Ackers, the Gambler

At this stage of the Super Rugby competition, the words of the Don Schlitz song, made famous by Kenny Rogers, come to mind: You’ve got to know when to hold ’em Know when […]

Read More

Super Rugby Playoffs

The quarter finals are here at long last. I thought you may find it interesting to hear the views from rugby writers in New Zealand, as all three our matches are against Kiwi […]

Read More

All Blacks skep hul eie voorsprong

Baie mense in Suid-Afrika raak warm onder die kraag as van hul landsgenote die All Blacks ondersteun wanneer hulle teen die Springbokke speel. Dieselfde geld vir my as ek sien hoe kollegas wat […]

Read More

The End of an Era

Bobby Londt To describe King Kallis’s career in a blog would not be possible, nor would it do justice to a career that ranks up there with the best. For this reason, this […]

Read More

Will History Repeat Itself?

I want to take you back to 17 May this year. The Sharks recorded one of their finest victories ever on this day when they broke the SA drought against the Crusaders in […]

Read More

Sharks take on Scots

Well, I thought to myself, if this Kiwi team wants to take its name from the Highlands of Scotland, they had better live up to the glorious past they choose to represent. The […]

Read More

The long and winding road

Jake White was upbeat about the fortunes of the Sharks over the next few weeks after his side thrashed a willing Stormers team on Saturday. With limited possession, they managed to score the […]

Read More

World Cup Mania

When last, if ever, did you experience such a reaction to a sporting event as Brazil’s loss to Germany on Tuesday night? Apart from the record number of tweets, the jokes poured in, […]

Read More

The Exodus Continues

This morning’s newspaper contains a new list of players heading overseas, mainly to Japan and France. The French market appears to be near saturation point, with 51 of our players in the top […]

Read More

Welcome Breather Ahead

Thank goodness this is the final Super Rugby round for a few weeks. I was about to declare myself injured after all these matches which started more than three months ago. The break […]

Read More

Bok team taking shape

They say that, in golf, every shot pleases someone – either the player, or his opponent. The bad news about the incumbent Bok captain probably solves a quandary for the coach while at […]

Read More

Bestendigheid Meyer se Basis

Die afwesigheid van sleutelspelers in die Bok oefengroep moet nie gesien word as ‘n aanduiding dat Heyneke Meyer beoog om ‘n klomp nuwelinge in te sluit in die span wat teen die internasionale […]

Read More

Time to draw a line

Several episodes over the weekend involving match officials yet again shifted the focus from where it should be. Let me start off by saying that the two red cards were fully deserved, and […]

Read More

The Stats tell a Tale

The Vodacom stats app is really addictive, for those passionate about rugby. I spent the weekend deciphering some of the figures to try and gain some insight into why four out of 5 […]

Read More

Super Fifteen Super Games

An unbiased rugby lover can look forward to a couple of great contests this weekend. Top of the Pops The main match this weekend must be the tussle between the two sides heading […]

Read More

Stirring the Pot

If you like listening to music while reading this column, click on this link to enjoy Billie Holiday singing “They can’t take that away from me”. Way back in 1996, the Crusaders became […]

Read More

What the Stats Reveal

If the current Super 15 log reflected target shooting, the SA sides would be stone last as far as grouping is concerned. The Sharks and Lions still have to tour, and with a […]

Read More