Super Rugby
That’s the question not even the Waratahs have the answer to right now, as the Wallaby star waits to be medically cleared for Saturday’s Vodacom Super Rugby game.
Folau was controversially pulled from the clash with the Western Force on Saturday after the Australian Rugby Union medical staff overruled the Waratahs’ decision to put him on the park after a throat Cartilage injury.
“We haven’t lost hope.”
The hard words of Toyota Cheetahs captain Adriaan Strauss after his side’s loss at the hands of the Crusaders in their Vodacom Super Rugby match this past weekend.
The Reds go into their bye week with the firm belief that Plan A will get them into the Super Rugby play-offs.
Reds coach Richard Graham – who is hoping to get a number of frontline players back from injury when they return to action against the Hurricanes on April 26 – said the next block of matches will be vital to his team’s cause.
Clyde Rathbone insists he is ready for a Super Rugby recall if required after making a successful comeback from injury on Saturday.
The South African-born Rathbone surprised many by joining up with the Brumbies’ Super Rugby squad at the end of the 2012 season – he announced his retirement in 2009.
Stuart Berry will be the referee in the South African Super Rugby derby between the Stormers and Lions at Newlands on Saturday (17:05 kick-off).
Berry will be assisted by Marius van der Westhuizen and Quinton Immelman, with Shaun Veldsman on Television Match Official (TMO) duty.
The Lions don’t learn from their mistakes they will be doomed to repeat them.
This was the harsh message from coach Johan Ackermann after his side held the Cell C Sharks for 65 minutes, before allowing them a turnover inside the Lions’ own half and watched as the game slipped away from them through an excellent Lwazi Mvovo try to lose 25-12 in their Vodacom Super Rugby match on Saturday.
Every time the Cell C Sharks score a win there are mutters in the background that they still have to travel overseas, but the rate they are going they will leave for Australasia needing to do very little to confirm themselves as the winners of the South African conference in Vodacom Super Rugby.
It has been written that the Sharks, in beating the Lions at Ellis Park this past weekend, showed that they are not as commanding away from home as they are at Growthpoint Kings Park. But that should surely be a given in a season where until the past two weeks home ground advantage was so important, and these days a win over the Lions in Johannesburg is not something you just accept as an expected event. You have to work for it.
Vodacom Bulls coach Frans Ludeke admits he will be again looking for reasons why his side dominated the possession stakes against the Highlanders and didn’t get the reward.
The Bulls had more than enough ball in their Vodacom Super Rugby game on Friday but defensive lapses and a lack of execution cost them as they went down 27-20 in Dunedin.
Vodacom Bulls coach Frans Ludeke will know on Wednesday if he could select Jurgen Visser, Flip van der Merwe and Akona Ndungane for this weekend’s Vodacom Super Rugby match against the Waratahs in Sydney.
After slipping to their sixth defeat in eight games in this year’s Vodacom Super Rugby season, even coach Naka Drotske had to admit that his team’s slim outside chances of staging a massive comeback is dead and buried and now only pride remains for the team to play for.
Just how will Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer go into any international this year without the boot of Frans Steyn?
The big midfielder underlined his importance with four massive penalties and a conversion for a total of 14 points as the Cell C Sharks returned to the top of the Vodocom Super Rugby table with a 25-12 win over the Lions at Ellis Park on Saturday.
Former Springbok coach Nick Mallett was impressed by the performance of Sharks centre S’bura Sithole against the Lions in Johannesburg on Saturday night.
Sithole was named man-of-the-match following the Sharks’ 25-12 victory which took them back to the top of the Super Rugby standings.
The Blues have called Hawke’s Bay Magpies and Maori All Blacks first five-eighths Ihaia West into their Super Rugby squad as replacement for the injured Baden Kerr who has been ruled out for the rest of the season.
After fracturing a bone at the base of his thumb in a pre-season match against the Hurricanes, 24-year-old Kerr then fractured two fingers playing rugby for his club side Karaka last month and was forced to have surgery, ruling him out of action for at least 12 weeks.
Legendary All Black Brad Thorn’s ageing body has broken down for a second time this season, a bicep injury ruling him out or the remainder of the Super Rugby competition.
It was revealed that the 39-year-old lock forward tore his bicep in the Highlanders’ 27-20 win over the Bulls in Dunedin at the weekend.
Nick Cummins is confident his team’s steely new attitude and willingness to work for each other will help them overcome a growing injury toll.
The Force can dare to dream of securing a maiden finals berth after Saturday night’s win over the Waratahs propelled them into fourth spot on the Super Rugby table.
However, their latest triumph came at a major cost, with scrumhalf Alby Mathewson (ankle) and wing Luke Morahan (hamstring) set to miss this weekend’s clash with the Melbourne Rebels at AAMI Park.
The men from Pretoria, the Vodacom Bulls, started strong and seemed in control of proceedings against the Highlanders. With lock Victor Matfield leading from the front, they were comfortably winning their lineouts and also won key scrum battles more often than not. (Photo of the man sorely missed on the left – Deon Stegmann)
Lions (6) 12 / 25 (6) Sharks (Final Score)
The Lions and Cell C Sharks did battle in Super Rugby at
Ellis Park, Johannesburg 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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Cheetahs (10) 31 / 52 (19) Crusaders (Final Score)
The Toyota Cheetahs and Crusaders did battle in Super Rugby at
Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein at 17:05 SA Time (15:05 GMT, 03:05 Sunday NZ 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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Force (13) 28 / 16 (9) Waratahs (Final Score)
The Western Force and Waratahs did battle in Super Rugby at
nib Stadium, Perth at 11:40 SA Time (17:40 Perth 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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Chiefs (19) 22 / 16 (6) Rebels (Final Score)
The Chiefs and Melbourne Rebels did battle in Super Rugby at
Waikato Stadium, Hamilton at 09:35 SA Time (19:35 NZ Time, 17:35 AEST, 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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Waratahs fullback Israel Folau has been ruled out of Saturday night’s match against the Force in Perth by the Australian Rugby Union, following further medical advice regarding his throat injury.
The decision was made by the Australian Rugby Union’s Chief Medical Officer Dr Warren McDonald, and was based on specialist medical advice.
Cheetahs lock Rynard ‘Ligtoring’ Landman has signed a three-year deal with Pro 12 side Newport Gwent Dragons.
Dragons’ Director of Rugby Lyn Jones was delighted to announce the signing which sees the 1.96m, 120 kg second row move to Wales.
Reds (10) 20 / 23 (20) Brumbies (Final Score)
The Reds and Brumbies 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 & CSN on TV in SA.
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Highlanders (13) 27 / 20 (13) Bulls (Final Score)
The Highlanders and Vodacom Bulls did battle in Super Rugby at
Forsyth Barr Stadium, Dunedin at 09:35 SA Time (07:35 GMT, 19:35 NZ 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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It is Round 9 of Super Rugby 2014 this weekend! We have 6 games in Round 9, with 2 games on Friday and 4 games on Saturday.
The Blues, Hurricanes & DHL Stormers 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.
The Cell C Sharks starting line-up remains unchanged for this Saturday’s Vodacom Super Rugby clash with the Lions from the team named by Director of Rugby Jake White for the Waratahs a fortnight ago.
This means that Odwa Ndungane will run out for his 100th Super Rugby cap.
Paul Jordaan is over his injury and returns to the match 23, replacing Heimar Williams on the bench in the only change White has made. Despite the physical nature of the battle against the Waratahs, the Cell C Sharks had the good fortune of being able to keep the squad intact.
The Vodacom Bulls were forced into a late change to their backline and bench on Thursday when Akona Ndungane pulled a hamstring during the team’s captains run in Dunedin ahead of their Vodacom Super Rugby match against the Highlanders in the Forsyth Barr Stadium on Friday.
Hurricanes coach Mark Hammett will step down from the Super Rugby side when his contract expires at the end of the season.
His decision to fall on his sword comes after four years in charge.
Tom Staniforth will make his Super Rugby debut at lock when the Brumbies head to Brisbane to turn the tables on the Reds on Friday.
The 19-year-old Australian Under-20 representative has been knocking on the door of Super Rugby for the last 18 months, having trained with the main squad since leaving Canberra Grammar in 2012.
Chiefs coach Dave Rennie made eight changes to his team to play the Rebels in a Super Rugby encounter in Hamilton on Saturday.
The changes to the starting line-up is headlined by the move of Gareth Anscombe from fullback to flyhalf.
Crusaders coach Todd Blackadder has named his team to play the Cheetahs in Bloemfontein with Kieran Read returning to the starting line up.
Blackadder has largely stuck with the same 23 players that beat the Lions 7-28 in Johannesburg last week.
The Waratahs will unleash try-scoring machine Israel Folau against the Western Force in their Super Rugby clash in Perth on Saturday following the fullback’s return from a throat injury.
Waratahs coach Michael Cheika faces a judicial hearing over his alleged sideline confrontation with a television cameraman in Durban.
Super Rugby’s governing body, SANZAR, on Thursday announced it completed an investigation into the incident which occurred during the Waratahs’ Super Rugby clash with the Sharks at Kings Park on 29 March.
Cheetahs coach Naka Drotské has named an unchanged 23-man squad for their Super Rugby clash against the Crusaders in Bloemfontein on Saturday.
There will be a 39-year-old facing off against a 36-year-old in Dunedin on Friday.
No, it is not in an old-crocks club game, but a high-charged Super Rugby encounter – when two of the most respected locks, both World Cup winners, go head-to-head.