South Africa’s leading players stand united in their objection to the absurd decision to withdraw all the contracted Springboks from the Currie Cup. [Rugby365]
Year: 2010
‘I am angry,’ sports minister Makhenkesi Stofile said on Tuesday. ‘I did not hear him make the comments, but I received the message that he said we are wholeheartedly behind this chap who killed the policeman, 100%. That is disgraceful. It doesn’t matter what the circumstances were. I can’t believe he said this. (more…)
“There’s little difference between winning and losing, except you feel better after winning.†Now you can read the wise words of Springbok coach Peter de Villiers, all assembled in one place. HERE
It turned out to be what many players and spectators said was the most perfect afternoon and night in the tournament’s 42 year history. 25′ degrees, clear skies and a gentle breeze… And that set the scene for some fantastic rugby. (more…)
1. Poor defence
“The first problem, in capital letters, is defence. We started a rush defence in 2004 and were leaders in world rugby. Other countries followed us. South Africa conceded four tries in just 25 minutes in a critical Test on Saturday.” (more…)
Friday 10 September 2010
19:10 Pumas v Sharks
Saturday 11 September 2010
15:00 Lions v Griquas
17:00 Western Province v Leopards
17:05 FS Cheetahs v The Bulls
Blue Bulls 40 – 34 Sharks
Blue Bulls – Tries: Juandre Kruger, Ruan Snyman, Jaco Engels, Wynand Olivier; Conversions: Jacques-Louis Potgieter (3), Zane Kirchner; Penalties: Potgieter (4).
The Sharks – Tries: Lwazi Mvovo, Stefan Terblanche, Alistair Hargreaves; Conversions: Patrick Lambie (2); Penalties: Lambie (5). (more…)
South Africa finished last in the Tri Nations, lost the Mandela Shield, lost the Freedom Cup, lost to Australia on the highveld for the first time in 47 years, conceded the most tries by any team in the history of the Tri Nations and dropped to 3rd in the IRB world rankings after another disastrous game in what has been a disgraceful Trinations series.
The response from the coaches – BLAME IT ON THE PLAYERS!! Peter de Villiers: “I think we showed character to come back. Our structures are in place and they can take us to the World Cup if executed properly. If we execute our plans perfectly, it will be very difficult to score against us. We needed to show more character on defence, like we did in Soweto and last week at Loftus.”
Springboks 39 (13)
Tries: Jaque Fourie, Gurthro Steenkamp, Jean de Villiers
Conversions: Morne Steyn (3)
Penalties: Morne Steyn (6)
Wallabies 41 (31)
Tries: Kurtley Beale, James O’Connor, Stephen Moore, Rocky Elsom, Drew Mitchell
Conversions: Matt Giteau (4), James O’Connor
Penalties: Matt Giteau, Kurtley Beale
MOTM: Gurthro Steenkamp
Match details
Date: Saturday 4 September 2010
Venue: Vodacom Park, Bloemfontein
Kick-off: 15:00 (14:00 GMT)
Referee: Wayne Barnes (Eng)
Assistant referees: N Owens (Wal), S McDowell (Ire)
TMO: Johann Meuwesen (South Africa)
Assessor: Steve Hilditch (Ireland)
South Africa
Replacements:
16 Chiliboy Ralepelle | 17 CJ van der Linde | 18 Flip van der Merwe | 19 Ryan Kankowski | 20 Ricky Januarie | 21 Juan de Jongh | 22 Gio Aplon
15 Francois Steyn
11 Bryan Habana | 14 JP Pietersen
12 Jean de Villiers | 13 Jaque Fourie
9 Francois Hougaard | 10 Morne Steyn
6 Schalk Burger | 8 Pierre Spies | 7 Juan Smith
4 Danie Rossouw | 5 Victor Matfield
1 Gurthro Steenkamp | 2 John Smit | 3 Jannie du Plessis
3 Salesi Ma’afu | 2 Stephen Moore | 1 Benn Robinson
4 Mark Chisholm | 5 Nathan Sharpe
6 Rocky Elsom | 8 Ben McCalman | 7 David Pocock
9 Will Genia | 10 Quade Cooper
12 Matt Giteau | 13 Adam Ashley-Cooper
11 Drew Mitchell | 14 James O’Connor
15 Kurtley Beale
Replacements
16 Saia Fainga’a | 17 James Slipper | 18 Dean Mumm | 19 Richard Brown | 20 Luke Burgess | 21 Berrick Barnes | 22 Anthony Fainga’a
Australia
ÂMuch has been written about South Africa’s fall from grace in recent weeks. They have gone from a team that could do no wrong to a team that just can’t get it right. In particular, the South African media is falling over itself about the sudden plummet. While one can certainly see a big difference between last years Tri-ÂNations and this year’s, the suggestion that the difference is only the law application is wrong minded.
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