Author: saru

The Fanie du Toit Sports Grounds in Potchefstroom will host the top schools sevens players in the country on Friday and Saturday in the SA Rugby U17 Interprovincial Sevens, where a total of 44 action-packed matches will play out.

The 16 participating teams will feature in 24 matches on the opening day, while 20 games will be played on Saturday in an exciting showpiece of junior rugby action.

Western Province, who took top honours in the tournament last year, will kick off the competition against the SA LSEN (Learners with Special Education Needs) team at 08h30, which will trigger non-stop rugby until the opening ceremony at 15h50, with the last two matches following after 16h00.

Each team will play three matches on Friday, while the seeding matches will be played on Saturday, and will conclude with the Shield, Bowl, Plate and Cup Finals.

A number of big match-ups will play out on the opening day, which will see hosts, the Leopards, taking on their neighbours, the Golden Lions, in their opening match, before lining up against the Free State and Griquas, while Western Province will meet the Blue Bulls in the big north-south derby, the Golden Lions will meet Free State, and 2017 runners up, the Sharks, take on SWD.

SA Rugby U17 Interprovincial Sevens day one fixtures (Friday, 28 September):

08h30 – Western Province v SA LSEN
08h50 – Pumas v Blue Bulls
09h10 – Sharks v Limpopo
09h30 – Eastern Province v SWD
09h50 – Boland v Border
10h10 – Valke v Griffons
10h30 – Golden Lions v Leopards
10h50 – Griquas v Free State
11h10 – Western Province v Pumas
11h30 – Blue Bulls v SA LSEN
11h50 – Sharks v Eastern Province
12h10 – SWD v Limpopo
12h30 – Boland v Valke
12h50 – Griffons v Border
13h10 – Golden Lions v Griquas
13h30 – Free State v Leopards
13h50 – Western Province v Blue Bulls
14h10 – Pumas v SA LSEN
14h30 – Sharks v SWD
14h50 – Eastern Province v Limpopo
15h10 – Boland v Griffons
15h30 – Valke v Border
16h10 – Golden Lions v Free State
16h30 – Leopards v Griquas 

Issued by SA Rugby Communications

France outplayed SA Schools 28-21 at Stellenberg High School near Cape Town in an exciting match that concluded the second round of the Aon International U18 Series on Tuesday.  Both teams scored three tries during the match, but the first half effort from the French, in which they rallied up 14 points, proved crucial.

Earlier in the day Wales outlasted England, winning 26-20.

The third leg of the series will be played at SACS, Newlands on Saturday, when SA Schools face England and Wales front up to the French.

SA Schools coach, Sean Erasmus, said afterwards he was disappointed in the result, but happy with the improvements shown by the squad, which saw 11 changes to the one that managed a 43-40 win over Wales on Friday.

“We certainly showed good progress in the areas we wanted, but the result hurts,” Erasmus said.

“There are a lot of disappointed people in our group.”

The SA Schools team were trailing 14-0 at the break and 21-0 shortly after the restart, but showed good commitment and attacking prowess to score twice and had the crowd on the edge of their seats.

A third French try sealed the result but not the effort from the SA Schools, who scored again with two minutes left.

Their comeback effort ran out of time though and the French could celebrate a second win in the series.

“We had our chances in the match, but did not take those that mattered,” Erasmus said.

“We did some of the things better this time and that what it is all about. The result did disappoint ourselves and a lot of other people, but the fact that we came back strongly is pleasing.”

French fullback, Cheikh Tiberghein had a very productive day. Three of his first half penalties had the French 9-0 ahead as the SA Schools committed a number of transgressions, including a yellow card in the first half.

A late first half try by French scrumhalf, Kevin Viallard, extended the lead into a comfortable one.

The second half continued in the same vein, with winger Martin Dulon worked over in the corner to extend the lead to 21-0.

South Africa started their comeback though and tries by Evan Roos and Jacques Goosen had the lead within grasp.

Tiberghein scored a gem though, but a second by Goosen had the crowd on their feet, but to no avail.

Scorers:

SA Schools 21 (0) – Tries: Evan Roos, Jacques Goosen (2). Conversions: Darren Hendricks (3). France 28 (14) – Tries: Cheikh Tiberghien, Kevin Viallard, Martin Dulon. Conversions: Tiberghien (2). Penalties: Tiberghien (3).

Issued by SA Rugby Communications

Adrian Alberts and Muzi Manyike have been named as captain and vice-captain of the SA Schools side for the forthcoming Aon Under-18 International Series.

Alberts, of Paarl Boys’ High, captained the unbeaten DHL Western Province side at the recent Coca-Cola Under-18 Craven Week in Paarl. He plays lock and in his second season with the SA Schools side.

Manyike (centre) is head boy of Jeppe Boys’ High in Johannesburg and represented the Bidvest Walton Golden Lions at the Coca-Cola Under-18 Craven Week.

“Adrian and Muzi both bring leadership experience to the squad and I’m excited to see what they bring to our team in the coming weeks,” said Sean Erasmus, coach of the SA Schools side.

“It’s going to be a tough series against Wales, England and France, and these two players, with the support of the other leaders in the squad, will have a big task at hand.

“But they’ve already taken the responsibility since we got together over the weekend and the excitement in the squad is palpable.”

The SA Schools team will get their Aon Under-18 International Series underway on Friday, 10 August, at Boland Landbou near Paarl, against Wales. England face France on the same day.

The second match is against France at Stellenberg High School in Durbanville on Tuesday, 14 August, when Wales and England will square off.

The series concludes on Saturday, 18 August at SACS in Newlands, when the SA Schools side face England, while France and Wales will face each other.

“The three teams from Europe are very strong and we’re in for a tough series, but I’m positive and excited to see what we can do on the pitch,” said Erasmus.

Issued by SA Rugby Communications

Free State, the Blue Bulls, Eastern Province and Valke stamped their authority on their opponents in an action-packed second round of the U16 Coca-Cola Grant Khomo Week at Hoërskool Diamantveld in Kimberley on Wednesday to remain the only unbeaten teams going in Friday’s final round.

Boland got out of the blocks quickly against Free State to build up a 17-10 lead, but a strong showing by the Bloemfontein outfit saw them fight back to secure an impressive 50-22 victory and the biggest score of the day. The team applied sustained pressure thanks to their committed attack, skilful handling and fantastic support play, and it paid off as they managed to navigate their way to the tryline regularly to score seven tries to Boland’s three.  

Braces by the Blue Bulls’ Bjorn van Wyk and Lincoln Adams powered their team to a 28-18 victory in a bruising encounter against Border. The Pretoria side’s ability to convert half chances into tries handed them the edge. Each team crossed the tryline only once in the first half, but three second-half tries by the Bulls to only one by the opposition sealed the victory for them. 

Three penalty goals by the Valke, meanwhile, proved to be crucial in their 31-24 victory against the Thepa Trading Griffons as both teams scored four tries in a tightly-fought battle. Such was the closeness of the match, the Welkom side held a narrow two-point lead at the break, and with both sides putting their forwards and backs to good use, the penalty goals nudged the Valke to their second victory.

Eastern Province also continued their winning ways with a 24-14 win against the King Price Pumas after building up an encouraging 17-0 lead at the break. Brandon Wilkie was in fine form for the Port Elizabeth outfit as he scored a try, three conversions and a penalty goal for his 14 points. The Pumas showed their fighting spirit after the break to score two converted tries, but this still left them short.

A hat-trick by Namibia’s Divan van Vreden and a fine kicking display by Schano van Rooi steered the team to a rewarding 42-6 victory against Border CD and their first win in the competition. Their solid attacking performance, ability to contest at the breakdowns and their tough defensive effort saw them take a 28-0 lead at the break before finishing the match with six tries, while the Eastern Cape team had to settle for two penalty goals.

DHL Western Province bounced back strongly from their defeat on Monday to beat the Bidvest Waltons Golden Lions 38-12 thanks to their physicality and a solid performance all-around. The Capetonians led 17-7 at the break. They maintained their dominant form in the second half to run in five tries to two by their Gauteng counterparts. Centre Ethan James contributing 18 points thanks to a try, five conversions and a penalty goal. 

It was also a good day for hosts, Griquas, who cruised to a 38-12 victory against Old Mutual Zimbabwe with their superior attack earning them six tries to two by the visitors. Such was their dominance, they led 21-0 at the break and they continued to stamp their authority as the match progressed. Muller Du Plessis scored two of his team’s tries, while Zimbabwe’s two were compliments of Gaza Kagande.

SWD overcame a tight first half against the Sharks, in which the teams were tied at 5-5, to dash their way to a 22-12 victory. SWD’s raw pace out wide was too much for the Durbanites as they laid a solid platform with their forwards and then spread the ball out wide to their speedy backs, which earned them three tries to two by the opposition’s Sali Mlenzana.

The clash between Limpopo and the Leopards was physical as both teams tried hard to gain acendency, but the Leopards’ ability to capitalise better on their point-scoring chances earned them a 17-10 victory. The Potchefstroom team was 12-3 up at the break and they added their third try in the second half, which was enough to keep them ahead as Limpopo only earned a converted try and penalty goal for their efforts.

The U13 Coca-Cola Craven Week teams will return to the field on Thursday for their third round of matches, while their U16 counterparts have a break to prepare for the final round of both tournaments on Friday.

U16 Coca-Cola Grant Khomo Week round two fixtures (Wednesday, 4 July):

Thepa Trading Griffons 24-31 Valke
Border CD 6-42 Namibia
King Price Pumas 14-24 Eastern Province
Limpopo 10-17 Leopards
DHL Western Province 38-12 Bidvest Waltons Golden Lions
Griquas 38-12 Old Mutual Zimbabwe
SWD 22-12 Sharks
Blue Bulls 28-18 Border
Free State 50-22 Boland

U13 Coca-Cola Craven Week day three fixtures (Thursday, 5 July):

10h00 – Free State v Forever Resorts Limpopo
10h00 – Pumas v Border CD (B Field)
11h00 – Xerox Griquas v Border
11h00 – Leopards v Thepa Trading Griffons (B Field)
12h00 – Eastern Province v Sharks
13h00 – Bidvest Waltons Golden Lions v ITS Valke
14h00 – SWD v Boland
15h00 – DHL Western Province v Itec Blue Bulls
16h00 – Namibia v Zimbabwe

Issued by SA Rugby Communications

SA Rugby on Tuesday announced the fixtures for the opening days of the various Youth Weeks, which will deliver three weeks of back-to-back rugby action from Monday, 25 June until Saturday, 14 July, when the best school rugby players from across the country attempt to make their presence felt.

The SA Rugby Youth Week festivals will kick off on Monday, 25 June with the Learners with Special Education Needs (LSEN) Week (at the Isak Steyl Stadium in Vanderbijlpark), and the National Girls U16 and U18 Weeks (at Jeppe High School in Johannesburg). The LSEN Week will conclude on Thursday, 28 June and the Girls’ Weeks on Friday, 29 June.

These tournaments will be followed by the U13 Coca-Cola Craven Week and U16 Coca-Cola Grant Khomo Week, which will run concurrently at Hoërskool Diamantveld in Kimberley from Monday, 2 July to Friday, 6 July. The entry fee for these events will be R20 per person.

The Youth Weeks festival will conclude with the flagship tournament, the U18 Coca-Cola Craven Week, and the Coca-Cola Academy Week, which will be hosted by Paarl Boys High at the Brug Street Sports Grounds from Monday, 9 July to Saturday, 14 July. The entry fee will be R35 for adults and R20 for Under-18s. Weekly tickets can also be purchased at R150 for adults and R100 for U18s.

The Thepa Trading Griffons and Blue Bulls XV will get the U18 Coca-Cola Craven Week underway at 10h40 on 9 July. The main games on the opening day will see 2017’s top side, the Bidvest Waltons Golden Lions, go up against Eastern Province and hosts, DHL Western Province, taking on the King Price Pumas.

The Sharks CD and Blue Bulls CD, and Namibia and Valke CD will go head-to-head in the opening Coca-Cola Academy Week games on 9 July, with the big games pitting Boland and the Sharks, and DHL Western Province and the Pumas up against one another later in the day.

In the U16 Coca-Cola Grant Khomo Week, four matches will be concurrently in the opening slot of the day on Monday, 2 July, which will see Free State meet SWD, Bidvest Waltons Golden Lions take on the Blue Bulls, Limpopo battle it out with the Valke, and Old Mutual Zimbabwe meet Border CD. The other main clashes will see the Bidvest Waltons Golden Lions and Blue Bulls go up against one another, while the Sharks take on Boland.

The U13 Coca-Cola Craven Week will also start off with a bang with the Sharks meeting the Itec Blue Bulls, Boland and the Pumas going head-to-head, Old Mutual Zimbabwe taking on Forever Resorts Limpopo and Border CD lining up against the Thepa Trading Griffons. In other big games hosts, Xerox Griquas, take on Eastern Province, and DHL Western Province, who were the top team last season, go up against the Leopards.

The Blue Bulls and Pumas, and the Sharks and Valke XV, meanwhile, will kick off the LSEN Week, while hosts, the Valke, who took the honours last year, will meet the Leopards, DHL Western Province takes on Eastern Province, the Golden Lions go up against Free State and the Blue Bulls take on the Pumas.

Boland will meet the Free State, and Western Province B will take on Limpopo in the opening matches of the U16 National Girls Week respectively, while Border, who took top honours in the last U16 Week two years ago, will meet SWD in the final match of the day. Hosts, the Golden Lions, meanwhile will go up against Eastern Province.

In the National Girls U18 Week, Western Province, who were the top team last season, will get the competition underway against SWD on the A Field, while the Leopards and Border CD will meet on the B Field. Border, who met the Cape side in the final match last year, will take on Limpopo.

SA Rugby Youth Weeks opening rounds fixtures for 2018:

U18 Coca-Cola Craven Week (Paarl Boys High)

Monday, 9 July:

10h40 – Thepa Trading Griffons v Blue Bulls XV

12h10 – Border v Limpopo

13h40 – Bidvest Waltons Golden Lions v Eastern Province

15h40 – DHL Western Province v King Price Pumas

Tuesday, 10 July:

09h30 – Bidvest Waltons Golden Lions XV v DHL Western Province XV

11h00 – Valke v Leopards

12h30 – Boland v Griquas

14h00 – Sharks v SWD

15h30 – Free State v Blue Bulls

Coca-Cola Academy Week (Paarl Boys High)

Monday, 9 July:

08h00 – Sharks CD v Blue Bulls CD

08h00 – Namibia v Valke CD

09h20 – Old Mutual Zimbabwe v SA LSEN

09h20 – Griquas v Valke

10h40 – Border v Leopards

12h00 – Boland v Sharks

13h20 – DHL Western Province v Pumas

Tuesday, 10 July:

08h00 – Griquas CD v Griffons CD

08h00 – Pumas CD v Border CD

09h20 – Eastern Province CD v Limpopo

10h40 – Bidvest Waltons Golden Lions CD v DHL Western Province CD

12h00 – SWD v Thepa Trading Griffons

13h20 – Bidvest Waltons Golden Lions v Free State

14h40 – Blue Bulls v Eastern Province

U16 Coca-Cola Grant Khomo Week (Hoërskool Diamantveld, Kimberley)

 

Monday, 2 July:

10h30 – Free State v SWD

10h30 – Bidvest Waltons Golden Lions v Blue Bulls

10h30 – Limpopo v Valke

10h30 – Old Mutual Zimbabwe v Border CD

11h45 – Eastern Province v Leopards

12h45 – Western Province v Border

12h45 – Sharks v Boland

12h45 – Griffons v Namibia

U13 Coca-Cola Craven Week (Hoërskool Diamantveld, Kimberley) 

Monday, 2 July:

09h30 – Sharks v Itec Blue Bulls

09h30 – Boland v Pumas

09h30 – Old Mutual Zimbabwe v Forever Resorts Limpopo

09h30 – Border CD v Griffons

11h45 – DHL Western Province v Leopards

11h45 – SWD v Namibia

11h45 – Free State v Valke

14h00 – Xerox Griquas v Eastern Province

14h00 – Border v Bidvest Waltons Golden Lions

National Girls U16 Week 

Monday, 25 June:

10h00 – Boland v Free State

10h00 – DHL Western Province B v Limpopo

11h15 – Golden Lions v Eastern Province

11h15 – Blue Bulls v Border CD

12h20 – Pumas v Griquas

12h20 – Griffons v Leopards

14h30 – DHL Western Province A v KZN

15h45 – Border v SWD

National Girls U18 Week

Tuesday, 26 June:

10h00 – SWD v DHL Western Province

10h00 – Leopards v Border CD

11h15 – Boland vs KZN

11h15 – Griffons v Pumas

12h20 – Border v Limpopo

12h20 – Eastern Province v Griquas

14h30 – Free State v Golden Lions

15h45 – Blue Bulls v Zimbabwe

LSEN Week (Isak Steyl Stadium, Vanderbijlpark)

Monday, 25 June:

09h00 – Blue Bulls v Pumas

09h00 – Sharks v Valke XV

10h20 – Golden Lions v Free State

10h20 – Lions EE v Griffons

11h40 – DHL Western Province v Eastern Province

13h00 – Boland v SWD

15h30 – Valke v Leopards

Issued by SA Rugby Communications

Junior Springbok flyhalf Damian Willemse will make his first appearance of the season for the SA U20’s in a settled starting team when Chean Roux’s charges meet Georgia in their opening match of the World Rugby U20 Championship at Stade Aimé Giral in Perpignan on Wednesday.

Willemse, one of seven players in the match-day squad who participated in the tournament in Georgia last year, will partner with Zak Burger at halfback after coming off a solid Vodacom Super Rugby campaign for the DHL Stormers in the last few months.

Lock and captain Salmaan Moerat, centre Wandisile Simelane, No 8 Muller Uys, fullback Gianni Lombard, hooker Daniel Jooste and replacement scrumhalf Rewan Kruger are the other players in Roux’s match-23 who featured in the international spectacle in Tbilisi.

Moerat and Ruan Nortje will form the lock duo, while flankers Dian Schoonees and PJ Steenkamp pair up with Uys in the loose trio, and Rikus Pretorius and Simelane will do duty in the midfield.

Lombard starts at fullback, with Tyrone Green and Sihle Njezula at wing, while Jooste and props Sazi Sandi and Nathan McBeth will pack down in the front row.

On the bench, replacement lock Ruan Nortje will make his Junior Springbok debut if he takes to the field after missing the team’s internationals in the lead-up to the tournament due to a knee injury.

“We were fortunate to be able to select a settled squad, which will be handy against a physical and passionate Georgian outfit,” said Roux.

“All the players are fit and eager to play, and we selected a team that we thought would be best suited to the game against Georgia.”

Looking ahead at the clash against Georgia, Roux said he is expecting a physical onslaught: “Georgia play with their hearts on their sleeves and they will take to the field with everything they have. They are a forward-driven team, with a good scrum and lineout maul, so they will probably try to lay the foundation there. But that said, our plans for the game are mapped out and hopefully we can counter that.”

The match kicks off at 18h30 and will be broadcast live on SuperSport 1.

 

Junior Springbok team to face Georgia:

15 – Gianni Lombard (Xerox Golden Lions)

14 – Tyrone Green (Xerox Golden Lions)

13 – Wandisile Simelane (Xerox Golden Lions)

12 – Rikus Pretorius (DHL Western Province)

11 – Sihle Njezula (DHL Western Province)

10 – Damian Willemse (DHL Western Province)

9 – Zak Burger (Cell C Sharks)

8 – Muller Uys (DHL Western Province)

7 – PJ Steenkamp (Xerox Golden Lions)

6 – Dian Schoonees (Xerox Golden Lions)

5 – Ruan Nortje (Vodacom Blue Bulls)

4 – Salmaan Moerat (captain – DHL Western Province)

3 – Sazi Sandi (DHL Western Province)

2 – Daniel Jooste (DHL Western Province)

1 – Nathan McBeth (Xerox Golden Lions)

Replacements:

16 – Schalk Erasmus (DHL Western Province)

17 – Alulutho Tshakweni (Eastern Province)

18 – Asenathi Ntlabakanye (Xerox Golden Lions)

19 – Ben-Jason Dixon (DHL Western Province)

20 – Ruan Vermaak (Xerox Golden Lions)

21 – Rewan Kruger (Toyota Free State)

22 – Lubabalo Dobela (Toyota Free State)

23 – Lyle Hendricks (DHL Western Province)

Issued by SA Rugby Communications

Western Province and the Blue Bulls on Tuesday took major steps toward contesting the unofficial final of the Coca-Cola Under-16 Grant Khomo Week on Thursday as they produced another round of classy displays in the top matches of the day.

The Cape-based side were in fine form from the kick-off against Eastern Province, as they capitalised on the opposition’s mistakes and backed their pace and skill on attack for their 34-22 victory. Their domination started in the third minute with Taigh Schoor crossing the tryline for the first of five first-half tries, which earned them a 31-8 lead at the break. Eastern Province, however, regrouped in the second half and produced a solid performance on attack and defence to force their way back into the game. This determined effort limited Western Province to a single penalty in the second half, while Eastern Province scored two converted tries to increase their tally to three.

The Blue Bulls also outclassed their Gauteng rivals, the Golden Lions, 42-14 thanks to their power and slick handling skills. This earned them six tries in total, four of which were scored in the first half, as they ran circles around the Lions for their 28-0 half time lead. Similarly to the opening day, however, the Lions bounced back in the second half by retaining possession and working their way into the Bulls half, which allowed them to cross the chalk twice. But the Bulls matched this to push the game out of the Lions reach.

In the other matches SWD, Border, Namibia and KwaZulu-Natal also continued their winning ways as they too registered back-to-back victories in the series.

SWD produced a quality display in which they scored two tries in nine minutes to cancel out the Pumas early 7-0 lead. They built on this impressive form in the second half with four tries in the last 10 minutes to increase their total to six tries – three of which were scored by Christo Hamman. Hamman also made his presence felt with the boot as he slotted over four conversions to take his total for the match to 23 points.

Border, meanwhile, slotted over a late second- half penalty against Boland to break the 13-13 deadlock with a few minutes on the clock and registered a 16-13 win, while Namibia’s three tries to the Leopards’ one secured their 19-8 win.

In Durban big wins again characterised day two of the Coca-Cola Under-18 Academy Week with the Free State thumping the Limpopo Blue Bulls 88-5, while Namibia registered their second 50-point score with a 55-12 victory against Griffons Country Districts and the KwaZulu-Natal XV defeated Leopards Country Districts 66-0.

The upset of the day, however, was SWD pipping Western Province 22-19.

The players will have Wednesday at leisure to rest before the final day’s play on Thursday.

Coca-Cola Under-16 Grant Khomo Week day 2 results:

Blue Bulls 42 -14 Golden Lions

KwaZulu-Natal 32 – 20 Griffons
Western Province 34 – 22 Eastern Province
Zimbabwe 21 – 29 Limpopo Blue Bulls
Leopards 8 – 19 Namibia
Border 16 – 13 Boland
Valke XV 16 – 24 Griquas
Valke 10 – 17 Free State
Pumas 7 – 38 SWD
Border CD 3 – 57 Griquas CD

Coca-Cola Under-18 Academy Week day 2 results:

Western Province 19 – 22 SWD

KwaZulu-Natal 17 – 24 Eastern Province
Border 7 – 25 Griffons
Pumas 22 – 14 Boland
Leopards 3 – 24 KZN CD
Leopards CD 0 – 66 KZN XV
Blue Bulls 24 – 20 Golden Lions
Griffons CD 12 – 55 Namibia
Free State 88 – 5 Limpopo Blue Bulls
Red Valke 48 – 6 Border CD
EP CD 21 – 11 Pumas CD
Griquas 17 – 26 Blue Valke
SA LSEN 33 – 17 Griquas CD

Issued by SARU Corporate Affairs

The future of South African Sevens rugby will be on show in Sydney next week when two Under-18 teams for men and women, consisting of 12 players each, will take part in the annual Australian Youth Olympic Festival (AYOF) on 18 and 19 January.

It’s the first time ever that a South African U18 women’s team will play abroad, with Sevens making its debut at the AYOF after the sport was included in the Olympic Games for 2016.

A total of 30 nations will take part in 17 sporting codes utilising most of the venues used during the Olympic Games in Sydney in 2000.

The men’s side will be coached by former Springbok Sevens captain Neil Powell, with the current SARU Manager of the SA Sevens Academy and Elite Player Development Marius Schoeman, one of the most experienced Springbok Sevens players ever, joining as team manager.

Three players in the men’s team, Duhan van der Merwe, Matjikinyane Molapo and Warrick Gelant, played for the SA Schools team last year.

Denver Wannies, coach of the senior South African Women’s team, will coach the U18 women, with former SA Women’s captain, Nomsebenzi Tsotsobe, travelling with the squad as team manager.

“This is a fantastic opportunity for our upcoming Sevens stars to showcase their talent on the international stage and to experience competition at this level,” said SARU CEO Jurie Roux.

“These players are still very young, but with the Olympic Games in Brazil more than three years away, it’s not impossible to see some of them feature in Rio de Janeiro in 2016.

“Expanding the base of Sevens players in South Africa with an eye on the Olympics is one of the reasons why we decided to send these teams to Australia and I have a lot of confidence in the players and management.”

Both squads will leave for Australia on Sunday, 13 January, following camps in Stellenbosch (boys) and Cape Town (girls) this week. They will return on 21 January.

The SA Under-18 Sevens squads are:

Men: Lungelo Gosa (Border), EW Viljoen, Marius Louw (both Free State), Matjikinyane Molapo (Limpopo), Willandre Kotzenberg (Pumas), Warrick Gelant, Duhan van der Merwe, Dewald Human (all South Western Districts), Gerhardus Labuschagne (Valke), Ryan Oosthuizen, TJ Goddard, Dennis Cox (all Western Province).

Women: Ntsako Faith Tshauke (Blue Bulls), Micaela Witbooi, Kirsten Conrad (both Boland), Lusanda Dumke, Simamkele Namba, Asisipho Dotwana (all Border), Bonakele Sibiya (Golden Lions), Mandy Mhlongo (KwaZulu-Natal), Christal Williams, Atheana Botha (both South Western Districts), Kimico Manuel, Tatum Daniels (both Western Province).

Issued by SARU Corporate Affairs

The SA Under-20 training squad will be looking for an improved performance against their French counterparts when the two sides meet again on Saturday afternoon at the Saldana Bay Rugby Club. The kick-off is 16h00.

France U20 won the first encounter 15-10 on Tuesday in Velddrif thanks mainly to a stronger performance in the second half, when they outscored the home team by two tries to one.

Both teams are using the two-match series as preparation for the IRB Under-20 World Championships later this year in Wales.

SARU President, Oregan Hoskins, and Johan Prinsloo (CEO) will both attend the match. The SA youngsters will be captained by hooker PW van Vuuren.

The South African U20 team:

15. Wilton Peterson, 14. Vanon Willis, 13. Mlindazwe Nqoro, 12. Stefan Watermeyer, 11. Oscar Mfundice, 10. Divan Koze, 9. Dewaldt Duvenhage, 8. Justin Wheeler, 7. Yassir Hartzenberg, 6. Tilliphatu Maroele, 5. Cornell Hess, 4. Berend Botha, 3. Lourens Adriaanse, 2. PW van Vuuren (captain), 1. Corne Fourie. Replacements: Jean Jacques Rossouw, Sabela Nhlapo, Johan van Deventer, Clayton Steward, Charl Weideman, Benardo Botha, Robert Ebersohn, Robert Kruger, Bennie Geldenhuys, Coenie van Wyk, Herson Amell, Henry Bantjies, Lisle Clarke, Cameron Jacobs, Maphelo Mpondo and Mzwanzele Zito.

Issued by SA Rugby