The going is extremely tough for the Sharks right now as the Lions and Stormers surge ahead.
Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer has defended his selection of several "30-somethings" in the squad to do duty during the Castle Lager Incoming Series.
Schalk Burger will captain the Stormers in Friday’s Super Rugby warm-up clash against the Lions at Newlands.
Almost a decade has passed since South Africa won the under-21 World Cup at home.
Schalk Burger has become only the fifth player to win the South African Rugby Union’s rugby player of the year award more than once.
If SA beat Australia on Sunday it will be down to the Boks’ experience, says flanker Schalk Burger. If the Boks lose, it’ll be because of their age.
The Stormers have overpowered the Melbourne Rebels 40-3 to march into the Super 15 top two in Melbourne.
After a month on the sidelines, Schalk Burger has returned to lead the Stormers in their Super Rugby clash against the Sharks in Durban.
Flanker Schalk Burger and centre Juan de Jongh have been ruled out of the Springboks’ tour of Britain and Ireland because of injury.
Two South African teams in the Super 14 final and some enlightened decisions from the authorities have given fans reasons to celebrate.
Statistics and experience per se don’t win finals. This is something the Bulls should be aware of ahead of Saturday’s Super 14 final.
The Chiefs welcome back Mils Muliaina and Sitiveni Sivivatu as they look to take advantage of the Bulls’ bye and go top of the Super 14 standings
Schalk Burger, the Stormers’ lone injury casualty from the weekend’s win over the Waratahs, is a doubtful starter for Friday’s clash with the Brumbies
The Springboks are on the cusp of greatness, but they will need to demonstrate strength of character in their away games.
Ireland centre Brian O’Driscoll has slammed SA coach Peter de Villiers for defending Bok flanker Schalk Burger, who was banned for eye-gouging.
The Springboks are to appeal the two-week ban lock Bakkies Botha received for a dangerous charge on Adam Jones in the second Test on the weekend.
Boks coach Peter de Villiers has apologised for his apparent acceptance that Schalk Burger’s eye-gouging of Luke Fitzgerald was just part of the game.
Springbok flanker Schalk Burger will miss the first three of South Africa’s six Tri-Nations matches after his eight-week suspension.
Bok flanker Heinrich Brussow completed a dramatic turnaround on Tuesday when he was chosen to face the British and Irish Lions in the first Test.
Two of rugby’s most passionate rivals, the All Blacks and Springboks, launch the Tri-Nations series in Wellington, New Zealand on Saturday.
The nature of Test rugby is that it tends to run in four-year cycles, centred on the mammoth spectacle of the World Cup. The Springboks face the next three-and-a-half years as World Cup defending champions, a lofty pedestal that has proven very difficult to defend in the past.
Isma-eel Dollie as one of a few lesser surprises in the Springbok training squad of 42 members that was named on Saturday night. The new Springbok coach, Peter de Villiers, has included a number of players who are not regulars for their Super 14 franchises or who had limited opportunities because of injury this season.
It looks like the closely fought endgame of the Super 14 might turn Saturday’s announcement of the 45-man Springbok squad into something of a damp squib. Springbok coach Peter de Villiers will want to avoid disrupting the semifinal preparations of the Sharks and Stormers and will postpone naming players from those squads.
Rene Burger, the sister of Springbok rugby player Schalk, has decided to confirm that she was raped last week at the University of the Western Cape (UWC), a family spokesperson said on Thursday. ”She is amazingly brave and courageous,” said Elna Boesak, appointed to speak on behalf of the family.
New Springbok coach Peter de Villiers is spoilt for choice ahead of the Springboks’ first Test of the year, against Six Nations champions Wales on June 7 in Bloemfontein. De Villiers, who took over from World Cup-winning coach Jake White at the beginning of the year, names his first South Africa squad on Saturday.
South African rugby coach Peter de Villiers said on Wednesday he is to name a national training squad of up 45 players for the forthcoming international season. De Villiers, who took over the reigns from Jake White in January this year, is expected to include Europe-based players John Smit (Clermont), Butch James (Bath) and Victor Matfield (Toulon) in the squad.
Australia’s Brumbies will not to be sidetracked by history or the widely acclaimed Stormers injuries in the run-up to Saturday’s make-or-break Super 14 clash at Newlands. The history books will show that the last time the Brumbies lost at Newlands was in 1998, and apart from one draw in 2006, they’ve always defeated the Stormers in the Mother City in a decade of clashes.
The Stormers picked up two second-half tries to keep their hopes of reaching the Super 14 semifinals alive with a 26-16 victory over the Otago Highlanders on Saturday. Hooker Tiaan Liebenberg and his replacement Schalk Brits scored in the space of 10 minutes to break open a game that was deadlocked 9-9 at halftime.
Stormers flanker Schalk Burger is a greater threat than ever to the Stormers’ Super 14 opponents, says Jerry Collins, star loose forward of the Hurricanes. The tough All Black, who will oppose the Springbok star at Newlands on Saturday, has been impressed by the way Burger and Luke Watson combine, reports RugbyHeaven website.
After a flying start to the season, the powerful Canterbury Crusaders are giving key players a breather for their Super 14 match against tail enders the Cheetahs on Saturday. Despite making six changes, the match remains crucial for the Crusaders with pressure on the regular bench-warmers to maintain the team’s unbeaten record.
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/ 26 February 2008
Stormers flank Schalk Burger has received a two-week suspension after being found guilty of ”unsportsmanlike behaviour”. Burger’s suspension runs from February 23 to March 8, inclusive. He has a right to appeal the sentence. His suspension is a big setback for the Stormers, who are yet to win a match in this year’s Super 14 competition.
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/ 25 February 2008
Springbok and Stormers flank Schalk Burger was found guilty of an ”act contrary to good sportsmanship” by a judicial committee in Cape Town on Monday after gesticulating to referee’s assistant Willie Roos in Saturday’s Super 14 match against the Sharks in Durban. Sentence has been deferred to Tuesday.