Currie Cup latest (Wed)
28 Jul 2010
Keo.co.za brings you the news from the Currie Cup.
Hougaard starts at 9
Francois Hougaard will return to his preferred position of scrumhalf for the Bulls’ match against the Lions.
Hougaard played the majority of the Super 14 on the wing, and was picked for the Tri-Nations because of his ability to cover two positions. Now that the Boks have a three-week break before their next Test, coach Peter de Villiers has released Hougaard to rejoin the Bulls.
Frans Ludeke has made several changes, with Dewald Potgieter coming in for the injured Deon Stegmann and Flip van der Merwe replacing Wilhelm Steenkamp at lock. Jaco Engels comes in for injured loosehead Dean Greyling.
Blue Bulls – Jaco van der Westhuyzen, Gerhard van den Heever, Stephan Dippenaar, Stefan Watermeyer, John Mametsa, Jacques-Louis Potgieter, Francois Hougaard, Gerrit-Jan van Velze, Dewald Potgieter, Derick Kun, Juandre Kruger, Flip van der Merwe, Werner Kruger, Gary Botha (c.), Jaco Engels.
Subs: Chiliboy Ralepelle, Bees Roux, Fudge Mabeta, CJ Stander, Ruan Snyman, Francois Brummer, Hayden Groepes.
Player boosts for Sharks
In addition to three of their returning Springboks, flank Jean Deysel and flyhalf Steve Meyer are set to feature against the Cheetahs on Saturday.
Meyer, who injured his ankle at training last week, will be available and Deysel is expected to make his first Currie Cup appearance in Bloemfontein this weekend.
Boks Ruan Pienaar, Beast Mtawarira and Ryan Kankowski are all available for selection while Willem Alberts will also strengthen the loose forward ranks after emerging injury free in his impressive return against the Pumas last Friday.
Bismarck du Plessis could feature this week, or the next, and will be subject to a late fitness test. Du Plessis missed the Boks first seven Tests of 2010 through a neck injury.
The Sharks will name their match 22 later this week.
62 Comments
28 Jul 2010, 07:59 am
Co nomments Dragons!
28 Jul 2010, 08:09 am
whats the latest on Bissy?
I hear he is training again.
28 Jul 2010, 08:29 am
Ok so the sharks now have Kanko, Alberts, Deysel, Daniel, Botes. Nice depth there. Curious to see who they pick???
They better choose wisely, the Cheetahs are on a roll…(although I suspect that the Durban boys will have too much for the Bloem boys…)
28 Jul 2010, 08:40 am
@grant10(grant10)-2:
He’ll be back with the Sharks in two weeks, probably from the bench if at all…
28 Jul 2010, 08:41 am
@money_man(money_man)-4: thanks
will be great to have him back in the mix
28 Jul 2010, 08:42 am
@stormersboy(stormersboy)-3: Not so sure if sharks will win in Bloem…..
28 Jul 2010, 08:49 am
@grant10(grant10)-6: they should Grant, if they don’t then they’re really ****.
28 Jul 2010, 08:50 am
@grant10(grant10)-6: True. The Sharks have a great squad though, particularly when you look at Ruan back at 10, JPP at 14, The front 5, ….
This will be the match of the weekend for sure!
28 Jul 2010, 08:53 am
@Transformation(Transformation)-7: Bloem is a tough son of a gun my man….
on paper maybe….but on frozen bloem grass??
And cheetahs tails up….
I will say cheetahs by 8
28 Jul 2010, 08:55 am
@stormersboy(stormersboy)-8: ruan bak at 10???
Sharks 1st mistake.
Ruan will be so happy to get on that plane to Ulster…..poor bugger….messed about as bad as F Steyn…..and we know where that got us….
crazy….
work to do
outta here
28 Jul 2010, 08:58 am
Did they ever disclose the reasons for Steven Meyer’s sudden retirement from all rugby “for personal reasons”, and then his sudden return to rugby nine or so months later?
Was he busy drying out?
28 Jul 2010, 09:01 am
@Transformation(Transformation)-7:
Dumb statment.
The Cheetahs are always strong at home in the CC. Especially in opening games. Also, have you forgotten who was in the finals of last years comp?
That being said, the Sharks suddenly have a great looking squad again. Circus by the sea indeed…
Sharks to sneak it by less than 7.
28 Jul 2010, 09:03 am
@stormersboy(stormersboy)-8:
Plum wont play Ruan at 10. He’s never been a fan of playing him there and for good reason. Ruan always looks way more comfortable in his preferred no. 9 jersey.
28 Jul 2010, 09:07 am
@grant10(grant10)-10:
Bissie has been taking part in contact sessions this week, he could be back in the next week or 2. Good news.
28 Jul 2010, 09:09 am
@stormersboy(stormersboy)-3: Check the recent stats of Cheetahs vs Sharks games. The guppies are our ******!
28 Jul 2010, 09:09 am
@grant10(grant10)-9:
@John Galt(John Galt)-12: same sharks that snotklapped the bulls? The cheetahs only scraped past the bulls mate. Did you okes watch any of the two matches?
28 Jul 2010, 09:09 am
******, I said ******!!
28 Jul 2010, 09:10 am
which is a small ****** type creature that lives in trees….hmmm
28 Jul 2010, 09:10 am
@WP Till I Die(WP-Forever)-11: narcoticts, even though he’ll tell you it was a personal matter between him & his girl
28 Jul 2010, 09:11 am
no reference to wildlife allowed unless it is predators …
28 Jul 2010, 09:15 am
@Transformation(Transformation)-19:
The way it was handled really does him an injustice, I mean imagine if he was just going through depression? Now everyone assumes it was banned substances.
28 Jul 2010, 09:21 am
@John Galt(John Galt)-13: Fair point.
@scar(scar)-17: Good luck to your team. As an impartial observer this time I’m looking for a thrilling contest along the lines of the Cheetahs game last weekend.
@Transformation(Transformation)-16: I tend to agree with you there. The Sharks beat the Bulls easily and the Cheetahs only just made it. Stands to reason the Sharks must be favoured this weekend, particularly with the returning Springboks.
28 Jul 2010, 09:35 am
@stormersboy(stormersboy)-22: Stupid comments. The Sharks played the Bulls at home, and the Cheetahs played away at Loftus. That makes the Cheetahs win better.
Sharks won something like 2 games against the Cheetahs in the last 6 years (in all comps). That’s with full strength teams.
@Transformation(Transformation)-19: Doesn’t sound like you watched either of the games if you don’t even know where they played.
Besides, in the S14 the teams ended on 9 and 10. That makes them just about equally good/poor.
28 Jul 2010, 09:48 am
Glad to hear Bismark is on his way back.Excellent news.
I would slot him back in Bok fold immediately(like Oz have Moore,Nz did Nonu etc) along with JPP & Juan Smith.
Sharks XV
1.Beast
2.Bismark
3.Jannie
4.Sykes
5.Hargreaves
6.Alberts
7.Deysel
8.Kankowski
9.Pienaar
10.Pretorius
11.Mapoe
12.Lambie
13.Jacobs
14.Mvovo
15.Ndungane
Would like to see this XV one of these days.
28 Jul 2010, 10:00 am
Transformation – 16
Have you ever heard of homefield advantage? There is at least 7 point advantage for Cheetahs in playing at Bloem. Watch after CC and check that a team play nearly always better against opposition at home than away!!!!
28 Jul 2010, 10:00 am
@Bouts(Bouts)-23: Relax mate, just speculating. I predict a win for the Sharks, not becuase i like one team above the other, just because i favour the strength of the Sharks at the moment, with the returning Boks. If the Cheetahs win all credit to them.
If you think it’s stupid, fine, whatever.
28 Jul 2010, 10:03 am
@Jonck(Jonck)-25: Home field advantage is not nearly as great in the CC as it is in say the Super 14. Much bigger crowds, touring teams etc.
Yes, the Cheetahs have a bigger chance of beating the Sharks in Bloem, I fully agree with that. I suspect that the Sharks are more than 7 points better than the Cheetahs, although they do play above themselves in Bloem.
28 Jul 2010, 10:03 am
@Bouts(Bouts)-23:
..and yet The Sharks are still a more successful team in Super 14′s.
28 Jul 2010, 10:29 am
@mshiniwami(mshiniwami)-24: Hopefully he can get a few CC games in before the next 3N match. If he’s fit and strong enough he can add much needed mongrel to the team, but he does have to watch his penalty count.
The problem is then who do you drop? Smit? Not Likely. Chilli? Also not likely IMO. Quite a conundrum. JS back to prop??
28 Jul 2010, 10:30 am
@WP Till I Die(WP-Forever)-11: He probably suffered from the same “blood diseases” that Spies suffered from and was never the same player again, its called “roidslytes”
28 Jul 2010, 10:43 am
@WP Till I Die(WP-Forever)-21: i know, well i guess we’ll never know.
@Bouts(Bouts)-23: wow! At what point did you gather that i don’t know where the games were played? Did i imply it in any of my posts?
28 Jul 2010, 10:48 am
@Jonck(Jonck)-25: @Jonck(Jonck)-25: the sharks are getting back their bokke & alberts too, really now! Do you sharks fans have such low exectations of your team or are kak bang of the cheetahs
hahahaha
28 Jul 2010, 11:42 am
The same hereditary disease Spies’ father died from? :/ … Its clotting on the lungs
28 Jul 2010, 11:56 am
@WP Till I Die(WP-Forever)-11:
Ready to make his mark:
Sharksworld chats to Steve
Meyer
Posted in: Currie Cup, Original Content,
Sharks by robdylan
After something of a false start to his
Sharks comeback earlier this year,
flyhalf Steve Meyer is very much
committed to making a huge impact
on this year ’s Currie Cup campaign for
the Sharks. Sharksworld caught up with
him for a quick chat.
With plenty of rumours doing the
rounds regarding Meyer ’s unexpected
and sudden “retirement” from the
game, on the eve of this year’s Super
14, we’ve been pretty keen to chat to
the lad and get his side of the story. It’s
fair to say that even though we might
not have started any of the rumours
ourselves, we ’ve certainly played our
part in spreading them and it was in
the interests of putting these to bed
and setting the record straight that we
were most keen to chat to Steve.
Obviously, our discussion was largely
dominated by these issues.
“I’m aware of all the rumours, but the
reality of the situation is that I had
some very personal reasons for
needing to take some time away from
the game, ” says Meyer. “I’m really not
prepared to go into what those reasons
were – it was something that came up
in my personal life that I had to deal
with and I ’ve done so now.” Needing
to do diligence to at least one of the
more plausible explanations, I was
about to ask Steve about the drugs
angle. He beat me to it, though, by
saying that “it definitely has nothing to
do with drugs.”
Now I guess you can
argue that he was going to say that
anyway, but I for one believe he is
sincere about that, so you ’ll need to
take my word for it!
“I realise that I let a lot of people down
and I’m sorry about that,” Meyer
continues. “You need to understand
that I’m a huge Sharks fan too and have
been all my life. Having to watch the
Super 14 from the sidelines was very
difficult indeed because I so longed to
be out there on the field, giving my all
for the team that I love. I know that the
timing of what happened was bad and
that it hurt the team, but i’s in the past
now and I just want to prove how
committed I am to the Sharks by giving
it a proper go on the field. Just
desperate to get out and do that. ”
Meyer reveals that he has received a
number of lucrative offers to return to
France in the meantime, but has turned
those down in order to make things
right with the Sharks.
Another angle that has surfaced is that
the senior players in the Sharks squad
may have been blocking his return to
the team. Steve refutes this, saying
that “the senior guys like Jacques
Botes and Stefan Terblanche have
been nothing but understanding and
welcoming. They ’ve been around for a
while and they understand how
sometimes these things can come up
that completely take your focus away
from the game and that you just need
to get through them. My return hasn ’t
caused any friction in the team that I’m
aware of – I love this team and if I
thought that my being there was in
any way harmful to the spirit, I would
walk away. There ’s nothing like that,
though. We’re all just training hard and
looking forward to the game on Friday
night. ”
We spoke a little about Steve’s time in
France and about the circumstances
surrounding his first exit from the
Sharks, back in early 2006. Steve was
part of the infamous “alternate squad”
that lost to Griquas in the Currie Cup in
2005; most of those players were
released by the Sharks shortly
afterwards. “It was a coach’s call at hte
end of the day,” Steve says, “and
although I didn’t agree with it, I could
understand his thinking. I was sitting
around not getting picked, so going to
France seemed a good thing to do. It
really was a great experience which
helped me as a player – playing in the
Heineken Cup (even getting man of
the match once or twice) – and just
getting that game-time under my belt
was invaluable. The Sharks always said
to me that I should go and make the
best of the opportunity and that if I
developed well, they would possibly
look at getting me back one day; that ’s
exactly what happened and I’m ready
to seriously make my mark here now.
“It’s a bit backwards, if you think about
it. ”
Meyer continues. “Usually players
make their name in South Africa and
then go to France at the end of their
career. For me, it happened the other
way round !” Steve also confirmed that
he’s not currently carrying any injuries
or other concerns and that “I just need
match fitness now, because I haven’t
played at all in a few months”.
I’d like to thank Steve for taking this
opportunity to talk to us and set the
record straight. We all have personal
matters that sometimes make it
difficult to do our jobs and I don ’t think
it’s reasonable for us, as fans, to expect
that anyone should blurt the details of
theirs all over the media. Steve realises
that the fans are sceptical, but is
committed to proving himself to the
faithful, because, he says, “they are the
reason we play the game, after all.
Without fans, we ’d have no reason to
exist”.
From my side, I’m quite happy
to let this matter rest now and throw
our weight behind Steve and the rest
of the Sharks squad as they go out to
bring the Currie Cup back to Durban. I
hope you ’ll all feel the same way.
28 Jul 2010, 12:06 pm
Guys – Lets be real now. This is the year that the Sharks give the Cheetahs a real beating – even in Bloem. That Sharks’ line-up is embarassingly strong with so much depth at looseforward, front rank and scrumhalf and Lambie now looks to give them that extra depth at fullback/centre. Wings looking good too and even getting better with Mapoe on the way to add to JP, Mvovo, Ndungane and others.
No – sorry Cheetahs, this year you’re in for a hiding, only Juan stands in the way of a 20+ point win for the Sharks.
28 Jul 2010, 14:39 pm
LOL! Yeah Yank. I’m sure they will. LOL!
@Transformation(Transformation)-31: *sigh* Well… you then obviously know nothing about the concept of home-ground advantage.
@Great White Shark(Predawn)-28: Really? How many time did the Sharks win a Super series in their 16 attempts?
28 Jul 2010, 15:00 pm
@Bouts(Bouts)-36: okay bouts…nevermind
28 Jul 2010, 15:06 pm
@Bouts(Bouts)-36:
How did the home ground advantage work against Province, I forget now???
28 Jul 2010, 15:13 pm
I’m a WP man, but hell I’m excited about the Bulls lock combo for this coming weekend – for the future of Bok rugby.
28 Jul 2010, 16:08 pm
rugby365.com’s team of the week:
15 – Riaan Viljoen (Griquas):
If the Bok coaches get really desperate (they may be desperate already), Viljoen showed he would not let the team down. He is playing with an energy that is lacking in the national squad at present.
Bubbling under: Jaco Taute (Lions)
14 – Gerhard van der Heever (Blue Bulls):
He is everything that you expect of a wing. But then again, he showed his class in the Super 14 already.
Bubbling under: Deon Scholtz (Leopards)
13 – Tim Whitehead (Western Province):
This young man will be around for a while and if looked after carefully could grace the Green & Gold of the national team.
Bubbling under: Stephan Dippenaar (Blue Bulls)
12 – Paul Bosch (Western Province):
It may only be the Currie Cup, and the opposition were not of the highest quality either, but the indications are that a new breed of world-class midfielders are being groomed in the Currie Cup at present.
Bubbling under: Stefan Watermeyer (Blue Bulls)
11 – Dumisane Matyeshana (Leopards):
You expect wings to have real pace, skill and an eye for an opportunity. He ticked all those boxes.
Bubbling under: Bjorn Basson (Griquas)
10 – Naas Olivier (Griquas):
There are those who doubt his ability to step outside the Currie Cup arena. However, at this level he dictates games with ease and is a class act.
Bubbling under: Sias Ebersohn (Free State Cheetahs)
9 – Sarel Pretorius (Griquas):
The life and soul of a very entertaining Griquas team.
Bubbling under: Michael Bondesio (Leopards)
8 – Duane Vermeulen (Western Province):
Hard and uncompromising. The Springboks can do with some of his energy.
Bubbling under: Keegan Daniel (Sharks)
7 – Juan Smith (Free State Cheetahs):
If his name is not read out the next time a Bok team is announced, it will be an injustice and a disgrace.
Bubbling under: Wilhelm Koch (Leopards)
6 – Deon Stegmann (Blue Bulls):
You sometimes don’t know how valuable a player is until he is no longer there. His injury was a huge blow to the Bulls.
Bubbling under: Pieter Louw (Western Province)
5 – Fudge Mabeta (Blue Bulls):
He may be young and very inexperienced, but if he continues to improve as he has done this year there is a bright future ahead.
Bubbling under: Barend Pieterse (Free State Cheetahs)
4 – Steven Sykes (Sharks):
Trusty and dependable. A real workhorse in a very young Sharks pack.
Bubbling under: Frikkie Spies (Griquas)
3 – Jacobie Adriaanse (Griquas):
What a delight to watch an unheralded player step to the fore and then show the humility he did when winning an award.
Bubbling under: Brok Harris (Western Province)
2 – Deon Fourie (Western Province):
He doesn’t get many starting opportunities, but he certainly took his chance at the weekend.
Bubbling under: Adriaan Strauss (Free State Cheetahs)
1 – Coenie Oosthuizen (Free State Cheetahs):
Another young man that will be around for many years, and play at a much higher level, if he maintains this kind of form.
Bubbling under: Dean Greyling (Blue Bulls)
28 Jul 2010, 18:51 pm
@stormersboy(stormersboy)-40: No matter what the idiot who chose the rugby365 CC team of the week says, it will be a disgrace if Juan Smith is in fact picked to start in the Bok team right now. He will be exposed as being not ready yet as he is by own admission not fit and any unbiased fan can see that he is not taking full contact in the carry as of yet. So how can he play? Here is the poser- is Juan gonna go for the money like the other fatcats or remain true to form until now by putting the team first and walking away until he is fully fit. I hope I haven’t been off in my judgement of the man’s ethics.
28 Jul 2010, 19:09 pm
@stormersboy(stormersboy)-29: JS back to prop??
Why o why do we have this fixation with accomodating an out of shape, out of form plod?
It sincerely boggles my mind? Absolutely nothing more than sentimentality.
Hell it really confuses me….
28 Jul 2010, 19:25 pm
@grant10(grant10)-42:
Actually, JS was always destined to move to loosehead. Now with his experience at tighthead he’d make a good bench backup.
28 Jul 2010, 19:45 pm
@David(David)-43: Maybe he could be an option as Player 23!
28 Jul 2010, 19:48 pm
@David(David)-43: @catleya(catleya)-44: Currently he just has no right to be in the match day 22….
we are far too sentimental….far too accomodating.
Far too stupid!
28 Jul 2010, 19:52 pm
@catleya(catleya)-44:
It depends on whether the money’s right.
28 Jul 2010, 20:00 pm
@David(David)-46: You know then!
28 Jul 2010, 20:01 pm
@grant10(grant10)-45:
Look, I agree that JS is out of sorts and needs to decide on his future. I have the feeling that after his 100th match he’ll call it a day. As I mentioned in my previous post, he could add value to the squad, but I doubt whether he’d step down as captain and still continue.
28 Jul 2010, 20:05 pm
@David(David)-48: ja
i also think the end of the tri nations will be the end of smit….
cant see him lasting 14 months. And with Bissy training again….
But he mustnt be in match squad as reserve, etc….it always ends in tears….there must be a new captain who gets on with the job….not in smits shadow….
My 2 c worth
28 Jul 2010, 20:06 pm
Catleya….what position is dewalt playing for bulls sat?
7 ?
28 Jul 2010, 20:07 pm
@catleya(catleya)-47:
My lips are sealed.
Just got back from the airport after getting my wife on the plane for a couple of weeks in the UK. I’ve spent the last 4 days traipsing around various malls whilst she looks for clothes. I’m F…ing exhausted and now quietly getting pissed. So guys, please excuse any inane posts.
28 Jul 2010, 20:09 pm
Interesting stat: as much as we Sharkies are the Cheetahs’s bunnies, we’ve beaten the Bulls 9 times in our last 11 CC matches. Insane stat.
28 Jul 2010, 20:10 pm
@David(David)-51: enjoy the quiet time….
28 Jul 2010, 20:12 pm
@grant10(grant10)-53:
I will, and probably get some work done.
28 Jul 2010, 20:14 pm
@King Shaka(zulu shark)-52: moer then bulletjies…..
just let us sort you fellows out…..you owe us 1 after snaking our home final super 14 chances
28 Jul 2010, 20:15 pm
@David(David)-54: was the blondes Federal Congress the weekend…..hardly saw her….
bloody bliss….made me hanker for the simplicitys of being a free man…..
28 Jul 2010, 20:18 pm
@grant10(grant10)-56:
I think it’s the freedom of not feeling guilty for being who we are for a while.
28 Jul 2010, 20:26 pm
@David(David)-57: amen to that Bro
28 Jul 2010, 20:47 pm
@grant10(grant10)-58:
Cheers, I need to get some sleep.
28 Jul 2010, 20:56 pm
@David(David)-59: cheers dave
29 Jul 2010, 06:20 am
Francois Hougaard should be playing 9 for the Boks with Ruan Pienaar at 10.
Out with the old and in with the new.
29 Jul 2010, 06:22 am
@David(David)-51:
You mean apart from your usual inane posts?
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