Friday 27 February 2015

Madibaz make strategic changes

The FNB NMMU Madibaz have opted to make strategic wholesale changes to their side to face FNB UJ in Port Elizabeth on Monday night, after their 40 - 13 defeat to FNB UCT in Cape Town earlier this week. 

The bulk of the 23-man squad will remain more or less the same, but we will see some rotational changes as only six players keep their starting positions.

"Although we put in a good effort earlier this week, we were weaker than UCT on the night and some changes had to be made," said Madibaz head coach David Maidza.

The only unchanged positions to the backline are, captain and fullback Jarryd Buys, right wing Tythan Adams and inside centre Devon Lailvaux. Unchanged positions up front are vice captian and flank CJ Velleman, locks Rob Louw and Paul Tyler and prop Arno Ebersohn.

Changes to the backline sees, Yamkela Ngam returning to the starting xv replacing Brian Skosana on the wing, who returns to the bench. Michael Bernardt replaces Andile Jho at outside centre, Steven Hansel and Ivan Ludick replaces Ruan Allerston and Daniel Acker at flyhalf and scrumhalf respectively.

Up front, eighthman Andisa Ntsila takes over from Ivan-John du Preez, Jody Reneke replaces Stephen Zaayman on the flank and Warrick Venter and Brendan Olivier replaces Dane van der Westerhuizen and Steven Robesson at hooker and prop.

Rudolph Odendaal also returns to the bench after recovering from a knock to his shin.

In response to their loss against Ikeys on Monday night, Maidza said the team had been working consistently to improve their form ahead of the next game.
 
“We have to work on our attack strategy for the next game and just keep pushing to see results.”
 
Maidza said he was confident that the Madibaz squad were preparing well ahead of Monday’s match.
 
“UJ will definitely be tough opposition, without a shadow of a doubt. But we just have to back ourselves and make sure our accuracy and discipline are top notch. If we do that, we should decrease our errors by at least 30 per cent and be well-placed.”

Kick-off will be at 7pm.

FNB NMMU Madibaz:

15 Jarryd Buys (c) 14 Tythan Adams 13 Michael Bernardt 12 Devon Lailvaux 11 Yamkela Ngam 10 Steven Hansel 9 Ivan Ludick 8 Andisa Ntsila 7 Jody Reyneke 6 CJ Velleman (vc) 5 Rob Louw 4 Paul Tyler 3 Brendan Olivier 2 Warrick Venter 1 Arno Ebersohn

Replacements:

16 Dane van der Westerhuizen 17 Steven Robesson 18 Rudolph Odendaal 19 Stephen Zaayman 20 Daniel Acker 21 Andile Jho 22 Brian Skosana 23 Marzuq Maarman.

EP Kings secure the services of Obi and Mahuza

The Eastern Province Kings have, after extended negotiations with the Leopards, secured the services of up and coming backline stars Luther Obi and Sylvian Mahuza.

EP Kings CEO, Charl Crous said following the commercial agreement between the two unions both Obi and Mahuza, who have been in Nelson Mandela Bay since January, would be released by the Leopards and contracted to the Kings. They will also both be included in the EP Kings Vodacom Cup squad.

“We are pleased that we have been able to finalise these negotiations and that an amicable solution has been found for all parties, with both Luther and Sylvian now being part of the Kings family,” Crous said.

Crous said Eastern Province Rugby Union President, Cheeky Watson, and Leopards Rugby Union President, André May, had been in constant contact to negotiate the transfer of the players.

“At no point was there any malicious intent or deliberate acts to poach players from the Leopards and we are really grateful to the Leopards for their willingness to engage us and assist in finding a way to resolve this matter amicably,” he said.

Obi, now 21, is originally from Nigeria but played most of his youth rugby for the Golden Lions, representing them in the U13 Craven Week and the U16 Grant Khomo competitions.

In 2012 he joined the Leopards and played for them in the u19 Provincial Championship, finishing as the third highest points scorer with ten tries to his name. The following year he joined the NWU Pukke for his debut in the Varsity Cup.

His first class debut came in 2013, when he ran out for the Leopards in their 2013 Currie Cup First Division match against the Falcons. That same year he was also selected to play for the SA U20 side, scoring four tries in five appearances. Last year Obi was also part of the Lions wider Super Rugby training squad.

Mahuza, also 21, hails from George and represented the SWD Eagles in the U16 Grant Khomo competition as well as representing them in the U18 Craven Week competition for two years in a row in 2010 and 2011.

After school he moved to Potchefstroom, where he joined the Leopards and also represented NWU Pukke in Varsity Cup alongside Obi.

Mahuza was also selected for the wider training squad for the SA U20 side in 2013 and played against the Argentinean side ahead of the tournament, but failed to make the final squad for the IRB Junior World Championship.

His first class debut was alongside Obi in the 2013 Currie Cup First Division match for the Leopards against the Falcons. During last year’s Currie Cup First Division tournament (2014) he was joint top try scorer with Obi, with each player scoring 10 tries a piece in the competition.


Wednesday 25 February 2015

Defence coach off to France

The EP Kings have confirmed that recently re-appointed Defence Coach, Omar Mouneimne, and the Kings have parted ways.

EP Kings CEO, Charl Crous, said he was disappointed in Mouneimne’s decision to take up a consultation coaching position at Lyon in France, after having already made a firm commitment to the EP Kings.

“When Omar approached us last year, after leaving Edinburgh in Scotland for personal reasons, we were excited to have him back as part of our coaching structures,” Crous said.

Crous said Mouneimne had played a crucial role in the Southern Kings defence in the 2013 competition and the Kings were looking forward to his input with the preparations for the 2015 Vodacom Cup and Currie Cup seasons, as well as in the build up to re-entry into Super Rugby next year. Crous said with this in mind Mouneimne had entered into a multi-year contract with the Kings.

“Without going into detail, Omar had indicated that he was in the process of resolving the issues that had led to him leaving Edingburgh and returning to South Africa.

“Unfortunately those same issues have now resulted in his decision to leave the Kings and South Africa and take up the position in Lyon.”

Crous said the Kings were in consultation with their attorneys with respect to the existing contract with Mouneimne and were considering pursuing their legal options.

Crous said he was positive that Mouneimne’s departure would not impact on the team’s performance during the Vodacom Cup competition. He said the Kings are in discussions with potential candidates to take over Mouneimne’s role as defence coach.

Tuesday 24 February 2015

Maidza optimistic about chances in competition

The FNB NMMU Madibaz moved down two spots to sixth place after a 40 - 13 defeat by the defending champions, FNB UCT, at the Green Mile in Cape Town on a windy Monday evening.  

Despite the team’s loss, Madibaz head coach David Maidza remained positive about his team’s efforts and optimistic about their chances in the competition.

"We have to give credit to UCT, they played better on the night and they handled the wind factor better than we did," said Maidza.
 
"I thought the boys really put in a sterling performance. Taking into account that we have a young squad, I think there really was great effort from the team."
 
“There was no lacking in putting their bodies on the line on the night,” he added.

According to Maidza, the team did not start out as well as they could have from the whistle, which proved to be one of their major downfalls during the match.
 
“Also not leading at half-time with the wind at our backs definitely did not assist our force,” said Maidza.
 
He said there were a few minor technical issues the team would need to tighten up on come the fourth round of the tournament.
 
“We couldn’t stop UCT’s ball well and their scrums were very well structured, so they were solid up front. This is something we need to work on doing for next week’s game.
 
“But the boys have been improving with every match and they really did put in a fantastic effort on Monday.”
 
Maidza said the team just needed to keep looking ahead to the next match and finding ways to improve their game.
 
“We need to regroup and come out fighting again. Our next game is at home and we need to take advantage of that,” he said.

FNB UP-Tuks are currently top of the log on 13, followed by FNB UFS Shimlas on 12, FNB UJ and FNB NWU-Pukke on 9 each and FNB UCT on 8. Madibaz and FNB Maties are both on 6 points, but Maties are 7th on the log due to points difference. FNB CUT is currently 8th with no log points. 

Madibaz have scored 73 points and conceded 89 from 3 games, scored 11 tries and conceded 13 with a total of 6 log points which includes 2 bonus points.

Madibaz will face FNB UJ at the NMMU Stadium in Port Elizabeth on the 2nd of March at 7pm. 

Home ground advantage for Police and Despatch

Round 2 of the Cell C Community Cup kicks off this Saturday at 2:15pm with Pool Bs Jonsson College Rovers against BB Truck &Tractor Noordelikes at Kings Park in Durban.

The featured match of the weekend will be between Pool Cs Hamiltons and Vaseline Wanderers at the Stephan Oval in Green Point, the match will be televised live on SuperSport 1 from 2:30pm.

The two Nelson Mandela Bay based teams will both enjoy home ground advantage on Saturday, as Don's Pawn Shop PE Police face Kempston Old Selbornians at Kemsley Park in Port Elizabeth and GAP Management Despatch face Wesbank at the WJ de Wet Stadium in Despatch.

Fixtures for Round 2: (games to start at 4pm unless otherwise stated)

Pool A –
Don’s Pawn Shop PE Police vs Kempston Old Selbornians (Kemsley Park, Port Elizabeth)               
Durbanville-Bellville vs East Rand Cranes Springs (Durbanville-Bellville Rugby Club, Cape Town)                  
Pool B –
Jonsson College Rovers vs BB Truck & Tractor Noordelikes (KP10, Kings Park, Durban,14h15)      
Berlesell Bloemfontein Crusaders vs Pretoria Police (Clive Solomon Stadium, Heidedal) 

Pool C –
One Logix United Bulk Villagers Worcester vs Aveng Moolmans Sishen (Boland Park, Worcester)
Hamiltons vs Vaseline Wanderers (Stephan Oval, Green Point, 14h30 – live on SuperSport 1/HD)              
Pool D –
GAP Management Despatch vs Wesbank (WJ de Wet Stadium, Despatch)                                           
SA Home Loans Durban Collegians vs J&F Reclaiming Rovers Welkom (KP10, Kings Park, Durban) 

Byes: Rustenburg Impala (A), Raiders (B), Evergreens (C), Ferros (D)

Monday 23 February 2015

Tough defeat for Madibaz

The FNB NMMU Madibaz failed to impress on last week's performance when they faced the defending champions, FNB UCT, at the UCT Rugby Fields in Cape Town last night.

Madibaz were still in the game at half time, trailing 8 - 16, but three second half tries secured a well deserved 40 - 13 win for the Ikey Tigers.

Ikeys opened the scoring through flyhalf Warren Seals in the seventh minute, Seals converted his try to give the home team an 8 - 0 lead.

Madibaz drew level after continual pressure in the red zone resulted in a penalty try for the visitors, Ruan Allerston converted, 8 all after thirty minutes.

Ikeys scrumhalf, James Alexander put UCT back in front when he crossed the line for his team's second try, Seals converted as they took a 16 - 8 lead into the half time break.

Ikeys eightman and captain, Guy Alexander scored early in the second half to extend his team's lead to sixteen points after another successful conversion by Seals, 24 - 8.

Flank, Jason Klaasen scored the bonus point try for the Tigers in the fiftieth minute, Seals added the extras as Ikeys took a comfortable 32 - 8 lead.

Replacement hooker, Warrick Venter scored Madibaz' second try five minutes from full time, after Ikeys were reduced to fourteen men when Chad Solomans received a yellow card a few minutes earlier. Jarred Buys failed with the conversion as Madibaz trailed 13 - 32.

UCT managed to score a fifth try on full time, through Luke Stringer, Seals added the extras as the game ended 40 - 13. 

The loss sees Madibaz drop down two places to sixth on the log.

Scorers:

FNB UCT (16) 40 - Tries: Warren Seals, James Alexander, Guy Alexander, Jason Klaasen, Luke Stringer. Conversions: Seals (5)

FNB NMMU Madibaz (8) 13 - Tries: Penalty try, Warrick Venter. Conversion: Ruan Allerston (1)


Sunday 22 February 2015

Defending champs too strong for PE Police

Don’s Pawn Shop PE Police had their first taste of the Cell C Community Cup when they faced the defending champions, Rustenburg Impala, at the Impala Rugby Club in Rustenburg on Saturday.

Despite a surprising 10 point lead at halftime from the visiting “newcomers”, the home team scored five second half tries to record a 36 – 22 win.

Police scored the first points, after Impala’s Wolco de Wet failed with an early penalty attempt, through flyhalf Juan Smit when he crossed the tryline for his team’s first try. Smit also converted his try as they took a seven point lead at the end of the first quarter.

Smit extended their lead just before halftime when he kicked a penalty to give his team a 10 – 0 lead at the break.

De Wet brought the Impala’s within 3 points after he scored and converted his try five minutes into the second half, 7 – 10.

Police’ right wing, Sebastian Loxsen, scored a minute later to stretch their lead to 15 – 7 after Smit failed to add the extras.

Impala’s struck back with four unanswered tries, two of them while Police were reduced to fourteen men, after Loxsen received a yellow card in the fifty-fifth minute.

Scrumhalf Willem Kok scored the first, followed by eigthman Leon du Plesis. De Wet converted both of them as they took the lead for the first time, 21 – 15. Right wing Morne Jooste scored his team’s bonuspoint try, de Wet converted as they stretched their lead to 28 – 15.

Jooste scored his second and his team’s fifth try as the game reached the final quarter, de Wet missed the conversion but took a convincing 33 – 15 lead with ten minutes left.

With time running out, Police’ fullback Fabian Juries, scored his team’s third try with five minutes remaining, Smit converted as they trailed by ten, 22 – 33.

De Wet kicked a last minute penalty to give the Impala’s a 36 – 22 win.

Scorers:

Rustenburg Impala (36) – Tries: Wilco de Wet, Willem Kok, Leon du Plesis, Morne Jooste (2). Conversions: Wilco de Wet (4). Penalty: Wilco de Wet

PE Police (22) – Tries: Juan Smit, Sebastian Loxsen, Fabian Juries. Conversion: Juan Smit (2). Penalty: Juan Smit

Bonus point win for Despatch

A try-fest in Welkom saw GAP Management Despatch score 9 of the 13 tries beating J&F Reclaiming Rovers Welkom 69 – 32 in their opening round match, at the Rovers Rugby Club in Welkom on Saturday.

Despatch scored four first half tries, and a further five in the second half with a hat-trick from replacement scrumhalf, Kalvano King.

Despatch took an early lead through two Francois Nel penalties, before Micheal Vermaak crossed the line for their first try. Nel was successful with the conversion as they took a 13 – 0 lead after twelve minutes.

Rovers’ flyhalf, Tiaan van Wyk, added his team’s first points through a penalty, as they trailed 3 – 13 after the first quarter.

Rovers drew level after scoring a quick ten points, as outside centre Jan Bezuidenhout slotted a drop goal, followed by a Wayne Ludick try. Van Wyk added the extras as scores were level at 13 all with ten minutes to half time.

Despatch, however, scored three unanswered tries, picking up their bonus point and taking a comfortable 34 – 13 half time lead.

Lock, Trichardt van Tonder scored the first followed by Elroy Ligman and Vermaak, who scored his second try of the day. Nel was successful with all three conversions.

Rovers went down to fourteen men when hooker, Gerhard Klopper, received a red card from referee Lourens van der Merwe.

Right wing, Cameron Jacobs, scored his team’s fifth try, Nel was on target as Despatch took a 41 – 13 lead.

Inside centre, Shaun Nieuwenhuyzen, scored his first try and Rovers’ second towards the end of the third quarter. Van Wyk converted as they trailed 20 – 41.

Replacement scrumhalf, Kalvano King scored the first of his three tries halfway through the second half, Nel was on target as Despatch stretched their lead to 20 – 48.

Nieuwenhuyzen scored his second try minutes later, van Wyk was successful with yet another conversion as Rovers trailed 48 – 27 after 65 minutes.

King scored back-to-back tries as he picked up a hat-trick, Nel added the extras as they took 62 – 27 lead with ten minutes remaining.

Nieuwenhuyzen also scored his hat-trick and his team’s bonus point try as the match reached the final stages, van Wyk failed to add the extras as Impala trailed 32 – 62.

Replacement prop, Elrich Kock scored Despatch’s final try to give them an overwhelming 69 – 32 win.

The win sees Despatch take the top spot in Group D.

Scorers:

J&F Reclaiming Rovers Welkom (32) – Tries: Shaun Nieuwenhuyzen (3), Wayne Ludick. Conversions: Tiaan van Wyk (3). Penalty: van Wyk. Drop Goal: Jan Bezuidenhout

GAP Management Despatch (69) – Tries: Michael Vermaak (2), Cameron Jacobs, Trichardt van Tonder, Kalvano King (3), Elroy Ligman, Elrich Kock. Conversions: Francois van Wyk (9). Penalties: Nel (2)

Friday 20 February 2015

Madibaz to face Ikeys

FNB NMMU Madibaz will travel to Cape Town this coming week, where they will face the defending FNB Varsity Cup champions UCT on Monday.

NMMU's captain, Jarryd Buys, will also make his return to the starting XV after missing the first two matches, and his presence will definitely bolster the Madibaz against a tough Ikeys side.

Madibaz head coach David Maidza welcomed Buys's return and said his leadership would help to guide the players in the right direction.

"I feel like we are gaining momentum as a team in this competition and I don't want to make too many changes to the squad at this point," said Maidza.

Madibaz, however, did make some strategic reshuffling to accommodate Buys at fullback.

Stand-in fullback Tythan Adams will return to his natural position at right wing, while acting captain CJ Velleman will slot back into the vice-captaincy.

Andisa Ntsila will be sitting out the next game due to a slight concussion, with Ivan-John du Preez moving off the bench to claim the number eight spot.

Brian Skosana will move from right to left wing, replacing Yamkela Ngam, who will be absent from the game due to a slight knock.

Devon Lailvaux holds onto the inside centre at number 12, while Andile Jho returns from his rest to start at outside centre.

Creswin Josephs moves to the bench for next week's game, while Stephan Zaayman gets his start ahead of Wynand Grassman, who joins the replacements.

Jody Reyneke will return from his three-week layoff to reclaim his position as utility forward, and Khaya Malotana will also come in to cover the backs on the bench.

Maidza said he was happy with the way the players were improving as a team and working diligently to advance their game strategies.

"We are satisfied to have claimed victory this week, but there are still many tasks ahead and we need to constantly push to perform better than we did in the last game if we want to succeed in this tournament."

FNB Madibaz:

15 Jarryd Buys (captain) 14 Tythan Adams 13 Andile Jho 12 Devon Lailvaux 11 Brian Skosana 10 Ruan Allerston 9 Daniel Acker 8 Ivan-John Du Preez 7 Stephan Zaayman 6 CJ Velleman (vc) 5 Rob Louw 4 Paul Tyler 3 Steven Robesson 2 Dane van der Westerhuizen 1 Arno Ebersohn

Replacements:

16 Warrick Venter 17 Brenden Olivier 18 Wynand Grassman 19 Jody Reyneke 20 Ivan Ludick 21 Crerswin Josephs 22 Khaya Malotana 23 Marzuq Maarman

Thursday 19 February 2015

Tough weekend awaits Police and Despatch

A tough opener awaits "newcomers" PE Police as they are set to face the 2014 Cell C Community Cup Champions, Rustenburg Impala's, in Rustenburg this weekend.

Police qualified for this year's Community Cup play-offs, after they finished as the second highest non-university team in the 2014 Grand Challenge. 

They secured their place in the Community Cup after beating East London Police 35 - 24 and Mossel Bay Barbarians 71 - 14.

Police will form part of Group A alongside, Kempston Old Selbornians, Durbanville-Bellville and Rustenburg Impala's.

The 2013 champions, GAP Management Despatch will travel to Welkom where they will face last year's Griffons 1st League champions, J&F Reclaiming Welkom Rovers.

Despactch is grouped in Pool D along with Wesbank, Shumba Ferros and J&F Reclaiming Welkom Rovers.

Squads

GAP Management Despatch:

Ashwill Romano Adams, Elandre Basson, Jacobus Christiaan Bekker Deon Booysen, Ryan Clifford  Brown, Selvyn Davids, Dalton Davis, Basil Joseph de Doncker, Stephan Deyzel, Robert James Dyer, Sinjin Storm Greyvenstein, Tashrique Heame, Cameron Luciono Jacobs, Kalvano Xenito King, Elrich Kock, Morne Labschagne, Dyllan Lamprecht, Marlon Shaun Lewis, Elroy John Ligman, Lesley-Dean Luiters, Siviwe Willmot Magaba, Baldwin Jonathan Henry McBean, Dumisani Meslane, Elcordo Mintoor, Aluzant Gordon Munnik, Elandre Nel, Hendrik Francois Nel, Ayanda Nogampula, Justin Peach, Wilton Jermaine Pietersen, Deon Marcellino Plaaitjies, Rosseau Prinsloo, Robert Slabbert, Morne George Strydom, Jason Pieter Strydom, Jaco Rayno Swanepoel, Jacobus Stephanus van der Westhuiszen, Armand van Rooyen, Hendrick Trichardt van Tonder, Darren van Winkel, Maichael Vermaak, Ashley Viviers, Andile Witbooi

Don's Pawn Shop PE Police:

Dewald Barnard, Divan Barnard, Jaco Bernardo, Andrew Peter Burkett, Wessel Christian Ebersohn, Raynard Fourie, Frans Antonie Gerber, Ferdinand Adriaan Gerber, Quintin Wien Haasbroek, Johannes Frederik Huisaman, Echard Jacobs, Alwyn Jordaan, Fabian Mark Juries, Dwayne Steven Kinghorn, Arno Ben Kleynhans, Daniel Francois le Roux, Lyle Lombard, Roger Hilton Louis, Sebastian Elton Loxsen, Christo Andries Memanie, Marius Muller, Francois Nel, Kevin Christopher Plaatjies, Petrus Jacobus Pretorius, Daren Prince, Ronald Gerald Scheckle, Jeremy Garry Sebia, Juan Edmund Smit, Elandre Smit, Leon Smit, Ruan Stander, Morne May Van As, Warren Ron Van Eck, Wayne van Heerden, Cornelius Van Vuuren, Jean-Luke Armand van Zyl, Tiaan Vermaak, Khyle-Reece Verwey, Daniel Vosloo, Lyle Anthony Jacob Walters, Chris Zeelie, Dean Zonneveld

Mouneimne a wanted man

Eastern Province Rugby CEO, Charl Crous confirmed reports that Kings Defence Coach, Omar Mouneimne, has been approached by French team Lyon OU to possibly assist them on a consultancy basis. 

“At this point in time nothing has been confirmed and there is no agreement in place with Lyon. Omar played a valuable role in making the Southern Kings one of the toughest teams defensively in the 2013 Super Rugby competition, and we can already see the positive impact that his return has had on the team,” said Crous.

Crous said Mouneimne, who is personal friends with Lyon’s manager Tim Lane, had confirmed that he had been contacted by Lane regarding assisting on a consultancy basis.

“We are discussing the matter with him and these talks are ongoing. We will comment further once these talks have been finalised,” he said.

Wednesday 18 February 2015

Maidza satisfied with Madibaz performance

FNB NMMU Madibaz picked up a convincing 34 - 13 bonus point win against "newcomers" FNB CUT at the NMMU Stadium on Monday evening.

Dispite his team's five yellow cards, Madibaz head coach David Maidza said he was mostly satisfied with his team’s performance.

"We are very glad to have taken the five points on the board, it was ultimately what we were wanting out of the game,” said Maidza.

Maidza said he would confer with the match officials to identify areas of poor discipline that needed to be addressed, after they received five yellow cards and reduced to twelve players at one stage.

Maidza added he was glad to have the first win of the season under the belt, but felt that there was still room for improvement.
 
“We did not convert early pressure to points, which is us not being composed and not sticking to our game plan.”

The coach commended his men on their marked improvement since last week’s match when they were defeated 36-26 by the FNB NWU-Pukke.
 
“We definitely improved on our tackling compared to last week. We did improve in our attacks, although we were not urgent with our forwards coming around the rucks.
 
“We must be more ruthless in punishing the mistakes of the other team early on in the game, especially in this competition where one game can make all the difference to your position on the log.”
 
After Monday night’s match, the Madibaz have moved up from second last into fourth place, only four points behind FNB Tuks who are at the top of the leader board.
 
“We’ve just got to keep hammering away, putting in good, decent performances, and making sure that we come away with favourable results every week.
 
“The boys just keep on improving in the way that they are learning to play as a team,” said Maidza.
 
The Madibaz are set to take on the FNB Ikeys at the UCT Rugby Fields in Cape Town on the 23rd of February at 6:30pm.

Monday 16 February 2015

Convincing bonus point win for Madibaz

Ill discipline was yet again the centre of attention when the FNB NMMU Madibaz faced the FNB CUT at the NMMU Stadium in Port Elizabeth last night.

The home team dominated throughout the match as they scored three first half and two second half tries, picking up a bonus point in the process, but five yellow cards in the last thirty minutes allowed CUT to score two tries as the game ended 34 - 13.

Madibaz scrumhalf, Enrico Acker scored his team's first try, fly half Ruan Allerston was unsuccessful to add the extra three as NMMU took an early 5 - 0 lead. 

 A few minutes later Acker was in yet again as he scored his second try of the evening, after Madibaz set up camp in the CUT half. Allerston was successful with adding the extras as they took a 13 - 0 lead after twenty minutes.

CUT captain, Frans Sisita was the first recipient of a yellow card after continues warnings from the referee resulted in him having to watch his team from the side line for ten minutes.

Madibaz made full use of the yellow card advantage as inside centre, Devon Lailvaux, scored his first try with less then ten minutes to half time. Allerston missed the conversion as NMMU took an 18 point lead.

Scores remained 18 - 0 as the teams went into the half time break.

Eight minutes into the second half, NMMU fullback Tythan Adams, crossed the line to score his team's bonus point try, Allerston added the extras as the game was pretty much over for the visitors at 26 - 0.

A silly off-the-ball incident saw two NMMU players yellow carded, with a third one two minutes later as the home team went down to twelve players.

Madibaz had to dig deep on defense as they kept CUT scoreless for twelve minutes.

With Madibaz back to full strength, Lailvaux scored his second and team's fifth try after a strong build up from the home team inside the vistor's 22. Replacement flyhalf, Steven Hansel was successful with the conversion as they took a 34 - 0 lead with less then a quarter to go.

NMMU was again on the receiving end of a yellow card, and this time CUT made full use as outside centre, Ali Mgijima, crossed the line for his team's first try. Flyhalf, Naude van Biljon missed with the conversion attempt, 34 - 5. 

A few minutes later CUT managed to score another five pointer, this time through left wing Masego Toolo. Replacement flyhalf, Jesse du Toit added the extra three.

For the second time in the match NMMU was reduced to 13 men as Adams received the sixth yellow card, but CUT was unable to add anything to the score board as the match ended 34 - 13.

The bonus point win sees Madibaz move up to fourth place on six points, one less then FNB UFS Shimlas on seven and two less then FNB NWU-Pukke and FNB UP-Tuks on eight each.

Scores:
FNB NMMU Madibaz (34) - Tries: Acker (2), Lailvaux (2), Adams. Conversions: Allerston (2), Hansel (1).

FNB CUT (13) - Tries: Mgijima, Toolo. Conversion: du Toit (1)

Friday 13 February 2015

A call to support Madibaz

FNB NMMU-Madibaz head coach, David Maidza has urged the PE public, especially NMMU students, to come out and support the Madibaz on their home turf.

"It means so much to the side and the whole sports bureau when the students and public are cheering them on in the stands on match day."

Maidza encouraged the public to support the university by purchasing a Madibaz season ticket package, which includes tickets to all the home games, a Varsity Cup shirt or vest, and VIP treatment at the matches.

"We would like to start a trend at NMMU that we have crowds turning out to support and enjoy the spectacle of not only rugby but all sporting codes." 

To purchase season tickets, phone the University Shop on  041 504 4371

Find Madibaz4U on Facebook and Twitter. 

Reshuffle for Madibaz in mid-field

FNB NMMU-Madibaz head coach, David Maidza has made a few changes to his side that went down to FNB NWU-Pukke on Monday.

Madibaz will face last year's Varsity Shield Champions, FNB CUT, in Port Elizabeth this coming Monday.

The changes include a reshuffle in the mid-field, with Devon Lailvaux moving from outside to inside centre to replace Andile Jho. Creswin Josephs will move to outside centre to replace Lailvaux.

On the bench, Stephan Zaayman will replace Rudolph Odendaal and Eben Barnard will come in for Brain Skosana that moves into the starting line-up.

In response to the team's opening round loss, Maidza said they were constantly working on improving their strategies.

"We have intimately looked at our shortcomings in the first game and there is still a lot of work to be done."

"We have been working on our attacks as well as our defence and are hoping that in the next game we put those strategies to work on the field." 

According to Maidza the team had a positive outlook and were working hard to put a good performance together ahead of Monday's tussle. 

Kick-off will be at 16:45.

FNB Madibaz: 

15 Tythan Adams 14 Brian Skosana 13 Creswin Josephs 12 Devon Lailvaux 11 Yamkela Ngam 10 Ruan Allerston 9 Daniel Acker 8 Andisa Ntsila 7 Wynand Grassman 6 CJ Velleman (capt) 5 Tyler Paul 4 Rob Louw 3 Steven Robesson 2 Dane van der Westerhuizen 1 Arno Ebersohn 

Replacements: 

16 Warrick Venter 17 Brenden Olivier 18 Stephan Zaayman 19 Ivan-John Du Preez 20 Ivan Ludick 21 Steven Hansel 22 Eben Barnard 23 Marzuq Maarman 

Madibaz remain positive dispite loss

The FNB NMMU-Madibaz came within a stone's throw away from beating the FNB NWU-Pukke at the Fanie du Toit Stadium in Potchefstroom on Monday night, after taking a three point lead with 10 minutes remaining.

The cards were, literally, stacked up against them as they received one red and one yellow, resulting in two tries in the final minutes and ultimately a ten point defeat at the hands of last year's losing finalist. 

Despite their 36 - 26 loss, head coach David Maidza said he was impressed with his squad's overall performance.
 
"Given that it was our first game as a team and with us having a young squad, especially upfront, I’m proud of what the boys put out," said Maidza.
 
"I have a feeling that Pukke will have another season with a really good pack this year and our forwards did well to stand up to that challenge."
 
"However, their mauls were very effective and that is where they killed us; we just didn’t get out of our own half." 

He said he would be speaking to his team about putting too much focus on defence and not enough on the attack.
 
"There were a couple of issues with our attack, I don’t think it was as precise as it should have been."
 
"I feel that if we had developed more discipline and not given away as many penalties for them to kick into the corner, we would have come out with a better result."
 
However, he said it was early in the season and there was still time to improve.
 
"The three main areas we will be working on ahead of the next game are our attack strategy and ball protection, the sharpness of our one-on-one defence and, of course, our exits."

Madibaz next game is at home against the visiting FNB CUT, but for Maidza it does not mean an advantage.

"It is another chance for us to make sure that we concentrate, improve on our strategy as a squad and keep getting better as the tournament progresses," he added.

Wednesday 11 February 2015

Castle Lager Super 14 Club Championship in its 3rd Round

Round 2 of the Castle Lager Super 14 Club Championship was played at the Adcock Stadium and Dan Qeqe over the weekend.

In Group A, Missionvale is leading the group on 9 points from 2 games. African Bombers are in second place on 7, St Marks third on 5 followed by Suburban on 4 and Gelvan Wallabies on 2 after two rounds. Glen Roses and Kwaru have both played one game each with no log points.

Group B sees PE Harlequins leading the group on 9 after two rounds, followed by Motherwell on 8 Parks on 6 and Young Collegians on 2. Helenvale and Zwide, after one round and Booysen Pride after two rounds are all on zero points.

Upcoming Fixtures:

14 February at the Wolsen:

14:00 - Kwaru vs Gelvan Wallabies
15:30 - Glen Roses vs Suburbans
17:00 - African Bombers vs St Marks
BYE - Missionvale

14 February at the Adcock:

14:00 - Zwide vs Young Collegians
15:30 - Helenvale vs Booysens Pride
17:00 - PE Harlequins vs Parks
BYE - Motherwell

Castle Lager to sponsor Super 14

Castle Lager has come on board as the new naming sponsor for the recently launched Super 14 competition, which enters its third week this week.

The sponsorship will see the tournament rebranded as the Castle Lager Super 14 Club Championship and includes match day clothing and equipment, valued at R5000, for the first place winner of the tournament.

“This really is a great opportunity for us and we are so pleased to welcome Castle Lager as the naming sponsor for the Super 14 competition,” said PE Metro Sub Union chairman, Stag Mitchell.

“We knew that there would be challenges in starting a new competition of this sort and funding is always a challenge, but it is something that we felt needed to be done and we had faith that local business would come out in support and that is exactly what Castle Lager have done,” said Mitchell.

Castle Lager EE and Events Manager for the Eastern Cape, Riaan van Jaarsveld, said Castle Lager had become involved in the tournament to give back to the community.

“We believe that sport plays a critical role in our society and can have a positive impact on individuals,” said Van Jaarsveld. 

 “One never knows where the next top player is going to come from and it is through tournaments like these that platforms are created for local talented individuals to showcase their skills and we are proud to be a part of that,” he said.

Van Jaarsveld said Castle Lager would also be promoting drinking responsibly during the tournament.

Tuesday 10 February 2015

Poor discipline cost Madibaz

The FNB NMMU Madibaz travelled to Potchefstroom to face the FNB NWU-Pukke in the opening round of this year’s FNB Varsity Cup at the Fanie du Toit Sport Grounds on Monday.

The match was well balanced throughout the better part of the 80 minutes, but poor discipline in the last 10 minutes saw Madibaz receive 1 red and 1 yellow card resulting in 13 points for the home team.

Pukke opened the scoring through their fullback, Rhyno Smith, in the 13th minute to take a 5 – 0 lead after the conversion was missed by Dillon Smit.

Five minutes later outside centre, Rowayne Beukman, broke through three NMMU defenders to score his teams second try, Smit missed his second attempt at adding the extras as Pukke took a 10 point lead after the first quarter.

NMMU captain, CJ Velleman, opened the scoring for the Madibaz after continual pressure from the visitors, Ruan Allerston failed with the conversion as they trailed 5 – 10 with 5 minutes to half time.

Jeandre Rudolph scored Pukke’s 3rd try on half time, Smith took over the kicking duties from Smit but was unsuccessful with his 1st attempt as Pukke took a 15 – 5 lead at the break.

Madibaz winger, Brian Skosana scored his team’s second try and with Allerston adding the extras he narrowed the deficit to just two points, 13  – 15.

Dalen Goliath scored the Pukke’s bonus point try to stretch their lead by 10 points, after Smith’ conversion.

Continued pressure from the Madibaz saw them score two tries to take a 3 point lead with 10 minutes of play left.

The first came through a Tythan Adams try, Allerston added the extra three points. Left wing, Yamkela Ngam scored the bonus point try after a good passage of play from the visitors, Allerston failed with the conversion as Madibaz took the lead for the first time with 10 minutes left, 26 – 23.

NMMU’s Skosana received his second yellow card of the match which resulted in a red. With Madibaz down to 14 men and Pukke deep inside their 22, a driving maul was just too much for the defense as Dean Stokes scored in the left hand corner, as Pukke took a two point lead after a missed conversion, 28 – 26.

Madibaz were again on the receiving end when eighth man, Andisa Ntsila, received a yellow card for collapsing the maul and the referee awarding a penalty try on the 80th minute.

Warren Gilbert added the extra three, to give the Pukke a 36 – 26 win.

Scoring four tries, means NMMU finished 7th after the first round, with only FNB CUT not  picking up any points. FNB UJ and Pukke topped the log with Maties, UCT, Shimlas and Tuks all drawing their respective matches.

Madibaz’ next game will be at home on Monday the 16th against FNB CUT.

 Scorers:

FNB NWU-Pukke – Tries: Rhyno Smith, Rowayne Beukman, Jeandre Rudolph, Dalen Golliath, Dean Stokes, Penalty try. Conversion: Smith (1)

FNB NMMU Madibaz – Tries: CJ Velleman, Brian Skosana, Tythan Adams, Yamkela Ngam. Conversion: Ruan Allerston (2)

Monday 9 February 2015

Kings accused of illegal poaching

EP Rugby CEO, Charl Crouse released the following statement after accusations of illegal poaching from the Leopards Rugby Union. 

“When EP Rugby engaged with Obi and Mahuza via their agent, Jaco du Plessis, we were told that neither player had a valid players’ contract in place,” said Crous.

“EP Rugby acted in good faith and, based on the above, offered both players an opportunity to join the Kings ahead of the Vodacom Cup competition,” he said.

Crous said after their arrival in Nelson Mandela Bay, EP Rugby had been contacted by the Leopards, who raised concerns over Obi and Mahuza’s relocation.

“Our understanding is that there are matters between the players and the Leopards that need to be resolved,” Crous said.

“While we cannot comment on the nature of the dispute, we can confirm that we are engaging with the Leopards to see how we can assist in finding an amicable solution for all parties,” he said.

Friday 6 February 2015

Madibaz to face Pukke in opener

The 2015 FNB Varsity Cup kicks-off on Monday the 9th of February, with the 2014 runners-up FNB NWU-Pukke hosting the losing semi-finalist FNB NMMU Madibaz, at the Fanie du Toit Sports Grounds in Potchefstroom. 

Madibaz headcoach, David Maidza said he was pleased with his team's pre-season campaign after beating the University of the Western Cape and Police 55 - 10 and 32 - 13 respectively.

"As team management, Barend Pieterse, Tiger Mangweni and I were quite pleased with the effort that the boys put in." 

"We are grateful to UWC and Police, because we now know the key areas we need to hone for the first game," he said.

Maidza said his team's passion and determination was a driving factor for him as coach. 
 
"This is a young squad we have assembled this year and what a joy it is to see young student athletes blossoming in the sport and studies."

After being knocked out in the semis for the past two years, in 2013 by Maties and 2014 by Pukke, he said the Madibaz were determined to improve their chances at this year's tournament. 
 
"We would certainly like to make it to the final and be recognised for all the hard work that has been put in, not only in the preparations for this year's competition, but for all the previous years that we have not been able to make it past the semis." 

Maidza said the team had been working on building a solid defence ahead of Monday night’s game, as they have not beaten Pukke since the inception of the tournament.
 
“I would like the team to defend well first before we have the right to attack.”
 
“We are happy with our preparations and the boys are keen to get the competition going.” he added

Kick-off will be at 4:45pm and the match will be televised on SS1.

FNB Madibaz:

15 Jarryd Buys (cap) 14 Tythan Adams 13 Devon Lailivaux 12 Andile Jho 11 Yamkela Ngam 10 Ruan Allerston 9 Daniel Acker 8 Andisa Ntsila 7 Wynand Grassmann 6 Cyril-John Velleman 5 Tyler Paul 4 Robert Louw 3 Steven Robbeson 2 Dane van der Westerhuyzen 1 Arno Ebersohn

Replacements:

16 Warrick Venter 17 Brenden Olivier 18 Rudolph Odendaal 19 Ivan-John du Preez 20 Evan Ludick 21 Seven Hansel 22 Brian Skosana 23 Marzuk Maarman

NMMU Stallions to make Steinhoff Koshuis debut

NMMU’s Steinhoff Stallions will be the new kids on the block in this year’s Steinhoff Koshuis rugby championship, after winning the university’s internal league last year.

 

The Stallions will make their debut with a home game against the University of Johannesburg’s Steinhoff Bastion side in Port Elizabeth on March 2.

 

Formed in 2010, the off-campus student team was created to introduce a wider competitive element to the NMMU inter-residence competition, which was previously dominated by only two teams.

 

According to Stallions new team manager and former player Rico Rossouw, his players were well on track with their preparations and excited at the opportunity to represent the Madibaz brand.

 

“We are set on keeping the momentum going after winning the internal league and building our strategic game,” said Rossouw.

 

“One of the goals is to keep the attitude the same as previous years, meaning the respect, passion and love the team members have towards the game.

 

Rossouw said Mark Edwards would captain the side during the championship and describedhim as a great leader who facilitates good communication with players both on and off the field.

 

“We lost a few key players who have graduated but the youngsters in the team are surely developing into Stallions with the guidance of the senior team members.  

 

He said their first few weeks of training had been focused on conditioning the players to ensure they reach match-ready fitness, which will be followed by technical skills training and later game strategies.

 

After their first home game, they will play three away fixtures against Steinhoff Patria (Pukke), Steinhoff Medies (Maties) and Steinhoff Tigers (CUT).

 

“Not having home ground support at away games may be seen as a disadvantage, however it will motivate us to work even harder,” said Rossouw.

 

He described his men as motivated individuals, set on reaching their goals but always up for cracking a joke to lighten any situation.

 

“We’re not just a group of guys playing rugby, but rather a brotherhood with a love for the same sport.”

 


Issued by:

Full Stop Communications


On behalf of:

Madibaz Sport