Heartbreak in Cape Town: All Blacks hit by brutal injury blow
All Black hooker George Bell will return to New Zealand for four to six weeks of rehabilitation after suffering a calf strain in Cape Town. This forced a squad call-up for Taranaki and Blues hooker Bradley Slater. New Zealand coach Dave Rennie expressed disappointment for Bell, who faced injury setbacks previously, and acknowledged the pressure […]
The pivotal change that could give Scotland the edge over Boks
MEDIA RELEASE: Scotland coach Gregor Townsend has made three changes to his starting line-up for Saturday’s meeting with South Africa in Pretoria, as his side prepares for a first clash with the double world champions on South African soil since 2014. The alterations see Finn Russell named to start at flyhalf after his recovery from […]
Baby Boks achieved their ‘first objective’, as England awaits in the semifinal
Junior Springbok coach Kevin Foote praised his side’s resilience and attacking intent after they defeated Wales in their final pool match at the Junior World Championship in Georgia, securing a place in the semi-finals against England. On Tuesday in Tbilisi, the South Africa U20s were made to work hard by a spirited Welsh side, who […]
Rassie looks to the future with the latest Bok squad
Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus named an exciting 51-man squad – featuring 21 uncapped players – for the team’s first training camp of the season, starting in Johannesburg on Monday. The preparation is with an eye on the double-header between the Boks and the Barbarians, as well as the clash between the SA ‘A’ team against […]
Rassie: ‘It has to translate onto the field’
SPOTLIGHT: Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus was satisfied that the necessary building blocks were in place for the international season as the team wrapped up their second and final alignment camp on Thursday, before their on-field preparations begin in June. The camp, which started in Cape Town on Tuesday, included a series of boardroom sessions presented […]
Rassie gets his message across to Bok rookies
Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus expressed his delight with the Boks’ opening alignment camp of the year. The three-day camp – which included a series of detailed boardroom sessions about the key areas of the game and the coaches’ expectations, as well as the macroplan for the 2026 season – ran from Tuesday to Friday last […]
Ackerman barks back at ‘yapping mutts’
Bulls coach Johan Ackermann has moved to clarify recent media reports and social media speculation regarding his request to involve Springbok coaches in supporting the team. Ackermann emphasised that the speculation suggesting Springbok assistant coaches would be helping the Bulls during derby week is unfounded. “I never asked for that, and Rassie also said it […]
The consequences of the Bulls’ decision to go BokBalistic
OPINION: Jan de Koning asks some probing questions about the ‘Springbok coaching invasion’ of Loftus Versfeld. South Africa’s domestic derbies are always spicy, with the big North-South derby taking it to another level. Such is the puffery of the Round Nine United Rugby Championship face-off between the Stormers and Bulls this coming Saturday, that the […]