Official United Rugby Championship thread

[Sards]

What will Dobson achieve with money and a team like the $hark$

Very underrated coach.

[OomStruisbaai]

Stormers scrum really struggling.
Missing Malherbe and Bongi in the front and Etzebeth in the engine room.

Harris off. Let’s see if that improves our fortunes

We'll need Fat Frans against the Lions. Much improved Bergie on TH.

[Sards]

Stormers scrum really struggling.
Missing Malherbe and Bongi in the front and Etzebeth in the engine room.

Harris off. Let’s see if that improves our fortunes

We'll need Fat Frans against the Lions. Much improved Bergie on TH.

My gut feeling is you will struggle against the Lions....in the scrum.

[OomStruisbaai]

Stormers scrum really struggling.
Missing Malherbe and Bongi in the front and Etzebeth in the engine room.

Harris off. Let’s see if that improves our fortunes

We'll need Fat Frans against the Lions. Much improved Bergie on TH.

My gut feeling is you will struggle against the Lions....in the scrum.

Sadie destroyed us in Cape Town. Kitshoff taught him to scrum.

[assfly]

Congratulations Stormers. You've got our number at the moment.

I started watching the second half but it was painful to watch. So tired of these local derbies in empty stadiums. Can't wait for the international games to resume.

[Sards]

I am so over the Sharks

[OomStruisbaai]

The Stormers should have scored 3 more tries in that first half. They were all over the $hark$.

[assfly]

This is the strongest player outfit we've had in many years, but there is something very wrong at the Sharks.

I think it's time we put some of our $$$ into an international standard coach. If Everett can't make these guys fire, then he's not the man for the job.

[FalseBayFC]

Well done WP and supporters. That was a seriously committed effort. I'm very disappointed in the Sharks performance. Assfly I think you're right about the coaching setup. The side looks like its lacking spirit and confidence. This shouldn't be happening with such a strong player leadership group.

On the selection front it seems to me that Jaden H needs some time at Currie Cup level to develop further. Am is a waste at 12. Jeremy Ward can also go back to CC. I prefer a Marius Louw/Am pairing.

[Sards]

Well done WP and supporters. That was a seriously committed effort. I'm very disappointed in the Sharks performance. Assfly I think you're right about the coaching setup. The side looks like its lacking spirit and confidence. This shouldn't be happening with such a strong player leadership group.

On the selection front it seems to me that Jaden H needs some time at Currie Cup level to develop further. Am is a waste at 12. Jeremy Ward can also go back to CC. I prefer a Marius Louw/Am pairing.

I was pissed off with Ward when I saw the hairstyle...vokken pansy shit

[handyman]

For years we've been talking about the toxic environment at the saaks and more recently about the money issues.

It seems the penny has finally dropped.

I want to see the reaction from the supporters, surely they have to do something to stop the rot.

[handyman]

The Stormers should have scored 3 more tries in that first half. They were all over the $hark$.

It could have been a massacre, but our passing was terrible.

[OomStruisbaai]

Well done WP and supporters. That was a seriously committed effort. I'm very disappointed in the Sharks performance. Assfly I think you're right about the coaching setup. The side looks like its lacking spirit and confidence. This shouldn't be happening with such a strong player leadership group.

On the selection front it seems to me that Jaden H needs some time at Currie Cup level to develop further. Am is a waste at 12. Jeremy Ward can also go back to CC. I prefer a Marius Louw/Am pairing.

This. Personally I don't think it's Everett. He have the best assistants maybe to many.

Kolisi must be captain. It bring the best out of him.

Sad to see Sards giving up on his team when they need support.

The marathon just started, this was just a sprint. They,ll klap the Bulls this weekend.

[Rinkals]

This is the strongest player outfit we've had in many years, but there is something very wrong at the Sharks.

I think it's time we put some of our $$$ into an international standard coach. If Everett can't make these guys fire, then he's not the man for the job.

I thought we were unable to get the backline going, either through slow and erratic passing from the scrumhalf or from poor distribution from our Argentinian flyhalf.

We can have the best backline in the world, but we'll still not score if there's a bottleneck at the base of the scrum.

[FalseBayFC]

This is the strongest player outfit we've had in many years, but there is something very wrong at the Sharks.

I think it's time we put some of our $$$ into an international standard coach. If Everett can't make these guys fire, then he's not the man for the job.

I thought we were unable to get the backline going, either through slow and erratic passing from the scrumhalf or from poor distribution from our Argentinian flyhalf.

We can have the best backline in the world, but we'll still not score if there's a bottleneck at the base of the scrum.

Teams have done a lot of work on defending the box kick. I was disappointed to see it used poorly by Hendricks on Saturday. Our rucks were poorly defended too so he was always under a lot of pressure. TBH I'd prefer to see Cameron Wright there. He's limited but has always been nippy and decisive.

[OomStruisbaai]

This is the strongest player outfit we've had in many years, but there is something very wrong at the Sharks.

I think it's time we put some of our $$$ into an international standard coach. If Everett can't make these guys fire, then he's not the man for the job.

I thought we were unable to get the backline going, either through slow and erratic passing from the scrumhalf or from poor distribution from our Argentinian flyhalf.

We can have the best backline in the world, but we'll still not score if there's a bottleneck at the base of the scrum.

Did you enjoy the Stormers running rugby?

[FalseBayFC]

This is the strongest player outfit we've had in many years, but there is something very wrong at the Sharks.

I think it's time we put some of our $$$ into an international standard coach. If Everett can't make these guys fire, then he's not the man for the job.

I thought we were unable to get the backline going, either through slow and erratic passing from the scrumhalf or from poor distribution from our Argentinian flyhalf.

We can have the best backline in the world, but we'll still not score if there's a bottleneck at the base of the scrum.

Did you enjoy the Stormers running rugby?

Van Rhyn, Adre Smith, Orie and Fourie were the difference. Killed us in the rucks, disrupted our ball. That was where we were beaten.

[OomStruisbaai]

Deon Fourie and Xaba is great 6 flankers. Hope Roelof Smit join in. We haven't had proper 6 flankers in a very long time. They free up the likes of Roos, Ernst, Theunissen and Dayimani.

Brok Harris saved us against the $hark$.

Would like to see our THs and Roos back.

[OomStruisbaai]

Saturday, 12 February 2022 - No CC
* Lions v Stormers
* Bulls v Sharks

Friday 18 February - No URC
19:00 Griquas v Western Province

Saturday 19 February - No URC
14:30 Pumas v Cheetahs
17:00 Lions v Sharks

Friday, 25 February 2022 - No CC
* Zebre v Bulls
* Leinster v Lions

Saturday, 26 February 2022 - No CC
* Connacht v Stormers
* Benetton Rugby v Sharks

Friday/Saturday 4/5 March - No URC
* Cheetahs v Lions
* Griquas v Bulls
* Pumas v Sharks



Rescheduled United Rugby Championship fixtures (SA kick-off times):

Round 6:

Friday, 11 March

7:10pm: Sharks vs Scarlets (Kings Park, Durban)

Saturday, 12 March

4:05pm: Bulls vs Munster (Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria)

Sunday, 13 March

4pm: Lions vs Cardiff Rugby (Ellis Park, Johannesburg)

Time TBC: Stormers vs Zebre Parma (Cape Town Stadium, Cape Town)

Round 7:

Friday, 18 March

7:10pm: Bulls vs Scarlets (Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria)

Saturday, 19 March

2pm: Lions vs Munster (Ellis Park, Johannesburg)

6:30pm: Sharks vs Zebre Parma (Kings Park, Durban)

Sunday, 20 March

2pm: Stormers vs Cardiff Rugby (Cape Town Stadium, Cape Town)

[assfly]

Roll on the international games!

[FalseBayFC]

Roll on the international games!

Absolutely, its like Groundhog Day. Between the Currie Cup, URC, Rainbow Cup, this challenge and that challenge its becoming very lame.

[assfly]

Absolutely, its like Groundhog Day. Between the Currie Cup, URC, Rainbow Cup, this challenge and that challenge its becoming very lame.

I'll be glad if I don't watch a local derby for a long time. Even this weekend I'll be watching Six Nations. I'm just so tired of it.

[handyman]

Absolutely, its like Groundhog Day. Between the Currie Cup, URC, Rainbow Cup, this challenge and that challenge its becoming very lame.

I'll be glad if I don't watch a local derby for a long time. Even this weekend I'll be watching Six Nations. I'm just so tired of it.

Have to say that I quite enjoyed last weekend's game!

[OomStruisbaai]

SS

SA position in URC not nearly as bad as it appears

08 February 2022 | 15:58
Bulls © Gallo Images
©Gavin Rich
The South African teams are all confined to the bottom half of the Vodacom United Rugby Championship log but their position is not nearly as parlous as it first appears if you look at the final detail and consider what is about to come next.

While all the South African teams have now played eight games, which is the same number as fourth-placed Leinster, who are 12 points distant, there’s an anomaly that spawns a distorted view - none of the overseas teams have played in South Africa yet.

We saw in the days when the Toyota Cheetahs were playing in the Pro14 that the story tends to unfold very differently when the teams who have the advantage in northern hemisphere conditions, come south of the equator. Even in their worst years, the Southern Kings were often competitive against the top teams when they played them in Port Elizabeth.

And the South African teams are about to go into an extended run of home matches against those teams. There is one round of derby games to go this weekend, then the local sides travel north for one game each - the Stormers visit Connacht, the Vodacom Bulls go to Parma Zebre, the Cell C Sharks to Benetton and the Emirates Lions to Leinster - before coming home for an appetising almost non-stop sequence of games on South African soil that extends through until late May.

WINS AGAINST IRISH TEAMS ARE KEY TO SUCCESS

There’s one last derby round on the weekend of 9 April but otherwise it is all South African teams against overseas teams at home until 21 May. The Stormers, Bulls, Lions and Sharks will fancy their chances of winning on home soil. They will certainly back themselves against the Italian, Welsh and maybe the Scottish teams, with perhaps the key to local success riding on how they go against the Irish sides.

There are certainly some appetising games on home soil against Irish teams in the not-too-distant future for the South Africans, such as the Bulls hosting Munster in a few weeks' time and a resurgent Stormers playing Ulster in Cape Town in early April. If the South African teams can add to the wins they expect to get against the Welsh, Scottish and Italian teams with some big performances against the Irish, the entire log can take on a different complexion.

Manage that, and the race for local teams won’t just be for the top half of the log positions that will enable teams who don’t win their pool (Shield) to earn Champions Cup qualification, which some are assuming, but for the URC trophy itself.

Sharks coach Sean Everitt lamented after his team lost to the Stormers this past weekend that the understrength nature of some of the rescheduled games being played by overseas teams is an obstacle to any South African advancement up the log.

“We have seen teams produce some upset results which means they strengthen their hand in the quest for Champions Cup places and make it difficult for us to make an impression on the log,” said Everitt.

That is true, but if the South African teams use the conditions to their advantage and win the bulk of their home games against foreign teams, they should be up there challenging by the time we get to the second half of May. After a slow start because of the Covid disruptions and the South African teams’ need to get accustomed to touring again, the URC promises to become really exciting from here.

LOGJAM AT THE TOP

And exciting is a good word to use for what is happening at the top of the log right now. Ulster have gone to the summit of the table, but again a closer look at the log shows that no one team is really in pole position or dominant.

Ulster went top with a comprehensive win over fellow Irish team Connacht at the weekend, a result which avenged the unexpected loss to Connacht last October that halted their momentum. However, the fine-print needs looking at - yes, Ulster are top, and long-time champions of the competition in its previous guise as the Pro14, Leinster, are fourth, but Leinster have two games in hand on their Irish rivals.

And with six points between the teams, that means that Leinster just must win their two games in hand, meaning they don’t need bonus points, for them to go back to the top. Indeed, Edinburgh, currently second on the log and two points adrift of Ulster, might be more problematic for Leinster in the sense that the Scots have played just one game more, as have the other Scottish team, Glasgow Warriors, who are third on the overall log with 31 points, one ahead of Leinster and five behind Ulster.

It is very nip and tuck at the top, and who the favoured teams for play-off places are will only become clearer once the number of games played has evened up, and there’s been more parity in who plays at home and who plays away.

[assfly]

Have to say that I quite enjoyed last weekend's game!

I'm sure you did

Perhaps I'd be less grumpy if we had won both of those games, but I'm just so tired of seeing local games. Even during Super Rugby I much preferred the international games. Perhaps when they allow more fans into the stadium we'll see better games. But for now I honestly enjoy watching UK rugby than our local stuff.

[handyman]

Have to say that I quite enjoyed last weekend's game!

I'm sure you did

Perhaps I'd be less grumpy if we had won both of those games, but I'm just so tired of seeing local games. Even during Super Rugby I much preferred the international games. Perhaps when they allow more fans into the stadium we'll see better games. But for now I honestly enjoy watching UK rugby than our local stuff.

I'm in full agreement with you tho. We need some international games asap.

[OomStruisbaai]

$hark$ supporters boycott the thread after losing. They'll return this weekend after beating the Bulle at Loftus and Stormers losing to Lions

[handyman]

$hark$ supporters boycott the thread after losing. They'll return this weekend after beating the Bulle at Loftus and Stormers losing to Lions

Yeah, agreed. WP/Stormers have all the pedigree, tradition and history, once a fan, always a fan. It's a way of life.

Sad that we have plastic fans on here.

[assfly]

$hark$ supporters boycott the thread after losing. They'll return this weekend after beating the Bulle at Loftus and Stormers losing to Lions

There are hardly any of us on here these days. Besides, what is there to discuss? The games are so average.

[FalseBayFC]

$hark$ supporters boycott the thread after losing. They'll return this weekend after beating the Bulle at Loftus and Stormers losing to Lions

Yeah, agreed. WP/Stormers have all the pedigree, tradition and history, once a fan, always a fan. It's a way of life.

Sad that we have plastic fans on here.

I confess to having a fat sulk after that loss. I was so pissed off with the way we were playing that I switched to 6 nations after half time.

[FalseBayFC]

Marius Louw in for Jeremy Ward. Otherwise unchanged. Jaden and Don't Cry for Me still at 9/10.

[Rinkals]

$hark$ supporters boycott the thread after losing. They'll return this weekend after beating the Bulle at Loftus and Stormers losing to Lions

Yeah, agreed. WP/Stormers have all the pedigree, tradition and history, once a fan, always a fan. It's a way of life.

Sad that we have plastic fans on here.

I confess to having a fat sulk after that loss. I was so pissed off with the way we were playing that I switched to 6 nations after half time.

I posted after we lost.

It's just the Weepee fans wanting to gloat on here and getting upset that there was nobody to listen to them crowing.

I watched the entire match, and watched the England/Scotland game afterwards.

[OomStruisbaai]

Yeah, agreed. WP/Stormers have all the pedigree, tradition and history, once a fan, always a fan. It's a way of life.

Sad that we have plastic fans on here.

I confess to having a fat sulk after that loss. I was so pissed off with the way we were playing that I switched to 6 nations after half time.

I posted after we lost.

It's just the Weepee fans wanting to gloat on here and getting upset that there was nobody to listen to them crowing.

I watched the entire match, and watched the England/Scotland game afterwards.

Gloating? That's not our style.

[handyman]

I confess to having a fat sulk after that loss. I was so pissed off with the way we were playing that I switched to 6 nations after half time.

I posted after we lost.

It's just the Weepee fans wanting to gloat on here and getting upset that there was nobody to listen to them crowing.

I watched the entire match, and watched the England/Scotland game afterwards.

Gloating? That's not our style.

We are just happy to get a chance to play.

[weegie01]

Edinburgh Rugby team to face Leinster Rugby at RDS Arena in Round 8 of the United Rugby Championship
Friday 11 February (kick-off 6pm) – live on Premier Sports

15. Henry Immelman (9)

14. Ramiro Moyano (5)
13. Matt Currie (7)
12. James Lang (9) VICE CAPTAIN
11. Emiliano Boffelli (7)

10. Charlie Savala (7)
9. Henry Pyrgos (59) CAPTAIN

1. Boan Venter (18)
2. Adam McBurney (3) VICE CAPTAIN
3. Lee-Roy Atalifo (17)
4. Marshall Sykes (16)
5. Glen Young (3)
6. Ben Muncaster (5)
7. Connor Boyle (13)
8. Mesulame Kunavula (17)

Replacements:

16. Dave Cherry (47)
17. Sam Grahamslaw (2)
18. Jake Armstrong*
19. Pierce Phillips (3)
20. Kwagga van Niekerk*
21. Charlie Shiel (41)
22. Jaco van der Walt (78)
23. Cammy Hutchison (9)

Unavailable: Luan de Bruin, Luke Crosbie, Harrison Courtney, Chris Dean, Damien Hoyland, James Johnstone, Viliame Mata, Jamie Ritchie, Ben Toolis

International selection: Mark Bennett, Magnus Bradbury, Darcy Graham, Grant Gilchrist, Nick Haining, Jamie Hodgson, Blair Kinghorn, Stuart McInally, WP Nel, Jamie Ritchie, Pierre Schoeman, Ben Vellacott, Hamish Watson

Another addition to the Edinbokke. At least this time he is Scottish qualified and played for the U20s.

Jake Armstrong is on short term loan from Bristol.

[OomStruisbaai]

Kwagga is a Wit Bul Monnas kid.

[OomStruisbaai]

Lions – 15 EW Viljoen, 14 Stean Pienaar, 13 Manuel Rass, 12 Burger Odendaal, 11 Edwill van der Merwe, 10 Tiaan Swanepoel, 9 Andre Warner, 8 Francke Horn, 7 Vincent Tshituka, 6. Jaco Kriel (c), 5 Ruben Schoeman, 4 Ruhan Straeuli, 3 Carlu Sadie, 2 PJ Botha, 1 Ruan Dreyer.
Subs: 16 Jaco Visagie, 17 JP Smith, 18 Jannie du Plessis, 19 Ruan Venter, 20 Emmanuel Tshituka, 21 Morne van den Berg, 22 Jordan Hendrikse, 23 Wandisile Simelane.

Stormers – 15 Warrick Gelant, 14 Sergeal Petersen, 13 Ruhan Nel, 12 Damian Willemse, 11 Seabelo Senatla, 10 Manie Libbok, 9 Paul de Wet, 8 Hacjivah Dayimani, 7 Ernst van Rhyn, 6 Deon Fourie, 5 Marvin Orie, 4 Adre Smith, 3 Brok Harris, 2 Scarra Ntubeni, 1 Steven Kitshoff (c).
Subs: 16 Andre-Hugo Venter, 17 Leon Lyons, 18 Sazi Sandi, 19 David Meihuizen, 20 Marcel Theunissen, 21 Herschel Jantjies, 22 Dan du Plessis, 23 Angelo Davids.

[OomStruisbaai]

Man on man Lions look much stronger then the Stormers. Lions by 50

[handyman]

Man on man Lions look much stronger then the Stormers. Lions by 50

Only thing in the Lions favour is home ground advantage. We certainly have the better team and players at the moment. Let's see what happens. Stormers by more than 10.

[Sards]

$hark$ supporters boycott the thread after losing. They'll return this weekend after beating the Bulle at Loftus and Stormers losing to Lions

There are hardly any of us on here these days. Besides, what is there to discuss? The games are so average.

Correct. There is so little happening here I lose interest and would rather watch all the hig wave surfing going on atm than wait 5 hours for someone to post