Rugby

World Rugby has announced the match official appointments for the June/July Test window, with Nika Amashukeli, Angus Gardner and Matthew Carley named as referees for the Springboks’ three Tests against Wales, while South African officials Jaco Peyper, AJ Jacobs, Marius Jonker and Marius van der Westhuizen also received appointments.Amashukeli from Georgia will referee the Castle Lager Incoming Series opener in Pretoria on 2 July, which will be his first Test outside of Europe, while Gardner … [Read more...] about Match officials named for mid-year Test window

The pressure will rise significantly for the four South African teams in the Vodacom United Rugby Championship this weekend as they face opponents from the Northern Hemisphere in their penultimate round of home matches, where victories will be invaluable with an eye on playoff places.In other developments in the cross-hemisphere showpiece, the tournament organisers announced earlier on Thursday that the Grand Final will be hosted at the home venue of the highest-ranked team where the first … [Read more...] about Home ground key for SA sides in Vodacom URC

The FNB UFH Blues beat FNB CPUT 28-27 in the FNB Varsity Shield final in Alice on Thursday.It’s been an emotional rollercoaster of a season for the Blues. Last month, the players and coaches were rocked by the death of their director of rugby, Elliot Fana. And yet, they managed to pick themselves up and finish the league phase at the top of the standings. The players appeared nervous in the lead-up to the final, yet managed to maintain their composure against a fiercely competitive FNB CPUT … [Read more...] about Unbeaten Fort Hare claim first FNB Varsity Shield title

All you need to know ahead of Monday’s decider at the Danie Craven Stadium.MATCH TRIVIA – This will be the 14th FNB Varsity Cup final. – This will be the eighth FNB Varsity Cup final at the Danie Craven Stadium. All other FNB Varsity Cup venues combined have only hosted six (four at Tuks Stadium, one at Fanie du Toit Sports Grounds and one at Shimla Park). – Either FNB Maties or FNB UP-Tuks have played in 11 of the previous 13 FNB Varsity Cup finals. There … [Read more...] about 2022 FNB Varsity Cup final trivia

Centre Suleiman Hartzenberg scored two late tries as the FNB UCT Ikeys claimed a thrilling 44-27 victory over arch-rivals FNB Maties in the 500th FNB Varsity Cup match.The big Cape derby – as well the historic occasion – certainly lived up to the hype. In spite of cold and windy conditions on the Green Mil, both sides played the game at a lively tempo and dotted down for a point-of-origin try within the first 10 minutes. From there, the FNB Maties forwards began to impose themselves at the … [Read more...] about MATCHDAY WRAP: Ikey Tigers stun Maties in milestone match

All you need to know ahead of Monday’s FNB Varsity Cup semi-final in Cape Town (16:30 kick-off).MATCH TRIVIA – Despite FNB Maties and FNB UCT playing in a combined 18 FNB Varsity Cup semi-finals, this will be only the second time that they face each other in an FNB Varsity Cup semi-final. – FNB UCT won the only previous FNB Varsity Cup semi-final between these two sides, a 20-8 victory at this venue in 2014. – FNB UCT will be playing in their eighth FNB Varsity Cup … [Read more...] about Semi-final trivia: FNB UCT Ikeys vs FNB Maties

FNB Maties and FNB UP-Tuks won their respective semi-finals on Monday to advance to the FNB Varsity Cup final.FNB Maties secured their spot after thrashing rivals FNB UCT Ikeys in Cape Town. Reigning champions FNB UP-Tuks showed their class when they downed log-leaders FNB UFS Shimlas in Bloemfontein. The upshot is that FNB Maties – who finished the regular season at third in the standings – will host FNB UP-Tuks in the decider at the Danie Craven Stadium on Monday, 25 April. Determined defence … [Read more...] about Maties, Tuks force upsets to progress to decider

VarsityCup.co.za chats to the respective coaches about their teams’ prospects of qualifying for the FNB Varsity Cup playoffs.FNB UFS SHIMLAS Log position: 1st Remaining fixtures: FNB UP-Tuks (home), FNB Madibaz (away) What they need to do: FNB UFS Shimlas are well placed to qualify for the semi-finals, given that one of their last two fixtures is against the battling FNB Madibaz, who have won one match to date. If they beat FNB UP-Tuks at home – and then go on to down the FNB Madibaz in Gqeberha … [Read more...] about ROAD TO PLAYOFFS: What FNB Varsity Cup teams need to qualify

Six tries against France and a victory over New Zealand in their last two matches at the HSBC Canada Sevens in Vancouver, as well as an improved finish than in Singapore a week before, pointed to a positive ending for the Blitzboks at the end of their trip to Asia and North America, but the overall performances were below par and can’t be sugar coated.That was the frank assessment of Springbok Sevens coach, Neil Powell, at the completion of the fifth and sixth legs of the HSBC World Rugby Sevens … [Read more...] about Positive finish in Vancouver only eases some pain for Powell

The Springbok Sevens started the defence of their HSBC Canada Sevens title on a strong note by beating Spain, Canada and Australia to top Pool C on the first day at BC Place in Vancouver, and will face Samoa in the Cup quarter-finals on Sunday evening (20h02 SA time).The Blitzboks started fairly slowly against Spain to win by 31-12 after conceding the first try of the match, but a strong second half carried them through. They then conceded two quick tries against Canada before hitting back to … [Read more...] about Blitzboks off to winning start in Canada

The Toyota Cheetahs moved to within a point of Carling Currie Cup log leaders the Vodacom Bulls as they were made to work hard for victory over DHL Western Province on Friday, while Windhoek Draught Griquas maintained their push for a playoff spot thanks to a last gasp win over the Sigma Lions on Thursday.The final match scheduled for the weekend, between the Cell C Sharks and the Vodacom Bulls in Durban on Saturday afternoon, was cancelled, with the result declared a draw and both teams … [Read more...] about Carling Currie Cup Bulletin #16

The Springbok Sevens will start the HSBC Canada Sevens as the most successful team at BC Place in Vancouver, having played the most Cup finals of any of the 16 teams at the sixth tournament of this year’s HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series.They finished second in 2016 and 2017 before winning their maiden Cup title at this event in 2019, before claiming gold for the second time in 2021, and come into the tournament as defending champions and, for good measure, at the top of the World Series … [Read more...] about Discipline at the core of Blitzboks’ rebound plans

Springbok Women’s Sevens coach Paul Delport has named a group of 14 players as the team move into the final preparation phase for the Rugby Africa Women’s Sevens Cup, to be played in Tunisia at the end of the month.Delport will name the final squad of 12 players for the tournament closer to their North African departure on 26 April, with the tournament to be played at Jammel in Tunisia on 29-30 April. The coach called on an experienced core of players to lead the charge towards victory and a … [Read more...] about Delport names training squad for Rugby Africa Sevens Cup

The Toyota Cheetahs will be looking to remain unbeaten in a tricky Carling Currie Cup match in Cape Town against the DHL Western Province, and the Sigma Lions will be desperate to break their losing streak in the competition against a confident Windhoek Draught Griquas in Johannesburg.The match in Johannesburg, originally scheduled to take place at Emirates Airline Park on Friday, has been rescheduled and will now kick off at 15h00 at Wits Rugby Stadium on Thursday, while the encounter in Cape … [Read more...] about Carling Currie Cup Bulletin #15

A 14-hour flight between two continents normally means a good meal, a good movie and a good sleep for regular international travellers, but this time around, the Springbok Sevens squad did not do the usual things when they travelled from Singapore to Vancouver.But then, it was not normal circumstances on a chartered flight that transported the HSBC World Rugby Sevens Series participants between the fifth and sixth stops of the global tour, as the Blitzboks boarded the airplane with three … [Read more...] about Reflection was a proper reality check for Blitzboks