/ 3 July 1997

Five Lions down to injury

THURSDAY, 10.00AM:

FIVE British Lions players are injured and have been ruled out of the third rugby Test match against South Africa at Ellis Park stadium on Saturday.

During the second Test, winger Alan Tait and hooker Keith Wood suffered groin injuries and Eric Miller strained his thigh muscle. Scrumhalf Kyran Bracken and prop Jason Leonard sustained a strained collarbone and torn thigh muscle respectively during Tuesday’s match against Northern Free State in Welkom.

“The injured players are all front-line players and it reduces the options available. However we still have ernomous playing strength in the squad. We are very fortunate to have so many people playing well and it really means that it will make a difference on Saturday,” said a worried Lions manager, Fran Cotton.

MOTAUNG ACQUITTED A PREMIER Soccer League disciplinary hearing on Wednesday found Kaizer Motaung not guilty of bringing the league into disrepute. Motaung, the manager of Kaizer Chiefs, was up before the committee to face charges after making defamatory comments against rival soccer team Orlando Pirates to a newspaper. The journalist who wrote the article did not attend the hearing, and the case was thrown in favour of Motaung.

ASA ELECTIONS ‘FLAWED’ THE Central Gauteng Athletics vice-president, Clarie Botha, admitted that the recent Athletics South Africa presidential elections were flawed. Botha was the latest to support the claims of Rescue Athletics South Africa (Rasa) – they said on Wednesday the ASA elections were controlled by a clique from the old Black Athletics South Africa. RASA said the clique ensures that their supporters are voted onto the board. He denied his involvement with RASA.

SPORT BRIEFS

SCHOOLS SWIMMERS TAKE MEDALS SOUTH AFRICAN school pupils brought home nine gold medals from the Jean Humbert Trophy for Schools event last weekend in France. There were five medals among the boys and four from the girls, with two new records — Kalmer’s 4:18,05 in the 1 500m and the boys multiple relay’s 1:56,91. South Africa finished ahead of France and England.

SA SURFERS LEAD IN J-BAYSOUTH AFRICAN entrants dominated the first round of the Billabong Country Feeling Surf Classic at Jeffrey’s Bay on Wednesday. Despite heavy winds, Celvin Moore and Dane Patterson both scored high nines to lead the round.

KARATEKA TO ZIM TEN members of the South African Ashihara Karate Association leave for Botswana on Thursday, on their way to the Zimbabwean National Championships to be held from July 12 to 15.

ANCHOR BOWLS DONATO FONTANELLA of Norba is leading Section B of the Anchor Life Classic bowls tournament in Durban. Two points behind him is Wilt Brown of Natal, followed closely by George Anderson and Dave Poultney of the Free State. In Section A, Peet Badenhorst is leading after overtaking Bobby Donnelly on Wednesday afternoon.