Author: Shaun Goosen

Freelance rugby journalist and student of Journalism & Media Studies at Rhodes University. Proud South African.

Two late tries earned the Brumbies a 10-19 win over the Southern Kings, in a scrappy affair in Port Elizabeth, on Saturday evening. The Kings were searching for a fourth successive victory in the competition, while the Brumbies were looking to snap a four-match losing streak of their own, when the two sides collided at a jam-packed Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium. The deadlock was broken as early as the third-minute when Makazole Mapimpi received the ball near the left-hand touch-line on half-way, and chipped behind Brumbies fullback, Tom Banks. As Mapimpi attempted to ground the ball, Banks cynically knocked it…

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With the June Test-window now just a few weeks away, I’ve selected a few “belters” who could potentially make for surprise inclusions in Allister Coetzee’s Springbok squad. These are players whom I believe have performed consistently well throughout the Super Rugby season, and who deserve a shot on the big stage. They may not be as “flash” as some other players, but these men have certainly done enough to warrant selection against the French in the upcoming series. SP Marais What a season this South African dirt-trekker has had! The former Kings, Sharks and Bulls fullback nearly quite the game altogether…

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Even Deon Davids, a man renowned for his immutable passivity, allowed himself a tiny smirk when quizzed by the press on his Southern Kings side’s colossal 35-32 victory over the Sharks on Saturday. The win came off the back of a solid physical display, that saw the Kings forwards match their more fancied opponents from the onset, as well as a 78th-minute try by super-sub, Pieter-Steyn de Wet. At the post-match press conference, Davids heaped the praise on his men. “The boys showed a lot of character to keep on fighting towards the end. It’s not always talent that wins you…

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The tenth edition of the Indian Premier League is now underway, and we’re in for another jam-packed, swashbuckling month-and-a-half of some world-class cricketing action. The eight astronomically wealthy franchises set to take center-stage will each be gunning for a spot in the May 21 Grand Final and, as per usual, their superstars will be out to entertain.

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SANZAAR announced its proposed changes to Super Rugby on Sunday, that will come into effect as of 2018. The Southern Hemisphere’s governing body is set to reduce the number of teams in the competition from 18 to 15, with two South African, and one Australian franchise set for the axe. The sides rumored to go are said to be the Western Force, the Cheetahs and the Eastern Cape’s very own Southern Kings. The new structure will comprise of three conferences as it did between 2011 and 2015, with a New Zealand, Australia and South Africa among them. The Sunwolves from…

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With the Six Nations now done-and-dusted, the attention now turns to Warren Gatland and which Scottish, Irish, English and Welsh players he will include in his British & Irish Lions squad that is due to tour the Land of the Long White Cloud in June and July. Each player from the Home Nations will desperately want to a seat on that plane headed Down Under, and here I have picked out those whom I believe have been the standout performers in 2017 so far, and placed them into my proverbial Test match starting XV. So, without further ado… Mako Vunipola.…

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