A resounding 58-10 victory for SA was what everybody expected and wanted to see, revenge for the 53-3 loss to England in 2002 and a promising start to 2007 Test season building towards the World Cup in September in France.

Everything is still not a 100% in the SA camp but enough signs were there to show that Jake Whites’ resting of top players last season during the Currie Cup and the end of year tour might not have been such a bad idea. As a unit SA wasn’t entirely World-class on Saturday but considering that Jake White only had about a week with the squad the interplay between backs and forwards and counter-attacking when England kicked badly was top notch. Hard work is in order this week on SA’s set phases building up to the 2nd test. Much was expected of the macro pack Jake picked, but SA struggled in the scrums and John Smit were not as accurate with his line out throws as we know he can be. Individual players like Schalk Burger, Juan Smith, Bryan Habana, Percy Montgomery and Jean de Villiers were outstanding but as a unit things were not cohesive. Individual player ratings after the jump.. (more…)

South Africa kicked off their international season with a crushing 58-10 win over world champions England in Bloemfontein overnight.

The hosts, who ran in seven tries in the 80 minutes, led 30-3 at half-time.

England, minus up to 30 of their leading players who are either injured or were involved in last weekend’s European Cup final, were no match for the South Africans.

The visitors’ preparations were further hampered by a stomach virus which downed several of the team’s players in the days leading up to the game. Wing David Strettle was ruled out on Thursday and then before kick-off centre Andy Farrell and scrum half Pete Richards.

Prop Nick Wood could also not take the field after injuring his shoulder in the captain’s run on Friday.

The English lost several other players during the game, something which will further disrupt preparations for the second Test at Loftus Versfeld next weekend.

It was a slow and rather dull start to the international season for Jake White’s men, who battled to find any sort of rhythm in front of a quiet 30,000 fans.

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Here’s the side which will take the field on Sunday against the poms

15. Percy Montgomery
14. Ashwin Willemse
13. Wynand Olivier
12. Jean de Villiers
11. Bryan Habana
10. Butch James
9. Ricky Januarie
8. Danie Rossouw
7. Juan Smith
6. Schalk Burger
5. Victor Matfield
4. Bakkies Botha
3. BJ Botha
2. John Smit (captain)
1. Deon Carstens
Reserves:
16. Guthro Steenkamp
17. Gary Botha
18.CJ van der Linde
19.Johann Muller
20. Pierre Spies
21. Ruan Pienaar
22. Francois Steyn

The side Jake White picked for the first test is an excellent combination of youth and experience. Notable absentees like Fourie du Preez(shoulder) , Jacques Fourie(groin), JP Pietersen(hand) and Andre Pretorius(hamstring) were not considered due to injury but are expected to make their return to the squad in the next few weeks. Their replacements will surely relish the opportunity to make their mark and stake claims for the world cup squad.

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A Jake White tactical blunder and a poor final 15 minutes snatched defeat from the brink of a Twickenham victory. Can the Springboks turn things around this weekend against a very poor English side? What used to be a walk in the park has turned into mission impossible! Can Jake White’s 2006 Boks win for the first time at Twickenham since 1997? (more…)

On Sunday the reduced squad for the tests against England were announced. Once again (!) not without controversy, the initial squad was aimed to be 37, but was enlarged to 38 to accomodate Derick Hougaard for the injured Andre Pretorius. Luke Watson’s inclusion above Kabamba Floors should raise a few eyebrows.

Squad:

Backs – Jean de Villiers, Fourie du Preez, Bryan Habana, Butch James, Ricky Januarie, Wayne Julies, Percy Montgomery, Waylon Murray, Odwa Ndungane, Akona Ndungane, Wynand Olivier, Ruan Pienaar, JP Pietersen, Frans Steyn, Ashwin Willemse.

Forwards – Johan Ackermann, BJ Botha, Bakkies Botha, Gary Botha, Schalk Burger, Deon Carstens, Bismarck du Plessis, Os du Randt, Victor Matfield, Johann Muller, Danie Rossouw, Bob Skinstad, John Smit, Juan Smith, Pierre Spies, Gurthro Steenkamp, Albert van den Berg, CJ van der Linde, Wikus van Heerden, Joe van Niekerk, AJ Venter, Luke Watson

The Sharks Rugby Union is laughing all the way to the bank as the Absa Stadium sold out in record time yesterday . All 54000 seats have been snapped up by hungry rugby supporters. The first all SA Super 14 final since the competition’s inception in 1996! News 24 wrote:

Who would have thought – or believed rather – two years ago, that The Absa Stadium would be sold out a week before a match. “Some 54 000 seats. How can we ever try to explain to loyal fans there are simply no seats left in the stadium for sale?

“How is everyone thanked for the ongoing support? The only way is to deliver a trophy, and I can assure you the Sharks will be going all out to do just that this Saturday”, says coach Dick Muir, Sharks management and players.

Early on Monday the last tickets for the final were sold and Brian van Zyl, chief executive officer of the Sharks, apologised to disgruntled fans who could not secure a ticket.

Read more after the jump

SARB thought the following information might be usefull. It’s all the fixtures for the Springboks this year up untill the IRB Rugby World Cup, including the Tri-Nations. Check it…

26 May: England (Vodacom Park, Bloemfontein) – 15:00

2 June: England (Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria) – 15:00

9 June: Samoa (Ellispark, Johannesburg) – 15:00

16 June: Australia (Newlands, Cape Town) – 15:00

23 June: New Zealand (Absa Stadium, Durban) – 15:00

07 July: Australia (Sydney) – 11:00

14 July: New Zealand (Christchurch) – 09:35

25 August: Scotland (Murrayfield)

Lekker, lekker…