FNB Varsity Cup
Encyclopedia
The FNB Varsity Cup presented by Steinhoff International is an annual South African Rugby Union
tournament that involves the top 8 rugby playing universities in the country.
The tournament was founded in 2008, with the inaugural competition being won by Stellenbosch University
. As the name suggests, the tournament is sponsored by First National Bank, one of South Africa's Big Four Banks. The Varsity Cup is unique in that it implements strict rules which help to insure that only students of the relevant universities' compete, and also that all games take place on the universities' campuses.
In 2011
, a second tier was added to the tournament, called the Varsity Shield. Five universities took part in the inaugural competition.
In 2012
, an Under-20 competition was also added, called the Young Guns. The eight teams that took part in the first four editions of the Varsity Cup will enter teams in this competition.
The 8 teams competing teams in the Varsity Cup are:
The 5 teams competing teams in the Varsity Shield are:
The final league standings were:
UCT won the first semi-final against Pukke, with Maties winning the second semi-final against Tuks.
The final was competed on the 31st of March, 2008 between UCT and Maties at the Danie Craven Stadium
in Stellenbosch, where Maties emerged as the victors by 16 - 10.
The 2009 round robin stage ended as follows:
Maties ended top of the log with 28 points, with UCT claiming second place with 25 points.
The semi-finals were competed on the 23rd of March, 2009, with Maties hosting Tuks at the Danie Craven Stadium in Stellenbosch, and UCT hosting Pukke at Groote Schuur in Cape Town
. Surprisingly, these two semi-finals were both repeats of the 2008 semi-finals. Maties beat Tuks at home by 34 - 15, and Pukke beat UCT away by 17 - 19
The final was played in Stellenbosch on the 30th of March, 2009 with Maties beating Pukke by 11 - 6 to claim their second championship
The 2010 round robin stage ended as follows:
UCT beat Shimlas 27 - 21 in the first semi-final, and Maties beat Pukke by 47 -11 in the second semi-final setting up a repeat of the 2008 final.
The final was played in Stellenbosch on the 29th of March 2010, with Maties beating Ikeys by 17 - 14
on the 11th of April. UCT won their first Varsity Cup trophy by 26 - 16
Team
Played
Won
Drawn
Lost
Points For
Points Against
Points Difference
Tries For
Tries Against
Try Bonus
Losing Bonus
Points
1
7
6
0
1
198
159
+40
23
18
3
0
27
2
7
5
0
2
213
134
+79
23
16
3
0
23
3
7
5
0
2
181
151
+30
23
17
2
1
23
4
7
4
0
3
203
139
+64
25
15
4
2
22
5
7
4
0
3
209
138
+71
24
15
4
1
21
6
7
2
0
5
173
166
+7
22
18
3
1
12
7
7
1
0
6
112
245
-133
11
31
1
2
7
8
7
1
0
6
138
296
-158
15
36
2
0
6
The top 4 teams qualified for the Semi-Finals.
The bottom team qualified for the Promotion/Relegation Play-Offs.
Points breakdown:
*4 points for a win
*2 points for a draw
*1 bonus point for a loss by seven points or less
*1 bonus point for scoring four or more tries in a match
The tournament is sponsored by
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
tournament that involves the top 8 rugby playing universities in the country.
The tournament was founded in 2008, with the inaugural competition being won by Stellenbosch University
Stellenbosch University
Stellenbosch University is a public research university situated in the town of Stellenbosch, South Africa. Other nearby universities are the University of Cape Town and University of the Western Cape....
. As the name suggests, the tournament is sponsored by First National Bank, one of South Africa's Big Four Banks. The Varsity Cup is unique in that it implements strict rules which help to insure that only students of the relevant universities' compete, and also that all games take place on the universities' campuses.
In 2011
2011 Varsity Cup
-Team Listing:-Table:-Fixtures and results:* Fixtures are subject to change.* All times are South African .-Round One:-Round Two:-Round Three:-Round Four:-Round Five:-Round Six:...
, a second tier was added to the tournament, called the Varsity Shield. Five universities took part in the inaugural competition.
In 2012
2012 Varsity Cup
-Standings:-Fixtures and results:* Fixtures are subject to change.* All times are South African .-Round One:-Round Two:-Round Three:-Round Four:-Round Five:-Round Six:...
, an Under-20 competition was also added, called the Young Guns. The eight teams that took part in the first four editions of the Varsity Cup will enter teams in this competition.
Current Teams
| Varsity Cup | ||
| Team Name | University | Stadium |
|---|---|---|
| University of Cape Town | UCT Rugby Fields | |
| Stellenbosch University | Craven Stadium Danie Craven Stadium Danie Craven Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium at Coetzenburg in Stellenbosch, South Africa. It is part of the Stellenbosch University's sport facilities. The stadium was named after rugby doyen and Springbok scrum half Danie Craven. The stadium holds 16,000 people and was built in 1979.The Danie... |
|
| Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University | Xerox NMMU Stadium | |
| North-West University | Fanie du Toit Stadium | |
| University of the Free State | Xerox Shimla Park | |
| University of Pretoria | Tuks Rugby Stadium | |
| Tshwane University of Technology | TUT Stadium | |
| University of Johannesburg | UJ Stadium UJ Stadium The UJ Stadium is a multi-sports stadium facility in Westdene, Johannesburg. It is mainly used for rugby union games.The stadium was used as an official training venue during the 2010 FIFA World Cup.... |
|
The 5 teams competing teams in the Varsity Shield are:
| Varsity Shield | ||
| Team Name | University | Stadium |
|---|---|---|
| Central University of Technology | CUT Stadium | |
| University of Fort Hare | Davidson Rugby Field | |
| University of KwaZulu-Natal | Peter Booysen Sports Park | |
| University of the Western Cape | UWC Sport Stadium | |
| University of the Witwatersrand | Wits Rugby Stadium | |
Format
The tournament begins with a round robin stage, in which all teams play each other once. The league scoring system follows that of Super Rugby in which 4 points are awarded for a win, and 2 points for a draw. Teams may also be awarded bonus points for either scoring 4 tries in a game, or for losing within 7 points of their opponents. At the end of the round robin stage, the top 4 teams go to the knockout stage with the top 2 teams being awarded home semi-finals.Season summary
| Year | Varsity Cup | Varsity Shield | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Winner | Score | Runner-up | Losing semi-finalists | Winner | Score | Runner-up | |||
| 2008 2008 Varsity Cup -Round One:-Round Two:-Round Three:-Round Four:-Round Five:-Round Six:-Round Seven:-Semi-Finals:-Final:-Honours:-External links:* *... |
16 - 10 | |
colspan=3 | ||||||
| 2009 | 11 - 6 | |
colspan=3 | ||||||
| 2010 2010 Varsity Cup -Week One:-Week Two:-Week Three:-Week Four:-Week Five:-Week Six:-Week Seven:-Semi-Finals:-Final:-Honours:-External links:* *... |
17 - 14 | |
colspan=3 | ||||||
| 2011 2011 Varsity Cup -Team Listing:-Table:-Fixtures and results:* Fixtures are subject to change.* All times are South African .-Round One:-Round Two:-Round Three:-Round Four:-Round Five:-Round Six:... |
26 - 16 | |
25 - 18 | ||||||
Total wins
| Team Name | Wins | Runner-up | Semi-Final | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | |
| 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | |
| 0 | 1 | 2 | ||
| 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |
| 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
| 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 0 | 0 | 0 |
2008 season
The first ever FNB Varsity Cup took place in 2008. After a fierce round robin stage, UCT topped the table, with Maties coming in a close second.The final league standings were:
- 1 UCT
- 2 Maties
- 3 Tuks
- 4 Pukke
- 5 UJ
- 6 Shimlas
- 7 TUT
- 8 NMMU
UCT won the first semi-final against Pukke, with Maties winning the second semi-final against Tuks.
The final was competed on the 31st of March, 2008 between UCT and Maties at the Danie Craven Stadium
Danie Craven Stadium
Danie Craven Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium at Coetzenburg in Stellenbosch, South Africa. It is part of the Stellenbosch University's sport facilities. The stadium was named after rugby doyen and Springbok scrum half Danie Craven. The stadium holds 16,000 people and was built in 1979.The Danie...
in Stellenbosch, where Maties emerged as the victors by 16 - 10.
- 2008 Top Try Scorer - Matthew Turner (UCT) 9
- 2008 Top Points Scorer - Ryno Luus (UJ) 94
2009 season
- 1 Maties
- 2 UCT
- 3 Pukke
- 4 Tuks
- 5 UJ
- 6 Shimlas
- 7 NMMU
- 8 TUT
Maties ended top of the log with 28 points, with UCT claiming second place with 25 points.
The semi-finals were competed on the 23rd of March, 2009, with Maties hosting Tuks at the Danie Craven Stadium in Stellenbosch, and UCT hosting Pukke at Groote Schuur in Cape Town
Cape Town
Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...
. Surprisingly, these two semi-finals were both repeats of the 2008 semi-finals. Maties beat Tuks at home by 34 - 15, and Pukke beat UCT away by 17 - 19
The final was played in Stellenbosch on the 30th of March, 2009 with Maties beating Pukke by 11 - 6 to claim their second championship
- 2009 Top Try Scorer - Therlow Pietersen (UCT) 6
- 2009 Top Points Scorer - Donald Stevens (Maties) 105
- 2009 Player That Rocks - Donald Stevens
- 2009 Back That Rocks - Therlow Pietersen
- 2009 Forward That Rocks - Willem van der Wal
2010 season
Once again, the two teams from the Cape dominated the round robin stage with Maties topping the table and UCT claiming second place. Shimlas recorded a good victory over UJ to book their place in their first ever semi-final, with Pukke taking 4th spot.The 2010 round robin stage ended as follows:
- 1 Maties
- 2 UCT
- 3 Shimlas
- 4 Pukke
- 5 UJ
- 6 Tuks
- 7 TUT
- 8 NMMU
UCT beat Shimlas 27 - 21 in the first semi-final, and Maties beat Pukke by 47 -11 in the second semi-final setting up a repeat of the 2008 final.
The final was played in Stellenbosch on the 29th of March 2010, with Maties beating Ikeys by 17 - 14
- 2010 Top Try Scorer - Johannes Prinsloo (Shimlas) and Lolo Waka (UJ) 7
- 2010 Top Points Scorer - Theuns Kotze (Pukke) 77
- 2010 Player That Rocks - Johannes Prinsloo (Shimlas)
- 2010 Backline Player That Rocks - Andries Mahoney (Pukke)
- 2010 Forward That Rocks - Lourens Adriaanse (Maties)
2011 season
The 2011 round robin stage finished with UJ finishing top and qualifying for their first ever semi-final. Ikeys claimed second place to record their 4th semi-final appearance. Shimlas and Tuks finished in third and fourth place respectively. This year was the first year that saw Maties fail to make the semi-finals. Due to inadequate lighting at Uct's sport grounds the final was played at Tuks's home ground in PretoriaPretoria
Pretoria is a city located in the northern part of Gauteng Province, South Africa. It is one of the country's three capital cities, serving as the executive and de facto national capital; the others are Cape Town, the legislative capital, and Bloemfontein, the judicial capital.Pretoria is...
on the 11th of April. UCT won their first Varsity Cup trophy by 26 - 16
| border="0" width="100%" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"> |
| 2011 Varsity Cup Table |
The bottom team qualified for the Promotion/Relegation Play-Offs.
Points breakdown:
*4 points for a win
*2 points for a draw
*1 bonus point for a loss by seven points or less
*1 bonus point for scoring four or more tries in a match
- 2011 Top Try Scorer - Therlow Pietersen (Ikeys) 7
- 2011 Top Points Scorer - Demitri Catrakillis (Ikeys) 136
- 2011 Player That Rocks - Callie Visagie (Maties)
- 2011 Backline Player That Rocks - Enrico Acker (Shimlas)
- 2011 Forward That Rocks - Hugo Kloppers (Maties)
Notable Players and Coaches
- Jake WhiteJake WhiteJake White is a rugby union coach and former coach of the South Africa national rugby union team, the Springboks. His most notable achievements as coach include leading the Springboks to victory in 2007 Rugby World Cup and the 2004 Tri Nations title...
- former UCT Assistant Coach. Former SpringbokSouth Africa national rugby union teamThe South African national rugby union team are 2009 British and Irish Lions Series winners. They are currently ranked as the fourth best team in the IRB World Rankings and were named 2008 World Team of the Year at the prestigious Laureus World Sports Awards.Although South Africa was instrumental...
National Coach - Bobby SkinstadBobby SkinstadRobert Brian Skinstad is a Zimbabwean-born South African rugby union player who has represented the national team, the Springboks, 42 times, scoring 55 points . He played in the positions of flanker and number eight...
- former UCT Assistant Coach. Former Springbok Loose Forward - Robbie FleckRobbie FleckRobert Frank Fleck better known as Robbie is a former rugby union footballer who played at centre for South Africa....
- former UCT Assistant Coach. Former Springbok Center - Juan de JonghJuan de JonghJuan de Jongh is a South African rugby union footballer. He was one of the stars of Vodacom WP's ABSA Currie Cup campaign in 2009 and he made his debut against the Sharks. He became the first choice inside centre for the Stormers in the 2010 Super 14 season after the departure of stalwart and...
- former Maties center. First ever Varsity Cup player to play for the SpringboksSouth Africa national rugby union teamThe South African national rugby union team are 2009 British and Irish Lions Series winners. They are currently ranked as the fourth best team in the IRB World Rankings and were named 2008 World Team of the Year at the prestigious Laureus World Sports Awards.Although South Africa was instrumental... - Joe PietersenJoe PietersenJoe Pietersen is a South African rugby union footballer who currently plays as fullback or on the wing for Western Province.He started his career at , playing for them in the domestic Currie Cup and Vodacom Cup competitions, as well as representing the in Super Rugby...
- 2008 Maties Fullback. Now fullback for the Super 14Super 14Super Rugby is the largest and pre-eminent professional Rugby union competition in the Southern Hemisphere...
side the StormersStormersThe Stormers, for sponsorship reasons referred to as DHL Stormers, are a South African rugby union team based in Cape Town competing in the Super Rugby competition . Despite their lack of silverware over the years, their home stadium, Newlands, typically draws the highest average attendance figures... - JJ GagianoJJ GagianoJonathan Richard Gagiano is a South African born, American rugby union player. "JJ" plays flank for the USA Eagle XV side. He was selected to tour with the USA Eagles squad for the Autumn 2010 tour of Europe. "JJ" plays his club rugby for Eastern Province Kings in South Africa...
- UCT Captain. Member of the USA National Team the US Eagles - Mathew TurnerMathew TurnerMathew Turner is a rugby union player for Bristol Rugby in the Guinness Premiership. He plays on the wing.-Career:...
- 2008 UCT wing. Now a member of the BristolBristolBristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
team in the Guinness PremiershipGuinness PremiershipThe English Premiership, also currently known as the Aviva Premiership because of the league's sponsorship by Aviva, is a professional league competition for rugby union football clubs in the top division of the English rugby system. There are twelve clubs in the Premiership...
as well as the England SevensEngland national rugby union team (sevens)The English national rugby union sevens team compete in the World Sevens Series, Rugby World Cup Sevens and the Commonwealth Games.-Honours:* 1973 International Seven-A-Side Tournament - Winners* Rugby World Cup Sevens Winners 1993* Hong Kong Sevens Winners 2002* Hong Kong Sevens Winners 2003*...
team - Kyle Brown - 2008 UCT player. Now a member of the Springbok SevensSouth Africa national rugby union team (sevens)The South African national rugby union sevens team compete in the World Sevens Series, the Rugby World Cup Sevens and the Commonwealth Games.-Current squad:2011–12 IRB Sevens World Series 14-man squad :#Cecil Afrika...
team - Paul Bosch - 2008 Pukke Center. Now in the Western ProvinceWestern Province (rugby team)DHL Western Province is a South African rugby union team that participates in the annual Currie Cup tournament. The team has won the Currie Cup on 32 occasions and has the most supporters of any Currie Cup team...
squad - Robert EbersohnRobert EbersohnRobert Thompson Ebersohn is a rugby union and Sevens player from South Africa. He has played for the Springboks Sevens, South Africa U20 and made his Super 14 debut for the Toyota Cheetahs in 2010...
- 2008 Shimlas Center. Currently a member of the Springbok SevensSouth Africa national rugby union team (sevens)The South African national rugby union sevens team compete in the World Sevens Series, the Rugby World Cup Sevens and the Commonwealth Games.-Current squad:2011–12 IRB Sevens World Series 14-man squad :#Cecil Afrika...
team - Shane van der Merwe - 2008 Tuks centre. Now playing for Bath in the UK
- Gerhard van den HeeverGerhard van den HeeverGerhard van den Heever is a South African rugby union footballer. In 2010 van den Heever inherited Bryan Habana's number 11 shirt for the Bulls after Habana's departure for the Stormers; van den Heever is said to be even quicker than Habana...
- Tuks Wing. Now playing for the Bulls in the Super 14Super 14Super Rugby is the largest and pre-eminent professional Rugby union competition in the Southern Hemisphere... - Earl Lewis - 2009 UJ player. Now playing for the Golden LionsGolden LionsThe Golden Lions is a provincial rugby team based in Johannesburg, South Africa. The team was originally known as Transvaal, before changes to the political landscape in South Africa forced a name change to the Gauteng Lions, before again being changed to the Golden Lions. For sponsorship reason...
in the Currie CupCurrie CupThe Currie Cup tournament is South Africa's premier domestic rugby union competition, played each winter and spring , featuring teams representing either entire provinces or substantial regions within provinces... - Demetri CatrakilisDemetri CatrakilisDemetri Catrakilis is a South African rugby union footballer who plays for the Western Province provincial team. He attended St John's College in Johannesburg-Varsity Cup:...
- 2011 UCT flyhalf. Now playing for Western ProvinceWestern Province (rugby team)DHL Western Province is a South African rugby union team that participates in the annual Currie Cup tournament. The team has won the Currie Cup on 32 occasions and has the most supporters of any Currie Cup team...
in the Currie Cup - Rudy JoubertRudy JoubertRudy Joubert is a South African rugby union coach and a former footballer. He also got a degree on Theology.He had to leave rugby at a young age, due to an injury...
- Pukke Head Coach. Springbok Technical Advisor in 1995 Rugby World Cup1995 Rugby World CupThe 1995 Rugby World Cup was the third Rugby World Cup. It was hosted and won by South Africa, and was the first Rugby World Cup in which every match was held in one country....
Sponsors
- First National Bank
- Steinhoff International
- Carling Black Label
- Spur
External links
- http://www.varsitycup.co.za
- http://www.sport24.co.za/Content/Rugby/VarsityCup