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/ 28 May 2008

De Villiers shows his hand

JP Pietersen’s lack of form in the Super 14 season has cost him a place in the Springbok squad that was named in Somerset West on Wednesday. The Sharks’ World Cup-winning wing failed to score a try in the 2008 series after he finished the 2007 Super 14 season as the leading try scorer.

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/ 18 May 2008

Few surprises in Bok training squad

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.

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/ 17 May 2008

Habana strikes twice for Bulls

World superstar Bryan Habana dotted down twice as Super 14 title holders the Northern Bulls crushed the Central Cheetahs 60-20 in a final-round mini-league match on Saturday. However, the sole South African winners of the championship will not feature in the knockout stages after poor early-season form.

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/ 19 April 2008

Bulls bounce back with comfortable win

The Bulls turned around last week’s shocking form to beat the Otago Highlanders 47-17 in the Super 14 on Saturday. Having lost 50-22 last week to the Wellington Hurricanes, the Bulls scored six tries to two against Otago at Loftus Versfeld, with fullback Zane Kirchner and winger Akona Ndungane each collecting two.

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/ 2 April 2008

Bulls record for Pedrie Wannenburg

Bulls loose forward Pedrie Wannenburg will become the most capped Bulls player in Super rugby when he takes the field against the Western Force in Perth on Friday. Wannenburg, who was selected as flank alongside Wikus van Heerden, will surpass Victor Matfield’s record of 77 matches for the franchise.

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/ 25 March 2008

Spies back for the Bulls

Pierre Spies has been included in the Bulls side to play the Blues in a Super 14 match in Auckland on Saturday. The inclusion of the Springbok number eight is a major boost for the defending champions, who have won only two of their six matches to date and were outplayed by two of the competition’s weaker sides over the past two weekends.

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/ 23 March 2008

Bulls fail to live up to expectations

The Waikato Chiefs ran away with a 43-27 win over the Northern Bulls in a Super 14 rugby match that came alight with a flurry of second-half tries in New Zealand on Saturday. Their third win from six matches produced Chiefs’ first bonus point of the season and lifted them from 10th to eighth on the ladder.

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/ 8 March 2008

Hougaard kicks short-handed Bulls to victory

Despite having to play for 10 minutes with 13 men, the Bulls beat the Lions 31-17 in a pulsating Super 14 match in Pretoria on Friday. The home side lost Springbok hard man Bakkies Botha to the sin-bin, and fullback Zane Kirchner to a red card, in the first period, but still had too much fire-power to overcome the Lions.

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/ 27 February 2008

Bakkies, Ndungane back for the Bulls

The Bulls have included their fit-again World Cup Springboks Bakkies Botha and Akona Ndungane in the team to play the Sharks at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday in a repeat of last year’s Super 14 final. Their inclusion was expected, pending their fitness, but coach Frans Ludeke made a surprise selection of Morne Steyn at flyhalf, while giving Springbok Derick Hougaard a rest.

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/ 4 February 2008

Bulls take stock of injuries among players

It was mostly good news in the Bulls camp on Monday regarding injuries following their warm-up match against the Lions in Windhoek over the weekend, but they were waiting anxiously for an X-ray report on Bryan Habana’s ribs. The star winger was injured in the Bulls’ last warm-up match before the Super 14 competition starts.

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/ 29 December 2007

SA teams face tricky Super 14 build-up

The early stages of the 2008 Super 14 competition could be especially challenging for the five South African franchises — three of the teams have new coaches, and the training of all five has been affected to various degrees by the resting of their Springboks after the United Kingdom tour.

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/ 1 December 2007

Barbarians too strong for South Africa

Jake White’s last match as coach of world champions South Africa ended with a defeat as the invitational Barbarians beat the Springboks 22-5 in a non-cap international at Twickenham on Saturday. The Barbarians outscored South Africa three tries to one with Australia’s Matt Giteau, Wales flanker Martyn Williams and Wallaby forward Rocky Elsom all crossing the line.

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/ 29 November 2007

Muller to lead Boks in Baa-baas clash

South Africa have made three changes for Saturday’s non-cap international against the Barbarians at Twickenham — Jake White’s last match as coach of the world champions. Bismarck du Plesis takes the place of World Cup-winning captain John Smit after the hooker’s French club, Clermont Auvergne, refused to release him for this fixture.

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/ 21 November 2007

Kankowski set for Springbok debut

South Africa captain John Smit and star wing Bryan Habana are among nine members of the Springboks’ victorious World Cup final starting XV named to face Wales in Saturday’s one-off rugby union international at the Millennium Stadium. Although several players are missing from the two-match tour, the side still contains plenty of experienced campaigners.

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/ 13 November 2007

Three injured Boks withdraw from tour

Forwards Danie Rossouw, Wickus van Heerden and Gurthro Steenkamp withdrew injured on Monday from South Africa’s short rugby tour of Britain. Star scrumhalf Fourie du Preez also looks like staying home and missing the Test against Wales at Cardiff and the celebration match with the Barbarians at Twickenham on December 1.

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/ 19 October 2007

Go Bokke, says Mbeki

”Go Bokke, go!” is the message from President Thabo Mbeki on the eve of the Rugby World Cup final between South Africa and England. In his weekly newsletter, published on Friday on the ANC Today website, Mbeki said the government was confident the Springboks would repeat what they did at Ellis Park in 1995, and walk away as rugby world champions.

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/ 30 September 2007

‘Terrible spectator’ Schalk Burger raring to go

After pacing the sidelines for two weeks, Schalk Burger gets another chance to wreak havoc for South Africa at the World Cup. The bustling blonde backrower was switched from the flank to number eight in a strong Springboks lineup unveiled by coach Jake White for Sunday’s match against the winless United States in Montpellier.

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/ 28 September 2007

White names strong Bok team for US clash

South Africa are not planning to cruise into the Rugby World Cup quarterfinals. The Springboks have already won Group A and want to keep the momentum going into the knock-out stages of the tournament, so coach Jake White on Friday announced a strong starting line-up to face the United States Eagles in Montpellier on Sunday.