move home.
Samson Lee
Wales prop Samson Lee has been banned for five weeks for a headbutt on Springbok lock Flip van der Merwe.
The incident occurred in the 55th minute of the second Test between Wales and South Africa in Nelspruit last Saturday.
South Africa won the match 31-30.
Tazz Fuzani
The Eastern Province Kings are reportedly interested in luring Western Province lock Tazz Fuzani to Port Elizabeth.
Fuzani, 23, made a promising debut for WP in last year’s Currie Cup, but appears to have fallen out of favour with WP / Stormers coach Allister Coetzee.
The Sharks could potentially slip to third on the overall Super Rugby log following the completion of this weekend’s Round 17 action.
The Super Rugby competition resumes for New Zealand and Australian teams this week following the June international Test window.
No South African teams are taking part this weekend as the Springboks are scheduled to play one extra Test against Scotland, which falls outside the International Rugby Board’s Test window.