The following from the GLRU: Golden Lions president Kevin de Klerk and CEO Manie Reyneke announced on Thursday that Mitchell had been released from the final year of his contract with the Western Force in Perth, thus allowing the former All Black loose forward to accept the offer of an extended stay with the Lions.

“Since John has been with us on a consultancy arrangement, we have been most impressed with his ability across our entire coaching structure,” said a delighted De Klerk.

“It has been no secret that we wanted to engage John Mitchell on a longer term basis, but we realised this was always going to be subject to the Western Force agreeing to provide him with a release. We are thankful and appreciative that the Western Force gave us the green light.”

“In John we are getting not only a man of high ethics who cherishes the history, culture and camaraderie of rugby but who boasts an exceptional coaching pedigree at the very highest level. We at the Lions are extremely excited at being able to pull this off and look forward to John building on the already very positive impact he has had on the Lions,” added the former Springbok lock.

De Klerk said Lions coach Dick Muir had been a part of and conversant with the process of contracting Mitchell. “Dick, who is obviously now involved with the Springboks, is still the Director of Rugby at the Lions with John as the Head Coach. Dick was instrumental in helping us secure the services of John and will play a role in our plans going forward.”

De Klerk said Mitchell would base himself in Johannesburg for the greater part of the year and be in charge of the Lions in both the Absa Currie Cup and the Vodacom Super 15.

Rugby WA (Western Australia) chairman Geoff Stooke said the Western Force and rugby in Western Australia owed a great deal to Mitchell who started with a blank sheet of paper on his arrival six years ago and built a strong foundation for long term success.

Mitchell will be succeeded at the Force by Richard Graham, presently the Wallabies’ skills coach.

A surprise appointee when he was named to coach the Lions in the Currie Cup on a temporary basis in the absence of Springbok assistant Dick Muir at the beginning of the season, Mitchell has instilled a new spirit in a Lions team who go into tomorrow night’s crucial Currie Cup match at Coca-Cola Park against traditional foes Western Province on the back of three successive victories.

Mitchell follows in the footsteps of another former All Black coach Laurie Mains who guided the composite Cats to Super 12 semi-finals in 2000 and 2001.

Mitchell has crossed swords with the Springboks on numerous occasions. In 1994 he captained a Waikato side against Francois Pienaar’s touring side that contained Warren Gatland, recently re-appointed as coach of Wales, and other All Blacks in Matthew Cooper, Duane Monkley and Mark Cooksley.

Mitchell’s “Mooloos” were defeated 38-17 by a Springboks side captained by Tiaan Strauss and containing a core of players who wore the red-and-white Lions jersey in their careers in James Small, Chester Williams, Japie Mulder, Hennie le Roux, Johan Roux, Rudolf Straeuli and Johan le Roux.

However as a coach of the All Blacks Mitchell tasted success against his country’s arch-rivals with a 100 percent record of seven wins in seven matches – including a 52-16 drubbing at Loftus Versfeld in 2003 and a comprehensive 29-9 defeat in the quarter-final of the Rugby World Cup in Melbourne in 2003.

“Mitch,” as he is known throughout the rugby world, ended up with an All Black coaching record of 23 test wins from 27 games – an 85% winning record, the highest of any All Black coach in the professional era. In addition he coached the All Blacks to five out of five wins in mid-week matches.

His vast coaching pedigree includes stints as Clive Woodward’s assistant with the England team from 1997 to 2000, the Waikato National Provincial Championship side, the Chiefs Super 12 side and most recently taking the difficult job of establishing the Western Force in the Super 14 and creating a rugby union culture in Perth.

As a player Mitchell gained All Black colours on the 1993 tour to Great Britain. He was not capped but played in six victorious mid-week games; captaining the All Blacks on three occasions.

In Waikato he was a legend, having played 134 times and captaining them a record 86 times, in a career highlighted by many other achievements.

“When I took over as president of the Lions I said I was only interested in leading a province of winners,” concluded De Klerk. “The appointment of a coach of John Mitchell’s stature confirms that goal.”

Springbok replacement stalwart, Danie Rossouw, has been playing out of his skin as of late. With absence of teammate, Bakkies Botha, Rossouw has been given a few more opportunities to start in the Springbok #4 jumper, and boy has he taken those opportunities.

The 32 year old, 1.98m, 120 kg Rossouw seems to have become better with age, having arguably his best year ever in 2010.

Records/Honours

• Currie Cup winner with the Blue Bulls, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2009
• Super 14 winner with the Bulls, 2007, 2009 & 2010
• Member of the World Cup winning Springbok squad, 2007
• British & Irish Lions series winner, 2009
• Tri-Nations winner, 2009

Highlights of Danie Rossouw’s efforts against France at Newlands – 12 June 2010: [CombatBok]

The following from SARU: The Springbok medical team and its regional counterparts have met to plan the way ahead for the country’s leading rugby players in the lead up to the 2011 Rugby World Cup in New Zealand.

The meeting of medical and conditioning teams from Springboks and the five Vodacom Super 14 regions – including doctors, physiotherapists and fitness conditioners, was hosted by the South African Rugby Union (SARU) at the Sports Science Institute in Cape Town.

The main purpose of the gathering was to discuss the management of players in both International and National competition over the coming months with the ultimate goal of having a fit and full strength squad at the 2011 World Cup.

The key outcomes of the meeting were:

• Enhanced  two-way communication between the Springbok medical team and its regional and provincial counterparts
• Establishment of a collaborative approach in the interests of player welfare in the build up to Rugby World Cup 2011
• Agreement on two-way sharing of information on conditioning, performance, recovery, and injury management and prevention; and ensuring regular updates between the Springbok medical team and the regions during the Vodacom Tri-Nations, Absa Currie Cup and the Super 15
• Confirmation of the application of injury prevention protocols developed by Springbok physiotherapist Rene Naylor, based on the latest scientific research.
• Establishment of areas of collaborative research on new trends, technologies and related developments

Springbok Coach Peter de Villiers addressed the meeting where he explained his objectives and how he believed the national and regional medical teams could play a key role in ensuring a full strength and fully fit squad for 2011 World Cup.

“It is gratifying to see these talented and knowledgeable people working for the common good of Springbok rugby. I am now reassured that our players are in safe hands, both nationally and within their regions,” de Villiers said.

Springbok team doctor, Craig Roberts said: “The meeting was a significant step in that it will ensure for the sharing of information from both sides and enhance collaboration between us for the common good of South African rugby. The regions fully support the concept of injury risk assessments and will provide the necessary support on the ground to make sure that the required injury prevention measures are implemented”.

SARU Medical Manager, Clint Readhead added: “The meeting has ushered in a new era in collaboration between the Springbok and Regional medical and conditioning teams. There is a clear understanding that the continued high performance of South African rugby’s leading players can only be achieved if the experts work together towards a common objective”.

A shoe-in for the award?

The following from SARU: Players from the Vodacom Super 14 finalist Bulls and Stormers have unsurprisingly monopolised the nominations in the race for the title of Vodacom Super 14 Player of the Year award, the South African Rugby Union announced on Tuesday.

The 2009 winner, Vodacom Bulls flyhalf Morne Steyn, has again been nominated along with team-mates Fourie du Preez and Gerhard van den Heever. They are joined by the Vodacom Stormers’ lock Andries Bekker and centre Jaque Fourie in the five nominations.

The five polled the most votes among rugby media from a total of 26 players that were nominated.

Steyn set a record of 263 points in a Vodacom Super Rugby season as the Vodacom Bulls won the title for the third time in four seasons.  Van den Heever scored eight tries in the Bulls’ march to the title, while Du Preez, the 2009 SA Rugby Player of the Year, was outstanding once again.

The Vodacom Stormers’ first appearance in a final was reflected in several nominations for their players with lock Andries Bekker and centre Jaque Fourie, who scored seven tries in his debut season with the franchise, garnering enough media votes to be in the running for the award.

Meanwhile the Vodacom Blue Bulls’ last-gasp win in the Vodacom Cup was also reflected in nominations for the competition’s Player of the Year award. Team captain Gerrit-Jan van Velze, fullback Tiger Mangweni and flyhalf Francois Brummer, who kicked the after-the-hooter drop goal against the luckless Vodacom Cheetahs to clinch the R1m first prize, were all among the nominees.

Free State flyhalf Louis Strydom and Sharks No 10 Monty Dumond, who edged the former as the competition’s top scorer, completed the nominations.

The winners of the awards, as well as the rest of the SA Rugby Player of the Year awards, will be announced at the Springbok Banquet on November 2.

The 2010 Super 14 final, played this past weekend, at Orlando Stadium in Soweto, cracked the nod from the New York Times website. Here is a screenshot of the story:

Not bad, not bad at all for our little “island” country. Read the full article here.

There were some great shots taken during this past weekend’s 2010 Super 14 final, at Orlando Stadium, Soweto. Here are my pics: [Zimbio]

Aplon's 74kgs win him the high ball

Superstar in the making

Oh jeez, I f*$#ed that one up...

You're a doos, no you're a doos...

Getting ready for a big one

The final of the 2010 Super 14 has come and gone, and the Bulls are once again crowned champions of the Southern Hemisphere competition.

It was a momentous occasion for both teams, with the game being played at Orlando Stadium, in Soweto. The Bulls went into the game with the experience of having been in that situation before. For the Stormers, it was their first final, and at times it seamed as if the moment got to them.

From the kickoff, the Bulls showed their experience of playing in finals, and took charge of the game. They decided the tempo the game would be played in, and played majority of the rugby in the Stormers half.

Francois Hougaard was in the best form of his outstanding season so far, and broke through the Stormers line, stepping inside, outside, in, and wrong-footing Joe Pietersen, who is no slouch on defence, to cross over for the first try of the match, in the 25th minute.

The Bulls managed to break the Stormers line a few other times throughout the game, but that was the last time they would cross the chalk.

The Stormers looked more settled when they came back from the half time break, but battled at scrum time, with their tight five, and in particular, the front row, being dominated by the Bulls’ tight five.

They weren’t giving up though, and as he has done so many times before, but this time in dark blue, Bryan Habana made a vital intercept, and sprinted half the length of the field, for the Stormers first of two tries. With that try, awoke the Stormers hopes that they were still in the game, and over the next 26 minutes they fought hard, with victory in their grasp, despite a number of one sided calls by, usually good, referee, Craig Joubert.

It was not to be though, the opening half, where the Stormers seemed like ‘deers in the headlights’, and their tight five was dominated, was too much to claw back from. The Bulls were simply the better team on the night. They had the previous experience, and the end score showed why.

My two cents worth:

• For those of you who doubted the value of Jaque Fourie during the game, he gained 132m with ball in hand on the night.
• Schalk Burger was also his usual, machine self, making the most tackles of anyone in the game, with 15 on the night.
• I’ve said this all season, and if recent reports are true, that Peter Grant will leave if he isn’t selected for the Springboks this year, then he must go, because he is kak. He missed 6 tackles on the night, keeping up with his usual average of about 5 per game.
• Francois Hougaard is going to be the best #9 in the world one day, and for now he is a very decent wing. His strength in unparalleled to anyone of his size, and he can fight well above his weight category.
• Morne Steyn may have a great boot on him, but I think he has been quite average most of the season. There are glimpses of great running in him, but not frequent enough.
• Wicus Blaauw was terrible in the front row. His performance was the Stormers biggest undoing.
• Craig Joubert may have been rated the best referee this season, but he had an absolute ‘mare on the night. What I’d like to know from him, is how many high tackles constitute a card? He cost the Stormers 9 points through dodgy calls. You do the math… (Although Ricky’s try may leave some questions too)
• Fourie du Preez is quite simply the best rugby player in the world.

2010 Super 14 final Highlights- Bulls VS Stormers [WRNrugbynews]:

Scorecard:

Bulls: 25

Tries:Francois Hougaard 25m

Conversions: 1/1 (100%) Morne Steyn 1/1 (100%)

Penalties: 6/7 (86%) Morne Steyn 6/7 (85%)

Drop goals: 0/1 (0%) Morne Steyn 0/1 (0%)

Stormers: 17

Tries:Bryan Habana 54m; Enrico Januarie 78m

Conversions: 2/2 (100%) Peter Grant 2/2 (100%)

Penalties: 1/2 (50%) Peter Grant 1/2 (50%)

The 2010 Super 14 final is almost upon us. It’s an all South African affair this year, and will most likely be played in the style of a true North/South derby grudge match.

Both teams have been exceptional throughout this year’s competition, and both have a fair share of Springboks within their squads, balanced with a good amount of young talent.

The Stormers are having to travel, not to Loftus, but to altitude non the less, at Orlando Stadium in Soweto, where the Bulls disposed of the Crusaders a week ago.

Going into the game, if you’re a betting man, smart money would have to be on the Bulls. Having been in this situation before, and taking home the silverware, they are definitely the favourite for this weekend’s clash of the South African titans.

By no means write the Stormers off though. If anyone can unseat the mighty Bulls, it’s them. For year’s having boxed above their weight category with an inferior tight game, the Stormers now have the players to match any tight five, and have seemingly come to realise that this season, with every player in their team standing up to be counted.Couple the new found confidence of their tight five, with the best loose trio in the competition, and they are all set for a monumental battle up front.

Both teams have a decent backline. The Bulls have arguably the best player in world rugby in Fourie du Preez, coupled with the longstanding partnership of himself and Morne “the boot” Steyn, the will be looking to control the tempo of the game.

The Stormers have the outside backs. With Jaque Fourie being the best #13 in the business, and Springbok flyer and intercept king, Bryan Habana outside of him, bringing experience to the overall flair between themselves and the likes of Joe Pietersen and Gio Aplon.

Be ready for a final, the likes of which have never been seen in South Africa before.

Head to Head: Read More >>

With the final of the 2010 Super 14 just days away, the excitement and anticipation is growing to enormous proportions. The tickets for this, all South African final, were sold out in just minutes, and come Saturday, the Orlando Stadium in Soweto will be packed to the brim with screaming Bulls and Stormers fans.

Let’s recap on what happened in the last knockout encounter between these two power-houses of South African rugby, the 2009 Currie Cup semi final. (Yes the one that Naqele-douche-bag screwed up)

2009 Currie Cup semi final – Western Province VS Blue Bulls [WRNrugbynews]:

Will this Saturday’s, winner takes all encounter, bear any resemblance to the last knockout round match-up between these two sides?

Who do you think will walk away with the 2010 Super 14 title? …Beers all around!

The following from the Bulls camp: Leading Vodacom Bulls try scorer, Gerhard van den Heever, is back in the side that will take on the Stormers in the final of the Super 14 competition in Soweto on Saturday.

Van den Heever served a two week suspension due to a dangerous tackle and missed the semi-final clash against the Crusaders at the same venue last week and is the only change in the team from that game.

He replaces Jaco van der Westhuyzen, who drops to the bench in place of Stephan Dippenaar,  still leaving the Bulls with 13 players in the starting line-up who have won the Super 14 before. Van den Heever and fellow winger, Francois Hougaard, are yet to lift the coveted trophy, with Gary Botha part of the 2007 winning side.

Victor Matfield, who will lead the Bulls for a record 60th time, believes the experience should be an advantage.

“It is good to know that the guys have been there before, but we still need to convert that into pressure and make sure that we create and use opportunities,” Matfield said.

Coach Frans Ludeke also expressed his satisfaction at being able to pick his strongest line-up, but for the suspended Bakkies Botha, for this clash.

“The guys have worked very hard to get this far. We have created the opportunity to be part of something special, now we need to embrace it.”

The team for the final (with caps) is: Read More >>