Southern Kings reveal Super Rugby jersey

The Southern Kings have revealed their playing kit for the 2016 season.

Red & Black Army Fund

The Kings faithful, the Red & Black Army opened a Red & Black Army Fund on Friday evening in an attempt to help the Eastern Province players that have not received any salaries for the last two months.

Players petition handed to Cheeky Watson

The petition

“I will not be prepared to work for EP Rugby Pty Limited, Eastern Province Rugby Union (EPRU) or Southern Kings Pty Limited, Sa Rugby Pty Limited or SARU (acting on behalf of SANZAR or EPRU) or any associated companies until such time as there is an Annual General Meeting or Extraordinary/ Special General Meeting of the EPRU in order that the order of business is as follows:

Deon Davids to coach Southern Kings

SWD Academy coach, Deon Davids has been named as the head coach of a 42-player Southern Kings squad, of which around half are expected to come from the existing Eastern Province Kings squad.

Annual General Meeting postponed

The Eastern Province Rugby Union Executive have taken the decision to postpone the Annual General Meeting which was scheduled to take place at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium on Saturday, 28 November 2015 at 12pm.

SARU optimistic about the road ahead

SARU CEO Jurie Roux said they are feeling optimistic about the road ahead, as Southern Kings' planning moves closer to completion.

Madibaz to host rugby sevens for sixth consecutive year

The stage is set for NMMU's George Campus to host the University Sport South Africa (USSA) rugby sevens tournament for a sixth consecutive year.

Open Letter to Cheeky Watson

Dear Cheeky Watson

I sent an open letter to the Union on the 30 May 2015 representing supporters on our pages, highlighting our concerns; we were not being ready for Currie Cup, and not building for Super Rugby 2016. We made it clear that this was not a witch-hunt against Cheeky Watson but rather we had serious concerns that it appeared there was no plan in place to ensure we were ready for 2016. Our letter spoke to; the ongoing sponsor saga, lack of coaching structures, the urgent need to add to our player pool, improve communication and refrain from using the word “immanent” which was frankly comical.

Southern Kings planning moves into second stage

The South African Rugby Union (SARU) has established an operational implementation task group to oversee the running of the Southern Kings franchise in Vodacom Super Rugby, SARU announced on Monday.

Watson brings clarity on SARU intervention

EP Rugby President, Cheeky Watson, held an open and frank media conference at the EP Rugby offices on Wednesday afternoon.

Has King Watson failed EP Rugby?

On the 6th of November EP Rugby released in a statement that their President Cheeky Watson is overseas to meet with sponsors over delayed payments of salaries, after news surfaced for the umpteenth time in the media about financial issues within the Union.

Update: Ongoing situation from EPRU

Eastern Province Rugby released the following statement regarding the ongoing financial situation at the Union.

Update: EP Rugby confirms another player

The Eastern Province Rugby Union has noted that there continues to be a large amount of speculation over players that are leaving the Union. 

EP Rugby Media Release

The Eastern Province Rugby Union has noted that there have been a number of issues raised in the media over the past few days, and acknowledge and apologise for our lack of proper communication on these issues.

Springboks to face Ireland in PE

The confirmation by SA Rugby last week that the Eastern Province Rugby Union will host the third test match against Current Six Nations champions Ireland has added to what was already going to be a bumper 2016 rugby season.

Madibaz are here to win

The FNB Madibaz are ready for the upcoming FNB Varsity Cup competition as they are set to face UJ in their opening round fixture on 8 February in Johannesburg.

Cheeky's Kings ready for Super18?

With the all new 2016 Super Rugby season approaching at the speed of light, the Southern Kings are still trying to get their ducks in a row. The Southern Kings franchise still needs to announce their elusive sponsorship deal along with their Super Rugby squad and a possible coach.

Greyventeins Touchies

The all new Greyventeins Touchies will move to a new venue for its annual 1 Touch Tournament on 7 November. Greyventeins Attorneys is proud to be the new main sponsor for this year's event which will also be moving to a new venue at Charlo Primary School.

Glory beckons for EP U19s

Eastern Province will make history on Saturday when they face the Blue Bulls in the ABSA Under 19 Competition, as the young men from Port Elizabeth will play their first final at Emirates Airline Park, after beating the Cheetahs 31 - 15 in their semifinal last week Friday.

Eastern Province through to U19 Final

Eastern Province continued on their impressive run in this year's Under 19 tournament as they eliminated the Free State in Friday's first semifinal at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium to advance to the final of the ABSA Under 19 Competition.

Down to business for U19s

As the ABSA Provincial U19 Competition heads into the play-off stages it all comes down to the final 80 minutes, as the table topping Eastern Province faces the Free State Cheetahs in the first semifinal at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth later today.

Preview: EP Kings vs Blue Bulls

The EP Kings had to fight hard on Saturday to beat a determined Griquas side in their last home game at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth, as they scored their winning try after the final hooter to secure only their second win of this year's ABSA Currie Cup Premeir Division.

Preview: EP Kings vs Griquas

The seventh placed Eastern Province Kings will face the eight placed ORC Griquas in a Round 8 ABSA Currie Cup Premier Division match at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth on Saturday afternoon.

Sykes to play his 100th

Born in Middelburg (Eastern Cape) on August 5, 1984, the 31-year-old Steven Robert Sykes will play his 100th Currie Cup game when the EP Kings take on Griqualand West at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth on Saturday (September 26).

JP du Plessis cleared

EP RUGBY MEDIA RELEASE, SEPTEMBER 15, 2015

EP Kings centre JP du Plessis will receive no further sanction after an SA Rugby Union hearing on Monday (September 14) following the red card he received in the Absa Currie Cup Premier Division match against the Free State Cheetahs in Port Elizabeth on Saturday, September 12.

Kings injury update

Apart from the normal bumps and bruises, the Kings' hard fought 32 - 24 victory over the Free State Cheetahs on Friday night has not come without the expense of injuries.

Clinical second half secured win for Kings

Eastern Province Kings coach, Brent Janse van Rensburg praised his players work ethic after their 32 - 24 win against the Free State Cheetahs at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium last night, after they were reduced to 14 men early in the second half.

Still hunting for their first win

The Eastern Province Kings host the Free State Cheetahs in a Round 6 ABSA Currie Cup encounter at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth tonight, but despite close results against the Sharks and Pumas they are still in hunt for their first win.

Dream season in the making

The Eastern Province Under-19s are still in the pound seat after picking up their eight consecutive win against the Lions at Emirates Airline Park this past Saturday.

Brave fight from the Kings

The EP Kings gave the Golden Lions a good run for their money at Emirates Airline Park in Johannesburg on Saturday evening, despite reports of unpaid wages making headlines in the build-up to the match.

Juniors to face the Lions

Both the Eastern Province's u19 and u21 sides will travel to Johannesburg boasting with confidence after both picked up wins against the Sharks in Port Elizabeth a week ago.

ABSA U21 Preview: Eastern Province vs Sharks

It's pretty much been an "up river without a paddle" for the newly promoted Eastern Province Under-21s in this year's ABSA Under-21 Competition.

Preview: EP Kings vs Sharks

The last time these two teams met a fortnight ago, it was a case of "close, but no victory cigar" for the  EP Kings as the Cell C Sharks held on to an eight point win in their Round 2 encounter at Kingspark in Durban.

Watson back to lead the Kings

Eastern Province Kings coach Brent Janse van Rensburg has welcomed the return of experienced skipper Luke Watson to the team for their Absa Currie Cup Premier Division match against the Cell C Sharks at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth on Saturday.

EP juniors to face the Sharks

The EP Kings U19 side may be sitting on top of the log, but coach Mzwandile Stick has sent out a warning to his team that there is still much to be achieved when the second half of the ABSA U19 Provincial Championship kicks off this weekend.

Sykes cleared for Sharks clash

Eastern Province Kings lock and captain, Steven Sykes can be considered for their Absa Currie Cup clash against the Cell C Sharks this weekend following the outcome of his SARU Judicial Hearing earlier today.

Missed opportunities cost the Kings

Friday night's Round 3 ABSA Currie Cup match between the EP Kings and Steval Pumas lived up to the expectation of going down to the wire, as only two points separated the teams after the final whistle.

The intense rivalry continues

The Eastern Province Kings have showed much improvement after their opening round 14 - 51 loss to the Xerox Golden Lions a fortnight ago, when they faced the Cell C Sharks in their Round 2 fixture at Kingspark this past Saturday.

Updated teamsheet: Kings vs Pumas

The EP Kings announced yesterday of late changes to their squad to face the Pumas in their Round 3 Currie Cup match at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium later this evening.

Enforced changes for Pumas clash

EP Kings head coach, Brent Janse van Rensburg had to make injury enforced changes to his side for their upcoming match against the Pumas at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth on Friday evening.

Kings announce new apparel sponsor

Eastern Province Rugby announced yesterday a three-year apparel sponsorship deal with BLK South Africa, ahead of the 2016 Super Rugby season.

U19s set to continue their unbeaten run

Eastern Province Under-19 team will be aiming to finish off the first round of the ABSA Under-19 competition in style by keeping their unbeaten record when they clash with the Sharks at Kingspark in Durban on Saturday.

Preview: Grey High vs Selborne College

Eastern Cape's Grey High and Selborne College have kept the best for last, when they face each other on the Phillip Field at Grey Highschool in Port Elizabeth on Saturday.

Kings largely unchanged for Sharks match

EP Kings head coach, Brent Janse van Rensburg opted for continuity in his team selection when they travel to Durban to face the Sharks for their second ABSA Currie Cup Premier Division match at Kingspark on Saturday.

Lions have feeding frenzy in PE

The ABSA Currie Cup started this weekend with a bang, as some teams started their campaign with a bonus point win the rest are still stuck in the starting blocks.

Making Eastern Province proud

The Eastern Province Under-19 team will try to keep their unbeaten record, when they face the Golden Lions in a table topping Round 5 match at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth on Saturday morning.

EP Kings to face Lions

ABSA Currie Cup Premier Division Rugby returns to the shores of the Nelson Mandela Bay this weekend, when the Eastern Province Kings face old foes the Golden Lions from Johannesburg at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth on Saturday.

EP U19s remain unbeaten

Eastern Province remained the only unbeaten side in the Under-19 Competition, after a strong second half performance against the Vodacom Blue Bulls at the Wolfson Stadium in Port Elizabeth on Friday afternoon.

Grand Challenge round-up

With Despatch having a bye, PE SAPS should move to the top of the Grand Challenge log on Saturday (August 1) when they host Kruisfontein at Kemsley Park.

SARPA meets with EP Rugby

EP RUGBY MEDIA RELEASE

Eastern Province Rugby and the South African Rugby Players Association have held a number of constructive meetings throughout the day today to address challenges currently being faced by the union.

EP boys to represent SA Schools

Two Eastern Province Under-18 players have made the SA Schools squad to face England, France, Wales and Italy in an Under-18 International Series in August.

WP U21s too strong for EP

Western Province U21s produced a dominant second half display to outplay their EP Kings counterparts 44-13 in the Absa U21 provincial competition at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth on Saturday.

Third win for U19s

Eastern Province U19 made it three wins out of three when they held on for a thrilling 13-10 victory against Western Province in the Absa U19 provincial competition at a wet Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth on Saturday.

Province held on to beat Kings in friendly

Eastern Province Kings hosted Western Province in their second pre-Currie Cup warm-up match at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth on Saturday evening.

Teamsheets: EP Kings vs Western Province

The Eastern Province Kings will face Western Province in their second friendly ahead of their Currie Cup campeign at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth on Saturday evening.

EP Rugby's response to Carlos Spencer

EP RUGBY MEDIA RELEASE

It is with great disappointment that EP Rugby have read the comments made in media on behalf of former EP Rugby coach Carlos Spencer following his departure from the Kings.

Disappointing result for U21s

The Eastern Province U21 side went down 8 - 28 in their second ABSA Under-21 match at Profert Olen Park in Potchefstroom this past Saturday.

Eastern Province opened the scoring in the eleventh minute through fullback Malcolm Jaer, Simon Bolze failed to add the extras on offer as they took an early 5 - 0 lead.

Convincing win for U19s in Potch

Eastern Province outscored the Leopards six tries to four to record their second consecutive win in the ABSA Under-19 competition in Potchefstroom this past Saturday.

Bulls too strong for Kings

The Vodacom Blue Bulls scored three first half tries and a further two more in the second half to beat the Eastern Province Kings in their first Currie Cup warm-up match at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth on Friday night.

EP and Natal in Craven Week thriller

Eastern Province and KwaZulu-Natal provided a final match thriller to end another exciting day at the Coca-Cola Craven Week at the Markottor Sports Complex in Stellenbosch on Thursday.

Preview: EP Kings vs Blue Bulls

The Eastern Province Kings are set to face the Blue Bulls in their first Currie Cup friendly tomorrow evening at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth.

EP U19/21 sides to face Leopards

The Eastern Province U19s will hope to continue their winning ways, after beating Free State last weekend, when they travel to Potchefstroom to face the Leopards in their second match in this year's ABSA Under-19 competition on Saturday.

Kings to face Blue Bulls in first Currie Cup friendly

Eastern Province Kings Head Coach, Brent Janse van Rensburg has named his team to face the Blue Bulls in their first Currie Cup friendly at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth this Friday evening.

Eastern Province beat SWD in Craven Week opener

Eastern Province's Curwin Bosch stole the show when they faced SWD in their opener at this year's Coca-Cola Craven Week, played at the Markottor Fields Paul Roos Gymnasium in Stellenbosch on Tuesday.

EP GRAND CHALLENGE RESULTS

PE SAPS continued their impressive run in the EP Grand Challenge competition when they comfortably beat African Bombers' challenge with a decisive 56-12 win on Saturday.

Eastern Province U21s hammered in opener

The newly promoted Eastern Province Under-21 side traveled to Bloemfontein to face Free State at Shimla Park in their ABSA Under-21 Group A opener on Saturday.

Eastern Province U19s off to a winning start

The Eastern Province u19s traveled to Shimla Park to face the Free State U19s in their ABSA Under-19 opener in Bloemfontein on Saturday.

Get to know your U18 Coca-Cola Craven Week Heroes

The 52nd Coca-Cola Under-18 Craven Week kicks off next week, from the 12th to the 18th, at Paul Roos Gymnasium in Stellenbosch.

One of the players to keep an eye on is Eastern Province's Curwin Bosch.

Full Name: Curwin Bosch

Age: 18

Team: Eastern Province

EP U18 Craven Week squads

The following Eastern Cape boys will represent Eastern Province at this year's U18 Coca-Cola Craven Week, from the 12th to the 18th of July, at the Paul Roos Gymnasium in Stellenbosch.

Eastern Province: 

Victories for EP at Academy Week

Both the Eastern Province U18s and Eastern Province CD recorded wins in their respective final matches at the Coca-Cola Academy Week at the Isak Steyl Stadium in Vanderbijlpark on Thursday.

Eastern Province recorded a narrow 33 - 31 win against the Pumas, while the Eastern Province CD side recorded a well deserved 46 - 29 win over the Leopards.

EP finish strong at the U16 Grant Khomo week

Eastern Province finished the U16 Coca-Cola Grant Khomo Week on a high, when they beat the Free State in their final match at the Bridgton Sports Grounds in Oudtshoorn on Thursday.

The battle was epic as both teams put their bodies on the line on attack and defence. Interestingly Free State were reduced to 14 men in the 25th minute following a tip tackle, but despite this they continued to deliver a passionate performance.

EP juniors off to Bloem

The Eastern Province U19 and U21 sides travel to Bloemfontein this Saturday for their respective Currie Cup Premier Division openers.

Outside centre Jeremy Ward will captain the U19 side, while flanker CJ Velleman captains the newly promoted U21 side.

Disappointment for EP Academy side

Fresh from their 34 - 29 win against Border, the Eastern Province Academy side faced a strong Western Province side in their second match at the Isak Steyl Stadium in Vanderbijlpark.

Western Province restricted the EP boys to just three points in the first half, as they took a comfortable 15 - 3 lead at the break.

The boys from Port Elizabeth managed to add two tries in the second half, while Western Province added a further thirty eight points to finish the game 53 - 17.

Eastern Province will face the Pumas in their final match on Thursday. The game will be played on the B Field and kick-off is at 12:45pm.

EP U16s too strong for Falcons

Eastern Province recorded their first win at the Under-16 Coca-Cola Grant Khomo Week when they beat the Falcons on Tuesday.

The boys from Port Elizabeth suffered an 11 - 24 loss in their opener against KwaZulu-Natal, but made amends today when they scored five tries to beat the boys from Kempton Park on the second day at the Bridgton Sports Grounds in Oudtshoorn.

The first half was exciting as both teams tried hard to make their presence felt. Eastern Province had the first say with two tries in the first seventeen minutes, which they converted to take a 14-0 lead. The Valke hit back five minutes later with a converted try of their own to reduce the deficit to 14-7, which they held onto for the rest of the half.

The Valke came out strong in the second half as they burst through for their second try, but this was cancelled out by Eastern Province as they added another try minutes later. The Valke again hit back, but two tries by Eastern Province in the last four minutes pushed them into a convincing lead to finish the match 35 - 17.

Scorers:

Eastern Province (14) 35 – Tries: Elandre Smit, Chrispian Jaggers, Le-Kleu Stokes, Ayabonga Matroos, Waqar Solaan. Conversions: Vaughn Isaacs (5).

Falcons (7) 17 - Tries: Ruben Beytell, Quan Eymann, Lee-Irwin Andries. Conversions: Ruben Beytell.

EP Academy U18s off to a winning start

Eastern Province recorded a narrow 34 - 29 win over their neighbours, Border, in their opener of the Coca-Cola Academy Week at the Isak Steyl Stadium in Vanderbijlpark.

Eastern Province CD unfortunately went down to hosts, the Rooi Valke, in a massive 5 - 71 defeat in their opener.

Tomorrow's fixtures sees Eastern Province take on Western Province in their second match at 2:05pm on the A Field, while Eastern Province CD face off against Border CD at 10:05am on the B Field.

Coca-Cola Academy Week day-one results:

Rooi Valke 71 - 5 Eastern Province CD
Limpopo Blue Bulls 21 – 56 Griffons
Blouvalke 19 - 29 Namibia
Free State 25 - 24 SWD
Lions 19 - 36 Western Province
Griquas 45 - 19 Pumas CD
Blue Bulls 59 - 24 KwaZulu-Natal
KwaZulu-Natal CD 48 - 7 Griffons CD
Border 29 - 34 Eastern Province
SA LSEN 12 - 23 Griquas CD
Pumas 21 - 18 Boland
Border CD 0 - 57 Leopards

EP lose to KZN in Grant Khomo opener

Eastern Province kicked off their Under-16 Coca-Cola Grant Khomo Week when they faced KwaZulu-Natal at the Brighton Sports Grounds in Oudtshoorn on Monday.

The boys from Port Elizabeth scored one first half try and a penalty in reply to Natal's two tries as they trailed 8 - 10 at the break.

Natal built on their two point lead in the second half as they scored back-to-back tries, while they shut out Eastern Province on defence to increase their lead to 24 points and their try tally to four. In return EP were only able to add a penalty, which resulted in them suffering a 24-11 defeat.

Scorers:

Eastern Province (8) 11 - Try: Curtly Deysel. Penalties: Vaughen Isaacs (2).

KwaZulu-Natal (10) 24 – Tries: Kamvelihle Fatyela, Cham Zondeki, Morne van Rensburg, JJ Van den Mescht. Conversions: Morne van Rensburg (2)

U16 Coca-Cola Grant Khomo Week day-one results:

SWD Eagles 22 - 27 Pumas

Namibia 27 - 31 Valke

DHL Western Province 25 - 24 Free State

SWD Eagles XV 14 - 32 Border

Blue Bulls 19 - 40 Bidvest Golden Lions

Griquas CD 17 - 50 Limpopo Blue Bulls

KwaZulu-Natal 24 - 11 Eastern Province

Griquas 20 - 17 Zimbabwe

Griffons 6 - 69 Boland

Border CD 0 - 27 Leopards

Bulls u13s too strong for EP in final match

Eastern Province faced tough opposition in their final match at the Under-13 Coca-Cola Craven Week, when they played the Itec Blue Bulls at Hoërskool Rob Ferreira in White River on Friday morning.

The boys from Pretoria outscored the Port Elizabeth based side in the first half by four tries to one.

The Blue Bulls dominated up-front and showing an impressive attacking prowess out wide. The Blue Bulls’ attack was fantastic as they forced EP onto the back-foot and the rewards followed as they crossed the tryline four times in the first half.

Eastern Province did their best to force their way into the match, but their efforts were curtailed by the effective Blue Bulls defence, leaving them to settle for only one converted try in the first half and a 21 point deficit at the break.

Eastern Province tightened up their defence significantly in the second half as they limited the Blue Bulls to only one more try. The Port Elizabeth side managed to score a second try, as the game ended 35 - 14 in favour of the Blue Bulls.

Scorers:

Eastern Province (7) 14 – Tries: Larquin Goliath, Ethan Liberty. Conversions: Daniel Smith (2).

Itec Blue Bulls (28) 35 – Tries: Jooste Nel, Rolen Visagie, Chris Schoombee, Zandre Du Toit (2). Conversions: Jooste Nel (5).

EP U13s secure convincing win

Eastern Province secured a convincing win in their penultimate round of fixtures at the Under-13 Coca-Cola Craven Week, when they beat the Limpopo Blue Bulls at Hoërskool Rob Ferreira in White River on Thursday.

Eastern Province did well to capitalise on their try-scoring chances against the Limpopo Blue Bulls despite both teams showing their attacking prowess in a hard-running first half.

Eastern Province backed up their exciting attack with a solid defensive structure, which, combined with mistakes at crucial times by the Limpopo side, only allowed them to cross the tryline once in the first half.

Eastern Province’s three first half tries allowed them to take a comfortable 19 – 7 lead at the break.

They picked up where they left off in the second half and scored a further two tries, thanks to their impressive support play and hard running, which allowed them to continue finding the gaps in the defence.

The Limpopo Blue Bulls bounced back strongly in the dying minutes to score a consolation try as the game ended 31 – 12 in favour of the Port Elizabeth side.

Scorers:

Eastern Province (19) 31 – Tries: Ethan Liberty, Kuhle Desha, Aliswa Mapuma, Larquin Goliath, Siviwe Zondani. Conversions: Daniel Smith (2), Lathita Nqebe.

Limpopo Blue Bulls (7) 12 – Tries: Renzo Du Plessis, Pieter Vorster. Conversion: Juan Smith

U13 Coca-Cola Craven Week day-three results:

Boland 18 – 15 TW Profile Services Valke
DHL Western Province 17 – 3 SWD
Itec Blue Bulls 29 – 0 Border CD
Bidvest Golden Lions 0 – 33 KwaZulu-Natal
Border 15 – 27 Leopards
Pumas 31 – 14 Free State
Namibia 14 – 13 Zimbabwe
Eastern Province 31 – 12 Limpopo Blue Bulls
GWK Griquas 0 – 18 Griffons

EP U13s to face Blue Bulls in their final match

The Eastern Province u13s will face the Itec Blue Bulls in their final match at the Under-13 Coca-Cola Craven Week on Friday.

The boys from Port Elizabeth have only managed to win one out of their three matches played at Hoërskool Rob Ferreira in White River Mpumalanga. Both of their previous two matches against Bidvest Golden Lions (12 - 13) and Leopards (17 - 18) ended in one point defeats.

Both teams will enter tomorrow's match with confidence as Eastern Province outscored Limpopo Blue Bulls five tries to two, in their 31 - 12 third round match played on Thursday.

The Itec Blue Bulls scored twenty nine unanswered points, which included five tries, in a 29 - 0 victory against Border CD in their third round match.

The game will be played on the A Field, and kick-off is at 11am.

U13 Coca-Cola Craven Week day-four fixtures:

A Field:

09h00 – Limpopo Blue Bulls vs GWK Griquas
10h00 – Pumas vs Border
11h00 – Eastern Province vs Itec Blue Bulls
12h00 – Valke vs SWD
13h00 – DHL Western Province vs Boland

B Field:

09h00 – Zimbabwe vs Free State
10h00 – Border CD vs Namibia
11h00 – Bidvest Golden Lions vs Griffons
12h00 – KwaZulu-Natal vs Leopards

More disappointment for EP at U13 Coca-Cola Craven Week

DHL Western Province, Boland and SWD were the big scorers on Tuesday, in day two of the U13 Coca-Cola Craven Week at Hoërskool Rob Ferreira in White River as they stay in contention for a place in Friday's final match.

Unfortunatly things went pear-shape for the boys from Port Elizabeth as Eastern Province failed to pull off a win, after leading 10 - 3 at half-time in their second match against the Leopards.

The first half was tight as both teams tried hard to gain dominance. Eastern Province, however, built up a nice 10 - 3 lead thanks to a converted try and a penalty, while they limited the Leopards to a single penalty in the half.

The Leopards, however, fought back strongly after the break scoring three tries. The last try was three minutes from the final whistle to give them a one point lead. Eastern Province only managed to score one converted try, which left them with a disappointing 18 - 17 defeat.

Scorers:

Eastern Province (10) 17 – Tries: Sino Antonie, Siviwe Zondani. Conversions: Lathita Nqebe (2). Penalty: Lathita Nqebe.

Leopards (3) 18 – Tries: Theuns Steyn, Armand Cloete (2). Penalty: Theuns Steyn.

U13 Coca-Cola Craven Week day-two results:

Border 0 – 33 DHL Western Province

KwaZulu-Natal 7 – 34 Boland

Eastern Province 17 – 18 Leopards

Bidvest Golden Lions 13 – 37 SWD

Border CD 19 – 14 Pumas

TW Profile Services Valke 21 – 19 Itec Blue Bulls

Free State 5 – 33 Limpopo Blue Bulls

Griffons 37 – 13 Namibia

Griquas 15 – 7 Zimbabwe

Lions beat EP in U13 Craven Week opener

Eastern Province faced Bidvest Golden Lions in their opener of this year's U13 Coca-Cola Craven Week at Hoërskool Rob Ferreira in White River. 

The Golden Lions started their clash against Eastern Province with a bang as Regardt Fourie crossed the tryline in the second minute to take a 5-0 lead. But Eastern Province did well to string together phases on attack and hit back with a try of their own in the 18th minute compliments of Lathita Nqebe. The Lions, however, cancelled this out with their second try before half time to take a 10-5 lead at the break.

The second half was hard-fought as the teams ran hard at each other. Such was the closeness of the half the Lions were only able to add a penalty to their score, while Eastern Province's Nqebe crossed the tryline for the second time, which allowed them to come within a point of the Lions on the scoreboard. The Johannesburg team, however, held on in the dying minutes to secure a 13-12 victory.

Eastern Province's second match will be on Tuesday (30 June) against the Leopards. The Leopards went down to Boland in their opener,15 - 20.

Scorers:

Eastern Province (5) 12 – Tries: Lathita Nqebe (2). Conversion: Daniel Smith.

Golden Lions (10) 13 – Tries: Denis Balt, Regardt Fourie. Penalty: Sebastine Watney.

U13 Coca-Cola Craven Week day-one results:

Pumas 21 - 7 KwaZulu-Natal

Western Province 24 - 19 Valke

Limpopo Blue Bulls 7 - 29 Border

Boland 20 - 15 Leopards

Blue Bulls 40 - 0 Zimbabwe

Eastern Province 12 - 13 Golden Lions

Griquas 7 - 12 Namibia

Free State 0 - 19 SWD

Griffons 16 - 22 Border CD

U13 Coca-Cola Craven Week day-two fixtures, Tuesday 30 June 2015:

A Field:

08h30 - Griffons vs Namibia                            

09h30 - Valke vs Blue Bulls                               

10h30 - Golden Lions vs SWD                          

11h30 - KZN vs Boland                                      

12h30 - Border vs WP

B Field:

08h30 - Griquas vs Zimbabwe

09h30 - Free State vs Limpopo Blue Bulls

10h30 - Border CD vs Pumas

Exciting additions to Currie Cup squad

The Eastern Province Kings have announced two exciting additions to their squad for the 2015 Currie Cup season.

Robust loose forward, Jacques Engelbrecht will make a welcomed return to the Kings squad. Engelbrecht who is currently contracted to the Bulls until 2016 will be on loan to the Kings for the next four months.

Engelbrecht who is no stranger to the Kings set-up joined in 2011 from the Eagles, and made 24 appearances in the EP jersey over two seasons. In 2013 Engelbrecht formed a formidable loose-trio along side Wimpie van der Walt and Cornell du Preez for the Southern Kings in their first Super Rugby season.

After the Southern Kings failed to retain their spot for the 2014 Super Rugby season, Engelbrecht formed part of a max exodus of players and joined the Blue Bulls.    

"Jacques was a familiar face in our ranks, both for the EP Kings and the Southern Kings, and we are looking forward to having him back for our Currie Cup campaign."  

“We believe he will add a great deal to our squad during this important time for rugby in the province,” said EP Rugby CEO Charl Crous.

The Kings also confirmed the signing of Griquas and Cheetahs thighthead prop Maks van Dyk until the end of the 2016 season. Van Dyk also had a short spell with Irish club Leinster where he made one appearance in 2014 during the off-season.

"We welcomed Jacques and Maks into the Kings family earlier today (Wednesday) at our player and management workshop.” 

"We look forward to working with them going forward and getting to know them better," said newly appointed Kings head coach Brent Janse van Rensburg.

The Kings have started with their pre-Currie Cup training, and will have their first outing against the Sharks on the 11th of July, followed by the Bulls on the 17th and Western Province on the 25th, ahead of their ABSA Currie Cup opener against the Golden Lions on the 8th of August.

EP Kings appoint new Currie Cup coach

The Eastern Province Kings have announced that former NMMU Madibaz coach, Brent Janse van Rensburg, has been appointed as head coach for the EP Kings Currie Cup campaign.

“Brent is a top calibre coach, having earned his stripes in the school system and at the NMMU Madibaz, and we are confident that he will play a significant role in our preparations going forward,” said EP Kings CEO Charl Crous.

"He is familiar with operations at the Kings and we are sure he will be able to bring the best out in the team for the Currie Cup campaign."

Janse van Rensburg will be assisted by Carlos Spencer (backline and skills coach), Darron Nell (lineout and forwards coach) and CJ van der Linde, who is still playing but will assist in the scrummaging department.

Janse van Rensburg who took over as head coach at NMMU in 2011 took the Madibaz to two consecutive Varsity Cup semi-finals in 2013 and 2014 before he joined Grey High School as Director of Rugby. 

Earlier this year he joined the Lions as the u19 forwards coach before he was released from his contract due to personal reasons. He returned to Nelson Mandela Bay where he subsequently joined the Kings as Head of Defence during their Vodacom Cup campaign.

Janse van Rensburg will take up his new position with immediate effect, as the Kings are currently preparing for their Currie Cup friendlies against the Sharks, Bulls and Western Province ahead of their opener against the Lions on the 8th of August.

Kings player included in Sevens Academy side

EP Kings fullback Siviwe Soyizwapi has been included in the SARU Sevens Academy squad to travel to an invitational Sevens tournament in Italy and Switzerland later this year. 

The team was selected after a round of gruelling trials in Stellenbosch and, according to the coach, the trials again showed the high quality of players in the South African structures.

"The trials highlighted the skills and abilities of the next tier of players. These guys are all showing massive potential to graduate into the national team and some of them will even push for places in the Olympic Games in Rio next year," Schoeman said.

Included in this squad are regular Springbok Sevens squad members, Ruhan Nel and Carel du Preez. Du Preez and Nel both made their Springbok Sevens debut during the recent 2014/15 HSBC Sevens World Series after being called up for national duty from the Academy ranks.

"We have had an eye on certain players for a while now, and it is pleasing that they were available for selection. I would like to thank the various unions who allowed them to train and now play with us. I think the Academy pathway has worked for our national team as well, as guys like Ruhan and Carel clearly showed this year, as well as others like Kwagga Smith and Werner Kok before them."

The Roma tournament will be played on 12 and 13 June at the Acqua Acetosa Stadium. The South Africans won the tournament in 2013 and 2014.

The team then will travel to Switzerland, where the Geneva Sevens will be contested at the Centre Sportif du Bout du Monde on 19-20 June.

SARU Sevens Academy:

1 Carel du Preez

2 Ruhan Nel

3 Sandile Ngcobo 

4 Lungelo Gosa

5 Sibahle Maxwane

6 Vincent Maruping

7 Dylan Sage

8 TJ Goddard

9 Tyler Fisher

10 Siviwe Soyizwapi

11 Riaan Esterhuizen

12 Daniel Maartens

Non traveling reserves:

Thabo Mabuza, Joel Booysen.

Convincing win to end disappointing campaign

The Eastern Province Kings ended their Vodacom Cup campaign on a high when they beat the Sharks XV at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth on Friday night.

In retrospect the convincing 23 – 8 victory came somewhat a day too late and a few log points short as they ended fifth on the South Section log, three log points behind the forth played SWD Eagles.

Dispite the score being 8 all at the break, the Kings added a further two tries and a penalty in the second half to score 15 unanswered points.

The Kings were first to put points on the board through a Hansie Graaff penalty, after they set up camp in the Sharks’ 22 during the opening minutes.

The Sharks drew level a few minutes later after Garth April added a penalty to bring the score to 3 all after fifteen minutes.

Kings’ Luther Obi scored the first try after Sharks’ Paul Jordaan was send to the sin bin for deliberately slowing the ball down in the red zone. Graaff missed the touch line conversion as the Kings took an 8 – 3 lead at the end of the first quarter.

Minutes later Sharks’ Hanco Venter crossed the line to draw level, April missed the touch line conversion. Scores remained 8 all until half-time.

The second half started pretty much the same as the first half when Kings’ eighthman Paul Schoeman scored his team’s second try after 6 minutes. Graaff missed his second kick of the night as the Kings took a 13 – 8 lead.

Replacement flyhalf, Scott van Breda was on target with his first attempt at a penalty kick as he stretched the Kings’ lead to 16 – 8 with ten minutes to go.

Replacement scrumhalf Enrico Acker scored the Kings’ third try after a high kick ended up in no man’s land. The loose ball was kicked through which resulted in a five-pointer for the home team, van Breda added the extras as the Kings took a 23 – 8 lead with five minutes remaining.

No further points were added to the score board as the Kings recorded their third win of their Vodacom Cup campaign.

The Kings scored 181 points and conceded 162 in their seven matches which included three wins. They scored the second most tries, 26, two less then the Free State Cheetahs who are on 28, and conceded 18 tries.

Scorers:

EP Kings: (8) 23 – Tries: Luther Obi, Paul Schoeman, Enrico Acker. Conversion: Scott van Breda. Penalty: Hansie Graaff.

Sharks XV: (8) 8 – Try: Henco Venter. Penalty: Garth April.

Junior Springboks off to a winning start

The Junior Springboks recorded a 25 - 22 win in the first of two matches against the Los Pumitas in Santa Fe Argentina on Tuesday evening.

The Junior Boks scored a converted try and a penalty in the first half as they trailed by five points at the break, 10 - 15.

Eastern Province's Micheal Jear scored the Junior Boks' first half try, followed by two second half tries by Grant Hermanus and Dan du Preez. Ernst Stapelberg converted two of the tries and added a penalty in each half.

“We had a long journey coming here, had only one full training session and a bus trip of more than two hours to the stadium today," said a relieved Junior Springbok coach, Dawie Theron.

"I told the players this match would be a huge test of character for them and Argentina did exactly what we expected, making it extremely difficult for us to play our normal game. They were strong upfront and tackled as if their lives depended on it,” explained Theron.

Theron admitted his harsh words during halftime had the desired effect on his players in the second half.

“We were much more composed and calm and that allowed us to eventually fight our way back successfully. I’m pleased with the effort and the character of the guys, but we now also know the areas where we must work on for the next match,” added Theron.

The next match will be in Rosaria on Saturday.

Scorers:

Argentina Under-20: (15) 22 - Tries: Christian Bartolini, Jose Deheza, Emiliano Bofelli. Conversions: Bofelli (2). Penalty: Bofelli.

Junior Springboks: (10) 25 - Tries: Michael Jaer, Grant Hermanus, Dan du Preez. Conversions: Ernst Stapelberg (2). Penalties: Stapelberg (2).

Watson ruled out for Sharks match

There have been some late changes to the Eastern Province Kings side to face the Sharks XV in their final Vodacom Cup match at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium on Friday evening.

Luke Watson who was set to make his return to the starting XV has been ruled out with flu. Tim Whitehead will take over the captaincy from Watson against his former team.

Other late changes sees Paul Schoeman replace Tim Agaba at eighthman, who also suffers from flu. Tazz Fuzani comes in at lock to replace Stefan Willemse who moves to the openside flank. Thembelani Bholi moves from the openside flank to blindside to cover for Watson. 

The only other change is in the front row where CJ van der Linde comes in for Simon Kerrod, who failed a fitness test.

Kick-off is at 7pm.  

EP Kings:

15 Siviwe Soqizwapi 14 Siyanda Grey 13 Ronnie Cooke 12 Tim Whitehead (c) 11 Luther Obi 10 Hansie Graaff 9 Jaco Grobler 8 Paul Schoeman 7 Stefan Willemse 6 Thembelani Bholi 5 Cornell Hess 4 Tazz Fuzani 3 CJ van der Linde 2 Edgar Marutlulle (vc) 1 Lizo Gqoboka

Replacements:

16 Mike van Vuuren 17 Enoch Mnyaka 18 David Bulbring 19 Eital Bredenkamp 20 Eniro Acker 21 Sphu Msutwana 22 Scott van Breda  

Watson to lead Kings against Sharks

The Eastern Province Kings have made slight changes to their side which thrashed Boland 44 - 10, as they are set to face the Sharks XV in their last Vodacom Cup match at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth on Friday night.

The Kings who are fifth on the South Section log scored 25 unanswered points against the Cavaliers in the second half after they led 19 - 10 at the break. The Sharks who are sixth on the log, might just go into this game as the "underdogs" as they went down 24 - 27 to Griquas in their penultimate match of this year's competition.

In the backline, Siyanda Grey moves from outside centre to right wing as he replaces Sphu Msutwana who moves to the bench. Former Sharks centre, Tim Whitehead replaces Ronnie Cooke at inside centre, as Cooke shiftes to outside to replace Grey.

Amongst the loose forwards, Tim Agaba replaces Aidon Davis at eighthman and Luke Watson who returns as captain replaces Eital Bredenkamp on the flank.

Kick-off is at 7pm.  

EP Kings:

15 Siviwe Soqizwapi 14 Siyanda Grey 13 Ronnie Cooke 12 Tim Whitehead 11 Luther Obi 10 Hansie Graaff 9 Jaco Grobler 8 Tim Agaba 7 Thembelani Bholi 6 Luke Watson (capt) 5 Cornell Hess 4 Stefan Willemse 3 Simon Kerrod/Enoch Mnyaka 2 Edgar Marutlulle 1 Lizo Gqoboka

Replacements:

16 Mike van Vuuren 17 Albe de Swardt 18 CJ van der Linde 19 David Bulbring 20 Paul Schoeman 21 Eniro Acker 22 Sphu Msutwana 23 Scott van Breda

CJ has his hopes set on World Cup

Madibaz vice-captain CJ Velleman will be winging his way to Argentina this week for the Junior Springboks’ warm-up tour ahead of the World Rugby U20 Championship in Italy in June.

 

Velleman will be hoping to make an impression during the two-match series in Rosario from May 8 to 16 in an effort to earn his spot in the final squad for world champs.

 

The open-side flanker had a stellar start to the season with consistent performances in the FNB Varsity Cup tournament, which earned him the runner-up spot in the overall Player that Rocks competition.

 

Velleman was then invited to the national trials in Stellenbosch in March, after which he was one of 37 players asked to return for a second training camp in April.

 

The quantity-surveying student was also part of the squad that beat the Varsity Cup Dream Team 31-24 in a friendly encounter last month.

 

“I was really excited but at the same time pretty nervous because it's an unbelievable opportunity and you only get one chance to not mess it up,” said Velleman.

 

“It was one of my proudest moments being able to pull the Bok jersey over my head.

 

“I hope to remain a permanent fixture in the squad, but for now I am just aiming to make it to the final 28 for the World Cup,” said Velleman.

 

After the South American tour, the young forward will join the Eastern Province under-21 side for the Currie Cup season.

 

“If it's anything like last year's under-19 division then it's going to be a really exciting time.”

 

The 20-year-old said he had had a rugby ball in his hands since he could remember and hadplayed the sport throughout his school year.

 

“Every rugby player’s dream is to run out for the Boks one day but for now I just want to focus on doing my best to secure my spot in the baby Bok touring squad.

 

“I would also like to advance as far as I can within the Kings system with the hopes of getting a senior cap before leaving the academy.”

Kings restore some pride against Boland

Pride was the only thing left to play for when the Eastern Province Kings travelled to Citrusdal to face the Boland Cavaliers at the Central Sports Grounds on Saturday.

Both teams are out of the running to qualify for a top spot in this year's Vodacom Cup Competition as the Kings are fifth on the South Section log, seven points behind fourth placed SWD with a single round remaining. Boland will remain seventh as it is unlickely that they will lose to bottom of the log Border when they face each other in their remaining fixture. 

The Kings scored three first half tries, two by eighthman Aidon Davis and a third by fullback Siviwe Soyizwapi. Hansie Graaff converted two of the tries.

Boland's Granville Adams missed two earlier attempts at goal, but the fullback eventually crossed the line in the twentieth minute as he scored his team's first points. Adams converted the try and with a successful penalty late in the first half they trailed by nine points, 10 - 19, at the halftime break.

The Kings dominated the second half as they scored twenty five unanswered points, which included four tries, one conversion and a penalty.

Graaff extended the Kings' score to 22 - 10 after he kicked a successful penalty early in the second half. A few minutes later blindside flank, Eital Bredenkamp, scored his team's bonus point try, Graaff missed the conversion as the Kings took a 27 - 10 lead.

Five minutes later Graaff scored and converted a try of his own as he stretched the Kings' lead to 34 - 10 as the game reached the final quarter.

Davies scored his hat-trick three minutes later, Graaff missed the conversion as the Kings took a 39 - 10 lead. Replacement scrumhalf, Dylon Frylinck scored his team's seventh and final try. Graaff was unsuccessfull with the conversion as the game ended 44 - 10.

The Kings will face the Sharks XV at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in their final match on Friday.

Scorers:

Boland Cavaliers (10) 10 - Try: Granville Adams. Conversion: Granville Adams. Penalty: Granville Adams. 

EP Kings (19) 44 - Tries: Aidon Davis (3), Siviwe Soyizwapi, Hansie Graaff, Eital Bredenkamp, Dylon Frylinck. Conversions: Hansie Graaff (3). Penalty: Hansie Graaff   

Luke and CJ to make an impact off the bench

Eastern Province Kings coach, Mzwandile Stick has called on the services of two of his most experienced players ahead of their crucial Vodacom Cup match against the SWD Eagles at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth later today.

The fifth placed Kings are still in with a chance to reach the play-offs, but a solid win against the fourth placed Eagles is a must if they want to qualify in the top four. The Eagles are currently on 11 log points, 3 points ahead of the Kings, and a mere win will not be good enough as the Eagles have a better points difference which means they will remain in fourth place if log points are level.

Stick and skipper Tim Whitehead said the experience of Luke Watson and CJ van der Linde would be crucial in what is shaping up as a massive showdown between the neighbouring provinces.

“We will probably give Luke about 20 to 30 minutes and CJ about 20 minutes, but it will all depend on how the game goes,” Stick said. 

“Both of them cannot wait to get back and they have been working hard with the team. Luke is ready to go and CJ may not be quite there, but we will use him for a short while to counteract their strong forwards.”

An indication of what the Eagles are planning comes in their squad, with a five-two forwards-backs split on the bench.

“We know they will try to attack us up front because they have big and physical forwards, but we are prepared for that,” Stick said.

The match kicks off at 3pm.

EP Kings: 

1 Lizo Gqoboka 2 Edgar Marutlulle (v/c) 3 Simon Kerrod 4 Cameron Lindsay 5 David Bulbring 6 Paul Schoeman 7 Stefan Willemse 8 Tim Agaba 9 Jaco Grobler 10 Tony Jantjies 11 Luther Obi 12 Tim Whitehead (capt) 13 Ronnie Cooke 14 Siviwe Soyizwapi 15  Scott van Breda

Replacements: 

16 Mike van Vuuren 17  CJ van der Linde 18  Aidon Davis 19 Luke Watson 20 Dylon Frylinck 21  Hansie Graaff 22 Siyanda Grey

SWD Eagles: 

1 Marius Fourie 2 Kurt Haupt 3 Ashley Buys 4 Andries van der Walt 5 Mzwanele Zito 6 Johannes Stander 7 Davon Raubenheimer (capt) 8 Zandre Jordaan 9 Dwayne Kelly 10 Gerhardus Smith 11 Alshaun Bock 12 Luzuko Vulindlu 13 Kirsten Heyns 14 Clinton Wagman 15 Elric van Vuuren

Replacements: 

16 Layle Delo 17 Raoul Larson 18 Alwyn Bester 19 Andisa Ntsila 20 Buran Parks 21 Leighton Eksteen 22 Martin du Toit

Kings still with an outside chance to reach play-offs

A convincing win over the fourth placed SWD Eagles on Saturday will leave the Eastern Province Kings with a fighting chance to reach the quarter-finals as the Vodacom Cup season draws to an end.

The Kings are currently fifth on the South Section log with eight points, three points behind fourth placed Eagles. The Eagles are in a better position with a positive twenty four points difference on the log, so a mere win will not be good enough for the Kings if they want to reach the play-offs.

The Kings still need to face seventh placed Boland in an away fixture next week and sixth placed Sharks at home on the 8th of May. The Eagles still have to play bottom of the log Border at home and top of the log Western Province in Cape Town in their remaining fixtures.

Kings coach Mzwandile Sick has made a few changes to his starting lineup, which sees experienced centre Ronnie Cooke in for Hansie Graaff and Tony Jantjies in for Gary van Aswegen at fly half.

Amongst the forwards, Stefan Willemse replaces Thembelani Bholi at flank and Cameron Lindsay comes in for Tazz Fuzani at lock.

Stick also named a strong bench which sees experienced prop CJ van der Linde, Aidon Davis and the long awaited return of Luke Watson.

Kick-off is at 3pm. 

EP Kings:

15 Scott van Breda 14 Siviwe Soyizwapi 13 Ronnie Cooke 12 Tim Whithead 11 Luther Obi 10 Tony Jantjies 9 Jaco Grobler 8 Tim Agaba 7 Stefan Willemse 6 Paul Schoeman 5 David Bulbring 4 Cameron Lindsay 3 Simon Kerrod 2 Edgar Marutlulle 1 Lizo Gqoboka

Replacements:

16 Micheal van Vuuren 17 CJ van der Linde 18 Aidon Davis 19 Luke Watson 20 Dylon Frylinck 21 Hansie Graaff 22 Siyanda Grey

Free State pips Kings in Bloem

The Free State XV ran in seven tries to five against the Eastern Province Kings in a high scoring Vodacom Cup match at the Free State Stadium in Bloemfontein on Saturday.

The loss left the Kings fifth on the South Section log, with only one win after four games, but a win this coming weekend will move them into fourth and still give them a slight chance to reach the play-offs.

Former Southern Kings players, Sergeal Petersen and Shaun Venter scored first half tries as the Free State took a one point lead, 21 - 20, into the half time break.

Kings captain, Tim Whitehead scored two second half tries along with a late penalty from Scott van Breda in the eighty second minute to secure a losing bonus point as the game ended 50 - 45 in favour of the home team.

Van Breda converted all four of his team's tries and a further three penalties to bring his total tally to seventeen points.

The Kings are three points behind fourth placed SWD Eagles on 11 and three points ahead of sixth placed Sharks on 5.

The Kings will face the Eagles at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth on Saturday. Kick-off is at 3pm.

Scorers:

Free State (21) 50 - Tries:  Joubert Engelbrecht, JP du Plessis, Ludwig Erasmus, Sergeal Petersen (2) Shaun Venter, Zingisa April. Conversions: Niel Marais (6). Penalty: Ludwig Erasmus.

EP Kings (20) 45 - Tries: Luther Obi, Siviwe Soyizwapi,Tim Agaba, Tim Whitehead (2). Conversions: Scott van Breda (4). Penalties: Scott van Breda (3), Gary van Aswgen (1).

Rugby stands together against Xenophobia

The president of the South African Rugby Union (SARU) has called on the sport to mobilise in support of the campaign to end xenophobic attacks on foreign residents.

Mr Oregan Hoskins threw the weight of the sport into the public opposition to the outbreak of attacks in KwaZulu-Natal and Johannesburg that have shocked South Africa and the global community.

“Rugby shares the horror and dismay that has greeted these horrific attacks on people whose only aim is to make a better life for themselves and their families in a country that is supposed to be a watchword for tolerance and freedom,” said Mr Hoskins.

“Rugby is not a political organisation, and we cannot solve these problems, but we can add our voice to the rest of civic South Africa who are appalled at the violence and lack of humanity that these attacks have betrayed. “I would call on all those involved in rugby to make a stand in whatever small way they can to demonstrate that we abhor both the sentiment and the actions that have generated these disgraceful and shaming actions.”

Mr Hoskins said that he was discussing plans to make a more public statement from the sport over the coming days.

He said: “We join others in asking: is this the legacy that Nelson Mandela and so many others fought for in the struggle? Is this how we repay our African brothers who supported us in the fight for our own freedom? “The criminals and opportunists responsible for the violence and for fermenting intolerance have dragged the name of South Africa through the mud. We support the Government’s efforts to root them out and demonstrate that xenophobia has no home in South Africa.”

National captain Jean de Villiers added the voice of the Springboks to the president’s call.

“As international sportsmen we meet and play with and against people of many different nationalities,” said De Villiers. “It is a privilege that has enriched my life and that of all Springbok rugby players and this shocking outbreak is definitely not what Springbok rugby or we as South Africans represent. “I would add to the president’s call by asking everyone involved in rugby to add their voice to the opposition to these actions by it with a Tweet using the hashtag #sportagainstxenophobia, by positing to their Facebook page or just in conversation with everyone with whom they come into contact. We have to make it clear that these actions are not what South Africans stand for.”

Mr Hoskins added that he trusted that the national outpouring of outrage against the attacks would lead to an immediate end to the violence and tension.

Whitehead to lead the Kings against Cheetahs

The Eastern Province Kings made several injury-enforced changes to their starting lineup, which includes a new captain and vice-captain, to face the Free State Cheetahs in Bloemfontein on Saturday evening.

Centre Tim Whitehead will captain the side after he replaced Shane Gates, who left the field on Saturday against Western Province with an ankle injury. Helping him lead from the front will be hooker Edgar Marutlulle, who is taking over the vice-captaincy role from Tim Agaba.

"Tim is a player with good communication skills, he knows how to communicate with other players and he is a strong character and comfortable with all the players."

“The same applies to Edgar. We feel he will be able to communicate well with the ref and with the players,” said Kings coach Mzwandile Stick.

Changes to the backline sees, Scott van Breda, Luther Obi and Gary van Aswegen all making their return to the starting lineup. 

At fullback van Breda comes in for Sylvina Mahuza. Obi returns to the wing after recovering from an injury and flyhalf van Aswegen, who has made a full recovery from a concussion he picked up against Border, is fit to take up the pivot role replacing George Whitehead. 

There still remains uncertainty if Siyanda Grey will be fit to play after he battled with flu earlier in the week, if not, Siviwe Soyizwapi will start on the right wing.

Amongst the forwards, David Bulbring comes off the bench swopping places with Cameron Lindsay, with the latter moving to the bench. Prop Simon Kerrod replaces Tom Botha at tight head and Edgar Maruthlulle replaces Martin Ferreira at hooker. 

Kick-off is at 16:30 and will be televised live on Super Sport 210.

EP Kings:

15 Scott van Breda 14 Siyanda Grey/Siviwe Soyizwapi 13 Hansie Graaff 12 Tim Whitehead (capt) 11 Luther Obi 10 Gary van Aswegen 9 Jaco Grobler 8 Tim Agaba 7 Thembelani Bholi 6 Paul Schoeman 5 David Bulbring 4 Tazz Fuzani 3 Simon Kerrod 2 Edgar Marutlulle (v/c) 1 Lizo Gqoboka

Replacements:

16 Mike van Vuuren 17 Enoch Mnyaka/Vukile Sofisa 18 Cameron Lindsay 19 Stefan Willemse 20 Dylon Frylinck 21 Tony Jantjies 22 Ronnie Cooke

Province keep top spot after beating Kings

The DHL Western Province kept their unbeaten record intact when they faced the Eastern Province Kings in a round 5 Vodacom Cup match at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth on Saturday evening.

The home team outscored the visitors from Cape Town two tries to one, but a lack of discipline in the first half allowed Western Province to kick four penalties as they took a 12 - 5 lead at half time.

Province's flyhalf Jean-Luc du Plessis opened the scoring when he kicked a penalty in the 5th minute to give his team a 3 point lead.

The Kings suffered at the break down as a lack of players caused a number of turnovers early on. Dispite dominating at scrum time the Kings were battling at the lineouts losing out on scoring opportunities.

Du Plessis stretched Province's lead to 6 when he kicked his team's second penalty in the 30th minute.

Five minutes later Kings scored their first try through flyhalf George Whitehead, after continuous pressure on Province's try line. Whitehead missed the extras as they trailed 5 - 6 with five minutes to half time.

Province stretched their lead to four points as du Plessis kicked another penalty a minute from half time, taking a 9 - 5 lead.

Numerous warnings from the referee resulted in a yellow card as Kings hooker, Martin Ferreira, was sin binned on half time. Du Plessis kicked his fourth penalty as Province took a 12 - 5 lead at half time.

Replacement Scott van Breda kicked the Kings' second penalty ten minutes into the second half, as they trailed 8 - 12 on the 50th minute.

The Kings took the lead for the first time after a chip kick from Hansie Graaff was gathered by fullback Sylvian Mahuza, the conversion was missed by van Breda as they took a 13 - 12 lead with a quarter of the game remaining.

Province piled on the pressure as the game reached the final stages and eventually regained the lead after they camped on the Kings' try line. Scrumhalf Godlen Masimla stepped his way over the try line for their first points in the second half. Du Plessis was on target as he added the extras to give Province a 19 - 13 lead with ten minutes to play.

The Kings had one last opportunity in the dying seconds as they gained precious meters deep inside Province's twenty two. Graaff tried to put the ball behind the Province defense but rolled into the in-goal as the ball was dotted down after the final hooter. 

The game ended 19 - 13 as Province keep their unbeaten record and the top spot in the South Section.

Scorers:

EP Kings: (5) 13 - Tries George Whitehead, Sylvian Mahuza. Penalty Scott van Breda.

DHL Western Province: (12) 19 - Tries: Godlen Masimla. Conversion: Jean-Luc du Plessis. Penalties Jean-Luc Plessis (4).

New half-back pairing to face Province

The Eastern Province Kings have made five changes to their starting lineup to face the unbeaten Western Province in their Vodacom Cup clash at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth on Saturday evening.

At fullback Sylvain Mahuza returns to the starting lineup to replace Scott van Breda who moves to the bench.

A new half-back combination sees Jaco Grobler and George Whitehead replacing Kevin Luiters and Gary van Aswegen respectively. Grobler is a straight swop with Luiters who moves to the bench and Van Aswegen is still unavailable after he left the field against Border with a concussion.

In the front row, Tom Botha replaces Simon Kerrod and Lizo Gqoboka swop places with Charles Marais who drops to the bench.

David Bullbring and Tim Whitehead are the only newcomers to the bench.

Kick-off is at 7pm.

EP Kings:

15 Sylvian Mahuza 14  Siviwe Soyizwapi 13  Hansie Graaff 12. Shane Gates (C) 11 Siyanda Grey 10 George Whitehead 9 Jaco Grobler 8 Tim Agaba (VC) 7 Thembelani Bholi 6 Paul Schoeman 5 Cameron Lindsay 4 Tazz Fuzani 3 Tom Botha 2 Martin Ferreira 1 Lizo Gqoboka

Replacements:

16 Edgar Marutlulle 17 Charles Marais 18 David Bullbring 19 Stefan Willemse 20 Kevin Luiters 21 Tim Whitehead 22 Scott van Breda

Bonus point win for Kings

The Eastern Province Kings traveled to East London on Friday to face the Border Bulldogs in their second Vodacom Cup match at the BCM Stadium.

The Kings can feel satisfied with the outcome as they scored two tries in each half to secure a 27 - 17 bonus point win.

Kings flyhalf, Gary van Aswegen opened the scoring for the visitors as he kicked a penaltly in the opening minutes to take a 3 - 0 lead after just three minutes.

Kings flank, Paul Schoeman scored their first try ten minutes later, after Border were reduced to fourteen men when Wandile Putuma received a yellow card. Van Aswegen was unsuccessful with the conversion as they took an 8 - 0 lead after fifteen minutes.

Ten minutes later the Kings were in for their second try, this time through prop Simon Kerrod. Kings extended their lead to 15 - 0 after a successful conversion from van Aswegen.

Border's flyhalf, Masixole Banda kicked a penalty just before half time to take the score to 15 - 3 at the break.

The Kings scored a further two tries in the second half, including a hat-trick from Schoeman and their bonus point fourth try in the sixty sixth minute.

Schoeman scored his second and the Kings' third try ten minutes into the second half. Van Aswegen failed to add the extras as they took a seventeen point lead, 20 - 3.

Border's Ntando Kebe scored his team's first try at the end of the third quarter, Banda converted as they trailed 10 - 20 with twenty minutes to play.

Schoeman scored his third and Kings' fourth try in the sixty sixth minute, Scott van Breda added the extras as the Kings took a seventeen point lead with fifteen minutes to play.

Border's Sipho Nofemele scored a consolation try for his team as the game reached the final stages. Olivier Zono converted the try to take the score to 27 - 17 in the seventy sixth minute.

Zono had an opportunity to give his team a losing bonus point, but failed to kick the three points on offer as the game ended 27 - 17 in favour of the Kings.

Scorers:

EP Kings (15) 27 - Tries: Simon Kerrod, Paul Scoeman (3). Conversions: Gary van Awegen (1), Scott van Breda (1). Penalty: van Aswgen

Border (3) 17 - Tries: Ntando Kebe, Sipho Nofemele. Conversions: Masixole Banda, Olivier Zono. Penalty: Banda

Shane Gates warns not to underestimate Border

Eastern Province captain, Shane Gates warned that his team must not underestimate the Border Bulldogs in their second Vodacom Cup match when they travel to East London for Friday night's match.

"We know that we must never underestimate Border, and we need to be much more clinical because they will feed off our mistakes,” Gates said.

“We know to improve we have to focus on what we do well and we have received positive feedback from the coaches this week.”

The Bulldogs suffered a heavy defeat at the hands of the Sharks XV last week and head coach, Mzwandile Stick acknowledged the threat Border posed and said the home side would have a point to prove against the Kings.

“We know what to expect from Border and they will come hard at us because they will want to prove a point in this derby,” Stick said.

“We were disappointed with our loss against Griquas, but we know we are better than that.

“We have put that match behind us and now we want to pick up the intensity and get our game back to a level where we know we belong.

“We know we need to finish things better and we are working on that because we firmly believe we have the capability to do better.”

Kick-off is at 7:10pm.

Disappointing end to Madibaz Varsity Cup campaign

The FNB NMMU-Madibaz exited the FNB Varsity Cup presented by Steinhoff International after going down 40-8 against log leaders FNB Tuks in the final round-robin fixture at the NMMU Madibaz Stadium in Port Elizabeth on Monday night.

 

Madibaz head coach David Maidza said the focus of the season was for the young squad tolearn and grow.

 

“I went into the Varsity Cup with the belief that it would take a few games for us to really come together as a team.

 

“As the tournament wore on, I realised that we lacked a couple of things that we needed to work and improve on.”

 

He said that, as a young squad, they had understandably been slightly behind some of the other more established teams in technical and tactical terms.

 

“We learned a lot of good lessons from this tournament that we can implement going forward,”said Maidza.

 

With a number of the Madibaz’s senior players graduating, Maidza said he and the othercoaches were forced to take a long-term look at the team’s growth.

 

“I think we’ve done the right thing in investing in the youngsters.”

 

He said they were still dreaming of lifting the cup one day and will once again be pushing hard from next season.

 

“I think the structures that we’ve put in place bode well for NMMU’s future as long as the students keep on putting in the hard yards.

 

“I’m excited about the future and hopefully we can retain the nucleus of this team for next year’s campaign.”

 

The Madibaz are set to participate in the Eastern Province Grand Challenge club competition, which starts in April.

 

“It is an opportunity for us to start building again and we are just hoping that we can put our structures in place to really use the campaign to our advantage ahead of next year’s Varsity Cup.”

Despatch's unbeaten record comes to an end

SA Home Loans Durban Collegians ended GAP Management Despatch's unbeaten record on Saturday when the beat the log leaders 41 - 30 at the WJ de Wet Stadium in Despatch.

The visitors from Durban took a one point lead into the half time break, having scored three first half tries. Fredie Horn scored the first and right wing Kyle Hartley scored the other two, Duncan Campbell converted two and Brendan Cope the other one.

Despatch also scored three first half tries and one penalty. Billy Mintoor scored two tries and Dyllan Lamprecht the third, Ryan Brown was only successful with one of the conversions. 

Despatch fullback Justin Peach added a penalty kick just before halftime as Despatch trailed 20 - 21 at the break.

Cope scored fifteen points for Collegians in the second half, which included a try, two penalties and two conversions. Brendon Groenewald scored the other second half try for Collegians.

Despatch could only manage to score a late try and a penalty through replacement Francois Nel as the scores ended 41 - 30 in favour of the visitors.

Despite the loss, Despatch still stays top of the log on sixteen points as Durban Collegians ends in second place on fifteen along with Wesbank, but because they have equal amount of log points it is actually the team from Boland that qualifies for the play-offs. Unfortunately the rules states that, should two teams be tied on log points, it is the winner of the match between those two sides who will advance.

Despatch will play Vaseline Wanderers in the quarter final on the 2nd of April. Kick-off is at 2pm and the match will be televised live on Super Sport.

Scorers:

GAP Management Despatch (20) 30 - Tries: Billy Montoor (2), Dyllan Lamprecht, Francois Nel. Conversions: Ryan Brown (1), Francois Nel (1). Penalties: Justin Peach (1), Francois Nel (1).

SA Home Loans Durban Collegians (21) 41 - Tries: Kyle Hartley (2), Ferdie Horn, Brendon Groenewald, Brendan Cope. Conversions: Duncan Campbell (2), Brendan Cope (3). Penalties: Brendan Cope (2).

Kings to face Bulldogs

The Eastern Province Kings have made a few changes to their side that went down 19 - 27 to the Griquas at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth on the weekend.

The Kings have made five changes to their starting lineup and a further four to their bench for their away fixture against neighbouring Border Bulldogs at the BCM Stadium in East London on Friday.

The only change to the backline sees Scott van Breda replacing Sylvian Mahuza at fullback.

The tight five looks slightly different to the one that played Griquas, Cameron Lindsay replaces David Bulbring, Simon Kerrod comes in for Tom Botha and Charles Marais comes off the bench to swop places with Lizo Gqoboka. The only other change to the pack sees Paul Schoeman replacing Eital Bredenkamp on the flank.

Cornell Hess will look to made his debut for the Kings off the bench if he gets an opportunity to play on Friday. He played for the Bulls during 2010 and 2013, where he made thirty nine appearances for their Vodacom Cup and Currie Cup squads, and will provide cover at lock.

Ronnie Cooke also returns to the squad alongside Edgar Marutlulle and Stefan Willemse.

Kick-off is at 7.10pm.

EP Kings: 

15 Scott van Breda 14 Siviwe Soyizwapi 13 Hansie Graaff 12 Shane Gates (C) 11 Siyanda Grey 10 Grary van Aswegen 9 Kevin Luiters 8 Tim Agaba 7 Thembelani Bholi 6 Paul Schoeman 5 Cameron Lindsay 4 Tazz Fuzani 3 Simom Kerrod 2 Martin Ferreira 1 Charles Marais

Replacements: 

16 Edgar Marutlulle 17 Lizo Gqoboka 18 Cornell Hess 19 Stefan Willemse 20 Jaco Grobler 21 George Whitehead 21 Ronnie Cooke