There have been mixed reactions following the confirmation of the Kings’ admission to Super Rugby for 2013. The Eastern Cape franchise has been given a free ride into the tournament, despite Saru not being sure of how they will be accommodated along with the country’s five other teams: the Bulls, Sharks, Stormers, Cheetahs and Lions. While Saru’s proposal of entering six franchises next year will be formally discussed with Sanzar in the near future (despite CEO Greg Peters stating it will be unlikely), a final decision on how all six franchises will be managed will only be made at the union’s annual general meeting in March.

So the only certainty at this stage is that the Kings are the only South African franchise that is guaranteed to play Super Rugby next season. With that, the question arises: Will they be competitive?

The recent track record of promoted franchises isn’t a positive one. Australia’s Western Force (2006) and the Melbourne Rebels (2011) both finished bottom of the table in their debut campaigns. The Cheetahs and Lions have also struggled to finish in the top half of the log since the separation of the Cats six years ago. The EP Kings’ 43-12 loss to Boland in last year’s Currie Cup First Division final also increased debate about their ability to perform at higher levels, as the union will form the greater part of the final Southern Kings squad.

However, head coach Solomons believes the Southern Kings are on track to do well next year.

‘We were delighted with the news that we will play Super Rugby in 2013. It’s a promise that started back in June 2010, when I first joined the union,’ Solomons told keo.co.za.

‘The key thing is that we have our structures in place and we have a specific recruitment policy that we’ll follow. There are players in our region [EP, SWD and Border] who we are observing this year – all those players are getting opportunities during our warm-up games against the other five South African franchises. Thereafter, we’ll analyse who will be able to make the step up. There also plenty of South Africans abroad, especially in Europe. Most of those guys left because they couldn’t get Super Rugby contracts, but now we can offer them that opportunity. There are also players in South Africa who will be free agents at the end of the season, so we’ll have a look at them too.

‘Yes, the Force and Rebels struggled,’ Solomons continued, ‘but that’s because Australia doesn’t have the player base for five franchises as their league and Aussie rules codes are also popular. In South Africa, we don’t have that problem. We have the player base for six franchises.’

Solomons added that the current criticism of the Southern Kings is premature.

‘Yes, last year’s First Division final was a disappointing result. At the time, we never complained and congratulated Boland. But the truth is, we had nine first-choice players out injured – including four of our leaders. Luke Watson, Rory Duncan, Darron Nell, Marcello Sampson, Boetie Britz, De Wet Barry, Paul Perez, Siyanda Grey and Wayne Stevens all missed the game. Four players who started in our tight five struggled with niggles while SP Marais wasn’t 100% fit.

‘People who are criticising us because of that result need to look at our progress in a different perspective. You have to look at the whole picture. When [president] Cheeky Watson took over in 2008, EP rugby was in a disastrous state and he did a fantastic job in restoring some structure. Since I took over in 2010, we’ve played 37 games and won 30. That’s a winning average of 81%. Those matches were played in four tournaments – and we won two of them [the 2010 Currie Cup First Division and Nations Cup, where they beat Portugal and World Cup participants Georgia and Romania]. You can’t even count the Vodacom Cup, as we were deducted points when we would’ve qualified for the play-offs. We’ve come along way and we will be ready in 2013.’

Another topic of concern is whether transformation will be a priority. The EP region is known for it’s raw black talent, but what focus will be put on the development of black players during this important stage of Super Rugby preparation?

‘When it comes to Super Rugby participation, we have to work from the top down because the Eastern Cape hasn’t played Super Rugby in the professional era. Transformation is a priority, and we will focus on it from the bottom up,’ said Solomons. ‘The union has developed many black players over the years, but we’ve lost them to the other Super Rugby franchises. We are doing the best we can to bring those players back home, like Tiger Mangweni, Mzwandile Stick, Jongi Nokwe and Mpho Mbiyozo.

‘But in the process, we launched our academy last year and plan to produce our own players. We are already contracting juniors for 2012, and five of them are players of colour. This will be a process and we have to be patient.’

By Gareth Duncan

The Southern Kings have already played two of their five warm-up games against the other Super Rugby franchises. A SWD-Border dominated team lost 33-20 to the Cheetahs in East London while the Bulls picked up a 16-12 win in Port Elizabeth. The Kings will now meet the Stormers in Port Elizabeth on Saturday, which head coach Solomons believes will be one of two tough warm-up fixtures his team will face over the next fornight.

‘The Stormers will field a strong team this weekend, with most of their first-choice players starting. It will be the ideal test for our players,’ Solomons told keo.co.za. ‘Then we have the Sharks next weekend, who are also expected to play their strongest side. We then face the Lions after the Sharks game, but it looks like they’ll play a weakened team.

‘These five games are very important as we prepare a final squad for Super Rugby next season. We’re giving all the players in the region [EP, SWD and Border] some game time so they have an opportunity to make an impression. So far, I’m satisfied with the results. Our SWD-Border side had a good start against the Cheetahs, but in the end they had too much firepower. We had a poor start against the Bulls, and gave away too many penalties in the first 15 minutes and found ourselves 13-0 behind. But we played well after that.’

The Kings currently have former Bulls scrumhalf Dustin Jinka and former Lions and Griquas flyhalf Earl Rose on a month-long trial. They’ll feature on the bench against the Stormers this weekend.

‘It’s a tough situation for Earl. He’s not 100% fit because he hasn’t played rugby in a long time [since the end of the 2011 Currie Cup]. We see potential in both players and they’ll get their chances on the field. Their trials end on 17 February, so we’ll decide what happens when that day comes.

‘We’re also giving some of our young players an opportunity against the Stormers. Flyhalf Shane Gates and lock Reynier Bernado come out of our junior structures.’

Southern Kings to play Stormers – 15 Tiger Mangweni, 14 Norman Nelson, 13 Jaco Bekker, 12 Wayne Stevens, 11 Marcello Sampson, 10 Shane Gates, 9 Falie Oelschig, 8 Luke Watson, 7 Mpho Mbiyozo, 6 Jacques Engelbrecht, 5 David Bulbring, 4 Darron Nell, 3 Clint Newland, 2 Hannes Franklin, 1 Jaco Engels.
Subs: 16 Bobby Dyer, 17 Zane Killian, 18 Andre Schlechter, 19 Wayne van Heerden, 20 Reynier Bernardo, 21 Boetie Britz, 22 Thembani Bholi, 23 Dustin Jinka, 23 Earl Rose, 25 Dwayne Jenner, 26 Kieran Goss.

By Gareth Duncan

The IRB confirmed on Tuesday that this initiative is set to grow sevens rugby’s support group ahead of the code’s Olympic debut at the 2016 Rio Games. The number of teams that will take part in each event in the World Series will increase from the so-called 12 ‘core’ sides to 15.

This will see the Hong Kong Sevens (March 23-25) double up as a qualification tournament to determine the three new teams competing in all events in the 2012-13 campaign.

‘As we build towards Rio 2016 and our Olympic Games debut, it is important that opportunities exist for all nations to progress to series core team status if they are good enough,’ said IRB chairman Bernard Lapasset.

At the Green Mile in Cape Town, Shimlas hooker PW van Vuuren, No 8 Fanie van der Walt and scrumhalves Kevin Luiters and Pieter Rademan secured the students from Free State a bonus-point win. Wing Nico Scheepers also added four conversions and three penalties.

UCT could only add two tries through fullback Dillyn Leyds and skipper Ntsolo Setlaba as they lost their first opening game since 2009.

Three-time champions Stellenbosch University recorded a 52-2 drubbing of TUT at home. Lock Grant Hattingh grabbed a hat-trick while tighthead prop Os Hamman finished the match with a brace. Outside centre Wessel Coetzee and reserve flyhalf Andre Smith completed the rout.

Tuks and Pukke also had a successful start to their season with impressive wins over last year’s log leaders UJ (23-8) and NMMU (26-16) respectively.

UCT 10 (5) – Tries: Dillyn Leyds, Ntsolo Setlaba.
Shimlas 38 (18) – Tries: PW van Vuuren, Fanie van der Walt, Kevin Luiters, Pieter Rademan. Conversions: Nico Scheepers (4). Penalties: Scheepers (3).

Maties 52 (26) – Tries: Wessel Coetzee, Grant Hattingh (3), Os Hamman (2), Andre Smith. Conversions: Andre Kemp (4), Donald Stevens. Penalty: Kemp.
TUT 2 (2) – Peanlty: Hansie Graaff

Tuks 23 (18) – Tries: Franco Mostert, Hayden Groepes, Jono Ross. Conversions: Wesley Dunlop (2). Penalty: Dunlop.
UJ 8 (0) – Try: JR Esterhuizen. Conversion: Guy Cronje.

NMMU 16 (8) – Tries: Jaco Swanepoel, Quinton Crocker. Conversions: Gerhard Swanepoel, Devon Lailvaux.
Pukke 26 (26) – Andrew van Wyk (2), SW Oosthuizen, Tiaan Dorfling. Conversions: Gerhard Nortier.

Wing Garth van Rayner steered the hosts to victory with his brace, while flank Onke Dubase, speedster Aziyena Mandaba and scrumhalf Sibabalwe Mtsulwana also scored tries. Flyhalf Banda Masixole added three conversions and a penalty to seal the bonus-point win.

No 8 Leon Stevens’ try kept Impis in the game at half-time as they trailed 16-8, but further scores from replacements Jaco Potgieter and Blake Lourens weren’t enough as Fort Hare delivered a strong second-half performance.

In other results, Wits ran in six tries as they thrashed UWC 43-20 in Johannesburg.

Fort Hare 36 (16) – Tries: Garth van Rayner (2), Onke Dubase, Aziyena Mandaba, Sibabalwe Mtsulwana. Conversions: Banda Masixole (3). Penalty: Masixole.
UKZN 21 (8) – Tries: Leon Stevens, Jaco Potgieter, Blake Lourens. Conversions: Carl Meyer, Potgieter.

Wits 43 (17) – Tries: Rinus Botha, Bronson Lange, Charles Baggott, Devin Montgomery, Riaan Arends, Sam Peters. Conversions: Kyle Peyper (3). Penalties: Peyper (2).
UWC 20 (2) – Tries: Njabulo Ndlovu, Maxwel Andrews, Cheslyn Roberts. Conversion: Ambrose Steyn. Penalty: Charl van Hollenhoven.

When it comes to the Varisty Cup, Stellenbosch University and the University of Cape Town are the only teams who have won silverware. Maties achieved a hat-trick of triumphs since the tournament’s inaugural run in 2008 while Ikeys earned their first crown last season when they came from behind to beat Tuks in an entertaining Pretoria final.

The two Cape universities are considered favourites again this season. However, that prediction seems flawed when you analyse the strength of all the current squads. Most of the other top universities have used a clever recruitment plan over the off-season and will provide a tougher title challenge.

2012 Varsity Cup analysis:

Ikeys
Ikeys did well to lift the cup in 2011. However, the massive blow ahead of their title defending campaign is the loss of players who have made a step up to provincial and Super Rugby level. Flyhalf Demetri Catrakilis, scrumhalf Nick Groom, centres Marcel Brache and Tim Whitehead and loose forwards Nizaam Carr and Siya Kolisi are just some of the names that were instrumental in their triumphant run last year – especially tournament top scorer Catrakilis. Although they have an experienced pack, it will be interesting to see how they cope with a new-look, young backline.

2011 log finish: 2nd, winners
Keo.co.za prediction: 4th

Tuks
Under former director of rugby Heyneke Meyer, the Bulls have used the Varsity Cup platform to blood some of their junior talent. Tuks have benefited from this, with the junior and up-and-coming Bulls boys adding much-needed strength to their team. Flanker and former Baby Bok captain Arno Botha was one of the top performers for Tuks last season, and expect players of a similar calibre to emerge in 2012.

2011 log finish: 4th, runners-up
Keo.co.za prediction: 2nd

UJ
UJ had a strong league run in 2011, but a 25-11 home semi-final loss to Tuks ended their dreams season early. UJ have retained most of their players heading into the new season and that continuity will help them. The addition of former Sharks junior flyhalf Guy Cronje will be a good replacement for new Maties pivot Andre Smith. However, you have to question if UJ have the overall quality that’s needed to go all the way.

2011 finish: 1st, losing semi-finalists
Keo.co.za prediction: 5th

Shimlas
Like Tuks, Shimlas have used the Cheetahs junior and fringe players to strengthen their team – and they look like a dangerous side this season. The emergence of Lappies Labuschagne, Nico Scheepers and Cameron Jacobs will give Shimlas some bite, and the Free State boys will be aiming for another top-four finish this year – something they are capable of.

2011 finish: 3rd, losing semi-finalists
Keo.co.za prediction: 3rd

Maties
It was a sad 2011 for Maties as they struggled with a squad that was hit by a player exodus. They failed to make the Varsity Cup play-offs for the first time, which was followed by disappointing domestic club and national club championship campaigns. But head coach Chean Roux has done a great job in rebuilding a competitive squad during the off-season. They’ve also used their WP reserves well, which will see Tertius Daniller, Helmut Lehmann and Sam Mabombo feature in one of the top loose trios in the competition.

2011 log finish: 5th
Keo.co.za prediction: 1st

Pukke
Pukke suffered a disappointing campaign last year as they finished in an all-time low of sixth place. Normally regular play-off contenders, the boys from Potch struggled against the top teams which cost former coach Rudy Joubert his job. Hannes Esterhuizen has taken over the reigns, but it will be too much to expect Pukke to bounce back into the top four this year.

2011 finish: 6th
Keo.co.za prediction: 6th

NMMU
They haven’t finished outside the bottom two, but there’s optimism that the boys from PE will do better this year. They’ve recruited several key players, which includes former KZN centres Quinton Crocker, Howard Mnisi and Devon Lailvaux. However, they are still considered the whipping boys of the competition, along with TUT, and they’ll do exceptionally well to finish mid-table.

2011 finish: 7th
Keo.co.za prediction: 7th

TUT
Like the Madibas, TUT have also struggled in the Varsity Cup over the years. The harsh reality is that they don’t have the same quality of players that the other teams have at their disposal. And while NMMU have employed a better recruitment policy, TUT have failed to draw any big names to their campus and are set for successive wooden-spoon finishes.

2011 finish: 8th
Keo.co.za prediction: 8th

The new scoring system will also make things interesting. With penalties and drop goals devalued to two points and conversions increased to three points, teams are encouraged to score tries. There are concerns that this change will see more penalties conceded, but the word from the Varsity Cup organizers is that referees will sin bin regular offenders.

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It’s been two weeks since Bok head coach Heyneke Meyer’s appointment, and plans to build him a strong support staff have been ongoing ever since. According to the Rapport, Saru is now set to finalise his first recruit over the next several days, with former Stormers director of coaching Rassie Erasmus set to take on a technical advisor role – the same role he played shortly before the Springboks’ World Cup campaign. Contract negotiations are expected to happen this week.

The 39-year-old has been connected to several jobs in Europe after his resignation at WP. However, Erasmus told keo.co.za last month that he would be interested in a post in South Africa as he wants to consider his young family.

Current Springbok Sevens coach Paul Treu and several Bulls management members, like defence coach John McFarland, forwards coach Johann van Graan, conditioning coach Basil Carzis, are also linked to Bok jobs.

The Bulls personnel are all committed to the Pretoria franchise under their current contracts, but it’s reported that Saru is willing to pay for them to be released as they are all on Meyer’s wishlist.

Treu has already confirmed to SA Rugby magazine that he wants to be part of the process that prepares the Blitzboks for sevens rugby’s debut at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio, but keo.co.za has it on good authority that he is open to a dual job that will allow him to be released to coach 15-man rugby and to focus on the national sevens team as a consultant or senior mentor whenever possible. Treu said he has no interest in becoming a Super Rugby assistant coach, but a Bok assistant coach post with the opportunity to succeed Meyer in the long-term future will be an appealing deal.

In other management rumours, former Bok players Louis Koen and Victor Matfield are expected to be hired as kicking and lineout consultants respectively.

This was an important fixture for two reasons. Firstly, it was a new era for both teams as France coach Philippe Saint-Andre and Italy boss Jacques Brunel (both Frenchman) started their Test tenures at the Stade de France. It was also a revenge match for the hosts, following their first-ever defeat to the Azzurri in last year’s Six Nations. They were edged 22-21 in Rome thanks to two late penalties from wing Mirco Bergamasco.

On this occasion, it proved to be an easy outing for Les Bleus, who never found themselves behind on the scoreboard during their 18-point win.

While both teams committed numerous individual errors, France delivered several moments of impressive attacking play and were stronger on defence. Italy dominated the scrums with a superior front row, but they were beaten in every other facet of play. Their overall backline showing was also disappointing.

France led 15-6 at the break thanks to tries from outside centre Aurelien Rougerie and wing Julien Malzieu, who is one of the players who Saint-Andre has brought back to the Test squad. Rougerie took advantage of static Italian defence and broke through in the midfield while Malzieu had a strong run out wide after being put through by No 8 Louis Picamoles’ run off the back of a scrum. Scrumhalf Dimitri Yachvili added one conversion and two penalties while Italy flyhalf Kris Burton kept his side in the game at half-time with a drop goal and penalty.

France then sealed victory as wing Vincent Clerc and debutant Wesley Fofana crossed the chalk, while Yachvili added another five points with the boot. Italy struggled in the second half and finished the match with 14 men after lock Quintin Geldenhuys was sent to the sin bin for collapsing a rolling maul. South African-born reserve flyhalf Tobias Botes came off the bench to make his Test debut and converted a penalty.

By Gareth Duncan

The home team delivered a strong first-half performance in their 24-7 win over Fiji to seal the Cup final early. The Kiwis scored four unanswered tries through Tomasi Cama, DJ Forbes and Frank Halai (2). Fiji hit back via Waisea Nayacalevu and kept New Zealand scoreless after the restart, but they couldn’t surpass the massive half-time deficit.

Meanwhile, Paul Treu’s charges triumphed 24-0 as they dominated an ill-disciplined and fatigued Tongan outfit in the Plate final. They cruised through the first half, scoring three tries via Frankie Horne, Cecil Afrika and Kyle Brown for a 19-0 lead. Afrika scored the only points in the second half to seal the win.

In the Plate semi-final, South Africa edged Canada 21-19.

It was a close encounter against the North American minnows, with both teams scoring three tries apiece. In the end, Cecil Afrika’s goal kicking was the difference as he added all the extras.

Taylor Paris put Canada on the score sheet first before Cornal Hendricks and Brown gave South Africa a 14-7 lead at half-time. Paris grabbed his brace early in the second stanza, but debutant Stephan Dippenaar restored his team’s slim lead. Canada’s Ciaran Hearn then crossed the chalk, but the following conversion was missed. The Blitzboks held on for the win.

Earlier in the day, the Springbok Sevens crashed out of the tournament title race with a 21-5 defeat to Fiji in the Cup quarter-finals.

South Africa opened the scoring with a try through Hendricks, but Fiji went on to dominate the rest of the match as they sealed the win with three unanswered scores through Nemani Nagusa, Osea Kolinisau and Emosi Vucago.

Day two results:
Cup quarter-final: South Africa 5 Fiji 21
Plate semi-final: South Africa 21 Canada 19
Plate final: South Africa 26 Tonga 0

Click here for all results

Last Friday, Saru CEO Jurie Roux confirmed that the Southern Kings will play Super Rugby in 2013. However, he added that it had not been decided how they would be accommodated along with the other five South African franchises (the Bulls, Stormers, Sharks, Cheetahs and Lions) and he hoped that Sanzar would allow all six teams to compete next year. However, Peters said another tournament format change will not be possible for the next three seasons.

‘Sanzar has sold the current structure of Super Rugby to broadcasters and commercial partners for the period ending December 31 2015, so until that time expansion of the competition is not possible,’ Peters told The Times.

This will force Saru to drop one of the current participating South African franchises to make way for the Kings next year, most probably the Cheetahs or Lions, who have enjoyed the least success. However, Saru vice-president Mark Alexander, who is one of Saru’s two representatives on the Sanzar board, dismissed Peters’ statement as he believes a tournament format change is still possible.

‘We still have to meet with our partners in Sanzar. Greg Peters cannot decide there won’t be any expansion of the tournament. That was an irresponsible statement to make. There is a window of opportunity with our partners in Sanzar. We are currently preparing a 16-team schedule so that we can go and debate with them,’ said Alexander.

‘Our relationship with Sanzar has improved tremendously. We are very close to our partners in Australia and we work very closely with New Zealand and our relationship has changed. There is a window of opportunity provided we sell a workable solution about 16 franchises playing in the competition.’

Head coach Drotske has named a similar side that beat the Southern Kings (made up of just Border and SWD players) 33-20 last weekend after resting the bulk of his first-choice players during the Cheetahs’ 38-7 win over the Griffons in Welkom on Tuesday.

There are only three changes to the starting line-up that ran out in East London. No 8 Ashley Johnson drops to the bench as flanker Philip van der Walt is promoted. This sees Davon Raubenheimer shifted to eighthman. Lock Andries Ferreira starts ahead of Francois Uys while tighthead prop WP Nel takes the place of Trevor Nyakane in the front row.

The backline remains the same, which means 20-year-old flyhalf Johan Goosen retains the No 10 jersey ahead of Sias Ebersohn.

Cheetahs – 15 Hennie Daniller, 14 Dusty Noble, 13 Robert Ebersohn, 12 Andries Strauss, 11 Rocco Jansen, 10 Johan Goosen, 9 Piet van Zyl, 8 Davon Raubenheimer, 7 Philip van der Walt, 6 Heinrich Brussow, 5 Izak van der Westhuizen, 4 Andries Ferreira, 3 WP Nel, 2 Adriaan Strauss (c), 1 Marcel van der Merwe.
Subs: 16 Lourens Adriaanse, 17 Ryno Barnes, 18 George Earle, 19 Ashley Johnson, 20 Marnus Hugo, 21 Sias Ebersohn, 22 Willie le Roux, 23 Philip Snyman, 24 Ryno Benjamin, 25 Francois Uys.

England will field a new-look team, that sees a total of nine changes to the starting line-up that faced France in the World Cup quarter-final.

Barritt, who will receive his first Test cap, will form a new midfield combination with Saracens team-mate Owen Farrell. Interim head coach Stuart Lancaster has interestingly named the 25-year-old at outside centre. For Saracens, Farrell features in the No 13 jersey while Barritt starts on his inside.

‘To pull on a Test jersey is the ultimate for a player, it is something you dream about as a kid. It will be an immensely proud moment for me and my family to represent England,’ Barritt told reporters.

‘We are blessed in the squad with 32 really talented individuals and Owen and I are going to make our debuts together. I am sure he [Owen] will take to it like a duck to water. You have seen in the past 18 months that any obstacle that has come his way, he has embraced it and taken on the challenge.

‘Having Charlie [Hodgson] and Strets [David Strettle] in the backs means it is a great day for Sarries. But if were to be playing with anybody else I would be just as proud and just as content going into the game.’

Eighthman Phil Dowson also makes his Test debut at the age of 30 while Saffa Mouritz Botha is picked in the second row. On the bench, there are five more uncapped players in hooker Rob Webber, lock Geoff Parling, flanker Ben Morgan, scrumhalf Lee Dickson and centre Jordan Turner-Hall.

England – 15 Ben Foden, 14 Chris Ashton, 13 Brad Barritt, 12 Owen Farrell, 11 David Strettle, 10 Charlie Hodgson, 9 Ben Youngs, 8 Phil Dowson, 7 Chris Robshaw (c), 6 Tom Croft, 5 Tom Palmer, 4 Mouritz Botha, 3 Dan Cole, 2 Dylan Hartley, 1 Alex Corbisiero.
Subs: 16 Rob Webber, 17 Matt Stevens, 18 Geoff Parling, 19 Ben Morgan, 20 Lee Dickson, 21 Jordan Turner-Hall, 22 Mike Brown.

The defending champions were reduced to 14 men after No 8 Ruan Hugo was red carded, but they still went on to defeat Impis in Maritzburg. Hooker Baksteen van Heerden, wing Nico Steenkamp and skipper and flyhalf Inus Kritzinger capitalised on impressive CUT attacking play to seal the win.

Meanwhile, in Johannesburg, Wits crossed the chalk eight times to trash Fort Hare 58-16. Wits wing Riaan Arends grabbed a brace in the 42-point drubbing.

UKZN 10(5) - Tries: Leon Stevens, Hanno Botha.
CUT 30(18) – Tries: Baksteen van Heerden, Nico Steenkamp, Inus Kritzinger. Conversions: Jannie Myburgh (3). Penalties: Myburgh (2).

Wits 58(21) – Tries: Riaan Arends (2), Brent Crossley, Devin Montgomery, Charles Baggott, Olivier Rochat, Ruan Noeth, Heinke Hartdegen. Conversions: Kyle Peyper (6).
Fort Hare 16(8) - Tries: Garth van Rayner (2). Conversions: Teboho Makuru (2).

The 34-year-old ended his Test career against the Wallabies in Cardiff last December. He then signed a contract extension with his club Ospreys until the end of the 2013 season, but both parties have agreed to release the veteran from the deal a year early.

Ospreys have announced that Williams will then take up an ambassadorial role at the club, where he ‘will promote rugby in and around the region whilst also working in conjunction with the Ospreys’ existing and future commercial partners’.

Head coach Paul Treu has named his final 12-man squad, who will compete at the New Zealand leg of the Sevens World Series. There is only one change to the team that featured at the PE Sevens last December, with debutant Dippenaar replacing Chase Minnaar in the squad. Dippenaar (who missed the first part of the campaign with an ankle injury) will play a versatile role as he can play as a forward up front or a centre/wing in the backline.

Treu is hoping for an impressive finish in Wellington as the Springbok Sevens chase Fiji and New Zealand, who lead the current overall standings.

‘We came very close to winning our own tournament last December in Port Elizabeth and are fully aware that we will have to play even better here in Wellington. New Zealand is a demanding challenge for any rugby team, but we back ourselves to be in Cup contention on Saturday,’ said Treu.

South Africa find themselves in Pool B, which features England, USA and the Cook Islands.

Blitzboks squad for Wellington Sevens – Chris Dry, Frankie Horne, Boom Prinsloo, Cornal Hendricks, Kyle Brown (c), Branco du Preez, Bernado Botha, Paul Delport, Cecil Afrika, Steven Hunt, Mark Richards, Stephan Dippenaar.

Saint-Andre will begin his tenure against the Azzurri in Paris on Saturday. He has made five changes to the team that lost to the All Blacks in the World Cup final, with the highlight selections seeing inside centre Wesley Fofana set to make his Test debut while loosehead prop Vincent Debaty will get his second international cap. Debaty last featured for Les Bleus in 2006.

Wing Julien Malzieu also makes a return to the Test team after a year-long absence.

France – 15 Maxime Medard, 14 Vincent Clerc, 13 Aurelien Rougerie, 12 Wesley Fofana, 11 Julien Malzieu, 10 François Trinh-Duc, 9 Dimitri Yachvili, 8 Louis Picamoles, 7 Julien Bonnaire, 6 Thierry Dusautoir (c), 5 Lionel Nallet, 4 Pascal Pape, 3 Nicolas Mas, 2 William Servat, 1 Vincent Debaty.
Subs: 16 Dimitri Szarzewski, 17 Jean-Baptiste Poux, 18 Yoann Maestri, 19 Imanol Harinordoquy, 20 Morgan Parra, 21 Lionel Beauxis, 22 Maxime Mermoz.

Defending champions CUT came back from an early 12-0 deficit to triumph in Bloemfontein over last year’s runners-up Wits as they scored three tries. Captain and flyhalf Inus Kritzinger, scrumhalf Stephen Griesel and reserve prop Danie van der Merwe crossed the chalk for the victors.

Wits were in the game at half-time (trailing 13-12), thanks largely to inside centre Ryan Odendaal’s try, but they couldn’t score any points in the second stanza as CUT impressed on defence and closed off the contest.

Meanwhile, in Alice, UWC wing Cheslyn Robert scored a hat-trick of tries to give his team a 23-point win over hosts Fort Hare.

CUT 25(13) - Tries: Inus Kritzinger, Stephen Griesel, Danie van der Merwe. Conversions: Jannie Myburgh (2). Penalty: Myburgh.
Wits 12(12) - Try: Ryan Odendaal. Conversion: Kyle Peyper. Penalties: Peyper (2)

Fort Hare 13(8) - Tries: Abongile Dlani, Sihle Mtwa. Conversion: Teboho Makuru.
UWC 36(16) – Tries: Cheslyn Roberts (3), Penalty Try. Conversions: Charl van Vollenhoven (2), Warrick Rhoda (2). Penalties: Van Vollenhoven, Rhoda.

Former Bulls and junior Springbok centre Stefan Watermeyer made a surprise exit at the Pretoria-based union in December to join Welsh club Ospreys on a short-term deal. With the recent retirement of Jaco Pretorius and release of Stephan Dippenaar, there was an opportunity for Watermeyer to compete with Wynand Olivier, Francois Venter and star signing Johann Sadie for a midfield berth. And considering the lengthy Super Rugby campaign, there would’ve been opportunities for the player who had represented the Bulls since U16 level.

However, the 23-year-old admitted that he always had the desire to feature in a foreign league, saying: ‘It’s a big move for me, but it’s something I’ve always wanted to do – to go and play overseas. There’s a lot of good players here [at Ospreys] with international exposure, who I’m looking forward to training with and trying to learn from.

‘I’m here initially until the end of the season but I want to do enough to show the coaches that I can be an Ospreys player for a lot longer.’

Centre Stefan Watermeyer on debut for Ospreys

A month and a half after the transfer announcement, Watermeyer made his senior debut for the club in the LV Cup, where he started in a 26-21 bonus-point victory over local rivals Newport Gwent Dragons in Bridgend. The No 12 scored a try and received the Man of the Match award for an outstanding all-round performance in front of a 6000-strong home crowd. Ospreys also started Krugersdorp-born wing Hanno Dirksen, who scored a 15th-minute try. It was Ospreys’ first win of the competition, following two earlier defeats.

In other LV Cup results, skipper and flanker Francois Louw and scrumhalf Michael Claassens helped Bath to a 46-14 drubbing of reserve prop Brian Mujati’s Northampton Saints. Despite showing poor form in the European Cup and the English Premiership, Bath are one of two undefeated teams in the competition with three bonus-point wins.

Saracens rested most of their nine Saffas as they fielded a second string side in their 41-14 win over reserve fullback Errie Claassens’ Worcester Warriors. Tighthead prop Petrus du Plessis, loosehead prop John Smit and flanker Justin Melck started for the Watford club, with Melck scoring one of four tries.

In terms of management, former Springbok assistant coach Gary Gold started his director of rugby tenure at Newcastle Falcons with a 37-7 win over flanker Hendre Fourie’s Sale Sharks. Lock Adriaan Fondse and centre Corne Uys started for the victors.

In the French Top 14, centre Paul Bosch scored the decisive try in Montpellier’s 38-6 home win over Stade Francais. Lock Drikus Hancke was in the hosts’s run-on side while second rower Gerhard Mostert received a yellow card during his appearance for the visitors. Montepellier now hold a play-off place in the standings.

Loosehead prop Gurthro Steenkamp had a strong scrumming performance in Toulouse’s 19-13 win over outside centre Frans Steyn and No 8 Jacques Cronje’s Racing Metro. Reserve prop Daan Human came on for the defending champions in the 58th minute while in-form No 8 Shaun Sowerby started.

Captain and No 8 Joe van Niekerk led Toulon to a 50-10 thrashing of outside centre Sam Gerber’s 14-man Bayonne, who now drop to the foot of the table. Scrumhalf Rory Kockott kicked a crucial penalty in Castres’ 29-23 home win over Biarritz.

Fullback Scott Spedding scored a try in lock Retief Uys, No 8 Antonie Claassen and reserve flyhalf Riaan Swanepoel’s Brive’s 17-9 win over lock Gerrie Britz and reserve wing Rudi Coetzee’s Perpignan.

Scrumhalf Ricky Januarie started in Lyon’s vital 19-11 win over tighthead prop Gert Muller, lock Dewald Senekal and No 8 Adri Badenhorst’s Agen. The former Bok and Stormers No 9 was replaced by former Cheetahs halfback Tewis de Bruyn late in the second half.

Saru CEO Jurie Roux confirmed the news at the Springbok coach announcement in Newlands on Friday afternoon, where Heyneke Meyer was unveiled as Peter de Villiers’ successor. While the main focus from the national media was on Meyer’s appointment, keo.co.za got clarification from Roux about the Kings’ Super Rugby future.

‘There were many topics discussed at our executive meeting. On the Southern Kings specifically, it has been decided that they will play in Super Rugby in 2013, and this was supported by all parties concerned,’ Roux told this website. ‘However, we haven’t decided on how we will accommodate them with the five other South African franchises. We will bring this up at our AGM [annual general meeting] in March, and have further discussions with our partners at Sanzar about how we will accommodate six teams. We will also allow the Southern Kings to give their suggestions for possible solutions.’

The fact that the Eastern Cape has been given definite Super Rugby participation is a great step forward for the national sport and for a province that’s rich in black talent and has been starved of top quality rugby. However, with Saru confirming this news without a decided solution is a major concern.

With this decision to come into effect next season, how does Saru plan to accommodate their six franchises should Sanzar decline the proposal of including all teams in an already extended and lengthy tournament format? Will the Cheetahs and Lions’(South Africa’s least successful franchises) Super Rugby participation be under threat? Will they be forced to return to the Cats amalgamation initiative or duel in promotion/relegation play-offs?

A complex decision like this should’ve been finalised before the Kings’ Super Rugby participation was confirmed. Saru will now be pressurised in finding a solution that will ensure the happiness of all parties. The chances of achieving that, however, is highly unlikely.

Meanwhile, EP president Cheeky Watson, who was one of the several union bosses present at the press conference, said he was delighted with the Kings’ Super Rugby inclusion.

‘That is the main prize and we are delighted,’ said Watson. ‘Whether Saru is late in deciding on how they will accommodate us is debatable. The most suitable solution would be to have all six franchises playing Super Rugby.

‘The Southern Kings can only grow from here now,’ he continued. ‘We have struggled to recruit top-class players in the past because you have to be playing Super Rugby to be in contention for Springbok selection. And that’s a requirement for the best players. But knowing that we will definitely play in next year’s tournament will help us build a strong and competitive squad.’

By Gareth Duncan

At the Springbok coach announcement in Newlands on Friday, the panel made to field numerous questions relating to transformation. ‘Do you think we are taking a step back in terms of transformation?’ and ‘What do black coaches need to do to be good enough?’ were some of the questions put forward. One journalist even veered on a radically hypothetical angle, asking: ‘When will another black coach be appointed again?’

However, both Saru president Oregan Hoskins and CEO Jurie Roux stressed that transformation has been taken into account during the coach appointment process.

‘I think the ideal principle would be transforming people’s minds before we transform anything else,’ said Roux, suggesting that the best rugby decisions will help the growth and development of transformation. ‘The manner in the way we decided on the new coach was quite simple. We wanted the best coach for the team. We also want a winning team, which will result in a successful and growing sporting environment. Once we have that, we can promote and grow interest in sport.’

Hoskins weighed in on the issue: ‘I’ve spoken to Heyneke in the past and recently about transformation, and he understands the dynamics of the South Africa society. He is a loyal and faithful South African.’

Meyer was cagy on the issue, but said: ‘My aim is to unite everybody and get everybody’s support behind the team. Then I want to make the decisions that are in the best interests of the team.’

By Gareth Duncan