THE Free State Rugby Union has rejected an offer by the Gauteng Lions Rugby Union to buy out its Super 12 shares even before the offer, or price, has been made. The proposed plan to combine the Cats and the Lions into a single franchise has drawn widespread criticism from the GLRU’s Super 12 partners. The Free State Cheetahs, Griquas and Northern Free State will suffer huge financial losses if the move goes ahead and, even more worrying, their players will miss out on Super 12 duties. Harold Verster, president of the Free State Rugby Union, said that his Union is not prepared to sell its future, and told The Star that “We have not yet been approached by the GLRU, but we oppose the single franchise. By agreeing we would do ourselves untold harm. I don’t foresee any amount of money tempting us to sell out. We won’t budge on this: we are still partners.” GLRU President Jomo King said that the idea of a single franchise will be discussed at a bosberaad in early July.