Schalk Burger

Schalk leads Stormers to impressive victory
The Vodacom Stormers looked very much like potential Super 14 semi-finalists when they demolished the Highlanders 33-0 at Newlands on Saturday evening. The Cape outfit ran in four tries without reply and earned a bonus point in the last minute of the game when they dotted down for the final try to make up for the log point that was missed when they failed to hold on for the draw against the Brumbies the previous week.

It was a commanding performance from the Stormers, who were brilliantly led by Schalk Burger (pictured) until he was replaced late in the game. They were 16-0 up at half time, and although they had to wait until the 60th minute before scoring their second try, they more than deserved their bonus point and could easily have scored more tries had they not been let down by poor finishing …

Twenty-three-year-old replacement Deon Fourie scored the first Stormers try in the 14th minute. By then the Stormers had managed to turn back an intense opening attack from the Highlanders with the type of rock solid defence that has seen them yield just two tries in their four games thus far in the competition.

Fullback Joe Pietersen had earlier opened the scoring with two penalties to put the Stormers 6-0 to the good, which became 13-0 once Fourie had barged over from a quick recycle near the Highlanders line. Pietersen added another penalty just before half time to stretch the Stormers’ lead to 16 points at the interval.

The Highlanders came out smoking in the early stages of the second half, obviously intent on fighting their way back into the match, however they failed to penetrate the Stormers well-organised defence and it wasn’t long before they found themselves on the rack once again. The Stormers bagged their second try 20 minutes into the half after winning a lineout 25 metres from the Highlanders line and driving the opposition back before Burger reached down for the score.

With the Stormers now 21-0 up with 20 minutes still to play, the floodgates were threatening to open, but although that never happened the Stormers still did enough to secure the bonus point. Pieter Louw came on as a replacement for Burger, and off a five-metre lineout the Stormers once again drove the Highlanders back, allowing Louw to dot down.

That left the Stormers 12 minutes to score the final try and Springbok wing Bryan Habana duly obliged by latching onto the ball after a clearance kicked was charged down, to score in the corner. It was the Stormers’ first four-try bonus of the season, and will stand them in good stead ahead of their upcoming home games against the Hurricanes and Cheetahs over the next two weeks.

Scorers
Stormers: 33 – Tries: Deon Fourie, Schalk Burger, Pieter Louw, Bryan Habana. Conversions: Joe Pietersen, Peter Grant. Penalties: Pietersen (3).
Highlanders: 0

With most teams having already played four games in the competition thus far, the Bulls are sitting pretty in first place on 15 points with a game in hand, while the Chiefs are second and the Stormers, Hurricanes and Crusaders in third, fourth and fifth places respectively. This year’s competition hasn’t been very kind to South African teams, with only the Bulls and the Stormers having anything to show for their efforts. Both the Sharks and the Lions are winless and struggling (along with Australian outfit, the Western Force) at the bottom of the log while the Cheetahs have two wins from four outings and find themselves in eighth position on nine points.

Results (from left to right; SA teams in bold)
Friday
Chiefs 18 – Reds 23 – Hamilton
Brumbies 24 – Lions 13 Canberra
Saturday
Crusaders 33 – Blues 20 – Christchurch
Waratahs 25 – Sharks 21 – Sydney
Stormers 33 – Highlanders 0 – Newlands, Cape Town
Cheetahs 28 – Hurricanes 12 – Vodacom Park, Bloemfontein

The pick of this weekend’s games involving South African teams could well between the encounter between the high-riding Stormers and the Hurricanes at Newlands on Saturday evening, although the Sharks showed glimpses of their old form against the Waratahs over the weekend and could well be poised to spring a surprise against the Brumbies in Canberra on Saturday morning.

Fixtures (SA teams in bold)
Friday
Chiefs vs Crusaders – Hamilton – =08.35am
Waratahs vs Lions Sydney – 10.40am
Saturday
Brumbies vs Sharks Canberra – 10.40am
Bulls vs Highlanders – Loftus Versveld – 05.05pm
Stormers vs Hurricanes – Newlands, Cape Town – 07.10pm
Sunday
Reds vs Western Force – Brisbane – 08.30am

Carlos plays it safe
Bafana Bafana head coach Carlos Alberto Parreira will prepare the team for the rigours of the 2010 World Cup by taking the 29 man squad for a month long training camp in Brazil followed immediately by another one of the same duration in Germany. Parreira made few surprises by opting for his tried and trusted players when naming his squad in Durban last Thursday.

SuperSport United defender Morgan Gould will miss the camp as he is sidelined for six weeks with an injury while Mamelodi Sundowns midfielder, Matthew Pattison, was the only notable player axed. Parreira has instead opted for Golden Arrows’ Thanduyise Khuboni who was named man of the match during last Wednesday’s disappointing 1-1 draw against minnows Namibia at the Moses Mabhida Stadium.

It was also announced that Bafana would play three big friendly matches before their opening World Cup game against Mexico at Soccer City on June 11. The South Africans take on Paraguay on March 31 at the end of their South American tour, before tackling former World Cup champions Argentina at Soccer City on May 27 and Denmark at home on June 5. The venue for the Denmark encounter is still to be decided, but it will definitely be somewhere in Gauteng.

“I do not want to be disrespectful to small sides (like Namibia) but we badly need to play the big sides like Denmark and Argentina to gauge our progress,” said Parreira. “After Brazil and the camp in Germany next month, we will have a stronger base, be fitter and much better prepared than we were against Namibia where I had one day to work with the squad,” he added. Bafana will play four training games against Brazilian club sides before they meet Paraguay.

Parreira said the four training matches in Brazil and the friendly against Paraguay would play a vital part of his World Cup preparations. “You cannot walk into a supermarket and buy experience. This is the only way – going to Brazil and Germany and learning,” he explained.

The squad:
Goalkeepers: Emile Baron (SuperSport United), Moeneeb Josephs (Orlando Pirates), Itumeleng Khune (Kaizer Chiefs).
Defenders: Matthew Booth, Siboniso Gaxa, Siyanda Xulu, Innocent Mdledle (all Sundowns), Bongani Khumalo (SuperSport), Thabo Nthethe (Bloemfontein Celtic), Siyabonga Sangweni, Lucas Thwala (Pirates).
Midfielders: Franklyn Cale, Surprise Moriri, Lebohang Mokoena (all Sundowns), Daylon Claasen (Ajax Amsterdam, Holland), Lance Davids (Ajax Cape Town), Andile Jali, Teko Modise (both Pirates), Thanduyise Khuboni (Golden Arrows), Daine Klate (SuperSport), Reneilwe Letsholonyane, Siphiwe Tshabalala (both Chiefs), Tlou Segolela (Celtic).

Strikers: Kermit Erasmus (Excelsior Rotterdam, Holland), Thulasizwe Mbuyane, Gert Schalkwyk (both Pirates), Katlego Mphela (Sundowns), Richard Henyekane (Arrows) and Thulani Serero (Ajax CT).

Meanwhile, in domestic action, the Telkom Knockout competition gets underway this weekend when Golden Arrows take on Platinum Stars at the Charles Mopeli Stadium on Saturday at 3pm while Orlando Pirates square off against Bloemfontein Celtic at the Orlando Stadium a few hours later. In matches taking place on Sunday, Ajax Cape Town lock horns with Moroka Swallows at Newlands Stadium while Black Aces do battle with PSL champions SuperSport United at the Puma Rugby Stadium. Both matches begin at 3pm.

Jomo Sono

Birds banish Cosmos from PSL
Moroka Swallows’ 1-0 Absa Premiership victory over Jomo Cosmos at the Dobsonville Stadium on Saturday afternoon has resulted in Jomo Sono’s team being relegated from the competition. Cosmos will now ply their trade in the National First Division in the 2010/11 season.

Old habits die hard and Cosmos’ inability to score goals continued to plague them against the Birds as they lacked the teeth up front to pose any serious danger to their opponents. Swallows came into the match needing only a draw to secure a top eight finish and quickly established control against their less fancied opponents.

In fact, had it not been for some excellent goalkeeping from Cosmos’ Avril Phali, the Birds could have won the match by a much wider margin. Swallows enjoyed no less than seven corner kicks in the opening 45 minutes but Phali was on hand on each occasion to thwart their efforts and keep the score 0-0.

Ezenkosi created very few chances in the half as most of their attacks broke down around the Swallows box in the face of some solid defending. Birds’ striker Siyabonga Nomvete missed a great opportunity to score just before the interval when he dispossessed Thapelo Tshilo and then attempted to chip Phali, only to be let down by poor finishing.

Cosmos demonstrated more purpose after the restart, but continued to be thwarted by the well organised Swallows defence who hardly missed a trick all afternoon. When Cosmos did threaten to score, their execution let them down badly and to add insult to injury they ended up losing the match, when Morgan Shivambu breached their defences to guide a shot past Phali with just one minute of normal time remaining.

Despite his side’s dismal showing this season and their subsequent relegation to the nether regions of South African soccer, team owner Sono (pictured) was upbeat about his team’s chances of making it back into the PSL. “I’m in high spirits and know that we will be back in the PSL soon. I plan to retire at the end of 2010, so I want to lead Cosmos back to the PSL before I do this,” he said.

In other noteworthy games played on Saturday, Black Aces drew with Ajax Cape Town at the Athlone Stadium to finish one spot above Cosmos in the final standings, while recently crowned champions SuperSport United were thumped 3-0 by AmaZulu at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban. Aces will now play a series of promotion / relegation matches to determine whether or not they will be relegated to the National First Division or remain in the PSL in the upcoming 2010/11 season. AmaZulu’s shock win over United secured them a ninth place finish on 39 points.

Final round results (from left to right)
Saturday
Maritzburg Utd 0 – Santos 1 – Harry Gwala Stadium
Kaizer Chiefs 2 – Free State Stars 1 – Loftus Stadium
Mamelodi Sundowns 3 – Golden Arrows 0 – Super Stadium
Bidvest Wits 2 – Platinum Stars 0 – Bidvest Stadium
Bloem Celtic 1 – Orlando Pirates 1 – Seisa Ramabodu Stadium
Moroka Swallows 1 – Jomo Cosmos 0 – Dobsonville Stadium
AmaZulu 3 – SuperSport United 0 – Moses Mabhida Stadium
Ajax Cape Town 1 – Black Aces 1 – Athlone Stadium

How they finished
Posistion / Team / Points
1 SuperSport United – 57
2 Mamelodi Sundowns – 56
3 Kaizer Chiefs – 51
4 Santos – 47
5 Orlando Pirates – 44
6 Bloem Celtic – 42
7 Ajax Cape Town – 42
8 Moroka Swallows – 42
9 Amazulu – 39
10 Bidvest Wits – 35
11 Maritzburg United – 35
12 Golden Arrows – 32
13 Free State Stars – 31
14 Platinum Stars – 31
15 Black Aces – 26
16 Jomo Cosmos – 24

Jonathan Vandiar

Vandiar’s blitzkrieg helps Lions into final
Richard Cameron grabbed four wickets as the bizhub Highveld Lions cruised into the Standard Bank Pro20 final courtesy of a 10-run win over the Nashua Titans in the second leg of their semi-final at SuperSport Park in Centurion on Friday. The Lions, after winning the first leg by four wickets, notched up 186/5 before medium-pacer Cameron snared 4/23 off four overs, as the Titans were restricted to 176/6.

The home side made an excellent start to their run chase thanks to an opening stand of 83 in 8.1 overs between Blake Snijman (55) and Gulam Bodi (26). Right-hander Snijman sped to the season’s fastest half-century, off 24 balls, before he was run out by keeper Thami Tsolekile when he set off from his crease in search of a quick single.

Seven runs later Bodi was trapped leg-before by Cameron to halt the Titans’ run flow. The Lions bagged a further four wickets for the addition of just 44 runs before Dale Steyn gave the home side a glimmer of hope with a swashbuckling 22 off just 11 balls. However, when Steyn was caught at long on off a delivery from seamer Robbie Frylinck off the first ball of the penultimate over, the Titans’ challenge disintegrated.

Earlier, opener Jonathan Vandiar (pictured) blazed his way to an impressive half-century as the Lions plundered the highest team total of this season’s Pro 20 series. The left-handed Vandiar smashed six fours and three sixes as he sped to 68 off just 43 balls before he was trapped in front by seamer Basheer Walters in the 15th over.

After being put into bat the Lions made an excellent start as Vandiar and Neil McKenzie (34) put on 70 runs for the first wicket before McKenzie was stumped by keeper Heino Kuhn off a delivery from Proteas spinner Paul Harris. Vandiar and Vaughn van Jaarsveld (16) kept up the good work as they established a third-wicket partnership of 53 before Van Jaarsveld was caught at midwicket to give Harris his third wicket of the match. Zander de Bruyn then slammed 32 not out of 21 balls towards the end of the innings to steer the Lions to their imposing total.

The result means that the Lions will meet the Chevrolet Warriors in the Pro 20 final at St George’s Park in Port Elizabeth on Friday after the Warriors defeated the Cobras by 10 runs in the second leg of their semi-final at Newlands in Cape Town last Wednesday. The Lions surprising win also earned them a place in the upcoming IPL Champions League competition.

Singh’s late strike earns India a draw against South Africa
India and South Africa played to a nail-biting 3-3 draw at the National Hockey Stadium in Delhi on Monday night and the result means that the South Africans will play for ninth place on Friday, likely against eighth-ranked New Zealand, and the opportunity for their best ever World Cup placing. World number 13 ranked SA have never finished higher than 10th in a hockey World Cup and were unlucky to not have beaten the 12th ranked Indians who salvaged a draw with a late goal from Shivendra Singh.

Besides being in a position for their best ever World Cup placing, another bonus for the South Africans is that Monday night’s result fulfils Sascoc’s (SA Sports Congress and Olympic Committee) requirements of a top-five finish among the seven Commonwealth Games countries at the World Cup, as SA cannot finish lower than fifth, with Australia, England, India and possibly New Zealand ending above them.

Lloyd Norris-Jones, Justin Reid-Ross and captain Austin Smith scored goals for SA who were 3-2 up with five minutes to go before Singh’s late strike levelled matters for the host nation. Nevertheless it was a good result for SA who suffered a horrendous 12-0 thrashing from tournament favourites Australia in one of their earlier pool games. The Aussies struggled to a 2-1 win over Pakistan on Monday to join England in the semi-finals from group B.

Osborne Machimana

‘Big Daddy’ too strong for ‘Bulldozer’
Osborne ‘Big Daddy’ Machimana (pictured left next to former world heavyweight champions ‘Iron’ Mike Tyson and Corrie ‘The Sniper’ Sanders) made heavy weather of retaining his South African heavyweight title when he stopped the inexperienced Bull ‘Bulldozer’ Muravha in the eighth round of their scheduled 12-round contest at the Nasrec Indoor Arena in Johannesburg on Sunday. Machimana (18-6-1; 13 KOs) certainly looked like a ‘Big Daddy’ as he came into the ring at a flabby 122 kg compared to Muravha (4-5-1; 1 KO) who tipped the scales at a trim 98.02 kg.

However, Muravha, who was giving up 24 kg in weight and four inches in height to his opponent, was simply never going to pose a real threat to the huge Machimana who, at nearly 6’4, is an imposing figure in the ring. The light-hitting challenger’s strategy was to try and wear out the champion by beating him to the punch and avoiding getting hit in return. The plan was working well for the challenger as his superior hand and foot-speed kept him ahead on points through the first five rounds.

However, when the lumbering Machimana eventually started to connect with his powerful left jab in the sixth round, Muravha began to look decidedly uncomfortable. Worse was to come for the challenger in the next round as Machimana followed up those jabs with a series of heavy right crosses that shook Muravha right down to his bootlaces.

By the conclusion of the round it was clear that the writing was on the wall for the challenger and the end eventually came towards the end of the eighth round after a Machimana onslaught sent the brave, but hopelessly outgunned challenger to the canvas for the second time in the round. Although Muravha beat referee Sazi Xamlashe’s count he wisely turned his back on his tormentor to save himself from further abuse, prompting the official to wave proceedings over at 2 min, 47 secs of the round.

It was an unimpressive performance from the champion who has the size, power and skill to really go far in the division, but clearly lacks the dedication necessary to consistently get himself into decent shape for a fight. The 31-year-old Machimana has come in significantly overweight for three of his last four fights and a June 2008 stoppage loss to the then 41-year-old Zambian veteran Joseph Chingangu should have been the wake up call he needed to start taking his career seriously.

However, its clear from Machimana’s uninspiring performance against the lightly regarded Muravha that his career is going nowhere fast – sad when one considers that ‘Big Daddy’ owns a first round knockout victory (in February 2008) over former World Boxing Union (WBU) and World Boxing Organisation (WBO) heavyweight champion Sanders.

Undercard results
*Jason Kinnear beat Nhlanhla Nguni on points over four rounds (junior bantamweights)
*Sipho Nkadimeng drew with Phumzile Matyila over six rounds (junior bantamweights)
*Luyanda Jako beat Sifiso Mthethwa on points over four rounds (junior welterweights)
*Hanson Baloyi beat Emmanuel Dumaon on a second round TKO (super-middleweights)
*Illunga Makuba beat Ben Moakamela on a second round TKO (cruiserweights)

Promoter Pat Molefe, of Rainbow Promotions, presented the tournament.

Hekkie Budler

Rubillar may get rematch against Hekkie
A rematch between South African Hekkie ‘The Hexecutioner’ Budler (pictured left) and Filipino Juanito Rubillar seems likely after the controversial result of their International Boxing Organisation (IBO) title fight last weekend. Budler was given the verdict by the three South African judges, even though most experts thought Rubillar had won the bout and the IBO junior flyweight title at Emperors Palace.

It has now been revealed that an Australian judge had failed to arrive to officiate in the bout, which resulted in three local judges doing the scoring. Lulama Mtya and Deon Dwarte gave Budler the nod with scores of 117-113 and 115-113 while Isaac Tshabalala had the fight dead even at 114-114. Their scoring has been severely criticised.

Although a number of obstacles had to be overcome to make a return bout possible, if a rematch does happen it is likely to be a huge sell out as the first fight was a real war with both fighters giving their all over 12 rounds of intense action.

Photo Credits:
Schalk leads Stormers to impressive victory – Photo – Schalk Burger: Source – www.stuff.co.nz
Birds banish Cosmos from PSL – Photo – Jomo Sono: Source – www.diskifans.ning.com
Vandiar’s blitzkrieg helps Lions into final – Photo – Jonathan Vandiar: Source – www.sport24.co.za
‘Big Daddy’ too strong for ‘Bulldozer’ – Photo – Osborne Machimana: Source – www.jamati.com
Rubillar may get rematch against Hekkie – Photo – Hekkie Budler: Source – www.gvgatchalian.blogspot.com

Sporting Links:
South Africa 2010 World Cup
2010 World Cup Stadiums
2010 World Cup Host Cities
2010 World Cup Accommodation
Things to Do in South Africa

AB de Villiers

Proteas win the war, but lose the battle
Although the Proteas thumped India by 90 runs in the third and final One Day International (ODI) in Ahmedabad on Saturday, it was a bittersweet victory for the South Africans who ultimately ended up losing the series 2-1 to go with their 1-1 draw in the Test series. Batting first on a flat wicket, Jacques Kallis’ men posted an imposing 365/2 off their allotted 50 overs with Kallis (104 not out off 94 balls) and man of the match AB de Villiers (102 not out off 59 balls) in sublime form …

De Villiers (pictured) was particularly severe on the Indian bowlers, despatching them to all corners of the park with a variety of delightful strokes. The 26-year-old took advantage of some ordinary bowling from the Indians to notch up his second successive ODI century after his unbeaten 114 in the second ODI at Gwailor, which the Proteas lost by a massive 153 runs.

Indian batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar obliterated the Proteas in that game with a magnificent, undefeated 200, but De Villiers’ knock hinted that he was returning to the kind of form he displayed when he burst onto the scene some years back. Kallis’ innings was far more circumspect than that of his younger counterpart, but it was another typical example of the sheer genius of the Proteas’ stand-in-captain who seems to be getting even better with age.

Kallis and De Villiers’ task was made that much easier by the solid platform provided by openers Loots Bosman (68 off 46 balls) and the inform Hashim Amla (87 off 103 balls), who put on 113 for the first wicket before Bosman lofted a drive straight to Ravindra Jadeja off the bowling of Yusuf Pathan. Kallis joined Amla at the crease and the pair added 79 runs for the second wicket before Amla top-edged a sweep off left-arm spinner Jadeja to deep backward square-leg, where Murali Vijay took the catch. However, that was about as much success as India were going to have as Kallis and de Villiers effortlessly piled on the runs against an under-strength attack.

Chasing 366 for victory at a rate of 7.32 to the over, India were always going to be up against it, especially without their prolific openers Virendar Sehwag and living legend Tendulkar, and as it turned out they never got going as they lost wickets at regular intervals to finish on 275 all out. Virat Kohli (57 off 71 balls), Rohit Sharma (48 off 61 balls), Suresh Raina (49 off 30 balls) and Jadeja (36 off 35 balls) all weighed in with useful contributions, but it wasn’t nearly enough as India finished well short of their target.

Speedsters Dale Steyn (3/37 off eight overs) and Lonwabe Tsotsobe (3/58 off 9.3 overs) were the destroyers in chief for the Proteas, but they were well supported by spinners Roelof van der Merwe and Johan Botha who picked up two wickets apiece. The South Africans will be relieved that they were able to avoid a series whitewash, but at the same time they will be bitterly disappointed at going down 2-1 in the series, especially after coming so close to a victory in the opening game at Jaipur last Sunday. The Proteas now have a break from national duty until the end of April, when they participate in the ICC World Twenty20 competition in the West Indies.

In domestic action, the bizhub Highveld Lions beat the Nashua Titans by four wickets at the Wanderers in Johannesburg last Wednesday in the first of a possible three leg Standard Bank Pro20 Series semi-final, while the Chevrolet Warriors defeated the Nashua Cape Cobras by three runs at St George’s Park in Port Elizabeth in the opening leg of the other semi.

The Cobras play the Warriors in the second leg of their semi at Newlands in Cape Town today, while the Titans resume their battle with the Lions at SuperSport Park in Centurion on Friday. The Warriors and the Lions will hoping to wrap things up by repeating their recent successes, but in this form of the game anything is possible, and it will not be surprising if the Cobras and the Titans are able to reverse their recent defeats and force a third leg.

SuperSport United

SuperSport are the champs
SuperSport United (pictured) were crowned Absa Premiership champions last Wednesday night in Atteridgeville, despite going down 2-1 to 12th placed Bidvest Wits. It definitely wasn’t the result United were aiming for, but after Mamelodi Sundowns suffered a surprise 2-0 defeat to bottom feeders Jomo Cosmos at the Rand Stadium that same evening, United were crowned champions for the third season in a row.

The opening half saw United dominate proceedings as they quickly settled into a rhythm. However, despite their dominance, United went behind in the 26th minute completely against the run of play. Mark Haskins collected the ball in the middle of the park and then embarked on a powerful run towards United’s goalmouth. As soon as he was in range he unleashed a screamer of a shot that whizzed past United keeper Emille Baron to put Wits 1-0 up.

Stunned at being a goal down despite having enjoyed the upper hand for most of the game, United applied tons of pressure on their opponents, which eventually paid dividends. Brian Umony broke through on goal after 32 minutes and only had Francis Chansa to beat, but the keeper succeeded in parrying the striker’s shot. However, the ball fell to the left side of the 18-yard box and United quickly fired in a cross for Umony to head over a stranded Chansa to level matters at 1-1.

The second half followed the same pattern as that of the first, with United dictating proceedings. However, just as with the opening 45 minutes, United could not take advantage of their dominance and unbelievably found themselves 2-1 down as Calvin Kadi scored from a cross in the 68th minute. Just as with Haskins’ goal 42 minutes earlier, Kadi’s effort occurred completely against the run of play and United must have been left feeling that it just wasn’t going to be their night. Nevertheless, they tried their utmost to get back into the game with the obvious intention of at least levelling matters, but the Students closed up shop to run out 2-1 winners.

Although United were no doubt disappointed with the loss, they quickly brought out the bubbly after news came in that Cosmos had upset second placed Sundowns, making it mathematically impossible for the latter to challenge United’s top position on the log.

Other Results
(From left to right)
Last Wednesday
Moroka Swallows 1 – Platinum Stars 0: Dobsonville Stadium
Free State Stars 0 – Maritzburg Utd 0: Charles Mopeli Stadium
Santos 0 – Amazulu 1: Athlone Stadium
Golden Arrows 1 – Ajax Cape Town 1: Chatsworth Stadium
Kaizer Chiefs 2 – Black Aces 0: Loftus Stadium

Despite the championship having already been decided, there is still one more round of PSL fixtures to be played this Saturday, and a number of teams will be aiming to end the season on a high note. Relegation bound Jomo Cosmos will be hoping to salvage some more pride against eighth placed Moroka Swallows, while perennial losers Black Aces will be looking to pull off an upset against seventh placed Ajax Cape Town. Newly crowned champions SuperSport United play their last match against ninth placed Amazulu, and will no doubt want to end their highly successful season with a resounding win.

Other fixtures
Saturday
Maritzburg Utd vs Santos – Harry Gwala Stadium: 3.30pm
Kaizer Chiefs vs Free State Stars – Loftus Stadium: 3.30pm
Mamelodi Sundowns vs Golden Arrows – Super Stadium: 3.30pm
Bidvest Wits vs Platinum Stars – Bidvest Stadium: 3.30pm
Bloem Celtic vs Orlando Pirates – Seisa Ramabodu Stadium: 3.30pm

In international action, Bafana Bafana continue their World Cup preparations when they tackle Namibia at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban at 8.30pm. The South Africans will be hoping for a good showing against their next-door neighbours who should prove to be tougher opposition than some of the other opponents they have faced recently.

Francois Hougaard

Bulls keep winning as rest of SA flops
Just when it seemed as though the Vodacom Bulls would suffer their first defeat of this year’s Super 14 competition, the Pretoria outfit turned up the heat in the second half to defeat the Waratahs 48-38 in a pulsating encounter at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday evening. The Bulls’ victory restored some pride for South Africa after the rest of the country’s Super 14 teams all suffered defeats at the hands of their Australian and New Zealand opponents.

The Tahs came out smoking against the Bulls who were taken by surprise by their Australian foes who scored a try shortly after the kick off. Tatafu Polota-Nau barged over the line from close range after just three minutes of action, and Berrick Barnes, who converted Nau’s try, slotted a penalty to extend his side’s lead two minutes later.

Tahs’ flanker Ben Mowen then caused the Bulls further problems when he dotted down for the second try of the match after he was flung over the tryline by Werner Kruger, and after Barnes had added the conversion, the defending champions found themselves 17-0 down after only 10 minutes of action. Clearly shocked, but by no means defeated, the Bulls responded with a try from Francois Hougaard (pictured left) only for Barnes to slot a drop kick and two penalties to take the score to 26-10 after just 30 minutes.

Things were clearly not looking good for the Bulls, but instead of panicking like lesser teams would, the men in blue demonstrated their class and fighting spirit to claw their way back into the match. After launching a series of attacks on their opponents’ tryline, Stephan Dippenaar eventually breached the Tahs’ defences to score a well-deserved try and leave his side eight points adrift at the interval.

The Bulls, clearly energised by their late second half surge, came out firing early in the second half. Flyhalf Morné Steyn banged over a penalty to reduce the deficit to just five points before Hougaard scored his second try to put the home side into the lead in the 51st minute. However, the Tahs reclaimed the lead when winger Lachie Turner dotted down in the corner for a well-taken try, which caught the Bulls completely by surprise.

With the game relatively evenly poised, someone needed to seize the initiative and it was the Bulls who did so when winger Gerhaard Van den Heever ran a beautiful line as a dummy runner to confuse the Tahs’ defence, allowing Wynand Olivier in for his side’s fifth try.

The blonde centre’s try meant that the Bulls were now 10 points up and it seemed as if the game was done and dusted, but the Australians had other ideas and bounced back with a try from Drew Mitchell, which closed the gap to just three points. However, the Bulls had the last laugh when Steyn’s precise chip over the Tahs’ defence paved the way for Jacques-Louis Potgieter to score an excellent try and secure the victory for the home side.

Despite their defeat, the Tahs still managed to earn one bonus point for scoring four tries, and will leave the ‘Bullring’ knowing they gave one hundred per cent against arguably the strongest team in the competition. The Bulls’ victory put them back on top of the log and they are the only side with a full complement of points after three rounds. The men in blue will enjoy a bye this week knowing they are well on track for the defence of their title.

Scorers
Bulls 48 (18) – Tries: Francois Hougaard (2), Stephan Dippenaar, Gerhard van den Heever, Wynand Olivier, Jacques-Louis Potgieter. Conversions: Morné Steyn (6). Penalties: Steyn (2).
Waratahs 38 (26) – Tries: Tatafu Polota-Nau, Ben Mowen, Lachlan Turner, Drew Mitchell. Conversions: Berrick Barnes (2), Kurtley Beale. Penalties: Barnes (3). Drop- goal: Barnes.

Other results (From left to right; SA teams in bold)

Friday
Crusaders 35 – Sharks 6: Christchurch
Stormers 17 – Brumbies 19: Newlands Rugby Stadium

Saturday
Hurricanes 33 – Lions 19: Wellington
Reds 18 – Blues 27: Brisbane
Western Force 19 – Chiefs 37: Perth
Cheetahs 24 – Highlanders 31: Bloemfontein

The pick of this week’s fixtures as far as South African teams are concerned, is likely to be the encounter between the fifth placed Vodacom Stormers and the ninth placed Highlanders at Newlands on Saturday. The Stormers have been playing some good rugby this season and although they suffered a narrow defeat to the Brumbies last Saturday, the Cape outfit should start as favourites against the New Zealanders, who have not had the best of seasons thus far. Kick off is at 5.05pm.

Other fixtures (SA teams in bold)
Friday
Chiefs vs Reds – Hamilton at 08.35am
Brumbies vs Lions Canberra at 10.40am
Saturday
Crusaders vs Blues – Christchurch: 08.35am
Waratahs vs Sharks – Sydney: 10.40am
Cheetahs vs Hurricanes – Bloemfontein: 07.10pm

Jason Bedeman

SA fighters nearly pull off clean sweep
It was a good night for South African boxers at Emperors Palace in Kempton Park on Saturday when almost all of them won their contests against international opposition. In the main bout of the evening, Hekkie ‘The Hexecutioner’ Budler (48.80kg) captured the International Boxing Organisation (IBO) junior flyweight title when he was awarded a dubious points victory over Juanito Rubillar (48.98kg) of the Phillipines.

The relatively inexperienced Budler was fortunate to get the decision as Rubillar clearly landed the heavier and more telling punches although the Filipino veteran was lucky not to have had points deducted for repeatedly head butting the South African. Although the head butts were clearly unintentional, they occurred with such frequency that the referee should at least have warned Rubillar for his illegal use of the head.

After 12 rounds of fast-paced action, Budler got the nod by scores of 117-113 (twice) and 115-113, but it was doubtful if he deserved the decision as his blows failed to make any impression on the Filipino who, in stark contrast to the bruised and battered South African, looked virtually unmarked at the bout’s conclusion. The 21-year-old Budler took his record to a perfect 14-0 with five KO’s while Rubillar, 33, fell to 48-14-7 with 23 wins coming inside the distance.

Defending World Boxing Association (WBA) Intercontinental bantamweight champion Tshifiwa ‘The Atomic Spider’ Munyai (53kg) successfully retained his title with a unanimous points victory over Filipino Daniel Ferraras (53.52kg) on the undercard. The South African won the first nine rounds by comprehensively out-boxing the flat-footed Ferraras who clearly has not been schooled in the finer points of the sweet science.

The Filipino blocked hundreds of punches from Munyai with his face instead of his gloves, and was absorbing a terrific beating from his vastly more skilled opponent when the unthinkable happened. With just seconds remaining in the 10th round, Ferraras unleashed a savage left hook, which exploded off Munyai’s jaw and sent the champion crashing to the canvas like a felled tree.

Incredibly, Munyai managed to somehow drag himself to his feet and beat the count, although his eyes were glassy and his legs rubbery. However, the referee, obviously realising that were only a few seconds left in the round, decided to let the fight continue, and just before Ferraras could land the finishing blow, the bell came to the champion’s rescue. Munyai managed to clear the cobwebs in the minute’s interval and boxed his way out of trouble over the remaining two rounds, to take a lop-sided decision and run his record to an impressive 19-1-1 with nine wins via the short route.

In other championship bouts involving South African fighters, highly touted Thomas ‘Tommy Gun’ Oosthuizen easily retained his WBA Pan African super middleweight title with a unanimous points victory over namesake Thomas Awinbone of Ghana in a dreadfully dull encounter, while Jason ‘Badman’ Bedeman (pictured) recorded a second round TKO victory over another Ghanian, Bilal Mohammad (14-4; 11 KO’s), to capture the vacant WBA Pan African lightweight title.

The lanky Oosthuizen (75.88kg) improved his record to 10-0 (7 KO’s) with his win over Awinbone (75.70kg) whose sole intention was to survive rather than fight, while Bedeman (60.86kg) came back from two first round knockdowns to batter Mohammad (60.78kg) into submission. It was a good win for the 20-year-old Bedemann who ran his record to an almost perfect 11-0-1 (9 KO’s).

In other bouts, Kgotla Baeti (61.22kg) of Botswana stopped Daniel Botman (60.94kg) in the fourth round of a scheduled six round lightweight encounter (the only victory for a visiting boxer on the night) while chiselled prospect Florante Simba (88.88kg) got rid of a fleshy Stephen Castle (96.26kg) in the fourth round of their heavyweight contest. Rodney Berman’s Golden Gloves Promotions presented the tournament.

Zolani Tete

Tete downs Garcia to set up shoot-out with Mthalane
Zolani Tete (pictured) earned the right to challenge fellow South African Moruti Mthalane for the International Boxing Federation (IBF) flyweight title when he beat Richard Garcia of the Philippines on points at the Nasrec Indoor Arena in Johannesburg on Friday night. Tete won by scores of 118-108 and 118-110 (twice) against an opponent who had won five of his last six bouts and was expected to put up much more of a fight against his relatively inexperienced opponent.

However, Garcia had little to offer on the night as the talented South African boxed his way to an easy points victory over the Filipino. Tete won nearly every round of the IBF eliminator and gained valuable experience in preparation for a fight against Mthalane, who will undoubtedly be a much tougher nut to crack. The 21-year-old Tete ran his record to 13-0 with 11 KO’s while Garcia, 24, slipped to 20-10-1 with five wins inside the distance.

Undercard results
Tsietsi Moremi TKO 2 Siyabonga Mtshali (featherweights)
Brian Hlophe W6 Samson Ndlovu (junior welterweights)
Bongani Mlotshwa TKO 2 Pfunzo Nduvheni (junior middleweights)
Ilunga Makabu TKO 2 Chonunorwa Gonorendy (cruiserweights)

Meanwhile, in other international fight action, this time in Atlantic City, New Jersey, reigning South African and IBF Inter-Continental junior welterweight champion Kaizer Mabuza continued on his winning ways when American Kendall Holt quit on his stool in their IBF junior welterweight eliminator on Saturday night.

Mabuza earned the right to challenge for the title when Holt, a former World Boxing Organisation (WBO) junior welterweight champion, refused to come out for the seventh round after absorbing a terrific beating that began from the third round onwards. Mabuza, who is on an eight fight winning streak, improved his log to 24-6-3 with 15 wins via the short route, while Holt sank to 25-5 (13 KO’s).

Upcoming bouts
Sunday, March 7
Johannesburg – Osborne Machimane (champion) vs Bully Muravha (South African heavyweight title); 1.45pm on SuperSport Five (SS5).

Austin Smith

Bad start for SA in Delhi
The South African men’s hockey team haven’t had the best of starts to the World Cup in Delhi after losing both their opening games to Spain and England respectively. Austin Smith’s (pictured left) men lost their first game against Spain 4-2 on Sunday, and then succumbed to the relentless pressure of the English yesterday, to go down 6-4 in a 10-goal thriller.

South Africa were looking to bounce back from their defeat against Spain with a win against the English and although they scored four excellent goals, their leaky defence again proved to be their undoing as their opponents made them pay for each and every lapse of concentration.

England beat South Africa 2-0 in their previous encounter at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing and also defeated them 3-1 at the last World Cup. The South Africans now find themselves at the bottom of pool B without a single point to their name, while the English top the pool on 10 points.

Sporting Links:
South Africa 2010 World Cup
2010 World Cup Stadiums
2010 World Cup Host Cities
2010 World Cup Accommodation
Things to Do in South Africa

Photo Credits:
SuperSport are the champs – Photo – SuperSport United: Source – www.sufc.co.za
Proteas win the war, but lose the battle – Photo – AB de Villiers: Source – www.abc.net.au
Bulls keep winning as rest of SA flops – Photo – Francois Hougaard: Source – www.daylife.com
SA fighters nearly pull off clean sweep – Photo – Jason Bedeman: Source – www.sowetan.co.za
Tete downs Garcia to set up shoot-out with Mthalane – Photo – Zolani Tete: Source – www.boxrec.com
Bad start for SA in Delhi – Photo – Austin Smith: Source – www.zimbio.com

Wayne Parnell

Late rally not enough as South Africa lose by one run
The Proteas lost their second consecutive match against India when they went down by a single run to the home side in the first One Day International (ODI) at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur on Sunday. The agonising defeat came just four days after their innings and 57 run loss to the same opponents in the second test match at Eden Gardens in Kolkata, and was a bitter pill to swallow for Jacques Kallis’ men.

Chasing a daunting victory target of 299 at a rate of 5.98 to the over the Proteas were dismissed for 297 when Wayne Parnell (pictured centre) was run out by Shanthakumaran Sreesanth off the last ball of the innings. Parnell and fellow ‘tailender’ Dale Steyn batted superbly to take South Africa to the brink of victory, but in the end it was to no avail as the courageous duo perished in the final over …

The Proteas had looked down and out on 225/8 with only seven overs left, but Parnell and Steyn surprised India with some excellent batting which nearly pulled the game out of the fire. The left handed Parnell was more circumspect than his right handed partner, accumulating 49 runs off 47 balls while Steyn smashed 35 off just 19 deliveries in a ninth wicket stand that yielded 90 much needed runs. Parnell struck four fours and one six during his knock while Steyn hammered three sixes and one four in his brief, but spectacular innings.

Despite the heroics of Steyn and Parnell and the usual solid display from Kallis who contributed a valuable 89 off 97 balls (6×4; 1×6), it was a rather ordinary batting performance from the tourists who struggled to cope with the varied Indian bowling attack and lost wickets at regular intervals. Herschelle Gibbs (27 off 40), Alviro Peterson (9 off 21), Albie Morkel (2 off 8 ) and Mark Boucher (5 off 9) never got going and used up too many deliveries in the process, which ultimately proved to be the difference between the two sides.

The strange exclusion of Hashim Amla from the starting line-up also played straight in the hands of the Indians and they must have been jumping for joy when they heard that he wouldn’t be playing. Amla has had a superb tour of the sub continent thus far, racking up scores of 253 not out, 114 and 123 not out in the drawn Test series, leaving him with an incredible batting average of 490 for the series.

Although Amla is not exactly the quickest accumulator of runs the world has ever seen, his presence in the top order would have given the Proteas the stability they needed to beat India – a team who always put constant pressure on their opponents. Instead he was left out, with Loots Bosman (29 off 23) opening with Gibbs followed by Kallis, AB de Villiers (25 off 23) and Peterson at three, four and five respectively. The plan clearly didn’t work and the South African selectors would be foolish not to bring Amla back into the one day starting line-up.

The Indian innings was built around the efforts of Virendar Sehwag (46 off 37) and Dinesh Karthik (44 off 56) with middle order batsmen Suresh Raina and Ravindra Jadeja also making valuable contributions with 58 and 22 respectively. Kallis, standing in as captain for the injured Graeme Smith, was the pick of the Proteas’ bowlers with 3/29 off seven overs while Jadeja scooped the man of the match award with his knock and a wicket haul of 2/29 off 10 overs.

The second ODI of the three match series starts in Kanpur today at 5.30 am with the third being played in Ahmedabad on Saturday. That match begins at 11am.

Bryan Habana

Stormers turn back tide to sink Waratahs
The Vodacom Stormers recorded a convincing 27-6 victory over the Waratahs in their first home Vodacom Super 14 match of the season at Newlands on Saturday evening. The Cape outfit soaked up a lot of pressure in the opening 20 minutes as the Waratahs attempted to try and breach their defences by launching a wave of furious attacks.

It seemed only a matter of time before the Stormers would crack under the pressure, but much to the dismay of the Waratahs their defence held firm and after 30 minutes of play the Australian team began to run out of steam. Live- wire flanker Pieter Louw had come on for the injured Schalk Burger after 23 minutes and his entrance into the fray seemed to galvanise the Stormers when Francois Louw scored the opening try of the match. Towering lock Andries Bekker secured the ball from a lineout, following which the Stormers’ pack made a powerful drive for the line, which resulted in Louw burrowing over.

From this point on the Waratahs were on the back foot as the Stormers applied constant pressure, which resulted in the Aussie outfit conceding two crucial penalties shortly before the break. Dimunitive fullback Joe Pietersen made no mistake with the attempts at goal, slotting both of them to make the half time score 13-3 in favour of the home side. It had been an excellent fight back from the Stormers who had arguably got the worst of it for the majority of the opening half only to come back with a vengeance in the final 10 minutes.

The hosts went further ahead only four minutes after the break when Kurtley Beale had a kick charged down in the corner by Springbok wing Bryan Habana (pictured right) who gathered the loose ball to dot down. The Waratahs had scored first in the second stanza courtesy of a Berrick Barnes penalty, but Habana’s opportunistic score had given the Stormers a 14-point cushion and plenty of confidence.

Scrumhalf Ricky Januarie heaped further misery on the visitors when his sniping run paved the way for Habana to score his second try of the match. The decision to include the hard-working Januarie ahead of Dewaldt Duvenage proved to be an excellent one as his aggressive tackling proved to be a thorn in the side of the Waratahs. To compound matters for the Aussies, Duane Vermeulen, Tiaan Liebenberg, Pieter Louw, Juan de Jongh and Jaque Fourie all put in some heavy hits that severely disrupted their rhythm.

After Habana had scored his second try and the Stormers’ third to put the Cape team 21 points ahead with just 24 minutes to go, there was clearly no way back for the visitors and they looked a well-beaten team when the whistle sounded. It was the first time since 2004 that the Stormers have won two consecutive games at the start of the season, and if they can carry on playing like they are at the moment, they will fancy their chances of securing a semi-final berth in this year’s Super 14.

Scorers
Stormers: 27 (13) – Tries: Francois Louw, Bryan Habana (2). Conversions: Joe Pietersen (3). Penalties: Pietersen (2).
Waratahs: 6 (3) – Penalties: Berrick Barnes (2).

Other results (from left to right; SA teams in bold)
Friday
Highlanders 15 – Blues 19 – Dunedin
Reds 41 – Crusaders 20 – Brisbane
Sharks 20 – Cheetahs 25 – Durban
Lions 65 – Chiefs 72 – Johannesburg

Saturday
Hurricanes 47 – Western Force 22 – Wellington
Bulls 50 – Brumbies 32 – Pretoria

Morné Steyn

Bulls the early favourites as Super 14 heats up
As the Super 14 enters its third week the mighty Vodacom Bulls top the log with 10 points, one clear of the Hurricanes and the Chiefs and two clear of the fourth placed Stormers who themselves are two clear of the fifth placed Reds. The Bulls are looking like the early favourites after convincing victories in their opening two games, and with points machine Morné Steyn (pictured) in their ranks it would take a brave man to bet against the Pretoria outfit from retaining their trophy this season.

Steyn was in magnificent form for the Bulls over the weekend, scoring 35 points against the Brumbies at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday afternoon. His prolific boot accounted for 25 of those points with the remainder coming from two tries, proving that the Bulls’ No 10 has far more to offer than just slotting the ball between the uprights. The men in blue face the Waratahs in the bullring on Saturday and it will be a major surprise if the Aussie outfit could come away with a win, especially after their disappointing performance against the Stormers over the weekend.

Other fixtures (SA teams in bold)
Friday
Crusadersvs Sharks – Christchurch: 8.35am
Stormers vs Brumbies – Newlands Rugby Stadium: 7.10pm

Saturday
Hurricanes vs Lions – Wellington: 8.35am
Reds vs Blues – Brisbane: 10.40am
Western Force vs Chiefs – Perth: 1.05pm
Cheetahs vs Highlanders – Vodacom Park, Bloemfontein: 5.05pm

Itumeleng Khune

Soweto derby ends in goalless draw
The Soweto derby between Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs ended in a 0-0 stalemate at the Orlando Stadium in Soweto on Saturday afternoon – the second time this season that the traditional rivals have been deadlocked after 90 minutes. While the first meeting was a bore, this match was a lively and entertaining encounter featuring plenty of positive and attractive football, but in the end neither side was able to breach each other’s defences.

Pirates started quickly and put Chiefs under a lot of pressure, especially down the right flank where Rooi Mahamutsa and Dikgang Mabalane were finding plenty of space. However, it was the Amakhosi who nearly netted an early goal when Knowledge Musona sprinted away from the Pirates backline, only for goalkeeper Moeneeb Josephs to dart off his line and make a strong tackle.

Katlego Mashego then forced Itumeleng Khune (pictured) to make an excellent save, firing off a low, left footed shot that the young keeper blocked with his left hand. After absorbing a considerable amount of early pressure Chiefs gradually began to find their feet and were able to create some goal scoring opportunities. Musona headed wide of goal from a Josta Dladla free kick just after the half hour mark, and then Siphiwe Tshabalala and Abia Nale narrowly missed scoring opportunities shortly before half time.

The pattern of the second half mirrored that of the first, with Pirates starting strongly only for Chiefs to improve as time passed. Khune had to make two tremendous saves in succession just past the hour mark, twice denying Lucas Thwala headers that were aimed for the back of the net.

Chiefs almost broke the deadlock on 85 minutes when substitute Nkosinathi Nhleko hit the upright with a glancing header, but in the end it was not to be, as the score remained 0-0 at the whistle. The Amakhosi move back up to third on the Premier Soccer League (PSL) standings with 45 points, one ahead of Santos in fourth with Pirates a further point back in fifth place and having played a game more than all of the top four.

Other results (from left to right)
Last Wednesday
AmaZulu 1 – Free State Stars 0 – Moses Mabhida Stadium
Platinum Stars 0 – SuperSport United 1 – Royal Bafokeng Stadium
Maritzburg Utd 2 – Orlando Pirates 1 – Woodburn Stadium
Mamelodi Sundowns 3 – Moroka Swallows 3 – Super Stadium
Bidvest Wits 0 – Santos 3 – Bidvest Stadium

Saturday
Black Aces 0 – Bloem Celtic 0 -  Puma Rugby Stadium

It’s SuperSport vs Sundowns as PSL heads into final stages
With only two rounds left in the 2009/2010 PSL standings it’s a toss up between SuperSport United and Mamelodi Sundowns as to who will walk away with title honours. Log leaders United (57 points) are up against struggling Bidvest Wits at the Super Stadium this evening while second placed Sundowns (53 points) square off against bottom feeders Jomo Cosmos at the Rand Stadium. Both United and Sundowns should come away with maximum points against their lowly opponents who have had seasons they would rather forget.

The pick of this week’s matches could well be the middle of the table clash between Moroka Swallows and Platinum Stars at the Dobsonville Stadium this evening. The Birds held Sundowns to an exciting 3-3 draw at the Super Stadium last week and should have the beating of Stars, who suffered a 1-0 defeat to SuperSport in their last match.

Other fixtures today
Free State Stars vs Maritzburg Utd – Charles Mopeli Stadium: 7.30pm
Santos vs Amazulu – Athlone Stadium: 7.30pm
Golden Arrows vs Ajax Cape Town – Chatsworth Stadium: 7.30pm
Kaizer Chiefs vs Black Aces- Loftus Versfeld Stadium: 7.30pm

Jacques Rudolph

Titans tame Warriors to book semi-final berth
The Nashua Titans recorded an emphatic 55-run victory over the Chevrolet Warriors in their Standard Bank Pro20 encounter at SuperSport Park in Pretoria on Sunday. The Titans lost opener Blake Snijman (seven) early on in their innings, but recovered well to post an imposing score of 182/4 off their allotted 20 overs.

Gulam Bodi and Jacques Rudolph (pictured) took the Warriors’ bowlers to the cleaners as they boosted the Titans from 25/1 to 94/2 before Justin Kreusch caught Bodi off the bowling of medium pacer Garnett Kruger for a well-played 44 (37 balls). Faf du Plessis joined Rudolf at the crease and the duo took the score to 131 before Du Plessis fell victim to paceman Makhaya Ntini for a conservative 18 off 14 deliveries.

Next-man-in Heino Kuhn quickly got stuck into the Warriors’ bowling, smashing three sixes and a four in his unbeaten knock of 28, which came off just 14 balls. Rudolph was equally harsh on the Warriors’ bowlers, despatching them to all corners of the park on his way to a swashbuckling 69 (37 deliveries), which included six fours and three glorious sixes.

The former Proteas’ batsmen was eventually caught by Nicky Boje (another ex Protea) off the bowling of Kruger in the 17^th over, but by that stage the damage had already been done as Kuhn and David Wiese (10 not out off seven deliveries) took the Titans to their imposing total. Kruger was the pick of the Warriors’ bowlers with 3/26 off four overs.

Chasing 183 for victory at a rate of 9.15 to the over was always going to a tough ask for the Warriors, and in the end a tough ask it proved to be as the Eastern Cape franchise crashed to a dismal 127 all out in 18.4 overs. Medium pacer Wiese was the destroyer in chief as he tore through the Warriors’ line-up to finish with the extraordinary figures of 5/19 off four overs.

Opener Jon-Jon Smuts (34 off 29 balls) was the only Warriors’ batsmen to offer any resistance as the rest of his team-mates simply had no answer to the likes of Wiese, left-arm spinner Paul Harris (2/24 off four overs) and medium-pacer Pierre Joubert (3/23 off 3.4 overs).

The Titans’ crushing win ensured them a place in the semi-finals of the competition where they will be up against the bizhub Highveld Lions while the Warriors will square off against the Nashua Cape Cobras in the other ‘best of three’ semi-final.

Other results
Last Wednesday
Eagles beat the Cobras by eight wickets – Boland Park, Paarl

Friday
Warriors beat the Cobras by 19 runs – St George’s Park, Port Elizabeth
Lions beat the Dolphins by six wickets – Senwes Park, Potchefstroom

Sunday
Lions beat the Eagles by two runs – OUTsurance Oval, Bloemfontein

Upcoming fixtures
Today
First semi-final: Lions vs Titans – Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg: 6.00pm

Friday
Second semi-final: Warriors vs Cobras – St George’s, Port Elizabeth: 6.00pm

Hekkie Budler

‘Hexecutioner’ out to make a statement
Crowd favourite Hekkie ‘The Hexecutioner’ Budler (pictured left) gets the opportunity of a lifetime when he swaps leather with Philippine veteran Juanito Rubillar for the vacant International Boxing Organisation (IBO) junior flyweight title in Kempton Park on Saturday evening. The diminutive South African (13-0; 5 KO’s) will have a tough nut to crack in Rubillar (48-13-7; 23 KO’s) who has shared a ring with a number of the world’s best junior flyweights.

Many pundits believe that Budler has been overmatched in this fight, citing Rubillar’s vast experience at top level. However, the Phillipino is somewhat long in the tooth and could find himself in trouble against the tireless Budler who always applies intense pressure on his opponents with his relentless, swarming style.

In other bouts on the bill, promising youngster Thomas ‘Tommy Gun’ Oosthuizen (9-0; 7 KO’s) squares off against Zambian John Chibuta (8-3; 1 KO) for the vacant World Boxing Association (WBA) International super middleweight title, while former Commonwealth bantamweight champion Tshifhiwa ‘The Atomic Spider’ Munyai (18-1-1; 9 KO’s) will trade punches with Carlo Magali (12-5-2; 6 KO’s) of the Philippines.

The action continues when rising lightweight star Jason Bedeman (10-0-1; 8 KO’s) takes on Bilal Mohammed (14-3; 11 KO’s) of Zambia and Florante Simba (2-0; 2 KO’s) tackles debutant Devi Jose in a four round cruiserweight contest. The tournament is being presented by Golden Gloves and will be held at Emperors Palace in Kempton Park. The action will be televised live on SuperSport 2 (SS2) from 7pm.

In other fight action this weekend, Zolani Tete (12-0; 11 KO’s) squares off against Richard Garcia (20-9-1; 5 KO’s) of the Philippines in an International Boxing Federation (IBF) flyweight eliminator scheduled for 12 rounds. The heavy handed Tete, who hails from Mdantsane in the Eastern Cape, should have the beating of the light punching Garcia who has been knocked out five times in his 30 fight career. The fight will take place at the Wembley Indoor Arena in Johannesburg and will be televised live on SABC 2 from 10pm.

In domestic action, Bonakele Bikitsha (1-0; 1 KO) engages in unarmed combat with novice Lwandile Zinto for the vacant Eastern Cape junior featherweight title. Little is known about both fighters so it’s anyone’s call as to who will emerge victorious in Mdantsane on Sunday afternoon.

“Sporty” Links:
South Africa 2010 World Cup
2010 World Cup Stadiums
2010 World Cup Host Cities
2010 World Cup Accommodation
Things to Do in South Africa

Photo Credits:
Late rally not enough as SA lose by one run – Photo – Wayne Parnell: Source – www.abc.net.au
Stormers turn back tide to sink Waratahs – Photo – Bryan Habana: Source – www.ur7s.com
Bulls the early favourites as Super 14 hots up – Photo – Morné Steyn: Source – www.lions.ireland.com
Soweto derby ends in goalless draw – Photo – Itumeleng Khune: Source – www.footballfevr.com
Titans tame Warriors to book semi-final berth – Photo – Jacques Rudolph: Source – www.content.cricinfo.com
‘Hexecutioner’ out to make a statement – Photo – Hekkie Budler: Source – www.gvgatchalian.blogspot.com

Alviro Petersen

Proteas on the ropes in Kolkata
Just when everyone thought the Proteas were back to their winning ways after their convincing innings and six run victory over India in Nagpur last week, a familiar weakness returned to haunt them in the second test at Eden Gardens in Kolkata yesterday. The Proteas found themselves with their backs to the wall on six without loss in their second innings at stumps on day three and have to bat for two full days to save the match after trailing by a mammoth 347 runs on the first innings.

There is certainly no way that Graeme Smith’s men can win this match after a horrendous first innings batting collapse which saw them crash from a promising 218/2 to a dismal 296 all out. It was an all to familiar occurrence for the South Africans who have suffered similar collapses in the past, most recently their meek capitulation against England in last December’s Durban test …

To add insult to injury India responded with a colossal first innings total of 643/6 declared with opener Virendar Sehwag and batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar taking India from a modest 82/2 to a commanding 331/2 before Sehwag was caught by Ashwell Prince off the bowling of part-time spinner JP Duminy for a brilliant 165 off 174 balls. As often happens when a long partnership is broken, Tendulkar (106 off 206 deliveries) followed just four runs later, but South Africa’s hopes of wrapping up the innings were dealt a severe blow by the Indian middle order.

Captain MS Dhoni joined VVS Laxman with the score on 384/6 and the duo soon piled on the agony for the South Africans taking their side past the 400, then 500 and finally the 600 run mark before Dhoni’s declaration shortly before the close of play. It was a brilliant batting display by India with Dhoni and Laxman finishing on 132 and 143 not out respectively to match fellow centurions Tendulkar and Sehwag. Understandably, the Proteas’ bowling figures made for dismal reading although left arm spinner Paul Harris definitely deserved better than his 1/182 off 50 overs.

Proteas’ openers Smith and Alviro Petersen (pictured right) managed to keep their second innings wickets intact before the umpires decided to call a halt to proceedings due to bad light, but the South Africans will have to bat superbly over the remaining two days to save the test. Paceman Zaheer Khan picked up for 4/90 in the visitors’ first innings and was well supported by spinner Harbhajan Singh who ripped the heart out of the Proteas’ middle order with figures of 3/64 off 24 overs.

The Proteas’ first innings collapse was an accident waiting to happen given the perennial inability of Ashwell Prince and Duminy to make runs. Both batsmen are palpably out of form and should be axed from the squad and sent back to their provincial teams where they will hopefully be able to make some decent scores before returning to the national side on merit.

Duminy also made a crucial blunder by dropping Sehwag when the opener was on 47. Had he pouched the straightforward catch at slip off the bowling of Harris, the match could have turned out very differently for the Proteas. However, Duminy spilled a catch that he would usually have caught in his sleep. His poor form with the bat is clearly affecting the other aspects of his game and the selectors will be wise to call time out and replace the youngster before things go from bad to worse.

Negatives aside, the continued improvement of Hashim Amla, who scored 114 off 166 balls in the first innings, and the success of debutant Petersen, who notched up a brilliant 100 off 164 deliveries, was very encouraging and it will be a revelation for South Africa if the pair can go on to repeat their feats in the Proteas’ second innings. And if Smith, the usually dependable Jacques Kallis and the always-dangerous AB De Villiers are able to back them up with some decent contributions, the Proteas could well still salvage a draw from this match.

Cecil Afrika

Blitsbokke finally get it right against Fiji
The Blitsbokke finally overcame their jinx against Fiji to claim a hard fought 12-7 win in the Plate final of the Las Vegas Sevens and give coach Paul Treu some hope for the remainder of the IRB Sevens World series. The Blitsbokke won their first match in five outings against the Fijians and while they might be slightly disappointed in taking the Plate home rather than the Cup, the psychological advantage gained by defeating their erstwhile conquerors will haven given the South Africans a tremendous confidence boost.

The Blitsbokke converted their advantage in possession into points as they scored twice in the opening half, and then held out in the second to secure an excellent victory. They could have in fact won the game by a bigger margin had they not been the victim of poor officiating as a try by Kyle Brown was disallowed even though television replays cleared showed Brown grounding the ball.

However, shortly thereafter Cecil Afrika (pictured) sprinted away from a scrum to score an excellent try, and the Blitsbokke added another minutes later when Frankie Horne dotted down after a strong run. Fiji hit back quickly with a try from Joeli Lutumailagi, but the Boks held on for the win and Treu can now look forward to the upcoming Adelaide and Hong Kong tournaments with the knowledge that his side have shown a marked improvement in form.

Samoa defeated New Zealand 33-12 in the final with a powerful performance, which moved them up to second behind the All Blacks in the 2009/10 World Series standings, just ahead of Fiji in third. New Zealand had earlier beaten the Blitsbokke 12-5 in the quarter-finals. The next round of the series takes place in Adelaide from March 19-21.

Wynand Olivier

Bulls begin Super 14 campaign with a bang
The Bulls made the perfect start to their defence of their Super 14 title on Friday evening when they defeated a spirited Cheetahs outfit 51-34 at Vodacom Park in Bloemfontein and if first impressions are anything to go by, the other Super 14 teams will have a hard time wrestling the title from the Pretoria team this year. Not only did the Bulls emerge from the game with a maximum five-point haul, they also outscored the Cheetahs by six tries to three and outplayed them in all facets of the game.

Jaco Pretorius, Morné Steyn, Zane Kirchner, Gerhard Van Den Heever and Wynand Olivier (pictured centre) all dotted down for the Bulls with referee Jonathan Kaplan also awarding a penalty try to the Pretoria side. The Cheetahs replied with tries from Lionel Mapoe, Jongi Nokwe and Juan Smith, but in the end it wasn’t enough to stave off defeat as the Bulls proved themselves the better team on the night.

The nine try thriller was interrupted by a second half power failure, which left the stadium in darkness and the players sitting around for almost 10 minutes while waiting for the reserve generators to kick in. When they finally did, the match was able to resume, albeit in semi-darkness, as the power supply was only sufficient to activate some of the lights. The untimely interruption proved to be a bad omen for the home side who were still in with a chance at 31-37.

However, when play resumed, the Bulls wrapped up proceedings as they crushed the Cheetahs scrum, claiming the penalty with Fourie du Preez making a dart for the line. Stopped short, the recycled ball sent Olivier over for the fifth try and when the Bulls crushed the Cheetahs scrum once again on their tryline, Kaplan was left with no choice but to award a penalty try.

Despite their defeat the Cheetahs came away from the match with a number of positives. They demonstrated that they can also play fast paced rugby and scored some excellent tries of their own as they matched the Bulls for commitment throughout the game. In fact, the Cheetahs could have possibly won the game had it not been for their poor one on one tackling, which let them down at crucial moments.

Scoring
Bulls 51 (23) – Tries: Jaco Pretorius, Morné Steyn, Zane Kirchner, Gerhard Van Den Heever, Wynand Olivier, penalty try. Conversions: Steyn (5), Jacques-Louis Potgieter. Penalties: Steyn (3).
Cheetahs 34 (14) – Tries: Lionel Mapoe, Jongi Nokwe, Juan Smith. Conversions: Naas Olivier (2). Penalties: Olivier (5).

Other results (from left to right, SA teams in bold)
Friday
Blues 20 – Hurricanes 34
Western Force 15 – Brumbies 24
Over the weekend
Crusaders 32 – Highlanders 17
Reds 28 – Waratahs 30
Lions 13 – Stormers 26
Sharks 18 – Chiefs 19

In upcoming matches an interesting tussle is expected at Newlands on Saturday between the Stormers and the Waratahs after both teams made excellent starts to their campaigns with wins over the Lions and the Reds respectively.

Other fixtures
Friday
Highlanders vs Blues – Dunedin: 8.35am
Reds vs Crusaders – Brisbane: 11.45am
Sharks vs Cheetahs – Durban: 6.00pm
Lions vs Chiefs – Johannesburg: 8.00pm

Saturday
Hurricanes vs Western Force – Wellington: 8.35am
Bulls vs Brumbies – Pretoria: 5.05pm

Brian Baloyi

No joy for Sundowns against Santos
Mamelodi Sundowns must have been a very disappointed side after they were held to a goalless draw by Santos at the Super Stadium on Sunday afternoon. ‘Downs will be kicking themselves for being unable to score the goal that would have seen them join SuperSport United at the top of the Absa Premiership, especially since the People’s Team played more than 25 minutes of the match with only 10 men.

The Brazilians’ performance in the first half left much to be desired with Santos looking the better of the two sides. The People’s Team were more creative in attack and also demonstrated a tight defence as the Sundowns attack battled to breach their opponents’ defences. The Brazilians did look good in the very early going, especially when striker Elias Pelembe unleashed a strong shot from the edge of the 18-yard box. Unfortunately for Sundowns, the shot drifted just inches wide of the uprights.

Pelembe’s shot was the only thing the Brazilians had to write home about in the first half as from that point on their defence struggled to cope with the pace and intensity of the Santos attack. Romano Scott in particular put in some good runs down the right flank and whipped in a couple of dangerous crosses into the box which kept Sundowns ‘keeper Brian Baloyi (pictured) very busy. Baloyi was his normal rock solid self in goal and pulled off a brilliant save to deny Erwin Isaacs an almost certain goal in the 13th minute.

Encouraged by their near success Santos continued to press forward in attack, and almost scored the opening goal in the 22nd minute. Isaacs ghosted in behind the Brazilians’ defence following a ball over the top, and as he made his way toward goal, Baloyi moved quickly off his line prompting Isaacs to try and chip over the ‘keeper. However, Baloyi was equal to the task at hand and succeeded in parrying Isaacs’ effort away for a corner.

A few minutes later Santos striker Eleazar Rodgers met a cross from Scott and drove the ball into the back of the net, but the goal was disallowed for offside. ‘Downs were a relieved team when the whistle sounded for half time as they were urgently in need of a break to evaluate proceedings and to determine how they would crack the Santos defence.

The Brazilians opted for a more attacking approach in the second-half, replacing Franklin Cale with Surprise Moriri.  However, the substitution failed to produce a goal for ‘Downs, but that looked set to change when Santos were reduced to 10 men in the 64th minute after a dangerous tackle by Bonginkosi Macala on Katlego Mphela.

From that point on Sundowns mounted numerous attacks on the Santos goal, but were unable to penetrate the rock solid defence of the People’s Team. In fact, Santos had the best chance of the half when Mogogi Gabonamangi hit the woodwork in the 81st minute with a rasping shot from 25-yards out. In the final analysis however, both teams’ inability to find the back of the net resulted in them having to be content with sharing the points at the Super Stadium.

Other results
Last Wednesday
Free State Stars 1 – Bidvest Wits 1
Mamelodi Sundowns 1 – Platinum Stars 0
Black Aces 1 – Maritzburg Utd 0
Jomo Cosmos 0 – Bloem Celtic 1
Moroka Swallows 2 – Ajax Cape Town 1
Orlando Pirates 2 – AmaZulu 0

Saturday
Platinum Stars 0  – Free State Stars 3

Yesterday
Bloem Celtic 2 – Golden Arrows 2
Ajax Cape Town 1 – Jomo Cosmos 0

Kaizer Chiefs

PSL heads into final week
The 2009/10 Absa Premiership competition draws to a close this week when the final round of league fixtures takes place in stadiums all over the country. Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs (pictured) meet in a huge clash at the Orlando Stadium on Saturday afternoon with an intense struggle expected between these two arch-rivals of South African soccer. Both teams have made excellent recoveries after making poor starts to the season and will be hell bent on victory.

Pirates are currently in fourth place on the log with 42 points while Chiefs are third with 44 – a clear indication that there has been little to separate the two sides all season. The Amakhosi have notched up more victories than Pirates (12 as opposed to 10), but the Buccaneers have lost fewer games (five compared to seven) and have also conceded less goals (15 as opposed to 24) so there will be very little to choose between the two teams on the day. Kick off is at 3.30pm.

Fixtures
Today
AmaZulu vs Free State Stars – Moses Mabhiba Stadium 7.30pm
Platinum Stars vs SuperSport United – Royal Bafokeng Stadium 7.30pm
Maritzburg Utd vs Orlando Pirates – Woodburn Stadium 7.30pm
Kaizer Chiefs vs Black Aces – Loftus Stadium 8.00pm
Mamelodi Sundowns vs Moroka Swallows – Super Stadium 8.00pm
Bidvest Wits vs Santos – Bidvest Stadium 8.00pm

Saturday
Free State Stars vs Maritzburg Utd – Goble Park: 3.30pm
Santos vs Amazulu – Athlone Stadium: 3.30pm
Black Aces vs Bloem Celtic – Puma Rugby Stadium: 3.30pm
Jomo Cosmos vs Mamelodi Sundowns – Rand Stadium: 3.30pm
SuperSport United  vs Bidvest Wits – Super Stadium: 3.30pm
Moroka Swallows vs Platinum Stars – Dobsonville Stadium: 3.30pm
Golden Arrows vs Ajax Cape Town – Chatsworth Stadium: 3.30pm
Orlando Pirates vs Kaizer Cheifs – Orlando Stadium: 3.30pm

Colin Ingram

Ingram’s blitzkrieg powers Warriors to victory
Colin Ingram (pictured) smashed 82 runs (seven fours and four sixes) off just 52 deliveries to guide the Chevrolet Warriors to a tense five-wicket win over the bizhub Highveld Lions in their Standard Bank Pro20 Series encounter at the Wanderers in Johannesburg on Friday evening. Chasing the Lions’ total of 155/9 the Warriors knocked off the winning runs off the penultimate ball of their innings as they attained 156/5.

The Lions’ innings was built around the efforts of Vaughn van Jaarsveld who contributed a rapid 72 (seven fours and three sixes) off 51 balls to steer his side to their total. The 25-year-old Van Jaarsveld became the eighth wicket to fall when he was caught by a diving Justin Kreusch at deep extra cover off a delivery from paceman Makhaya Ntini.

Van Jaarsveld stabilised the Lions’ innings after they found themselves on a precarious 57/4 and was rather circumspect in scoring just 23 off the first 27 balls that he faced. The powerfully built left-hander then decided to finally hit out with when he clubbed a delivery from medium pacer Kreusch over long-on for a splendid six. Van Jaarsveld then got stuck into left-arm spinner Nicky Boje by smashing him for 16 runs in the 13th over, before reaching his fifty off just 39 deliveries.

The rest of the Lions’ batsmen faired poorly with only Neil Mckenzie (15 runs off 11 balls), Dane Vilas (13 off nine) and Shane Burger (16 not out off 12) able to reach double figures and two needless run outs didn’t help matters either. Ntini and fellow quicks Garnett Kruger and Lyall Meyer each grabbed two wickets with Rusty Theron bagging another.

The visitors made a poor start to their innings and were struggling on 15/2 and then 46/3 before Ingram and Davy Jacobs (32 not out off 30) combined for a fourth-wicket stand that yielded 76 runs to leave them with 62 to get off the last five overs – attainable but no easy task in anyone’s books.

However, the left-handed Ingram went ballistic in the 16th over as he unleashed a furious assault on Werner Coetsee, which saw the off-spinner concede a whooping 25 runs off the over. Ingram was eventually bowled by speedster Ethan O’Reilly in the following over, but Jacobs kept his head to secure victory for the Warriors. It was their third consecutive win in the competition and secured them a place in the semi-finals.

Other results
Last Wednesday
Eagles beat the Dolphins by 13 runs.
Lions  beat the Titans by four wickets.

Over the weekend
Cobras beat the Dolphins by 14 runs.
Titans beat the Eagles by nine wickets.

The pick of the week’s upcoming fixtures sees the Warriors up against the Titans at SuperSport Park in Centurion on Sunday. Both teams have already secured themselves a place in the competition semi-finals, but spectators can be rest assured they will not be cheated as both sides always come to win, which is always a recipe for plenty of fireworks.

Other fixtures
Today
Cobras vs Eagles – Boland Park, Paarl: 6.00pm

Friday
Warriors vs Cobras – St George’s Park, Port Elizabeth: 6.00pm
Lions vs Dolphins – Senwes Park, Potchefstroom: 6.00pm

Sunday
Eagles vs Lions – OUTsurance Oval, Bloemfontein: 2.30pm

Chad Ho

Ho triumphs in Midmar thriller
Twenty-year-old Durbanite Chad Ho (pictured) is the 2010 Halfway Toyota Midmar Mile champion after a nail-biting win on Sunday in arguably the most closely contested race (just 20 seconds separated the top 10 finishers) in the event’s illustrious 37-year history. In a dramatic race on Midmar Dam situated near Howick in the picturesque KwaZulu Natal Midlands, Ho did just enough to edge out Great Britain’s Daniel Fogg to take victory in 18 minutes, 39 seconds with the Brit a second behind in 18:40.

The Cape Town duo of Heerden Herman and Dannie Marias followed Ho closely in the early going along with defending champion Riaan Schoeman, former champion Shaun Dias and the German duo of Alexander Studzinski and Christian Reichert. Schoeman and Studzinski soon passed Herman and Marais and then began to match race leader Ho stroke for stroke. Schoeman actually surged ahead at the 1 200m mark while local boy Myles Brown put in a strong effort to catch the leading group.

With just 200m to go the leading bunch of six swimmers were in an extended line with hardly anything to choose between them. Ho, Studzinski and Fogg responded to another strong surge from Schoeman and coming into the slipway it was the Brit who enjoyed a slight advantage with Ho producing a desperate surge to move up onto his shoulder.

As they entered shallow water both competitors stood up simultaneously for the final sprint up the slipway and it was the South African who thrust himself forward first to clinch his first Midmar Mile title. Schoeman was third in 18:42, just ahead of Studzinski (18:43) and Brown (18:45). The women’s race was won by Keri Ann Payne of Great Britain in a time of 19:24 with Kathryn Meaklim the first South African home in 19:40, which secured her sixth place.

The race attracted over 16 200 entries, surpassing last year’s event, which was officially recorded by the Guinness Book of Records as the world’s largest open-water swimming event. Another record to fall was Saturday’s non-company relay which boasted over 3 500 entrants.

Photo Credits:
Proteas on the ropes in Kolkata – Photo – Alviro Petersen: Source – www. cricinfo.com
Blitsbokke finally get it right against Fiji – Photo – Cecil Afrika: Source – www.usasevens.com
Bulls begin Super 14 campaign with a bang – Photo – Wynand Olivier: Source – www.smh.com.au
No joy for Sundowns against Santos – Photo – Brian Baloyi: Source – www.daylife.com
PSL heads into final week – Photo – Kaizer Chiefs: Source – www.br.oleole.com
Ingram’s blitzkrieg powers Warriors to victory – Photo – Colin Ingram: Source – www.supersport.com
Ho triumphs in Midmar thriller – Photo – Chad Ho: Source – www.flickr.com

Sporty Links:
South Africa 2010 World Cup
2010 World Cup Stadiums
2010 World Cup Host Cities
2010 World Cup Accommodation
Things to Do in South Africa

Dale Steyn

Proteas crush India in just four days
India made a valiant effort to stave off an innings defeat against South Africa in the first test at Jamtha Stadium in Nagpur yesterday, but in the end it was to no avail as they crashed to an innings-and-six run defeat. The Proteas’ win was set up by a mammoth 340-run third wicket, first innings partnership between Hashim Amla and Jacques Kallis, which knocked the stuffing out of the home side.

Amla eventually carried his bat through the innings to finish on a brilliant 253 not out, which came off 473 balls and included 22 fours. Kallis weighed in with 173 runs (15 fours and two sixes) off 351 deliveries although he must have been disappointed at not going on to score that elusive double ton. There were also useful contributions from AB de Villiers (53) and Mark Boucher (39) to help the Proteas to 558/6 declared off 176 overs …

If India were hoping the South African bowlers would be unable to match the performance of their batsmen, they were sorely mistaken as Dale Steyn (pictured) cut a swathe through the ranks of their batsmen to finish with a personal best test innings wicket haul of 7/51. Virender Sehwag top scored for the home side with 109 (15 fours) off 139 balls and Subramaniam Badrinath contributed 56, but the rest of the home side’s batsmen had no answer to Steyn’s destructive combination of blistering pace and bewildering swing as they crashed to 233 all out in just 64.4 overs.

Trailing by 325 runs on the first innings India faced the daunting task of having to bat for the rest of the match to salvage a draw, and were doing rather well on 192/4 until Sachin Tendulkar was bowled by left arm spinner Paul Harris for a well played 100 (13 fours) off 179 balls. The Indian cricket legend’s departure heralded the beginning of the end for his side as they lost their remaining five wickets for just 127 runs to finish on 319 all out. Harris bowled exceptionally well and was rewarded with 3/76 off 38 overs to go with his 1/39 off 17 overs in the first innings.

The lanky Harris was considered fortunate to keep his place in the Proteas’ test line up after a string of mediocre performances in the recent home series against England. However, a match analysis of 4/115 off 55 overs speaks for itself as Harris proved the perfect foil for Steyn and the other Proteas’ speedsters. In the end it was a fantastic and memorable victory for the Proteas who thoroughly outplayed their opponents in all facets of the game.

Caretaker coach Corrie van Zyl will be over the moon after his side’s convincing victory and will hoping the Proteas can keep up their winning ways when they face India in the second test at Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Sunday.

Scores in brief
South Africa: 558/6 declared
India: 233 and 319
Result: South Africa won by an innings and six runs.

Rayno Benjamin

Blitsbokke lose their way again
The Springbok Sevens team lost their third consecutive IRB Sevens Plate final when they were beaten 26-22 by Australia in the Wellington Sevens on Saturday. This was the second time in three tournaments that the Blitsbokke have lost to Australia in a Plate final and they also had to endure the misfortune of being beaten in a Cup quarter-final again by Fiji, the third consecutive occasion that this has happened in as many tournaments.

Fiji went on to win the tournament, beating Samoa 19-14 in the final after dispatching England in the semis. Samoa earned the right to face the Fijians after surprising New Zealand in their semi-final.  The victory propelled Fiji to within four points of series leaders New Zealand who won the first two rounds in Dubai and George before losing to Samoa in the Wellington semis. Samoa now move up to third place ahead of England.

Blitsbokke coach Paul Treu made four changes to the squad that went to George, enlisting the services of a number of young players, but could only hold his head in disbelief as his senior players threw away a 17-0 lead to lose the game in the second half in the Plate final.  After an opening try by Chase Minnaar, Rayno Benjamin (pictured) made it 12-0 when he intercepted a reckless pass to dot down for the Blitsbokke.

Australia quickly replied with tries from James Stannard and Bernard Foley, but then with the game evenly balanced, a missed tackle by debutant Hoffman Maritz allowed Kimami Situati in for a try to put the Aussies in front.  Captain Mzwandile Stick brought the Boks back into the lead with a clever chip and chase, but the Blitsbokke’s lack of pace was badly exposed as the Aussies kicked ahead and Clinton Sills easily out sprinted Benjamin in the chase to clinch the victory for his side.

Earlier, the Blitsbokke repeated their performances in Dubai and George, doing all the hard work against Fiji, but obtaining scant reward to lose 21-5 and bow out of the Cup competition. The fourth round of the IRB Sevens series will be played in Las Vegas this weekend.

Juan Smith

Bulls begin Super 14 defence against Cheetahs
The Bulls begin the defence of their Super 14 championship when they take on the Cheetahs at Vodacom Park in Bloemfontein on Friday evening in what is likely to be a fierce encounter with no quarter asked or given. The Bulls won last year’s Super 14 final with a 61–17 thrashing of the Waikato Chiefs and will be looking to repeat their success this year although it will take same doing in an extremely arduous competition that stretches over four long months.

Cheetahs captain Juan Smith (pictured) believes his team have a good chance of pulling off a win if they can neutralise Bulls and Springbok flyhalf Morné Steyn by denying him penalty opportunities. “You have to concede as few penalties as possible against Morné. You have to try and play the rugby in their half as Morné will hurt you with three points from anywhere within your half,” said Smith.

The Cheetahs captain was part of the Springbok team when Steyn secured the series against the British and Irish Lions with a penalty for the Boks at Loftus Versfeld last year. His success for the Springboks aside, Steyn’s deadly accurate goal kicking also played a big part in the Bulls’ success in last year’s Super 14 campaign. The 25-year-old kicking machine was the leading points-scorer with 191 at the end of the series and also slotted incredible 11 drop goals for good measure.

Smith believes it’s crucial for the Cheetahs to begin the Super 14 season on a positive note, which makes it all the more important for Steyn to be kept under control. “It’s a long season awaiting us, but a good start makes it feel shorter,” he said. Referee Jonathan Kaplan’s interpretation at the breakdowns and how the Cheetahs’ play at the breakdown will also help determine how many goal- kicking opportunities Steyn receives. Smith realises that the Cheetahs have a huge task ahead of them in their opening game of the season, but adds that he and his teammates would not have it any other way. “We could not have asked for a bigger challenge at the start of the tournament. To play against the Super 14 champions first up is huge,” explained Smith. Kick off at Vodacom Park is at 7.10pm.

Other fixtures (South African teams in bold)
Friday
Blues vs Hurricanes – Auckland – 8.35pm
Western Force vs Brumbies – Perth – 1.05pm

Saturday
Crusaders vs Highlanders – Christchurch – 8.35pm
Reds vs Waratahs – Brisbane – 10.40am
Lions vs Stormers – Coca-Cola Park, Johannesburg – 5.05pm
Sharks vs Chiefs – The Absa Stadium, Durban – 7.10pm

Sibusiso Khumalo

Celtic and Swallows fight to a draw
The Absa Premiership is rapidly drawing to a close with all league fixtures set to be completed by Saturday, February 20. At this late stage it seems like a toss up between log leaders SuperSport United and second placed Mamelodi Sundowns as to who will walk away with this year’s championship laurels. Both teams have had a very successful season and continued on their winning ways this past weekend with victories over Ajax Cape Town and struggling Free State Stars.

SuperSport downed Ajax 2-0 at the Super Stadium in Atteridgeville on Saturday evening courtesy of goals from Dario Monteiro and Daine Klate, while Sundowns defeated Stars 1-0 thanks to a goal from Lebo Mokoena. United then made it two wins out of two games in the space of four days when they defeated fourth paced Santos 2-1 at the Athlone Stadium last night. However, top teams aside, the pick of the weekend’s games could well have been the hard fought clash between seventh placed Bloemfontein Celtic and eighth placed Moroka Swallows on Sunday afternoon.

A first-half goal from Sibusiso Khumalo (pictured) and a well-placed header by Patric Malokase in the second half saw both teams share the spoils at the Seisa Ramabodu Stadium. The opening half saw the Birds enjoy the majority of possession, with their birthday boy and captain, Lefa Tsutsulupa, dominating proceedings in the middle of the pitch. Khumalo, too, proved a danger in the midfield, causing a lot of problems for the Celtic defence with his speed and shoot-on-sight philosophy.

The first attempt on goal came after just four minutes when Khumalo unleashed a tremendously powerful shot from 30 yards out that just singed the wrong side of the post. Thereafter Swallows continued to apply pressure on their opponents and were rewarded for their efforts after 24 minutes when Khumalo scored a magnificent goal from the left edge of the 18-yard box. Goalkeeper Patric Tignyemb remain rooted to the spot as the ball curled past him to land in the top right hand corner of the net, putting Swallows 1-0 to the good.

Celtic battled to create any decent chances in the first half and goalkeeper Greg Etafia was only tested in the 40th minute when Prince Olomu uncorked a shot from outside the 18-yard area. However, Etafia made the save with ease and Celtic were still goalless when the referee sounded his whistle to signal the end of the opening 45 minutes. When play resumed after the interval, Celtic made more of an effort to get back into the match and began to apply considerable pressure on their opponents.

Etafia was called upon to make a magnificent save in the 64th minute that prevented Celtic from equalising. Substitute, Patrick Malokase powered down the right flank and fired in a perfect cross to Tlou Segolela inside the box, but Segolela’s well-directed header was superbly saved by the outstretched hand of the keeper. Etafia, however, could do nothing to stop Malokase from scoring nine minutes later. On this occasion Malokase benefited from another excellent cross as he climbed above the Birds’ defence to head his side level. Both teams tried hard to net a winner after that, but in the end neither side could break the deadlock as the game ended in 1-1 draw.

Results
Last Wednesday
Free State Stars 3 Santos 3
Mamelodi Sundowns 0 Bloem Celtic     0
Black Aces 1 Bidvest Wits 1
Orlando Pirates 0 SuperSport United 0
Over the weekend
Bidvest Wits 0 Orlando Pirates 0
Platinum Stars 1 Santos 0
Kaizer Chiefs 2 Jomo Cosmos     2
SuperSport United 2 Free State Stars 0
Maritzburg United 1 Golden Arrows    0
AmaZulu 0 Black Aces 0
Bloemfontein Celtic 1 Moroka Swallows 1
Ajax Cape Town 0 Mamelodi Sundowns 1
Yesterday
Santos 1  SuperSport United 2
Golden Arrows 0 Kaizer Chiefs 0

Lebo Mokoena

Sundowns eager to continue good form against Stars
It’s business as usual in the PSL this week with another round of fixtures taking place all over the country. The pick of today’s games is likely to be the encounter between second placed Mamelodi Sundowns and ninth placed Platinum Stars at the Super Stadium this evening.

Sundowns are enjoying an excellent campaign in the PSL this season and are expected to get the better of Stars who haven’t had the best of seasons despite recording some good results. However, these good results have been interspersed with some poor ones, which has left Stars out of contention for championship honours this season. Nevertheless, they will looking to cause an upset against their more fancied opponents and cannot be underestimated.

Weekend action pits Stars against draw specialists Free State Stars and Sundowns against always the dangerous Santos. Sundowns striker Lebo Mokoena (pictured) will be looking to continue his goal scoring form in what should be a titanic tussle at the Super Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

Fixtures
Today
Free State Stars vs Bidvest Wits – Goble Park: 3.30pm
Mamelodi Sundowns vs Platinum Stars – Super Stadium: 7.30pm
Black Aces vs Maritzburg Utd – Puma Rugby Stadium: 7.30pm
Jomo Cosmos vs Bloem Celtic – Rand Stadium: 7.30pm
Moroka Swallows vs Ajax Cape Town – Dobsonville Stadium: 8.00pm
Orlando Pirates vs AmaZulu – Orlando Stadium: 8.00pm

Saturday
Platinum Stars vs Free State Stars – Moruleng Stadium: 3.30pm

Sunday
Mamelodi Sundowns vs Santos – Super Stadium: 3.30pm

Gulam Bodi

‘Rock Star’ cricket competition thrills crowds
The 2009/10 Standard Bank Pro20 Series competition has provided plenty of excitement thus far this season and although this shorter version of the ‘gentleman’s game’ might not appeal to the purists it certainly has proved to be a big hit with fans. From the players’ bright attire, to the attractive dancing girls, booming music and the increasing popular ‘dunking pools’ the competition bears little resemblance to the rather dour first class format of the game. However, the marketing guru’s have been right on the money here and the crowds have been flocking in to experience the ‘thrill a minute’ action first hand.

That action was evident for all and sundry to see on Sunday afternoon when the Nashua Titans turned back the challenge of the Nashua Cape Cobras to prevail by 17 runs (D/L method) at SuperSport Park in Centurion. Gulam Bodi (pictured) stood out like a shining star for the Titans with a brilliant career-best 88 not out to steer his side to an imposing 139/1 in a match that had been reduced to 12 overs due to a severe thunderstorm. Bodi and fellow opener Blake Snijman produced 70 runs for the first wicket with Bodi then adding a further 66 for the second with Faf du Plessis who made 18 not out.

In response, the Cobras made a determined push for victory, especially with Herschelle Gibbs at the crease. Although the veteran batsmen clearly wasn’t firing on all cylinders he still looked like taking the game away from Titans with some enterprising stroke play. However, when he fell to a brilliant catch by Albie Morkel for 48, it was always going to be a struggle for the Cobras to pull the ‘fat out of the fire’ and so it proved as the accurate Titans’ attack managed to pick up wickets at regular intervals to leave the Cobras well short of their victory target on 122/6. The Titans’ victory was built largely on the efforts of Bodi who dispatched the Cobras’ attack to all corners of the park with ruthless efficiency. The left-hander was especially brutal to seamers Charl Langeveldt, who conceded a massive 45 runs off just three overs, and Vernon Philander who shed 24 off two.

For the Cobras, only left-arm spinner Robin Peterson achieved any success with the ball, when he trapped Snijman leg-before for 27. The Cobras made a poor start to their innings when opener Andrew Puttick was caught and bowled by seamer Basheer Walters for nine and the trend continued as the Cape franchise lost wickets at regular intervals with only Gibbs and Justin Kemp (20 not out) providing any resistance.

Walters had a good outing with the ball grabbing 2/30 off three overs with Morkel (2/22 off two overs), Pierre Joubert (1/19 off three overs) and Roelof van der Merwe (1/15 off two overs) also getting amongst the wickets. Joubert won the Master Blaster bowling award for his tidy spell as well as the vital wicket of the always-dangerous Gibbs.

Scores in brief
Titans: 136/1
Cobras: 122/6
Result: Titans won by 17 runs on the Duckworth/Lewis (D/L) method.

Other results
Friday
Cobras beat the bizhub Highveld Lions by 42 runs.
Chevrolet Warriors beat the Diamond Eagles by 3 runs.
Sunday
Nashua Dolphins beat the Warriors by 23 runs.

Upcoming fixtures
Today
Dolphins vs Eagles – Sahara Stadium Kingsmead, Durban: 6.00pm
Titans vs Lions – Willowmoore Park, Benoni: 6.00pm
Friday
Lions vs Warriors – Bidvest Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg: 6.00pm
Saturday
Cobras vs Dolphins – Sahara Park Newlands, Cape Town: 6.00pm
Sunday
Eagles vs Titans – De Beers Diamond Oval, Kimberley: 6.00pm

Raven Klaasen

Klassen’s challenge eventually fizzles out
Raven Klaasen’s challenge at the South Africa Open in Montecasino came to an end last Thursday when the local player was beaten 6-4 7-5 by seventh seed Lu Yen-Hsun of Taiwan. The 375th-ranked Klaasen, who obtained a wildcard entry into the tournament courtesy of his victory in the recent South African Closed Championships, put up a courageous display against Lu but was ultimately undone by an avalanche of accurate ground strokes that eventually wore him down.

Klaasen was 5-4 and 40-0 up on Lu’s serve up in the second set and was perfectly placed to level the match, but the visitor’s powerful and relentless ground strokes proved decisive as he reeled off three games in succession to clinch victory. The tournament was eventually won by third seeded Spaniard, Feliciano Lopez who beat eighth seeded Stephane Robert of France 7-5 6-1 in Sunday’s final.

Photo Credits:
Proteas crush India in just four days – Photo – Dale Steyn: Source – www.cricinfo.com
Blitsbokke lose their way again: Photo – Rayno Benjamin: Source – www.blitzbokke.com
Bulls begin Super 14 defence against Cheetahs – Photo – Juan Smith: Source – www.lions.ireland.com
Celtic and Swallows fight to a draw – Photo – Sibusiso Khumalo: Source – www.daylife.com
Sundowns eager to continue good form against Stars – Photo – Lebo Mokoena: Source – www.teamkickoff.com
‘Rock Star’ cricket thrills crowds – Photo – Gulam Bodi: Source – www.cricinfo.com

Sporting Links:
South Africa 2010 World Cup
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Graeme Smith

Proteas ready for mighty India
The Proteas opened their tour of India yesterday with a practice match ahead of their quest to unseat the hosts as the premier test nation. The tourists are taking on the Indian board president’s XI in a two-day match in Nagpur before the first test begins at the new Vidarbha Cricket Association ground on the outskirts of the city on Saturday.

The two-test series – the second test will be played at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata from February 14 – could be one of the most important the Proteas have played in recent times. The number two ranked South Africans need a 2-0 series win to dislodge India from the top spot. A 1-0 result in favour of the tourists will leave both teams level on 123 rating points.

The Proteas were unsettled last week by the resignation of long-time coach Mickey Arthur over what he said were differences of opinion with Cricket South Africa (CSA) on the future course of action. The entire selection committee, headed by former test player Mike Procter, was also giving their marching orders following a 1-1 series draw to England at home. National high performance coach Corrie van Zyl has replaced Arthur for the Indian tour, which includes three one-day internationals (ODI’s) after the tests.

Proteas’ captain Graeme Smith (pictured) was, however, confident that his team would rebound from their recent setbacks and play well in India. “It’s been an emotional week and not many teams go to India and win,” Smith was quoted as saying in Johannesburg prior to the team’s departure over the weekend. “The players who have been part of the set-up for a while have dealt with a few difficult things in recent years and handled them very well. “I expect them to be as professional as normal, and I’m looking to them for responsibility and guidance for the youth.”

The 15-man squad includes 29-year-old right-hand batsman Alviro Petersen and 25-year-old left-arm fast bowler Lonwabo Tsotsobe, both of whom have yet to play test cricket. Tsotsobe forms part of a five-pronged pace attack led by Dale Steyn, but does not include former spearhead Makhaya Ntini who was axed after a string of sub-par performances. It remains to be seen whether ‘new kids on the block’ Tsotsobe, Peterson and, to a lesser extent, all rounder Ryan McLaren and speedster Wayne Parnell can justify their selections by producing some noteworthy performances.

Whatever happens on this tour, one thing can be certain. The Proteas can expect a gruelling time of it against arguably the best test team in the world. If they do manage to come away with a victory against India it will be a remarkable achievement, considering the many inexperienced players in their side and their mediocre showing against England in the recent home test series.

However, as they say, cricket is a strange old game and anything can happen.

The world will be watching.

Proteas test squad:
Graeme Smith (capt), Hashim Amla, Ashwell Prince, AB de Villiers, Jacques Kallis, Jean-Paul Duminy, Alviro Petersen, Mark Boucher, Paul Harris, Johan Botha, Ryan McLaren, Morne Morkel, Wayne Parnell, Dale Steyn and Lonwabo Tsotsobe.

Lucas Thwala

Bafana’s World Cup preparations going well
Bafana Bafana head coach Carlos Alberto Parreira is happy with his team’s progress after recent back-to-back victories over the past fortnight. Bafana’s comfortable 3-0 victory over Zimbabwe in a friendly international played at the Moses Mabhida Stadium last Wednesday evening, was a vital step towards preparing the South Africans for a demanding 2010 World Cup group stage in June.

The win over Zimbabwe has undoubtedly given Bafana plenty of confidence ahead of their training camp in Brazil in March, where Parreira will select about half of the 29 players that did duty at the team’s training camp in Durban these past two weeks.

Bafana begin their 2010 World Cup campaign against Mexico at Soccer City on June 11 and will play Uruguay and France, both former World Champions, in their other two Group A matches. The South Africans crushed Swaziland 6-2 in a training match played at the Chatsworth Stadium last weekend and are starting to demonstrate the kind of form needed to post a serious challenge at the 2010 global spectacle.

“The purpose of this camp was to get to know some of the new faces and work closely with them at training and we achieved all that,” said Parreira. However, the 66-year-old Brazilian admitted there was still a long way to go before Bafana can hope to pose a serious challenge to the other teams in the World Cup.

“It was useful playing Swaziland and Zimbabwe although we made far too many mistakes in the first half against Zimbabwe, where we gave the ball away too easily,” explained Parreira. “Zimbabwe proved as tough as I expected, but in the end we were better conditioned and took control although we made a bad mistake in defence when we went to sleep and almost allowed them to score near the end of the game,” he added.

Siphiwe Tshabalala, Thulasizwe Mbuyane and Lucas Thwala (pictured) all scored goals for Bafana. Parreira said the nucleus of his 23-man World Cup squad would consist of locally based players.

Ashwell Prince

Fabulous Prince leads Warriors to victory
A brilliant maiden limited-overs century by Ashwell Prince (pictured) steered the Chevrolet Warriors to a comfortable 71-run victory over the Nashua Dolphins in their MTN40 final clash at Buffalo Park in East London on Friday. The 32-year-old Prince, playing his 200th limited-overs match, smashed the hapless Dolphins’ attack to all corners of the park on his way to scoring 128 runs (16 fours and three sixes) off just 96 balls in one of the best innings seen at Buffalo Park in many a year.

Prince was simply unstoppable as he put the Dolphins’ bowlers to the sword in a remarkable display of batting that had the Buffalo Park faithful cheering for more. When he was eventually dismissed with the score on 221/3, it seemed as though the Dolphins might have a chance of restricting the Warriors to a gettable total. However, Proteas stalwart Jacques Kallis, who came to the crease with the total on 130/2, went into overdrive after Prince’s dismissal and mercilessly assaulted the Dolphins’ attack to finish with an undefeated 87 (eight fours and three sixes) off just 57 deliveries to take the Warriors to an imposing 299/4.

Opener Justin Kreusch had earlier weighed in with a useful 37 (four fours) off 43 balls and put on 93 for the first wicket with Prince. All of the Dolphins’ bowlers suffered under Prince’s and Kallis’ brutal assault with Alfonso Thomas (0-73 off seven overs) and Andrew Hall (2/71 off eight overs), in particular, coming in for some severe stick. In reply, the Dolphins could only muster 228 all out in 36.4 overs as Lonwabe Tsotsobe (3/53 off eight overs) and Wayne Parnell (3/27 off seven overs) tore the heart out of their batting.

The in-form Hashim Amla (68 runs off 69 balls) and the ever-green Dale Benkenstein kept the scoreboard ticking for the Dolphins, but 300 off just 40 overs was always going to be a tough ask for the visitors and in the end they finished well short of their target. Dave Miller (46 off 30 deliveries) and Benkenstein gave the Dolphins some hope with a fifth wicket stand of 59, but when the latter was bizarrely dismissed with the total on 195/5 it clearly wasn’t going to be the visitors’ night.

Benkenstein lost his grip on his bat after playing a shot against paceman Makhaya Ntini with the result that it fell onto his stumps leaving the umpire no choice but to give the Dolphins stalwart out hit wicket for 63. Benkenstein’s dismissal heralded the beginning of the end for the visitors as Parnell and Rusty Theron (2/48 off 6.4 overs) captured the remaining five wickets for the addition of just 33 runs.

Miller struck four fours and two sixes in his entertaining knock, but once he was clean bowled by Parnell with the score on 200/6 there was just no ways the Dolphins could mount a recovery. In the end, it was an excellent all-round performance by the Warriors, which saw them claim their first title since the introduction of franchise cricket.

The focus now shifts from the 40-over to the 20-over version of the game when the Standard Bank Pro20 Series competition gets underway tonight with a clash between the Dolphins and the Nashua Titans in Durban. The Dolphins have beaten the Titans in their last two outings, but the Pretoria franchise will be hoping to turn the tables on their recent conquerors and come away with a convincing win.

In other Pro20 fixtures this week, the Nashua Cape Cobras do battle with the bizhub Highveld Lions at Newlands in Cape Town while the Warriors square off against the Diamond Eagles at Buffalo Park in East London. Both games take place on Friday and begin at 6pm. Weekend action sees the Dolphins take on the Warriors in Durban while the Titans facing off against the Cobras at SuperSport Park in Centurion. Both games are on Sunday and start at 2.30pm.

Orlando Pirates

PSL season resumes after long break
The Absa Premiership continues after a six-week break with a host of fixtures scheduled to take place over the next few days. Log leaders SuperSport United will be looking to cement their position at the top of the log with a win over fifth-placed Orlando Pirates (pictured) at the Orlando Stadium this evening in what is likely to be the pick of today’s matches.

In another interesting top of the table clash tonight, second-placed Mamelodi Sundowns do battle with Bloem Celtic at the Super Stadium. Sundowns can expect a tough challenge from Celtic who are currently lying seventh on the log. The pick of the weekend games could well be the encounter between Celtic and eighth-placed Moroko Swallows, which takes place at the Seisa Ramabodu Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

Results
Yesterday
Jomo Cosmos 0 – Maritzburg United 0
Golden Arrows 1 – AmaZulu 2
Ajax Cape Town 2 – Platinum Stars 0
Moroka Swallows 0 – Kaizer Chiefs 0

Fixtures
Today
Free State Stars vs Santos – Charles Mopeli Stadium at 3.30pm
Mamelodi Sundowns vs Bloem Celtic – Super Stadium at 7.30pm
Black Aces vs Bidvest Wits – Puma Rugby Stadium at 7.30pm
Orlando Pirates vs SuperSport United – Orlando Stadium at 8.00pm

Saturday
Bidvest Wits vs Orlando Pirates – Bidvest Stadium at 3.30pm
Platinum Stars vs Santos- Royal Bafokeng Stadium at 3.30pm
Kaizer Chiefs vs Jomo Cosmos – Loftus Versfeld Stadium at 3.30pm
SuperSport United vs Free State Stars – Super Stadium at 6.00pm
Maritzburg United vs Golden Arrows – Harry Gwala Stadium at 8.15pm

Sunday
AmaZulu vs Black Aces – Moses Mabhida Stadium at 3.30pm
Bloem Celtic vs Moroka Swallows – Seisa Ramabodu Stadium at 3.30pm
Ajax Cape Town vs Mamelodi Sundowns – Athlone Stadium at 3.30pm

Ruben Kruger

World Cup hero Kruger passes away
Former Springbok flanker Ruben Kruger, who was an integral member of the 1995 Rugby World Cup squad, has died. The 39-year-old Kruger passed away last Wednesday after losing a long battle with brain cancer. The powerfully built Kruger excelled at rugby from a young age and was already playing for the Grey College 1^st XV in his standard eight year. He soon went on to play provincial rugby for the Cheetahs and then the Blue Bulls.

Kruger made his Test debut against Argentina in Buenos Aires on November 6, 1993 and ended up winning 36 caps for his country, scoring seven tries and playing in two World Cups. Nicknamed ’The Silent Assassin’ Kruger earned five caps for South Africa before the start of the historic 1995 World Cup – now the subject of movie legend Clint Eastwood’s latest film, Invictus.

Kruger scored his first international try in the rain-soaked 1995 World Cup semi-final against France and crossed the try line in the first half of the tension wracked final against New Zealand. However, referee Ed Morrison controversially ruled that the ball had been held up and did not award the try. At the end of the 1995 season, Kruger was recognised for his excellent form by being named the South African Player of the Year. He played in the first two Tests against the British and Irish Lions in 1997, but missed South Africa’s Tri-Nations winning campaign the following year due to injury.

Kruger returned to the national side in 1999 and earned a place in the Springbok World Cup squad. He played against Spain in a pool game and took the field as a replacement in the third place play-off against the All Blacks. However, this proved to be Kruger’s last appearance in a Springbok jersey as persistent injury problems put a premature end to his career.

Kruger was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumour in 2000 and had an operation to remove it, but it re-surfaced and he eventually succumbed to its cruel effects after a brave fight, which lasted the course of a decade. Kruger’s funeral will take place today in Pretoria at the CRC church on the corner of Lynnwood and Hans Strijdom Avenues, near Silver Lakes where Kruger lived with his wife Lize.

Raven Klaasen

Local players storm into second round at SA Open
South African Davis Cup squad member Raven Klaasen (pictured) defeated Frenchman David Guez 6-4 6-3 in the opening round of the R3.75-million South African Open at a sweltering Montecasino yesterday afternoon. The King Williams Town-born Klaasen must have been very pleased with himself after vanquishing a player ranked 243 places better than his own 375th world ranking.

The unassuming 27-year-old led an encouraging two-pronged entry of South Africans into the last 16 stage of the tournament, and will play Yen-Hsen LU of Taipeh in the second round. Klassen’s countrymen Izak van der Merwe made full use of his potent serve to dispatch Israel’s Noam Okun 7-6 (7-5) 7-6 (7-2) and will now face another Frenchman, Stephane Robert, in the second round.

Fritz Wolmarans failed to follow in the footsteps of his countrymen when he wilted like a daisy in the oppressive heat to succumb 6-4 7-5 to Germany’s Bjorn Phau.

Other results
Dustin Brown (Jam) bt (4) Marco Chiudinelli (Swi) 6-4 3-6 6-4
(1) Gael Monfils (Fra) bt Dominik Hrbaty (Slo) 6-2 6-1
Somdev Devvarman (Ind) bt (6) Xavier Malisse (Fra) 6-4 6-2
(3) Feliciano Lopez (Spa) bt Benjamin Balleret (Monaco) 6-1 6-7 (5-7) 6-3
(7) Yen-Hsen LU (Tai) bt Jarkko Nieminin (Fin) 6-3 6-2

Mlungisi Dlamini

WBF and IBO Champion Dlamini dies in car crash
Unbeaten Mlungisi Dlamini (pictured left), one of South Africa’s most promising and exciting boxers, was killed in a motor vehicle accident near Harrismith in KwaZulu-Natal on Friday. The 27-year-old World Boxing Foundation (WBF) and International Boxing Organisation (IBO) lightweight champion had a record of 21-0-1 (13 KO’s) and was scheduled to take on Pauls Moses for the World Boxing Association (WBA) lightweight belt in April.

Born in Bergville, KwaZulu-Natal on May 29, 1982, Dlamini made his professional debut in Mandini, KwaZulu-Natal in September 2000 with a four-round points victory over Ernest Makhathini. Dlamini’s career progressed slowly for a number of years, but took off in 2005 after he moved to Johannesburg and joined experienced trainer Warren Hulley. lamini won seven fights in a row under the tutelage of Hulley before capturing the vacant WBF lightweight belt with a fifth-round TKO victory over Argentine Ivan Orlando Bustos in March 2007.

Known as ‘The Killer Shark’, Dlamini made successful defences against Jairo Demoura Dos Santos, Diego Martin Alzugaray, Gairy St Clair and Francisco Lorenzo. Possibly his best performance was the fourth round knockout victory he recorded over countryman Zolani Marali at Emperors Palace in Kempton Park in October last year. That victory earned Dlamini the vacant IBO lightweight belt and set the stage for bigger things to come. Sadly it was not to be as his life was tragically cut short.

He will be sorely missed.

Francois Botha

Holyfield / Botha road show moves to the U.S.
Former International Boxing Federation (IBF) heavyweight champion Francois ‘The White Buffalo’ Botha will still get a chance to fight American ring legend Evander ‘The Real Deal’ Holyfield, but will have to travel to ‘the land of the free’ to do so. The 41-year-old South African and the 47-year-old Holyfield were scheduled to square off against each other in Kampala, Uganda on February 20. However, the fight’s promoters had not provided a promised pre-fight payment for the bout, which resulted in a change of venue. The contest is now expected to take place on March 6, possibly in Miami, Florida.

Former undisputed heavyweight champion Holyfield has not fought in over a year and has had other fights cancelled in South Korea and Ethiopia when financing fell through. He will be eager to get back in the ring and demonstrate to many of his detractors that he is far from the washed up fighter that many suspect he is.

Holyfield, who owns a 42-10-2 (27 KO’s) record, has not held a heavyweight belt since 2000, but continues to fight on despite his advancing years and a string of mediocre performances against fighters whom he would have destroyed in his heyday.

Besides the fight against Botha (pictured right), Sanders said Holyfield would also face fellow American Derric Rossy on April 24 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Botha (47-4-3; 28 KO’s) could fight another American, hard punching Joey Abell (25-4; 24 KO’s), in Uganda sometime this month in order to keep sharp before tackling the vastly experienced Holyfield. The 28-year-old Abell has fought mostly low calibre opposition and is not considered to be a serious threat to Botha. However, boxing is an unpredictable sport and Botha will be wise not to take Abell lightly. After all, it only takes a moment of carelessness to lose a fight, which is something Botha knows only to well.

The ‘White Buffalo’ was leading former heavyweight champion ‘Iron’ Mike Tyson on all three judges scorecards in their January 1999 bout in Las Vegas before getting knocked out with a savage right cross to the draw after dropping his hands and taunting the former ‘baddest man’ on the planet. It was a mistake that Botha would come to regret, as a win over Tyson would have set him up for a lucrative rematch and other big paydays for years to come. However, it was not to be and Botha eventually decided to step away from the sport in 2002 only to launch a comeback in July 2007 with a point’s victory over journeyman Bob Mirovic.

The charismatic South African has gone on to win two of his three fights since then, but has fought mostly low-grade opposition and is considered by many pundits to be way past his best. However, a win over Holyfield will undoubtedly re-establish Botha, who holds the lightly regarded World Boxing Federation (WBF) heavyweight belt, as a serious contender in the division.

Sporting Links:
South Africa 2010 World Cup
2010 World Cup Stadiums
2010 World Cup Host Cities
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Hotels in South Africa

Photo Credits:
Proteas ready for mighty India – Photo – Graeme Smith: Source –t20worldcupcricket.com
Bafana’s World Cup preparations going well – Photo – Lucas Thwala: Source – www.projects.ajc.com
Fabulous Prince leads Warriors to victory – Photo – Ashwell Prince: Source – www.alloutcricket.com
PSL season resumes after long break – Photo – Orlando Pirates: Source – www.oleole.com
World Cup hero Kruger passes away – Photo – Ruben Kruger: Source – www.guardian.co.uk
Local players storm into second round at SA Open – Photo – Raven Klaasen: Source – www.flickr.com
WBF and IBO Champion Dlamini dies in car crash – Photo – Mlungisi Dlamini: Source – www.businessday.co.za
Holyfield/Botha road show moves to the U.S. – Photo – Francois Botha: Source – www.boxnews.com.ua

Mickey Arthur

Mickey calls it quits
Proteas’ coach Mickey Arthur (pictured) has resigned. The shocking news was leaked to the media on Monday and although Arthur’s resignation has still to be made official, it has been confirmed by reliable sources. It is believed that Arthur and Proteas’ captain Graeme Smith have been at loggerheads for some time and the result is that their relationship has broken down completely.

The departure of Arthur has come at a difficult time for the Proteas who leave these shores on Saturday for a demanding tour of India, which consists of two tests and three one-day internationals (ODI’s). It has been learned that former South African pace bowler Corrie van Zyl is likely to be appointed as caretaker coach for the tour of India.

The 48-year-old Van Zyl has previously worked as the Proteas’ assistant coach and was appointed as coach of Cricket South Africa’s (CSA) high performance centre in Pretoria in 2009.  It is believed that Arthur’s right-hand man at the Proteas, Vincent Barnes, has also been given the boot. Mike Procter and his panel of national selectors may also soon be shown the door in a shake up that is likely to send shockwaves through the South African cricketing ranks for some time to come.

Besides Van Zyl, former South African captain Kepler Wessels and former England one-day player Jeremy Snape have also been mentioned as possible successors to Arthur. Snape, a qualified psychologist, joined the Proteas as a consultant in 2008 and is a personal friend of Smith, with whom he is also associated at the Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League (IPL). It is believed that Arthur met with CSA CEO Gerald Majola on Monday to discuss his severance package. Arthur, Majola, Barnes and Van Zyl did not want to make any comments to the media. An official press conference will be held in East London today.

The 41-year-old Arthur and CSA management held an emergency meeting in Johannesburg last Tuesday to discuss the team’s struggles in the recent test series against England, which ended in a 1-1 deadlock. The Proteas won their first series in England in over 40 years and recorded a first series victory in Australia under Arthur’s guidance after he replaced Ray Jennings as coach in 2005. However, they lost a home series against the Australians not long after their groundbreaking victory against the same opponents and produced a sub-par performance in the Twenty20 World Championship and Champions Trophy series last year.

Although many pundits are not convinced that Arthur is to blame for the Proteas’ recent slump in form it’s clear that something had to be done to remedy the situation, but it seems as though Majola and his minions are hitting the panic buttons by introducing sweeping changes throughout the South African cricketing set-up. Whether or not these changes will have the desired effect on the Proteas’ on field performances remains to be seen, but there is little doubt that future developments will make for some interesting reading.

Franklin Cale

Upbeat Bafana ready to take on Zim
Head coach Carlos Alberto Parreira seems to have breathed new life into Bafana Bafana. The 66-year-old Brazilian has put his squad through some rigorous training in Durban over the past two weeks, but they seem to have relished the challenge and have put in some hard work, which has already begun to bear good fruit.

Parreira appears to have stopped Bafana from sliding into the abyss after a slew of poor results under former coach Joel Santana. However, the cool and calculating Parreira is the first to admit that he has much more to do to whip Bafana into shape ahead of their 2010 World Cup clash against Mexico on June 11.

Bafana displayed an urgency not seen under Santana’s ‘tutorship’ when they crushed minnows Swaziland 6-2 in a training match at the Chatsworth Stadium on Saturday. This convincing victory has set the stage for what is likely to be an exciting southern African derby against Zimbabwe in Durban tonight.

Zimbabwe have some quality players to provide a serious test for Bafana with their tireless midfielder Tinashe Nengomasha, who plays for Kaizer Chiefs in the Premier Soccer League (PSL), likely to be a major threat to the South Africans. Zimbabwe also have Chiefs striker Knowledge Musona, Sundowns midfielder Esrom Nyandoro and Platinum Stars goalkeeper Tapuwa Kapini in their line-up so Bafana will have to be at their very best in order to come away with a win.

Parreira expressed his satisfaction with the progress made in Durban: “We will continue to play our brand of soccer – which is keeping possession and hitting Zimbabwe on the counter attack.  It worked well against Swaziland and we will keep working to try and become better and cut out the mistakes.”

Despite their runaway victory over the weekend, Bafana still leaked two goals and it is this that Parreira alluded to when he spoke of “mistakes”. However, defensive-lapses aside, Parreira has managed to install confidence in his squad, and the fact that Bafana were able to find the back of the net on no less than six occasions is a testament to their progress. Parreira has also brought back competition for places in the squad whereas Santana stuck with the same players leaving many of them in a comfort zone.

The Bafana coach said he would not make many changes to the side that started against Swaziland for today’s game, but Mamelodi Sundowns winger Franklin Cale (pictured) could well be fielded from the get go rather than coming on at a later stage. Cale scored two brilliant goals when he took the field at the beginning of the second half against Swaziland and was in sublime form.

Orlando Pirates striker Gert Schalkwyk, who also notched up a brace in the first half, deserves his place against Zimbabwe. His partnership with Orlando Pirates teammate, midfielder Teko Modise, was a revelation and should be encouraged to develop for the South Africans. Kick-off at the Moses Mabhida Stadium is at 8.30pm.

Hashim Amla

Dolphins shock Titans to reach final
For the second week running, the Nashua Dolphins got the better of the Nashua Titans and their 15 run victory at SuperSport Park in Centurion on Sunday enabled the KwaZulu-Natalians to book themselves a place in Friday’s MTN40 final.

Batting first the Dolphins notched up an impressive 251/6 of their allotted 40 overs with the top three of Loots Bosman (42 off 49 balls), Hashim Amla (59 off 58 deliveries) and brother Ahmed Amla (54 off 54 balls) all weighing in with useful contributions to set the platform for the Dolphins’ innings.

Hashim (pictured) was in particularly good form and played some attractive strokes in his innings, possibly sending a message to the national selectors that they could well have erred by leaving him out of the One Day International (ODI) squad for the upcoming tour of India. The Dolphins middle order kept the scoreboard ticking before Johann Louw (26 not off 13 deliveries) and Pierre de Bruyn (11 not out off seven balls) scored 28 runs off the last 14 deliveries to take the KwaZulu-Natalians through to their formidable total.

Morne Morkel (1/46 off eight overs), Ethy Mbhalati (2/51 off eight overs), Roelof van der Merwe (1/58 off eight overs) and Pierre Joubert (1/33 off seven overs) all got wickets, but, with the exception of Joubert, were a tad expensive. The end result was that the Titans had to chase 252 for victory at a rate of 6.3 to the over, which was never going to be easy against an attack as varied as that of the Dolphins.

The Titans made a disastrous start to their innings, losing opener Gulam Bodi for nought and number three Jacques Rudolph for seven to leave them on a precarious 22/2 after 4.3 overs. Heino Kuhn and AB de Villiers set about repairing the damage with a stand of 48 for the third wicket before Kuhn was caught and bowled by Daryn Smit for 28 to leave the Titans on 70/3. De Villiers was then joined at the crease by Faf du Plessis and the pair looked like taking the Titans to victory with both batsmen carting the Dolphins’ bowlers all over the park.

However, fate intervened on behalf of the visitors when De Villiers was unluckily run out for a well-played 61 off 66 balls after Du Plessis had slipped at the crease while turning for a second run. Smit then removed Farhaan Behardien for two heralding the arrival of the dangerous Albie Morkel to the crease. The left-handed Proteas batsmen teamed up with Du Plessis and the duo added a further 13 runs to the total before Du Plessis was caught in the covers by Andrew Hall off the bowling of Kyle Abbott for 51. With De Villiers and Du Plessis now in the pavilion the pressure was mounting on the home side and Morkel and new man at the crease Joubert responded positively with some lusty blows to keep the Titans in the hunt.

However, things turned sour once again for the Pretoria franchise when Morkel (26 off 27 deliveries) was brilliantly caught on the boundary by a diving David Miller leaving Joubert and the remaining batsmen with too much to do.
In the end, the Titans fell 15 runs short of their target with Joubert full value for his 38 off 37 balls. Louw (2/39 off eight overs), Abbott (1/40 off eight overs), Hall (1/55 off eight overs), Smit (2/35 off seven overs) and Alfonso Thomas (1/60 off eight overs) all got amongst the wickets, but it was Louw and Smit in particular who stood out.

It was a bitterly disappointing defeat for the Titans who topped the log and looked a sure bet for the championship, only to be outplayed by a motivated Dolphins outfit when it counted most. The Dolphins will now play the Chevrolet Warriors in the final on Friday at Buffalo Park in East London. It should be an absolute cracker and the crowd can expect a tense struggle between these two well-matched teams.

Scores in brief
Dolphins: 251/6
Cobras: 236/9
Result: Dolphins won by 15 runs

Rusty Theron

Rusty ruins Cobras’ party
The Chevrolet Warriors proved more than a handful for the more fancied Cape Cobras when they defeated them by nine runs in their MTN40 semi-final clash at Boland Bank Park in Paarl on Friday. Batting first the Warriors amassed an intimidating 274/4 off their allotted 40 overs with opening batsman Justin Kreusch (60 off 59 deliveries) and Ashwell Prince (48 off 48 balls) getting the visitors off to a rollicking start. The duo put on 104 for the first wicket before Prince was caught at long off after trying to hit off-spinner JP Duminy out of the ground.

Kreusch was then joined by Colin Ingram and the pair added a further 21 runs before the opener was run out by at the keeper’s end after a superb throw from Herschelle Gibbs at short cover. However, Kreusch’s demise heralded the arrival of Proteas stalwart Jacques Kallis to the crease and the batting maestro wasted little time in putting the Cobras to the sword. Kallis hammered the Cobras attack to all corners of the park on his way to amassing an unbeaten 73 off just 55 balls as the Warriors smashed 67 runs off the last five overs of their innings.

The 34-year-old Kallis struck six fours and two sixes in his innings and together with Davey Jacobs (47 not out off 34 deliveries) put on 111 for the fifth wicket to take the Warriors to their impressive total. The Cobras had looked like bowling themselves back into the match when Ingram (35 off 42 balls) and Mark Boucher (three off four deliveries) fell in quick succession, but Kallis and Jacobs’ magnificent efforts enabled the Warriors to attain a formidable total.

Chasing 266 for victory from the get go at an asking rate of 6.65 to the over was always going to be a tough task for the Cobras, and in the end it proved to much for the Cape franchise. Speedster Rusty Theron (pictured left) was the destroyer in chief for the Warriors with 4/48 off eight overs with Lonwabe Tsotobe (1/35 off six overs) and Wayne Parnell (1/43 off eight overs) providing valuable support. Justin Kemp (71 off 55 deliveries) batted well for the Cobras and kept their victory hopes alive, but when he was trapped leg-before by Theron with the total on 220/5, the Cobras were always going to struggle. The flame-haired Theron then removed Rory Kleinveldt (nought off three balls) and Justin Ontong (24 off 25 deliveries) to conclude his four-wicket haul.

Vernon Philander, batting at number nine, tried valiantly to win the match for the home side with an unbeaten 23 off 14 balls but the Warriors’ bowlers kept their composure under pressure to ensure a well-deserved victory.
It was a very disappointing end to what had been an excellent season for the Cobras who finished second on the log only to fail in the semi-finals against their less fancied opponents.

Scores in brief
Warriors: 274/4
Cobras: 265/8
Result: Warriors won by nine runs.

Thabiso ‘The Rock’ Mchunu

Mchunu demolishes Groenewald to retain title
South African cruiserweight champion Thabiso ‘The Rock’ Mchunu (pictured) successfully defended his title in the Bloemfontein City Hall on Friday night with a fourth TKO victory over veteran campaigner Ruben Groenewald.

The 32-year-old Groenewald, who tipped the scales at a somewhat podgy 89.96kg, obviously hadn’t prepared for a long fight and came out swinging in the opening round, clearly intent on scoring a quick knockout with his dangerous left hook. Mchunu, in stark contrast, weighed in at a chiselled 90.36kg and utilised his quick reflexes and tight defence to perfection, as Groenewald was unable to land any meaningful punches. The champion also used his excellent jab to probe his opponent for weaknesses and spent the rest of the round sizing up the challenger.

Things become very unpleasant for the Brakpan resident in the next round when Mchunu, obviously encouraged by his new found assurance that his foe posed no threat to him, started to unleash an array of hurtful punches that reddened Groenwald’s face. The champion really turned up the heat in round three by landing some blistering combinations that stunned the challenger, forcing him to back peddle towards the ropes. One three-punch (jab-cross-hook) combination was particularly impressive and had Groenwald reeling from its effects.

Mchunu picked up right where he had left off in round four by firing off fearsome combinations that Groenewald simply had no answer for. Although the challenger was yet to take a count he was taking a bad beating, and it therefore came as no surprise when referee Jaap Van Niewenhuizen called a halt to proceedings at 1:31 of the round to save the hapless challenger from further punishment.

It was a very impressive performance by the young southpaw from KwaZulu-Natal, who, at just 21 years of age, demonstrated a maturity that far exceeds his fledgling years. Mchunu’s punches were fast, accurate and damaging and there is little doubt that he can go all the way to the top of the sport if he is managed correctly. The champion, who also holds the lightly regarded World Boxing Association (WBA) Pan African Cruiserweight belt, improved his record to 7-0 (6 KO’s) with the win while Groenewald fell to 23-8-3 (10 KO’s) and looks like he has nowhere to go but down from here on.

Mchunu stated in the post fight television interview that he is: “finished with fighting local opposition” and wants to now “take on international boxers”. Indeed, that is precisely what is required for his career to carry on in the right direction. Boxing fans and scribes alike will be hoping that Mchunu can sign up with a promoter who can get him international fights; otherwise his career is likely to stall and eventually fizzle out. And that, ladies and gentleman, would be a travesty of justice as Mchunu is undoubtedly one of South Africa’s most gifted young boxers.

Undercard results
Gideon Buthelezi TKO 4 Nelson Mtshali (mini-flyweights)
Michael Ramabeletsa TKO 4 Zukile Toko (bantamweights)

Birkett and Graham

Birkett and Graham are Dusi kings
Andrew Birkett and former pupil Jason Graham (both pictured) capitilised on the misfortune suffered by defending champions Ant Stott and Michael Mbanjwa on the final day of the Dusi Canoe Marathon, to take race honurs in 7 hrs, 42 min and 4 secs. The duo won by more than three minutes as pre-race favourites Stott and Mbanjwa had to make do with second.

At one stage Stott and Mbanjwa enjoyed a 90 second advantage over Birkett and Graham, but their hopes of staging a successful defence of their title were dealt a mortal blow when their boat overturned on some rapids only an hour before the finish on Saturday. Birkett and Graham took full advantage of the situation to paddle well clear of their rivals and secure victory. Local favourites Thomas Ngidi and Eric Zondi finished third.

The women’s race was won by the heavily favoured duo of Abbey Miedema and Robyn Kime in 8:56:4. Miedema and Kime finished almost 12 minutes ahead of Abby Adie and Lindi-May Harmsen with Hilary Pitchford and Jen Hodson taking third a further 5:38 behind Harmsen and Pitchford. Michael Stewart and Kirsty Fox took the K2 mixed race honours in 9:19:11, narrowly beating Mark and Angelique Mulder (9:20:21) into second place.

The 31-year-old Birkett and the 19-year-old Graham’s victory was a major surprise as Stott and Mbanjwe were heavy favourites to win the race after a dominant performance in last year’s race. However, Birkett and Graham had other ideas and their persistence paid off as their more illustrious rivals made a crucial mistake from which they just could not recover.

Photo Credits:
Mickey calls it quits Photo – Mickey Arthur: Source – www.sportsillustrated.co.za
Upbeat Bafana ready to take on Zim Photo – Franklin Cale: Source – www.mtn8.mtnfootball.com
Dolphins shock Titans to reach final Photo – Hashim Amla: Source – www.uyirmmai.com
Rusty ruins Cobras’ party Photo – Rusty Theron: Source – www.flickr.com
Mchunu demolishes Groenewald to retain title Photo – Thabiso ‘The Rock’ Mchunu: Source – Guy Mortimer
Birkett and Graham are Dusi kings Photo – Andrew Birkett and Jason Graham: Source – www.timeslive.co.za

Sporting Links:
South Africa 2010 World Cup
2010 World Cup Stadiums
2010 World Cup Host Cities
2010 World Cup Accommodation
South Africa Accommodation

JP Duminy

Proteas finally get it right
Paceman Morne Morkel grabbed four wickets to guide South Africa to victory by an innings and 74 runs over England as the home side squared the series on the fourth day of the fourth Castle test match at the Wanderers in Johannesburg on Sunday.

The towering Morkel finished with the impressive figures of 4/59 off 16 overs as the visitors were dismissed for 169 just before the lunch interval. The result means that the Castle test series ends 1-1 and South Africa therefore keep the Basil D’Oliveira Trophy. Paul Collingwood was the only England batsman to pose a threat to the Proteas’ bowlers as the right-hander put together a superb 71 off 88 deliveries, which included 12 boundaries and a glorious six.

Overall, it was a poor batting display from the visitors after they started the day on an already precarious 48/3. England simply had no answer to the aggression of Morkel and the persistence of the other South African bowlers, and lost their last seven wickets for just 121 runs with Morkel proving to be the destroyer-in-chief.

Debutant left-arm swing bowler Wayne Parnell initiated the collapse when he had Kevin Pietersen (12) caught behind after the South African born batsmen nicked one through to ‘keeper Mark Boucher. Morkel then cut a swathe through the England middle order as he bagged three wickets in just six deliveries to return figures of 3/15 off five overs in his second spell.

Ian Bell (five) was the first to go, snapped up at second slip, before Matt Prior (nought) skied a short delivery and was caught by skipper Graeme Smith who sprinted all the way from first slip to take the catch behind Boucher. Stuart Broad (one) was then caught down the leg-side by Boucher after the Proteas had asked for the decision to be reviewed, as England crashed to 104/7 after shedding three wickets for a single run. Graeme Swann (20) stuck around for 17 balls before he edged an away-swinging delivery from paceman Dale Steyn through to AB de Villiers at third slip.

Part-time off-spinner JP Duminy (pictured) then hammered the final nail into England’s coffin when he had Collingwood caught at deep backward square leg before disturbing the left-handed Ryan Sidebottom’s stumps. The England seam bowler made 15 off 17 balls. Duminy, who has been in poor form with the bat in this series, redeemed himself somewhat with the ball by returning the impressive figures of 2/10 in the innings while Parnell also did well with his 2/17 off eight overs. Steyn, who recorded 2/64 off 14 overs, finished with a match analysis of 7/115 while Morkel was even better with overall figures of 7/98. However, the man of the match adjudicators could not pick a winner between the two, and decided that the award should be shared between the two speed merchants.

South Africa, and Smith in particular, will be relieved at being able to draw the series, but will not be happy with their overall performance in a series they should have won comfortably.  The Proteas’ inability to mop up the English tail in Centurion and again at Newlands, together with their pathetic second innings batting display at Kingsmead, cost them a series win and does not bode well for next month’s tour of India. Indian pitches seldom provide any assist for quick bowlers and with the South African selectors only naming two recognised spinners (the out of form Paul Harris and the controversial Johan Botha) in their test squad for their tour of the sub-continent, things don’t look that rosy for the Proteas.

The South Africans will play two tests and five one day internationals (ODI’s) against their more illustrious opponents in a tour that will stretch throughout February.

Scores in brief
England: 180 & 169
South Africa: 423/7 declared
Result: South Africa won by an innings and 74 runs

SA squads for India
Test squad: Graeme Smith (capt), Hashim Amla, Johan Botha, Mark Boucher, AB de Villiers, JP Duminy, Paul Harris, Jacques Kallis, Ryan McLaren, Morne Morkel, Wayne Parnell, Alviro Petersen, Ashwell Prince, Dale Steyn and Lonwabo Tsotsobe.

ODI squad: Graeme Smith (capt), Loots Bosman, Johan Botha, Mark Boucher, AB de Villiers, JP Duminy, Herschelle Gibbs, Jacques Kallis, Albie Morkel, Morne Morkel, Wayne Parnell, Alviro Petersen, Dale Steyn, Lonwabo Tsotsobe and Roelof van der Merwe

Ahmed Amla

Dolphins shock Titans to earn semi-final berth
The Nashua Dolphins produced undoubtedly their best performance of the MTN 40 competition when they vanquished the previously unbeaten Nashua Titans by 32 runs at the City Oval in Pietermaritzburg on Sunday. The win was enough to secure the Dolphins a spot in the semi-finals of the competition after a somewhat lacklustre campaign, which saw the KwaZulu-Natalians win only three of their 10 league matches.

However, the Dolphins were in superb form at the picturesque Oval ground on Sunday and were full value for their victory against arguably the best team in the competition this year. Ahmed Amla (pictured) was the proverbial ‘Rock of Gibraltar’ for the home side as he steered the Dolphins to 237/7 with a superb 85 off just 72 balls, which included six stylish boundaries. Amla helped the home side to pick up the run rate as he and Dale Benkenstein (27 off 16 balls) plundered 46 runs between the 30th and 34th overs. The men in green were able to improve their score from an uninspiring 140/3 in the 30 over to their final total courtesy of Amla’s efforts.

Imraan Khan (60 off 93 balls) and Andrew Hall (25 off 29 balls) had earlier helped the Dolphins to score 55 runs in the first ten overs to get the home side off to an excellent start. Roelof van der Merwe, with 2/39 from eight overs, and Jacques Rudolph with 2/10 from 1.5 overs were the pick of the Titans’ bowlers.

Chasing a victory target of 238 in 40 overs the Titans got off to a solid start with Blake Snijman notching up 64 off 70 balls, which included nine boundaries and a well struck six. However, when Snijman departed with the score on 88/2 the Dolphins’ bowlers began to put the clamps on the Titans’ batsmen. Left-arm spinner Kyle Nipper (2/38 from eight overs), leg-spinner Daryn Smit (1/22 from three overs), slow medium-pacer Pierre de Bruyn (1/16 off three overs) and paceman Jonathan Louw (1/36 off 5.4 overs) all combined well to hamper the progress of the chasing Titans.

Medium pacers Alfonso Thomas (2/30 off eight overs) and Hall (2/41 off six overs) also played an important role in dismissing the top and middle-order of the Titans with Thomas, in particular, making good use of the slower delivery and off-cutter.

In the end it was all too much for the Titans to cope with as they were bowled out for a rather modest 205 in 38.4 overs. Both teams will face each other again on Sunday at SuperSport Park in Centurion in the competition’s second semi-final. The first semi-final will be between the Nashua Cape Cobras and the Chevrolet Warriors at Boland Park in Paarl on Friday. If the Dolphins were to be victorious again on Sunday it would be a major disappointment for the Titans who, along with the Cobras (7-2-1), dominated the competition with seven wins, one loss and two no results from 10 outings.

Scores in brief
Dolphins: 237/7
Titans: 205
Result: Dolphins won by 32 runs

Other results
Last Wednesday
Warriors beat the Dolphins by three wickets at Buffalo Park in East London.
Friday
Cobras beat the Warriors by 52 runs at Newlands in Cape Town.
Eagles beat the Dolphins by 37 runs at the Diamond Oval in Kimberley.
Titans beat the Lions by 91 runs at SuperSport Park in Centurion.
Sunday
Warriors beat the Lions by seven wickets at Senwes Park in Potchefstroom.

Ruben Groenewald

Mchunu to defend SA belt against Groenewald
Unbeaten, but relatively untested Thabiso ‘The Rock’ Mchunu returns to the ring after a frustrating eight month absence when he squares off against veteran Ruben Groenewald (pictured right) at the Bloemfontein City Hall on Friday night.

The 21-year-old Mchunu (6-0; 5 KO’s) is one of South Africa’s most promising young boxers. However, an inability to secure bouts has hampered Mchunu’s development as a fighter and the former amateur star will be hoping to kick-start his career by winning impressively against the 32-year-old Groenewald (23-7-3; 10 KO’s). At stake will be Mchunu’s South African Cruiserweight (also known as junior heavyweight) title.

Mchunu, who also holds the lightly regarded World Boxing Association (WBA) Pan African Cruiserweight title, is a very talented pugilist with heavy hands, but has a tendency to lose concentration in the ring, sometimes displaying a seeming disinterest in his craft. However, there is no doubt that the young man from KwaXimba in Cato Ridge, a small farming community situated not far from Pietermaritzburg in KwaZulu Natal, has all the tools necessary to become a legitimate world champion one day.

Mchunu, a clean living young man who treats his body as a temple, has been boxing since he was eight and is so skilled defensively that he has never been dropped in the ring, either as an amateur or as a professional. He also possesses the ability to turn up the heat on an opponent as he demonstrated when he blasted out the experienced Ghanian Marciano Commey in just 32 seconds in Bloemfontein in October 2008.

However, with only one fight (a lacklustre eighth round TKO over Soon Botes in May 2009) since that scintillating victory, Mchunu’s career has stalled and he will be hoping to revitalise it with a convincing victory over the highly experienced Groenewald who is coming off a September 2009 victory (TKO 1) over rugged brawler Ronnie Lategan.

Groenewald has seen it all in a 14-year professional career where he has faced the likes of the highly regarded German based, Ukranian born cruiserweight contender Alexander Frenkel (L TKO 5), current World Boxing Council (WBC) super-middleweight champion Carl Froch (L TKO 5) and former European super-middleweight champion Danilo Haussler (L PTS 8).

Mchunu, on the other hand, has faced mostly handpicked opponents and should not under-estimate the capable Groenewald, who boasts impressive wins over the likes of former World Boxing Union (WBU) Middleweight champion Anthony Farnell (W PTS 12) and former WBU Continental light-middleweight champion Elvis Adonisi (W KO 10).

However, it must be stated that Groenewald is not a natural cruiserweight, having started his career as a welterweight back in 1996. Indeed, the Brakpan resident has only had four fights as a cruiserweight (3-1; 3 KO’s) and his soft body tone indicates that he is still more suited to the light heavyweight, or even super-middleweight division. Mchunu, in stark contrast, is a natural cruiserweight and has a physique to rival that of many body builders. However, good looking punches rather than good looking muscles win fights, and Mchunu will have to ensure that he keeps up his work rate in order to beat the wily Groenewald, who has only been stopped twice in a 33 fight career.

The fight will be televised live on SABC 2 at 10 pm.

Charl Schwartzel

Red-hot Schwartzel wins again
There just seems to be no stopping Charl Schwartzel (pictured) at the moment as the 25-year-old local golfing sensation recorded a runaway six-stroke victory in the lucrative R15.6-million Joburg Open played on the par-71 Royal Johannesburg and Kensington East course on Sunday. The tournament is the richest of the four Sunshine Tour events co-sanctioned by the European Tour, and is the fourth in the 2010 Race to Dubai.

Despite his overnight four-stroke lead over Northern Ireland’s Darren Clarke, Schwartzel suffered the misfortune of a bogie at the 434m par-four 3rd hole after he had been seen sitting nervously in the players’ lounge ahead of his final round.  He calmed down quickly with two solid pars after that and, after birdying the 530m par-five 6th, his confidence soared spelling doom for the rest of the field.

Schwartzel birdied the 8th to go one-under for his round, added birdies at 10 and 14, which put him clear of the pack, and then underlined his dominance with further birdies at 17 and 18 as he cruised home for his second consecutive victory after winning the Africa Open in East London a fortnight ago.

Fellow South African Keith Horne finished with a seven-under 64 (the best round of the day) to tie for second place with Clarke who shot a final round of 68 for a 17-under 267. Danny Willett of England and South African James Kamte also finished with 68’s to share fourth position with England’s Peter Whiteford, Joost Luiten of the Netherlands, Soren Hansen of Denmark and local player Hennie Otto tying for sixth on 12-under 272. However, no matter what the achievements of the other golfers were over the four days, the tournament was undoubtedly dominated by Schwartzel who simply had far too much in his arsenal for the rest of the field to compete with.

Schwartzel now leads the Sunshine Tour Order of Merit from nearest competitor Horne by over R2.4-million and, even though the season is still in its infancy, it’s highly unlikely that he will be caught by the end of the year.

Top 16 finishers (RSA unless specified)
261 – Charl Schwartzel 63 68 64 66
267 – Keith Horne 68 65 70 64
Darren Clarke (NIR) 63 69 67 68
270 – Danny Willett (ENG) 65 67 70 68
James Kamte 67 66 69 68
272 – Peter Whiteford (SCO) 66 69 70 67
Joost Luiten (NED) 66 69 69 68
Soren Hansen (DEN) 66 70 68 68
Hennie Otto 67 66 69 70
273 – Josh Cunliffe 68 70 67 68
John Parry (ENG) 66 67 71 69
274 – Neil Cheetham (ENG) 67 69 72 66
Louis Oosthuizen 70 66 70 68
Warren Abery 69 67 70 68
Paul Broadhurst (ENG) 66 68 69 71
Jaco Van Zyl 71 64 67 72

Giniel De Villiers

De Villiers and Pitchford do South Africa proud in Argentina
Ralph Pitchford, the 2009 South African off road champion co-driver, navigated American Mark Miller to third place overall in their Volkswagen Race Touareg in the 32nd Dakar Rally, which ended in Buenos Aires, Argentina on Saturday.

The Volkswagen team were all smiles as they recorded an historic and emphatic 1-2-3 finish and a second consecutive victory after the success of South African Giniel De Villiers (pictured) and German co-driver Dirk von Zitzewitz in last year’s event, and Miller and Pitchford’s second place.

Spain’s Carlos Sainz and Lucas Cruz won their first Dakar Rally after two weeks and over 9 000 km of driving, completing the 14 special stages and 4 800 km of racing section in a time of 47 hrs and 10 mins. Nasser-Al Attiyah of Qatar and German co-driver Timo Gottschalk were second in the closest finish seen in the car category of the Dakar, 2 mins and 12 secs behind their Volkswagen team-mates. Miller and Pitchford were 32 mins and 51 secs behind at the finish.

Volkswagen’s dominance was highlighted by the fact that their closest rivals were the French pairing of nine-times former Dakar champion Stephane Peterhansel and Jean-Paul Cottret in a BMW X3, who completed the rally 2 hrs, 17 mins and 21 secs behind the winners.

Defending champions De Villiers and Von Zitzewitz lost all chance of repeating their 2009 triumph when they experienced electrical problems on their Touareg on day three, and had to wait close on three hours for assistance from their support crew. From then on the duo were required to play a support role to their team-mates, carrying additional spares and having to stop and provide assistance when needed. They eventually finished a respectable seventh, 5 hrs, 10 mins and 19 secs behind Sainz and Cruz.

Theron and Cruickshank make a statement ahead of Dusi
The 2010 Dusi Canoe Marathon begins in Pietermaritzburg tomorrow and some of the race’s top contenders took full advantage of the opportunity to test their speed last week at the FHM Night Race at Victoria Lake in Germiston. Five laps around the lake plus four compulsory portages comprised the 15km distance.

Jacques Theron paired up with last year’s K1 winner Piers Cruickshank to take line honours in 66 mins and 44 secs after a tight sprint finish. Dusi gold medallists Mike Harris and Brandon Collyer dropped out of the leading pack after just two laps due to diarrhoea, paving the way for Theron and Cruickshank to take command of proceedings. The duo out sprinted rivals Alex Robert and Gavin Page to win by just four seconds.

Gavin Shutter and Ivan Kruger (66:49) took third place with Harris and Collyer (71:11) fourth just ahead of the young Murray Burgess and seasoned veteran Malcolm Stoddard who finished in 71:14. Morgan Ziervogel and Tamlyn Bohm won the women’s race in 76:35.

Photo Credits:
Proteas finally get it right – Photo – JP Duminy: Source – www.zimbio.com
Dolphins shock Titans to earn semi-final berth – Photo – Ahmed Amla: Source – www.content.cricinfo.com
Mchunu to defend SA belt against Groenewald – Photo – Ruben Groenewald: Source – www.flickr.com
Red-hot Schwartzel wins again – Photo – Charl Schwartzel: Source – www.golfwrx.com
De Villiers and Pitchford do SA proud in Argentina – Photo – Giniel De Villiers: Source – www.quickpic.co.za

Sporting Links:
South Africa 2010 World Cup
2010 World Cup Stadiums
2010 World Cup Host Cities
2010 World Cup Accommodation

Morne Morkel

Proteas come up short again
Paul Collingwood and Ian Bell helped England to an improbable draw in the third test against South Africa at Newlands in Cape Town last Thursday. England now leads the series 1-0 with only one test remaining.

However, a sudden batting collapse after tea transformed the contest from a dull and lifeless encounter into a nail biter. England had lost nine wickets at the end of the match, with their final pair having to stave off the last 17 balls to earn a draw. This is the third time in less than a year that England have been nine wickets down on the last day and still managed to get a draw. One of those occasions was the opening test of this series, and South Africa will be gutted to have twice come so close to getting a win …

When the visitors resumed after tea at 231/5 they appeared to have things under control. South African paceman Friedel de Wet was struggling with a back injury and the rest of the bowlers were lacking penetration with the significant exception of Dale Steyn. When 20 overs were completed without a wicket being captured after the break, many wondered how long it would be before both captains agreed on a stalemate.

Then skipper Graeme Smith handed JP Duminy the ball just after the drinks break that commenced the final hour, and the local star got the breakthrough South Africa had been desperately looking for. Duminy forced Collingwood to edge a delivery to Jacques Kallis at slip with 13 overs remaining, which got the Newlands crowd buzzing again. Just two overs after Collingwood left the scene for his 188-ball 40, Duminy struck again, removing Matt Prior for four when he had the Englishmen expertly caught by AB de Villiers at silly mid-on. That left the score at 287/7 with 11 overs to go, and South Africa was looking ominous.

Bell and Stuart Broad chewed up another eight overs before spinner Paul Harris achieved another breakthrough by getting rid of Broad who gloved Paul Harris to AB de Villiers. For the next over – the third-last of the day – Smith made another inspirational move and handed the ball to paceman Morne Morkel (pictured). With his opening delivery Morkel forced an edge from Bell, the last recognised batsman. Smith bagged the catch, and Bell departed for a patient 78 that came off 284 deliveries.

Smith made certain he had his two most successful bowlers, Morkel and Steyn, trying to blast out tail-enders Graeme Swann and Graham Onions for the remaining three overs, but neither player could snare the wicket South Africa so desperately wanted, as Onions proved to be an immovable object in the final over.

In the end, it was another case of so close and yet so far for the Proteas who just can’t seem to finish off their English opponents when it matters most. A team has to get 20 wickets to win test matches and that is something that South Africa just can’t seem to do at the moment.

The Proteas are clearly missing the likes of a Shaun Pollock who could tie up the opposing batsmen for hours on end and create so much pressure that they would be forced to play a rash shots and eventually concede their wickets.
The fourth and final test starts at the Wanderers in Johannesburg tomorrow and the Proteas will be desperate to salvage the series with a win. However, they will have to try and accomplish this without the services of De Wet, who has been declared unfit as a result of the back injury he aggravated at Newlands. His place is likely to be taken by Warriors’ speedster Wayne Parnell, who, if he plays, will be making his test debut for the Proteas.

Whatever happens it should be another fascinating contest between two very well matched teams with no quarter asked or given. Play starts at 10.30am.

Scores in brief
South Africa: 291 & 447/7 declared
England: 273 & 296/9
Result: Match Drawn

Steven Pienaar

Pienaar’s stroke of genius makes Moyes happy
Bafana Bafana midfielder Steven Pienaar (pictured) scored probably the best goal of his career to help his English Premier side Everton to a useful 2-2 draw against Arsenal at a snow-swept Emirates Stadium on Saturday. The talented Pienaar started his run towards goal all the way from the halfway line before expertly chipping ‘keeper Manuel Alumunia to make it 2-1 to the Toffees after 80 minutes.

Arsenal managed to equalise in the second minute of extra time, courtesy of a goal from Thomas Rosicky, but the Gunners’ ability to salvage a draw didn’t detract from Pienaar’s superb effort. “It’s one of the best goals I’ve scored, maybe the best,” said an elated Pienaar after the match. Everton manager David Moyes was full of praise for his player. “That was an unbelievable finish, especially on that pitch, with snow on it. It will take something special to beat it for goal of the season,” said Moyes.

Makhaya Ntini

Ntini makes a statement as Warriors crush Eagles
An superb unbroken second-wicket partnership of 163 between JJ Smuts and Colin Ingram steered the Chevrolet Warriors to a commanding nine-wicket win (Duckworth/Lewis method) over the Diamond Eagles in an MTN40 match in Bloemfontein on Sunday. The Warriors were coasting along at 95/1, seeking to overhaul the Eagles’ total of 223 all out, when the heavens opened for a second time in the afternoon, necessitating the target to be reduced to 165 from 28 overs at a rate of seven to the over.

Smuts and Ingram achieved the revised target with 12 balls to spare with Smuts finishing on 75 not out and Ingram on an unbeaten 80. Smuts’ knock included nine boundaries and came off 83 deliveries while Ingram’s contribution included seven boundaries and three glorious sixes off just 65 balls.

Earlier, an excellent bowling spell by axed Proteas’ paceman Makhaya Ntini (pictured) laid the foundation for victory when the 32-year-old helped his side to bowl the Eagles out.  Ntini, smarting after being left out of the Proteas’ team for the final two tests against England, tore through the Eagles’ batting lineup to grab 5/26 in eight overs.

For the Eagles, Ryan Bailey stroked 77 off 77 balls and was involved in two vital partnerships with Con de Lange and Adrian McLaren for the fourth and fifth wickets to get his side back in the game – only to be run out by Ntini who didn’t put a foot wrong all day. Ntini and opening partner Wayne Parnell hampered the Eagles’ ability to score runs with Ntini, in particular, being very economical with the new ball, shedding just eight runs off his first four overs.

The Warriors started their run chase poorly when Justin Kreusch (two) was trapped leg before by Johan van der Wath in the third over with the total on two. The match was then disrupted by rain after 4.5 overs, with Smuts (two) and Ingram (eight) the unbeaten men at the crease.

After the rain abated, the pair added 93 for the second wicket before additional rain forced another delay. Smuts was on an undefeated 47 off 58 balls and Ingram on 42 off 41 deliveries when the target was reduced. Smuts reached his fifty off 80 balls with six boundaries while Ingram reached the same mark off 70 balls with three boundaries and two sixes as the duo zeroed in on the victory target.

Ingram eventually recorded the winning runs off the final ball of the 25th over to earn his side their third win of the tournament and move them up to third on the log. For the Eagles, this was their seventh defeat and it leaves them stone last in the standings. The Warriors will have been delighted with their win and Ntini, in particular, must be thrilled with his outstanding performance with the ball, which will have proved to the national selectors that he can still take wickets.

Other results
Last Wednesday
The Lions beat the Eagles by three wickets at the Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg.
The Cobras beat the Dolphins by 66 runs at Kingsmead in Durban.
Friday
The Lions beat the Dolphins by six wickets at Kingsmead in Durban.
The Cobras beat the Eagles by two runs at the Diamond Oval in Kimberley.
The Titans beat the Warriors by two wickets at SuperSport Park in Centurion.
Sunday
The match between the Titans and the Dolphins at Willowmoore Park in Benoni was abandoned.

Titans and Cobras still hold all the cards
At the MTN 40 competition draws to a close the Nashua Titans and the Cape Cobras (pictured) are way out in front on 29 and 28 points respectively with the Warriors (12 points) and the Lions (also 12 points) third and fourth. The Dolphins (10 points) and the Eagles (nine points) are fifth and sixth respectively, but the Dolphins still have three games in hand whereas the Eagles only have one game in hand.

Upcoming fixtures
Today
Warriors vs Dolphins- Buffalo Park, East London: 4.15pm
Friday
Cobras vs Warriors – Newlands, CapeTown: 4.15pm
Eagles vs Dolphins – Diamond Oval, Kimberley: 4.15pm
Titans vs Lions – SuperSport Park, Centurion: 4.15pm
Sunday
Dolphins vs Titans – Pietermaritzburg Oval: 10.00am
Lions    vs Warriors -  Senwes Park, Potchefstroom: 10.00am

Nkosinathi Joyi

Joyi gets IBF title shot
South Africa’s Nkosinathi Joyi (pictured left) will fight on home soil when he challenges Raul Garcia of Mexico for his International Boxing Federation (IBF) mini-flyweight belt in March, promoter Branco Milenkovic has announced.

Milenkovic, of Branco Sports Promotions, won the purse bid to promote the fight in South Africa when he edged Bob Arum of Top Rank with a bid of R1 166 660. The 26-year-old Joyi (20-0; 15 KO’s) earned the right to challenge for the title after outpointing Filipino Florante Condes in East London on June 26 last year.

Garcia (27-0-1; 16 KO’s) is a southpaw who captured the belt in June 2008 by defeating Florante Condes on a split decision. The fight is scheduled to take place on March 26 at an as yet undetermined venue.

Charl Schwartzel

Charl makes it two in a row
Charl Schwartzel (pictured) bogeyed the 18th hole in the final round of the R12 million Africa Open at the 6 191m, par-73 East London Golf Club on Sunday, but he still did enough to successfully defend his title by a single stroke from countrymen Thomas Aiken.

Schwartzel’s final round of 67 enabled him to finish on 20-under 272 for the tournament, which was co-sanctioned by the Sunshine Tour and the European Tour, the third event in the 2010 Race to Dubai.  It was Schwartzel’s fourth European Tour win – he took the 2004-5 Alfred Dunhill Championship, the 2007 Open de Espana and the 2008 Madrid Masters – and it must have been a relief for the 25-year-old to finally have tasted success after a good run of form that, until Sunday, had not produced a tournament victory.

Aiken, who led into the final round with Trevor Fisher Jnr, was left ruing a double-bogey six on the fairly straightforward 303m fifth. That allowed Schwartzel to open up a gap, which was eventually too large to close. He enjoyed a three-stroke advantage on the 16th tee and then had to wait patiently as Aiken recorded a birdie on 15 to reduce the gap to two shots. In the end, Aiken needed to sink a 15-foot put for birdie, and although his effort came very close to the hole, he wasn’t able to force a playoff.

Jbe’ Kruger and Fisher were third on 18-under 274, while Australia’s Rick Kulacz, England’s James Morrison and South African Chris Swanepoel were one shot behind in fifth position. Branden Grace of South Africa produced the best round of the day, a seven-under-par 66 that included three eagles, to finish on 16-under 276, which was good enough for a share of eighth place with fellow South Africans James Kingston and Michiel Bothma, Swede Pelle Edberg and England’s Miles Tunnicliff.

As is most often the case, consistency wins tournaments, and Schwartzel’s performance epitomised this as he dropped only five shots during the tournament. The next round of the Sunshine Tour is the Joburg Open, which will be held at the Royal Johannesburg and Kensington Golf Club from tomorrow until Sunday.

Top 12 finishers (RSA unless stated)
272 – Charl Schwartzel 67 70 68 67
273 – Thomas Aiken 67 67 69 70
274 – Jbe’ Kruger 69 68 67 70
275 – Rick Kulacz (AUS) 72 69 67 67, James Morrison (ENG) 68 70 69 68, Chris Swanepoel 71 68 68 68, Trevor Fisher Jnr 66 66 71 72
276 – Branden Grace 70 70 70 66, James Kingston 68 69 71 68, Michiel Bothma 69 69 70 68, Pelle Edberg (SWE) 69 68 70 69, Miles Tunnicliff (ENG) 68 71 67 70

Meanwhile, in international action, Rory Sabbatini just missed out on a victory in the SBS Championship in Hawaii on Sunday, carding a brilliant final round of 63, which put the South African a stroke adrift of eventual winner Geoff Ogilvy of Australia.

Ogilvy’s final round of 67 was good enough to secure victory, although the Australian must have been very relieved that the 33-year-old Sabbatini missed a 10-foot putt on the 18th, which would have enabled him to draw level with the Australian and force a playoff. However, it was not to be and Ogilvy became only the seventh player in the tournament’s 58-year history to win in consecutive years. Another South African, Retief Goosen, finished joint sixth on 17 under 275.

Ralph Pitchford

De Villiers and Pitchford still going strong
Nasser Al-Attiyah, from Qatar, won his third stage on the 2010 Dakar Rally on Monday and led home another first, second and third for the Volkswagen team between Copiapo and La Serena in Chile. Al-Attiyah, and his German co-driver Timo Gottschalk, finished 5 mins, 59 secs ahead of Spanish team-mates Carlos Sainz and Lucas Cruz and 7 mins, 38 secs in front of South African Giniel de Villiers and German Dirk von Zitzewitz. The BMW crew of Guerlain Chicherit (France) and Tina Thörner (Sweden) were fourth – 10 mins, 13 secs behind Al Attiyah.

American Mark Miller and his South African co-driver Ralph Pitchford (pictured) came fifth – 10 mins, 48 secs behind team-mates Sainz and Cruz and 6 mins, 38 secs ahead of the French duo of Stéphane Peterhansel and Jean-Paul Cottret in their BMW. VW’s still dominate the rally; occupying the first three places overall with Sainz in first position with five special stages remaining.

The Spaniard is 8 mins, 36 secs ahead of Al-Attiyah and 27 mins and 17 secs clear of Miller and Pitchford.
Peterhansel and Cottret are fourth – 2 hrs, 28 mins and 27 secs behind Sainz and 1 hr, 46 mins and 35 secs behind Miller. Defending champions De Villiers and Von Zitzewitz improved to seventh overall – 4 hrs, 36 mins and 28 secs behind team-mate Sainz.

The rally crosses back into Argentina from the Atacama Desert today with a 3 500m high traverse of the Paso Libertadores through the Andes mountains.

Photo Credits:
Proteas come up short again – Photo – Morne Morkel: Source – cricinfo.com
Pienaar’s stroke of genius makes Moyes happy – Photo – Steven Pienaar: Source – dailymail.co.uk
Ntini makes a statement as Warriors crush Eagles- Photo – Makhaya Ntini: Source – zimbio.com
Joyi gets IBF title shot – Photo – Nkosinathi Joyi: Source – blogs.dispatch.co.za
Charl makes it two in a row – Photo – Charl Schwartzel: Source – guardian.co.uk
De Villiers and Pitchford still going strong – Photo – Ralph Pitchford: Source – quickpic.co.za

Sporty Links:
South Africa 2010 World Cup
2010 World Cup Stadiums
2010 World Cup Host Cities
2010 World Cup Accommodation

Hashim Amla

Proteas in commanding position at Newlands
South Africa was in a good position against England at tea on the third day of the third test at Newlands yesterday. The home side were 183 runs ahead of the visitors as skipper Graeme Smith and Hashim Amla (pictured) batted for the entire afternoon session leading up till the tea interval. The Proteas notched up 109 runs between lunch and tea as they reached an impressive 165/1.

Smith and Amla’s partnership stood at 134 and was the first century stand of the match. Smith was unbeaten on 65 at the interval, with Amla having surpassed his captain to go to the break on 73 not out. Amla was somewhat lucky to get away with a couple of thick edges, but he also punished the England bowlers on numerous occasions and played some attractive strokes all around the ground …

Smith, although offering a number of chances, batted with more resilience and composure than he has displayed in recent innings, and the South African camp will be hoping that their captain will go on to record a big score against the English. Earlier, Smith and Amla took the Proteas to 56/1 at the lunch break, after the South Africans got rid of the last three England batsmen in just over six overs in the morning.

With the English seven down and 50 behind overnight, the Proteas realised the importance of mopping up the tail quickly on the following morning, particularly with the mercury set to rise into the high thirties on the day. Morne Morkel and Dale Steyn did not disappoint their team-mates as the imposing Morkel removed Graeme Swann and James Anderson with successive balls in the opening over of the day.

Smith snapped up both men at first slip as they failed to ward off rising deliveries from the towering speedster.  Matt Prior managed to get England to within 18 of South Africa’s first-innings score of 291 before Steyn bowled him for a well-played 76. England’s top scorer dragged an attempted pull shot onto his stumps, bringing the innings to an end on 273. Smith and Ashwell Prince then got the Proteas off to a reasonable start, before the out of form opener was trapped leg before for 15 by England spinner Graeme Swann. Amla then joined Smith and the duo quickly set about building a platform for their team to win the match over the remaining two days.

South Africa are 1-0 down in the four match series after drawing the opening test at SuperSport Park in Centurion and then suffering a humiliating defeat by an innings and 98 runs in the second test at Kingsmead in Durban. Although many players under performed in the Durban test, fast bowler Makhaya Ntini was singled out as the main culprit for the loss and was promptly dropped from the team for the Newlands test. The 32-year-old paceman was replaced by Friedal de Wet who made a successful debut in the Centurion test before making way for the returning Steyn in Durban. The fourth and final test takes place at the Wanderers in Johannesburg on January 14.

Lefa Tsutsulupa

Birds run Bundesliga champions close
Moroka Swallows can still lift their heads up high despite losing 2-1 to Bundesliga champions VfL Wolfsburg in their Volkswagen Challenge Trophy match played at the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University Stadium on Monday night. Their more skilful opponents outplayed the Birds, who are striving to finish in the Premier Soccer League’s top eight this season, during the opening 30 minutes.

However, Swallows responded well to the pressure and were back in the match when their captain Lefa Tsutsulupa (pictured right) made it 2-1 from close range.  Wolfsburg started off strongly and went ahead as early as the eighth minute when defender Sascha Riether scored from inside the penalty area. The Bundesliga outfit went 2-0 up after 17 minutes when their star striker, Edin Dzeko, capitalised on a defensive blunder by Ashraf Hendricks, which opened the way for the eagle eyed Bosnian international to steer the ball home.
Wolfsburg seemed to relax after Dzeko’s goal and Swallows took advantage of their complacency to get back into the game.

After threatening their opponents goal on numerous occasions, the Birds eventually opened their account when Tsutsulupa fired home Phaladi Kobolo’s cross from inside the six yard box in the 43rd minute. Swallows continued their resurgence in the second half when their teenage striker Augustine Leonard came close to netting an equaliser, only to narrowly miss Tsutsulupa’s free kick at the near post.

The Birds continued to push hard for the equaliser in the second half, but were unable to find the back of the net, although substitute Ace Bhengu had a well aimed corner cleared off the goal line just seven minutes from time. In the end Wolfsburg’s greater experience helped them to resist a strong second half challenge from Swallows and run out 2-1 winners.

Francois Botha

Big bout rescheduled for February
Former International Boxing Federation (IBF) and current World Boxing Foundation (WBF) heavyweight champion Francois ‘The White Buffalo’ Botha (47-4-3; 28 KO’s) will have to wait another month before swapping leather with American legend Evander ‘The Real Deal’ Holyfield (42-10-2; 27 KO’s).

The South African veteran was scheduled to face the former undisputed world cruiserweight and heavyweight champion on January 16 in Kampala, Uganda. However, the fight will now take place on February 20 to give the boxers and organisers more time to prepare, the promoters said on Monday. “We have realised that we need more time to publicise the event regionally and worldwide, and also to give the fighters ample time to prepare themselves,” said Pro Box Promotions manager Eddie Bazira. “I assure the world that the fight will take place,” he added.

The 12 round bout, which will be for the vacant World Boxing Federation (also WBF) belt is expected to draw a capacity crowd of 80 000 spectators. Holyfield, a former four-time world heavyweight champion who has won only five of his last 12 contests, has not fought since being outpointed by Russian giant Nikolai Valuev a year ago in a bid for the World Boxing Association (WBA) crown.

Botha (pictured right) drew with Pedro Carrion of Cuba in his last bout, which was held in Germany in October.
Despite earning more than R1.6 billion in the ring, Holyfield has twice faced foreclosure on his estate in suburban Atlanta over a default on a R80 million loan. Although his financial problems have since eased, Holyfield has to return to facing more credible opponents than Botha, who stepped back in the ring in July 2007 after a five-year layoff. Holyfield was once at the top of the sport, but consecutive losses to Chris Byrd, James Toney and Larry Donald sent his career into a tailspin, and he quit the ring for 21 months before returning in August 2006 to begin a run of four straight wins before suffering points defeats to Sultan Ibragimov and Valuev.

Botha briefly held the IBF title in 1995, but has since been defeated by former world champions Michael Moorer, ‘Iron’ Mike Tyson, Lennox Lewis and Wladimir Klitschko. “I have always been my own harshest critic. My performance against Carrion, without making any excuses, was arguably the worst of my career,” said Botha. “Expect the fittest, toughest and best ever, and extremely serious, Francois Botha in Uganda in February. I owe my fans and members of Team Botha the performance of my life. I intend to make good on that,” he added.

“I am looking forward to going to Uganda and I expect a tough fight against Francois Botha,” said Holyfield. “I am going to win and I will cherish the WBF world title,” he added.

Con de Lange

De Lange and du Preez bowl Eagles to victory
Con de Lange (pictured) and Dillon du Preez each snared three wickets to steer the Chevrolet Diamond Eagles to a 30-run victory over the Chevrolet Warriors in their MTN40 match at St George’s in Port Elizabeth on Saturday. Left-arm spinner De Lange boasted figures of three for 21 off eight overs while seamer Du Preez recorded three for 33 off 5.2 overs as the Eagles, who amassed 221 for nine, dismissed the home side for 191 in 37.2 overs.

On a pitch that became slower as the match progressed, opening batsman Justin Kreusch was the only Warriors batsman to occupy the crease for any length of time as the right-hander notched up 82 runs off 104 balls.  Kreusch, whose innings included nine fours and a six, was the last man to fall when he was bowled by Du Preez.

The Warriors’ opening pair of Jon-Jon Smuts and Kreusch put on 50 runs for the first wicket before Rilee Rossouw caught Smuts at backward point off Du Preez. Colin Ingram (13) didn’t hang around too long as he was run out by a fine throw from De Lange at short fine leg. Things went from bad to worse for the Warriors as De Lange wrecked havoc in their middle-order to effectively win the game for the Eagles.

The 28-year-old spinner got rid of Arno Jacobs (six), Davey Jacob (three) and Johan Botha (five) as the home crashed to 99 for five before Nicky Boje (18) and Kreusch added 43 runs for the sixth wicket to stabilise the innings. However, once Du Preez bowled Boje, the Warriors’ resistance crumbled as they lost their last five wickets for just 49 runs.

Earlier, 24-year-old paceman Rusty Theron tore through the Eagles’ middle-order to end the innings with career-best equalling limited-overs figures of four for 33 off seven overs. Ryan Bailey top scored for the Eagles compiling a valuable 67 off 70 balls, which lifted the Eagles out of the doldrums after the visitors found themselves at a precarious 99 for five in the 22nd over.

On a hot and blustery afternoon the Eagles won the toss and elected to bat and soon made a promising start courtesy of a 41-run opening partnership from Morne van Wyk (43) and Reeza Hendricks (12). Hendricks was the first to go when he was run out by a direct hit from Ingram in the covers. Rossouw and Boeta Dippenaar could only muster nine runs apiece before Van Wyk, who produced some sparkling shots, became the second batsman to be run out.

The right-hander departed courtesy of a superb piece of fielding from the agile Smuts at backward point. Smuts dived full length to his right to stop the ball before his powerful and accurate throw to ‘keeper Davey Jacobs found Van Wyk short of the crease.  Dean Elgar (12) succumbed to the spin of Boje before Bailey and De Lange (34) provided some stability with a sixth-wicket partnership that yielded 71 precious runs. De Lange was bowled neck and crop by Theron with Johan van der Wath (one) following suit shortly thereafter. Theron then had Du Preez (13) caught at deep extra cover to complete his four-wicket haul.

Scores in brief
Eagles: 221/9
Warriors: 191
Result: Eagles won by 30 runs

Other MTN 40 results
December
22: Nashua Titans beat the Eagles by four wickets.
23: Nashua Cape Cobras beat the bizhub Highveld Lions by four wickets.
26: Lions beat the Warriors by five wickets.
27: Cobras beat the Titans by 21 runs
30: Cobras beat the Eagles by 115 runs and the Titans beat the Warriors by two wickets.

Nashua Titans

Titans and Cobras way out in front
Despite the Diamond Eagles’ excellent 30 run victory over the Chevrolet Warriors at St George’s Park on Saturday, the MTN40 Championship is matching up to be a two horse race between the Nashua Titans (pictured) and Nashua Cape Cobras with both teams currently in fine fettle. The Titans top the log with 23 points closely followed by the Cobras who have 19 points. The remaining four teams, the Eagles (nine points), Warriors (eight points), Nashua Dolphins (also eight points), and bizhub Highveld Lions (four points) are way off the pace.

However, since the championship is ultimately decided on a knockout basis and not on who topped the log at the end of the season, all of these teams still have a chance of qualifying for the semi-finals and ultimately the final on January 29.

Upcoming fixtures
Today
Lions vs Eagles – Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg: 4.15pm
Dolphins vs Cobras – Kingsmead, Durban: 4.15pm

Friday
Dolphins vs Lions – Kingsmead, Durban: 4.15pm
Eagles vs Cobras – Diamond Oval, Kimberley: 4.15pm
Titans vs Warriors – SuperSport Park, Centurion: 4.15pm

Sunday
Eagles vs Warriors – OUTsurance Oval, Bloemfontein: 10.00am
Titans vs Dolphins – Willowmoore Park, Benoni: 10.00am

Giniel de Villiers

Giniel’s title hopes under threat
Giniel de Villiers’ chances of successfully defending his Dakar Rally title were dealt a serious blow on Monday when the South African’s Volkswagen Touareg suffered mechanical problems.  De Villiers (pictured) and crewmate Dirk von Zitzewitz were forced to stop and wait for the support truck for assistance after their five-cylinder diesel-powered vehicle developed engine problems.

Volkswagen maintained its position in the front running group on the third leg of the rally with the Touareg crews of Carlos Sainz/Lucas Cruz, Nasser Al-Attiyah/Timo Gottschalk and Mark Miller/Ralph Pitchford ranking in positions two to four in the world’s most extreme desert rally.

The overall lead belongs to Monday’s stage winners Stéphane Peterhansel and Jean-Paul Cottret from the X-raid BMW team. On the 182km special stage from La Rioja to Fiambala in Argentina, the rally’s level of difficulty increased significantly with drivers having to negotiate scree passages, soft sand and high dunes. Sainz, who managed to set a best stage time of 3hrs, 1min and 3secs, recorded an average speed of just 60.315 km/h on the stage.

Alfie Cox and Jürgen Schröder (Nissan Navara) overcame a puncture and fuel pump problems to finish seventh on the stage. Their courageous effort helped them to seventh place overall in the car category. De Villiers and fellow South Africans Cox and Pitchford have done their country proud on the Dakar so far, and it would be a pity if mechanical problems were to put an end to De Villiers’ chances of retaining his title.

Photo Credits:
Proteas in commanding position at Newlands – Photo – Hashim Amla: Source – mysportsblog.wordpress.com
Birds run Bundesliga champions close – Photo – Lefa Tsutsulupa: Source – daylife.com
Big bout rescheduled for February – Photo – Francois Botha: Source – fotoglif.com
De Lange and du Preez bowl Eagles to victory – Photo – Con de Lange: Source – fscu.co.za
Titans and Cobras way out in front – Photo – Nashua Titans: Source – flickr.com
Giniel’s title hopes under threat – Photo – Giniel de Villiers: Source – quickpic.co.za

Useful Links:
South Africa 2010 World Cup
2010 World Cup Stadiums
2010 World Cup Host Cities
2010 World Cup Accommodation

Friedel de Wet

So close, yet so far for Proteas
England survived a horrendous batting collapse to earn a nail-biting draw on the final day of the first Castle test match against South Africa at SuperSport Park in Centurion on Sunday. Paul Collingwood and No 11 Graham Onions were required to fend off 20 deliveries as England reached the close of play on 228 for the loss of nine wickets in their second innings.

Paceman Friedel de Wet (pictured), with the second new ball in hand, sparked the collapse as five English wickets fell for the addition of just 13 runs.  De Wet produced an excellent final spell that saw him capture three wickets for just 11 runs off seven overs. The debutant ended the innings with the impressive figures of four for 55 off 23 overs …

The visitors, who began the day chasing an unlikely victory target of 353 runs, were chugging along fairly comfortably and reached 172 for three when the game suddenly changed in the Proteas’ favour. Kevin Pietersen, who was partnering Jonathan Trott and who had hardly been troubled by the South African bowlers all day, inexplicably set off for a suicidal single and was promptly run out by De Wet with his score on 81. Pietersen and Trott’s fourth-wicket partnership yielded 145 valuable runs and could have been worth a lot more if it wasn’t for the former South African’s moment of madness.

Pietersen’s knock came off just 143 balls and included 11 boundaries while Trott was more circumspect in his innings of 69 with the right hander batting for five hours and 17 minutes and facing all of 212 deliveries. Trott, also a South African born player, succumbed to a superb reflex catch from AB de Villiers at third slip, off a delivery from De Wet, which heralded a dramatic collapse from the English.

The loss of Trott had reduced England to 205 for five and just two runs later Ian Bell (two) followed suit when he edged another express delivery from De Wet through to ’keeper Mark Boucher, who pulled off a breath-taking diving catch.  Boucher then snapped up both Matt Prior (off De Wet) and Stuart Broad (off left arm spinner Paul Harris) for nought and suddenly the English seemed ready to fold like a pack of cards. However, Graeme Swann (two) chewed up 22 deliveries before being trapped leg-before by speedster Morne Morkel and it was then left to Collingwood (26 off 99 deliveries) and Onions (one off 12 balls) to deny the Proteas a victory.

England started the day on 11 for one and night watchman James Anderson (10 off 23 deliveries) was the first batsman to be dismissed when the left-hander glanced a leg side delivery from De Wet into the ever-present Boucher’s dependable gloves. Anderson’s departure reduced England to 16 for two, which became 27 for three when opening bat Alastair Cook (12 off 56 balls) gloved a delivery from Harris on to his pad. Proteas’ captain Graeme Smith made no mistake with the catch and England appeared to be tottering.

However, Pietersen then joined Trott at the wicket and the pair set about constructing their impressive partnership that looked to have saved the match, quite comfortably, for England. The second game of the four match test series begins at Kingsmead in Durban on Saturday and another tight tussle is expected between these two well- balanced teams. It will be interesting to see who the South African selectors leave out for the Durban match as paceman Dale Steyn is expected to make his return to the starting line up after an injury niggle.

Newcomer De Wet bowled with lots of fire at SuperSport Park and took a couple of important wickets to boot, so it would be very harsh if the youngster was axed to make way for the returning Steyn. A better option would surely be to include De Wet at the expense of veteran quick bowler Makhaya Ntini who lacked penetration at SuperSport Park, returning match figures of two for 119 off 41 overs as opposed to De Wet’s far more impressive five for 127 off 43 overs. It remains to be seen if the selectors will tinker with a bowling combination that has more than proved its worth in the past, although they must surely realise that the 32-year-old Ntini does not have long to go at the top echelon’s of the sport.

Scores in brief
South Africa: 418 & 301/7 declared
England: 356 & 228/9
Result: Match drawn

Jabulani Maluleke

SuperSport stay in front
SuperSport United stayed on top of the Absa Premiership despite experiencing mixed fortunes after the past week. United suffered a surprising 1-0 defeat to Golden Arrows last Wednesday, but bounced back with a convincing 3-0 win over Black Aces on Saturday with Anthony Laffor, Glen Salmon and Jabulani Maluleke (pictured) each finding the back of the net.

Nearest rivals Mamelodi Sundowns also had a good end to the year with victories against Maritzburg United last Wednesday (1-0) and Kaizer Chiefs on Saturday (2-1). Third placed Santos despatched Black Aces 2-1 last Tuesday, but were held to a goalless draw by Orlando Pirates at the Coetzenburg Stadium on Friday evening. That result left Santos on 39 points – two adrift of Sundowns and eight behind United. Chiefs are in fourth place on 38 points with Pirates a point behind.

With the year at an end and all the PSL teams having a break until February, following which only six rounds of the competition remain, it seems likely that the 2009/10 champions are going to come from either one of the current top five teams. However, there is still a fair amount of soccer to be played and even teams like sixth placed Bloemfontein Celtic (34 points) and seventh placed Ajax Cape Town (also 34 points) could spring a surprise and lift the championship.

Results (from left to right)
Last Tuesday
Black Aces 1 – Santos 2
Orlando Pirates 0 – Free State Stars 0
Last Wednesday
Kaizer Chiefs 2 – Ajax Cape Town 1
Jomo Cosmos 0 – Bidvest Wits 0
Moroka Swallows 0 – AmaZulu 4
Golden Arrows 1 – SuperSport Utd 0
Mamelodi Sundowns 1 – Pmb Utd 0
Bloem Celtic 2 – Platinum Stars 5
Last Friday
Santos 0 – Orlando Pirates 0
Over the weekend
Kaizer Chiefs 1  – Mamelodi Sundowns 2
Bidvest Wits 2  – Golden Arrows 1
Pmb Utd 1 – Moroka Swallows 1
SuperSport Utd 3 – Black Aces 0
Bloem Celtic 4 – Ajax Cape Town 2
AmaZulu 0 – Jomo Cosmos 0
Platinum Stars – Free State Stars    (postponed)

Stiaan van Zyl

Cobras cement their place at the top
The on form Nashua Cape Cobras comfortably defeated the bizhub Highveld Lions by four wickets at the Bidvest Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg on Saturday to remain on top of the SuperSport series standings. The match was over shortly after lunch on the final day after the visitors successfully chased down a moderate victory target of 215. Stiaan van Zyl (72) and Robin Peterson (eight) were the unbeaten batsmen at the crease.

The Cobras started the day 130 runs behind the Lions on 85 for the loss of four wickets, but the visitors enjoyed a productive morning session, losing only Justin Kemp (44 runs off 96 balls) with the total on 156. Kemp, who played a very circumspect innings, and Van Zyl (pictured) had put on 72 runs for the fifth wicket in just over 27 overs, after the Cobras lost four wickets in the final session on Friday. The Cape franchise lost just one further wicket after lunch before Peterson stroked the winnings runs with a four off Pumelela Matshikwe to seal the win.

On Friday, the Lions were dismissed for 308 in their second innings courtesy of a half-century from Vaughn van Jaarsveld and a valuable 37 off 50 balls from Monty Panesar. The Cobras had earlier been bowled out for 296 in reply to the Lions’ first-innings total of 202.

Scores in brief
Highveld Lions: 202 & 308
Cape Cobras: 296 & 215/6
Result: Cape Cobras won by 4 wickets

Johan Botha

Botha can’t save Warriors
Shaun von Berg grabbed four wickets to help the Nashua Titans to a crushing 229-run victory over the Chevrolet Warriors at St George’s Park in Port Elizabeth on Saturday in another SuperSport series encounter. Set an improbable victory target of 381, the home team slid to 79 for five at tea before being bowled all out for 145 on the final day of the match.

In the morning session, the Titans had declared their second innings on 401 for seven after the Warriors had scored 370 in their first innings in reply to the Titans’ 343. The home side went to the lunch break on 13 for one, but then lost four wickets for the addition of only 66 runs in the afternoon session, which put them under severe pressure to save the match. In the end, they surrendered meekly as they could only add another 66 runs after tea, while losing their remaining five wickets in the process. Skipper Johan Botha (pictured) scored a defiant 54 not out, but never received any meaningful support as the Warriors crashed to a heavy defeat.

Von Berg was the destroyer in chief, recording impressive figures of four for 51 from 23 overs, with Albie Morkel (two for 46 from 18.1), Ethy Mbhalati (one for 33 from 10) and Pierre Joubert (one for 11 from eight) also amongst the wickets.

Scores in brief
Nashua Titans: 343 & 401/7 declared
Chevrolet Warriors: 370 & 145
Result: Titans won by 229 runs

Quinton Friend

Quinton not friendly to Eagles
Six wickets from Nashua Dolphins paceman Quinton Friend (pictured), including three in a single over, propelled the KwaZulu-Natalians to a nail-biting six-run victory over the Diamond Eagles in Kimberley on Saturday in yet another SuperSport series match. Set a paltry 168 to win, the Eagles were coasting along at 134 for two at the lunch break, needing just 34 more runs with eight wickets in the bank.  However, Friend had a nasty surprise in store for the home side as he sliced through their batting line-up like a hot knife through butter.

The fiery paceman dismissed Con de Lange, Johan van der Wath and Gino Vries, all without scoring, in a drama filled 43rd over to leave the Eagles tottering on 154 for nine. Ryan McLaren then tried manfully to get the remaining runs, but was trapped leg-before by Andrew Hall for 15 with the score on 161 to give the Dolphins a most unlikely victory. In the end, the home side lost their remaining eight wickets for the addition of just 27 runs as Friend finished with the excellent figures of six for 45 off 16 overs.

The Dolphins had earlier been dismissed for 236 in their first innings and trailed by 91 runs going into their second innings after the Eagles had notched up 327 all out. The KwaZulu-Natalians then scored a modest 258 all out in their second innings to leave the Eagles with a seemingly easy victory target.

Scores in brief
Nashua Dolphins: 236 & 258
Diamond Eagles: 327 & 161
Result: Dolphins won by six runs

The weekend’s results mean that the Cobras stay on top of proceedings with 94.44 points, while the Titans (79.08) are second and the Warriors (73.92) third. The Lions (71.70), Dolphins (66.14) and Eagles (62.38) are in fourth, fifth and sixth place respectively. There are still two rounds of the competition remaining, but they will only be played in March next year as the domestic focus falls on the MTN 40 Championship.

MTN 40 results and fixtures for the rest of the year
Yesterday
Nashua Titans beat the Diamond Eagles by four wickets

Today
Nashua Cape Cobras vs bizhub Highveld Lions  – Newlands, Cape Town: 4.15pm

Saturday
Chevrolet Warriors vs bizhub Highveld Lions – St George’s Park, Port Elizabeth: 4.15pm

Sunday
Nashua Cape Cobras vs Nashua Titans – Boland Park, Paarl: 10.00am

Wednesday
Nashua Cape Cobras vs Diamond Eagles – Boland Park, Paarl: 4.15pm
Chevrolet Warriors vs Nashua Titans – St George’s Park, Port Elizabeth: 4.15pm

Nick Durandt

Durandt doesn’t want his ‘Angel’ back
Meanwhile, it has been reported that Isaac ‘The Angel’ Hlatshwayo is not welcome back in the stable of ex-trainer Nick Durandt (pictured) after the former International Boxing Federation (IBF) welterweight champion’s crushing knockout loss to Jan Zaveck of Slovenia in Johannesburg last weekend. “Zaveck’s business adviser, Jean-Marcel Nartz, advised Hlatshwayo to return to my stable if he wanted to pick up the pieces,” Durandt said last week, “but my answer is ‘no thank you’.”

The fiery, and at times controversial, Durandt, was in Hlatshwayo’s corner when the Soweto resident outpointed Delvin Rodriguez in August to lift the vacant IBF title. Soon afterwards, Hlatshwayo announced he was leaving Durandt and rejoining his former trainer, Manny Fernandez.  “I’ve never felt so hurt in my long career as a trainer,” Durandt explained. “We sweated blood to get him the title, and we expected a thank you, if nothing else. Instead we got a slap in the face. “Now he’s undone all the hard work and surrendered the title so meekly in his first defence. That’s what really hurts,” added Durandt.

Durandt says “to this day” he has no idea what prompted Hlatshwayo to turn his back on him. “But if you want to leave Manchester United to join Bolton or Hull you have to accept the consequences,” he quipped.

Jubatha is SA’s new featherweight king
Sabelo Jubatha scored a 10th round TKO over defending champion Luthando ‘The Slugger’ Vukuza to capture the South African featherweight title in East London on Friday evening. Vukuza was outboxing the hard-hitting Jubatha and was miles ahead on points when he was knocked down late in the ninth round by a swinging left.

Although he managed to get to his feet at the count of nine, Vukuza turned his back on Jubatha at the beginning of the next round after being drilled with another hard left.  With Vukuza’s actions clearly demonstrating that he had no desire to continue, referee Andile Matike had no option but to call a halt to proceedings at 1 min, 29 secs of the round. The scheduled 12 round contest at the Orient Theatre, which was the main bout of a tournament presented by Koko Godlo’s KK Productions in conjunction with Siphatho Handi’s Mamali Boxing Promotions, began at a torrid pace as both combatants tore into each other with reckless abandon.

Indeed, more punches were thrown in the opening three minutes than in most heavyweight ten-rounders, although both fighter’s defences left a lot to be desired. Vukuza clearly won the first two rounds, but started to breathe heavily in the third and seemed to be running out of gas as Jubatha began to take charge of proceedings. However, the defending champion staged a spirited rally in the fifth and began to open up a useful lead as both fighters adopted a more sensible pace. Jubatha quickly began to fall behind as he started missing with many of his punches, and it looked as though Vukaza was going to emerge as a clear points winner. However, it was not to be as Jubatha caught Vukuza with that swinging left just before the end of the ninth round and connected again with a chopping right to the jaw, that forced his foe to surrender early in the next stanza.

Jubatha (57.10kg) improved his record to 5-0 (4 KO’s) with the win, but will have to tighten up his defence significantly if he wants to hold onto his new belt. He took far too many punches from Vukuza during the bout and was lucky that he was facing an opponent who doesn’t carry much power in his fists. Vukuza (57.05kg), a southpaw who was making the first defence of the title he won by defeating Manelisi Mbilase on points in July, dropped to 6-5-1
(0 KO’s) with the loss.

Undercard results
Mncedi Yokose TKO 4 Lindile Petse (bantamweights)
Odwa Matima KO 1 Simphiwe Foba (junior lightweights)

Darren Fichardt

Ramsay triumphs at Pearl Valley
Scotland’s Richie Ramsay birdied the first hole of a playoff to defeat Shiv Kapur of India and win the 99th South African Open Championship played at the Pearl Valley Golf Estate. The 26-year-old Ramsay got himself into the playoff with a superb final round of seven-under 65 to chase down overnight leader Pablo Martin, Sunshine Tour Order of Merit winner Anders Hansen of Denmark, and finally, Kapur.  Martin, who emerged victorious at last week’s Alfred Dunhill Championship, simply ran out of gas after his roller coaster third round on the 6681m, par-72 course.

The Spaniard seemed rather discouraged when he bogeyed the third hole in the final round and never recovered, managing only a single birdie on the 15th, and a final bogey on the 17th, which saw him share sixth place with local boy Darren Fichardt (pictured), who closed with a disappointing bogey six on the 18th to end his chances of challenging for the lead.  Fichardt, however, was the leading South African after James Kingston was only able to shoot par for a share of eighth spot with Chris Swanepoel, Michiel Bothma and the Scandinavian pair of Michael Jonzon and Soren Hansen.

Defending champion Richard Sterne had a respectable tournament, but was never able to reproduce the magic that saw him race to victory last year. Sterne finished seven shots off the pace on 282 for a share of 18th place with fellow South African Jacques Blaauw and American Scott Dunlap.

Top 12 finishers (RSA unless stated)
275 – Richie Ramsay (SCO) 67 75 68 65 (won at the first play-off hole), Shiv Kapur (IND) 71 68 69 67
276 – Anders Hansen (DEN) 66 69 72 69
277 – Fredrik Andersson Hed (SWE) 71 68 68 70, Edoardo Molinari (ITA) 68 69 69 71
278 – Darren Fichardt 73 71 68 66, Pablo Martin (ESP) 65 68 72 73
279 – Soren Hansen (DEN) 70 72 70 67, Michael Jonzon (SWE) 68 75 69 67, Michiel Bothma 68 73 68 70, Chris Swanepoel 72 69 68 70, James Kingston 72 66 69 72

Photo Credits:
So close, yet so far for Proteas – Photo – Friedel de Wet: Source – supersport.com
SuperSport stay in front – Photo – Jabulani Maluleke: Source – sufc.co.za
Cobras cement their place at the top – Photo – Stiaan van Zyl: Source – cricinfo.com
Botha can’t save Warriors – Photo – Johan Botha: Source – abc.net.au
Quinton not friendly to Eagles – Photo – Quinton Friend: Source – cricinfo.com
Durandt doesn’t want his ‘Angel’ back – Photo – Nick Durandt: Source – sabc.co.za
Ramsay triumphs at Pearl Valley – Photo – Darren Fichardt: Source – zimbio.com

Useful Links:
South Africa 2010 World Cup
2010 World Cup Stadiums
2010 World Cup Host Cities
2010 World Cup Accommodation

Mzwandile Stick

‘Blitsboks’ come up short again
South Africa ended their Emirates Airline George Sevens tournament on a disappointing note, succumbing 21-7 in the Plate final to England in a game they will want to forget in a hurry. Last week the ‘Blitsboks’ lost to Australia in the Plate final of the Dubai Sevens and in front of a partisan home crowd in George, they were again out of sorts as England outplayed them in the critical facets of the game. After this loss, South Africa will need to find a remedy for their weaknesses after being exposed for a lack of speed and flair in both tournaments thus far in the series …

Dan Norton opened the scoring for England and then threw a superb pass to Christian Wade after the English had robbed a South African lineout to extend the flyer’s lead as the top points scorer at this year’s tournament. The South Africans came out firing in the second half, but their tendency to squander ball at crucial times in possession cost them dearly once again, as Wade latched onto a loose pass and ran 60m before feeding Isoa Damu who dotted down.

Shaun Venter scored a consolation try on the stroke of full-time, but it was too late with too little for the South Africans who will now be fully aware of how difficult it is to defend an IRB World Series title.

Earlier, the ‘Blitsboks’ scraped home against Samoa 10-7 in an untidy Plate semi-final after tries by Deon Helberg and Mzwandile Stick (pictured) secured the win for the home side. The South Africans were knocked out of the Cup competition early in the day’s play as they relinquished their second title in as many weeks when they were defeated 22-17 by Fiji in the quarter-final. The loss was their fourth in a row to the Fijians.

Scorers
South Africa 7 – Try: Shaun Venter. Conversion: Cecil Afrika.
England 21 – Tries: Dan Norton, Christian Wade, Isoa Damu. Conversions: Ben Gollings (3).

Anthony Laffor

SuperSport pull away from the pack
SuperSport United continued their dominance in the Absa Premiership with crushing 3-0 victories over Moroka Swallows last Wednesday and Jomo Cosmos over the weekend. United are simply in awesome form at the moment and are a sure bet to secure yet another PSL championship this season.

The log leaders are nine points clear of nearest rivals Mamelodi Sundowns who have 35 points from 20 outings. Third placed Santos has the same number of points from the same number of outings, but has scored less goals (24) than Sundowns (31).

Anthony Laffor (pictured) had a very successful outing for United against Swallows, scoring two well-taken goals with Glen Salmon netting a third. The goals were more evenly distributed in SuperSport’s weekend match against Cosmos, with defender Morgan Gould, striker Dario Monteiro and midfielder Brent Carelse each finding the back of the net to secure another excellent win.

Results (from left to right)
Last Wednesday
Golden Arrows 0 – Free State Stars 1
Black Aces 1 -  Orlando Pirates 1
Ajax Cape Town 0 – Amazulu 0
Kaizer Chiefs 3 – Platinum Stars 1
Bloem Celtic 0 – Pmb Utd 2
Moroka Swallows 0 – SuperSport Utd 3
Jomo Cosmos vs Santos (washed out)

Over the weekend
Bidvest Wits 0 – Moroka Swallows    0
Free State Stars 2 – Black Aces    0
Platinum Stars 0 – Orlando Pirates 1
SuperSport United 3 – Jomo Cosmos 0
Santos 1 – Golden Arrows 1
Kaizer Chiefs 1 – Bloem Celtic 1
AmaZulu 0 – Mamelodi Sundowns 3
Pmb Utd 2 – Ajax Cape Town 1

Orlando Pirates

Chiefs and Pirates ready to make their move
Kaizer Chiefs, like SuperSport, are another team that have been in good form in the PSL of late, with a good win over Platinum Stars last week and a 1-1 draw against Bloemfontein Celtic over the weekend. The Amakhosi have an intriguing encounter with the always-dangerous Ajax Cape Town at the Orlando Stadium today, and an intense tussle is expected between these two evenly matched teams.

Chiefs will want to build on their recent momentum and move up the log to challenge SuperSport for this year’s title and a win over Ajax will be just what the doctor ordered.

The pick of the weekend matches is likely to be the clash between Santos and Orlando Pirates (pictured), at the Coetzenburg Stadium on Friday evening. Both teams earned draws over the weekend and will be aiming to emerge with a full haul of points rather than a share of the spoils, which could mean plenty of goals for spectators.

Fixtures
Yesterday
Black Aces vs Santos
Orlando Pirates vs Free State Stars

Today
Kaizer Chiefs vs Ajax Cape Town – Orlando Stadium:  1.30pm
Jomo Cosmos vs Bidvest Wits – Rand Stadium: 7.30pm
Moroka Swallows vs AmaZulu – Dobsonville Stadium: 7.30pm
Golden Arrows vs SuperSport Utd – Chatsworth Stadium: 7.30pm
Mamelodi Sundowns vs Pmb Utd – Super Stadium: 7.30pm
Bloem Celtic vs Platinum Stars – Seisa Ramabodu Stadium: 7.30pm

Friday
Santos vs Orlando Pirates – Coetzenburg Stadium: 8.00pm

Saturday
Kaizer Chiefs vs Mamelodi Sundowns – Orlando Stadium: 3.30pm
Bidvest Wits vs Golden Arrows – Bidvest Stadium: 8.00pm
Pmb Utd vs Moroka Swallows – Woodburn Stadium: 8.00pm
SuperSport Utd vs Black Aces – Super Stadium: 8.15pm
Platinum Stars vs Free State Stars – Royal Bafokeng Stadium: 8.15pm

Sunday
Bloem Celtic vs Ajax Cape Town – Seisa Ramadodu Stadium: 3.30pm
AmaZulu vs Jomo Cosmos – Chatsworth Stadium: 3.30pm

Justin Kemp

Kemp the hero for Cobras
The Cape Cobras made short of the Nashua Titans at Boland Bank Park in Paarl in their SuperSport Series match over the weekend, with all-rounders Justin Kemp (pictured) and Robin Peterson doing most of the damage for the home side.

Kemp weighed in with 93 runs and Peterson scored 100 to help the Cobras to an impressive 420 all out in reply to the Titans’ first innings total of 240. Gulam Bodi (64), Heino Kuhn (48) and Albie Morkel (43) were the only visiting batsmen to offer any sort of resistance. Things went from bad to worse for the Titans as they were rolled over for a paltry 108 in their second innings with only Jacques Rudolf (31) managing to post a decent score.

Charl Langeveldt (4/45 off 15 overs) and Francois Plaatjies (4/27 off 10 overs) were the destroyers in chief for the Cobras as the Titans suffered a crushing defeat by an innings and 72 runs. In addition to his outstanding knock, Kemp grabbed four first innings wickets to spur his side to victory. The Cobras’ next outing is against the bizhub Highveld Lions at the Wanderers in Johannesburg while the Titans square off against the Chevrolet Warriors at St George’s Park in Port Elizabeth. Both games begin today.

The match between the Lions and the Diamond Eagles at the Wanderers looked like yielding a result, but bad light put a premature end to the contest meaning both sides had to settle for a draw.

The Lions scored 368 all out in their first innings to which the Eagles replied with 337 all out, leaving the match nicely poised. The Lions carried on where they left off in their first innings as they notched up an impressive 301/6 declared in their second innings to set the Free Staters a victory target of 333.

The Eagles tried to get the runs, but it was ultimately to no avail as the failing light forced the umpires to call a halt to proceedings with the visitors on 114/3, still needing 219 runs for victory. The Eagles’ next outing is against the Nashua Dolphins at the De Beers Diamond Oval in Kimberley today.

Garnett Kruger

Kruger and Tsotsobe skittle Dolphins
In another SuperSport match that finished over the weekend, the Warriors got the better of the Dolphins by 88 runs at Kingsmead in Durban. The visitors scored 248 all out in their first innings to which the Dolphins replied with 70/0 declared.

The Warriors then responded in kind by declaring their second innings on 96/6 leaving the Dolphins a victory target of 275 runs. However, it was not to be for the KwaZulu-Natalians as they were bowled out for just 186 in their second innings with none of their batsmen making any noteworthy contributions. Garnett Kruger (pictured) with 5/71 off 15.3 overs and Lonwabe Tsotsobe (3/37 off 16 overs) were the destroyers in chief for the visitors.

Both captains must be commended for their sporting declarations, which made a result possible after time was lost on each of the opening three days due to inclement weather.

The weekend’s results mean that the Cobras top the log on 76.52 points with the Warriors (66.10), Lions (65.66) and Titans (62.22) in second, third and fourth place respectively. The Eagles (54.08) and Dolphins (50.42) are somewhat off the pace, but are most certainly not out of the running with three rounds still remaining in the competition.

Meanwhile, it has been confirmed that Jacques Kallis will take the field for South Africa against England in the opening game of a four match test series, which begins today at SuperSport Park in Centurion. The star all-rounder has been battling a rib injury for the past two months, which has kept him out of the one-day series against the visitors.

However, Kallis will only play as a batsman after not bowling a single delivery during the Proteas’ training camp at Senwas Park. Dependable middle order batsmen Ashwell Prince will also take his place in the side after an absence of almost nine months, while fast bowler Makhaya Ntini will play his 100th test match for South Africa. Prince, Ntini and spinner Paul Harris last played for the Proteas in March in the test series against Australia.

England warmed up for today’s test match by drawing with an SA Invitational XI at Buffalo Park in East London over the weekend. The English batsmen got in some much needed batting practice and looked in good form against the SA XI bowlers.

Isaac Hlatshwayo

Isaac’s world falls apart
Jan Zaveck from Slovenia is the new International Boxing Federation (IBF) welterweight champion. The unheralded and relatively unknown Zaveck shocked the crowd (and the boxing world for that matter) at the Wembley Indoor Arena in Johannesburg on Friday night when he crushed defending champion Isaac Hlatshwayo (pictured right) of South Africa inside three one sided rounds.

The stocky visitor was the aggressor from the opening bell, unleashing hard combinations on a tentative Hlatshwayo who could only muster a few token jabs in reply. A hard left hook soon had the local man on rubbery legs and sensing his opponent was ripe for the taking, Zaveck kept up the pressure and knocked Hlatshwayo down in the second round.

The local man somehow managed to drag himself to his feet and beat the count, but it was only delaying the inevitable. The ferocious assault continued in the third round and Hlatshwayo soon found himself on the canvas twice more before American referee Kenny Chevalier stepped in at 2 mins, 55 secs to save the defending champion from further punishment.

It was a very disappointing performance by Hlatshwayo who seemed ill at ease, both in the build up to the fight and during the bout itself. Something was clearly amiss with the normally durable South African who was making the first defence of the title he won by outpointing Delvin Rodriguez of the Dominican Republic in August.

Hlatshwayo seemed intimidated by his lightly regarded opponent from the outset and fought without any drive or determination. Whatever the cause of his poor performance on the night, it is hoped that 32-year-old from Soweto can rebound from this shocking loss and recapture the form which has seen him outbox accomplished fighters such as Rodriguez, Nate Campbell, Cassius Baloyi and Phillip Ndou.

The 33-year-old Zaveck improved to 28-1 (16 KOs) with the win while Hlatshwayo fell to 29-2-1 (10 KOs) with the loss. The South African’s only previous defeat was a point’s loss to highly regarded American Kendall Holt in November 2006. Zaveck’s sole defeat came at the hands of Polish fighter Rafal Jackiewicz, who narrowly outpointed the Slovenian in Katowice, Poland in November last year.

Hlatshwayo, a former South African and International Boxing Organisation (IBO) lightweight champion and IBO welterweight champion, recently rejoined trainer Manny Fernandes after leaving Nick Durandt’s stable. However, the move seems to have done Hlatshwayo more harm than good after arguably the worst performance of his career, which saw the South African lose the fight, his title, his confidence and his status as one of the best welterweights in world boxing.

In another let down, the fight between former South African featherweight and World Boxing Union (WBU) junior lightweight champion Philip Ndou and journeyman Ali Phiri was cancelled, after the Zimbabwean was declared unfit to box.

Other results on the Branco Sports Productions bill
Jackson Chauke KO 2 Sandile Mxabaniso (flyweights)
Oscar Chauke KO 1 Tendai Sanyarukova (junior featherweights)
Warren Joubert KO 3 Patrick Masango (junior lightweights)
Nthuthuko Memela TKO 4 Masande Kakaza (junior welterweights)

Hekkie Budler

Otieno robbed by the judges
Nick Otieno must be very wary of returning to the Orient Theatre in East London after he suffered his second controversial points defeat to a South African boxer there in the space of five months. On this occasion it was former South African and World Boxing Council (WBC) International flyweight champion Nkqubela Gwazela who triumphed over the Kenyan with a majority point’s decision.

Gwazela got the win with verdicts of 96-95 and 97-95 with the third judge giving the South African the nod with a score of 96-96 after 10 rounds of bantamweight action. However, Otieno had every reason to feel disappointed with the verdict after suffering his fourth loss against 19 wins (8 KOs).

The wily Kenyan had the better of the exchanges against the heavy-handed Gwazela (18-7; 14 KOs) and left his mark on the South African whose face was a bloody mess at the finish. The visitor clearly deserved the decision, but for some unknown reason the judge’s saw otherwise. Truth be told, the verdict smacked of a hometown decision, which is always a black eye for boxing.

Otieno also lost a close decision to Lubabalo Msuthu whom he challenged for the World Boxing Foundation (WBF) bantamweight belt in August; with many feeling he had done enough to get that verdict as well. After his experiences in South Africa over the past five months, it’s doubtful if the Kenyan would ever want to visit these shores again, and few, if anyone, could blame him.

Other results on the Eyethu Promotions bill
Bongani Mfundisi W6 Siviwe Mqakamba (mini flyweights)
Maxolise Mbexeshi TKO 1 Siyanda Ngange (junior featherweights)
Luyanda Mrawuli W6 Dumisani Tose (featherweights)
Ayanda Yaphi TKO 1 Wandile Mseleku (junior lightweights)

Meanwhile, it has been announced that Hekkie ‘The Hexecutioner’ Budler (pictured left) will take on Juanito Rubillar of the Phillipines for the vacant International Boxing Organisation (IBO) junior flyweight title on February 27 next year. Budler’s title shot will form part of a Golden Gloves tournament to be held at Emperors Palace in Kempton Park.

The diminutive South African (13-0; 5 KO’s) will have a tough nut to crack in Rubillar (48-13-7; 23 KO’s) who turned professional way back in July 1994 and who has shared a ring with many of the world’s top junior flyweights.
However, the 32-year-old Phillipino has been unable to capture a major title and has been thwarted in bids for the International Boxing Federation (IBF) mini-flyweight title, the World Boxing Council (WBC) junior flyweight title (twice) and for the World Boxing Association (WBA) junior flyweight title. The 21-year-old Budler has enlisted the services of former world champion Baby Jake Matlala to help him prepare for his bout with Rubillar.

In other bouts on the bill, promising youngster Thomas ‘Tommy Gun’ Oosthuizen (9-0; 7 KO’s) squares off against Zambian John Chibuta (8-3; 1 KO) for the vacant WBA International super middleweight title while former Commonwealth bantamweight champion Tshifhiwa ‘The Atomic Spider’ Munyai (18-1-1; 9 KO’s) swaps leather with Carlo Magali (12-5-2; 6 KO’s) of the Philippines.

The action continues when rising lightweight star Jason Bedeman (10-0-1; 8 KO’s) takes on Bilal Mohammed (14-3; 11 KO’s) of Zambia and Florante Simba (2-0; 2 KO’s) tackles debutant Devi Jose in a four round cruiserweight contest.
In upcoming action this week, Tando Vukuza (6-4-1; 0 KO’s) will make the first defence of his South African featherweight title when he takes on Sabelo Jubatha (4-0; 3 KO’s) in East London on Friday evening.

Charl Schwartzel

Charl just misses out
Spaniard Pablo Martin won the Alfred Dunhill Championship at the Leopard Creek Country Club in Malelane on Sunday by a single shot from South Africa’s Charl Schwartzel (pictured). It was the 23-year-old’s first victory as a professional and it came in the opening event of the European Tour’s 2010 Race to Dubai, which is co-sanctioned by the Sunshine Tour.

Schwartzel made a strong bid for the title, but in the end, Martin displayed remarkable patience for a young man, after surviving a roller-coaster third round with Ernie Els to maintain the lead he took after his second-round 63. Els’ challenge evaporated as the South African struggled to a five-over par 77 and a share of 17th place.

Sunshine Tour Order of Merit leader Anders Hansen consolidated his position, with Schwartzel leap frogging into second place behind him. The South African is now the only player with a mathematical chance of overhauling the Dane in the season-ending SA Open, which begins on Thursday.

Defending champion Richard Sterne (who also triumphed in last year’s SA Open) crowned a week in which he seemed to have regained some of his remarkable 2008 form. The South African earned a share of fourth with England’s Robert Rock and Dale Whitnell and the man he beat for last year’s SA Open title, Northern Ireland’s Gareth Maybin.

Sterne will be looking to continue his rich vein of form with a successful defence of his SA Open title, but will be up against some very good competition at the Pearl Valley Golf Estate.

Scoreboard (Top 10 finishers only)
271 – Pablo Martin (ESP) 68-63-71-69
272 – Charl Schwartzel (RSA) 67-69-68-68
274 – Anders Hansen (DEN) 68-70-68-68
276 – Richard Sterne (RSA) 72-66-72-66, Dale Whitnell (ENG) 70-68-72-66, Robert Rock (ENG) 69-68-70-69, Gareth Maybin (NIR) 68-70-67-71
277 – Shiv Kapur (IND) 68-71-68-70, Michael Lorenzo-Vera (FRA) 71-69-66-71, Damien McGrane (IRL) 67-70-68-72

Austin Smith

SA whip China in Argentina
The South African men’s hockey team walloped China 5-0 after leading 2-0 at half-time in their Champions Challenge fifth place play-off in Salta, Argentina on Monday.

The number 15 ranked South Africans had an easy time of it against the 13th ranked Chinese, who never got going in the match. Goals from Thornton McDade, Julian Hykes, Justine Reid Ross, Gareth Carr and captain Austin Smith (pictured) did the trick for the South Africans as their opponents failed to get on the score sheet.

The tournament was won by New Zealand, who beat Pakistan 4-2 in the final.

Photo Credits:
‘Blitsboks’ come up short again – Photo – Mzwandile Stick: Source – zimbio.com
SuperSport pull away from the pack – Photo – Anthony Laffor: Source – mtn8.mtnfootball.com
Chiefs and Pirates ready to make their move – Photo – Orlando Pirates: Source – africatower.com
Kemp the hero for Cobras – Photo – Justin Kemp: Source – cricinfo.com
Kruger and Tsotsobe skittle Dolphins – Photo – Garnett Kruger: Source – cricinfo.com
Isaac’s world falls apart – Photo – Isaac Hlatshwayo: Source – fightography.com
Otieno robbed by the judges – Photo – Hekkie Budler: Source – gvgatchalian.blogspot.com
Charl just misses out – Photo – Charl Schwartzel: Source – edition.cnn.com
SA whip China in Argentina – Photo – Austin Smith: Source – zimbio.com

Useful Links:
South Africa 2010 World Cup
South Africa 2010 Accommodation
South Africa 2010 Stadiums

Bafana Bafana

Bafana get tough draw
Bafana Bafana (pictured) will play Mexico in their opening Group A match of the 2010 World Cup finals, which kick-off on June 11 at the new multi-billion rand Soccer City stadium. Also in Bafana’s group are 1934 World Cup winners Uruguay and 1998 victors France.

Fifa secretary general Jerome Valcke and South African born Hollywood movie star, Charlize Theron, conducted Friday night’s draw at the International Convention Centre. Two thousand guests and 800 local and international journalists attended the high profile event watched by an estimated live television audience of around 200 million viewers …

The presenters were assisted on stage by a star-studded line-up of sports celebrities, which included England soccer star David Beckham, Ethiopian track legend Haile Gebrselassie, Protea pacemen Makhaya Ntini, Springbok rugby captain John Smit and Bafana Bafana player Matthew Booth.

South African president Jacob Zuma and Fifa boss Sepp Blatter welcomed the audience at the beginning of the 90-minute live show. Guests included the likes of Issa Hayatou, chairman of the World Cup organising committee, Nobel peace prizewinners FW de Klerk and Archbishop Desmond Tutu, not to mention former football icons Franz Beckenbauer, Michel Platini, Eusebio and Roger Milla.

The majority of the 32 coaches of the countries who qualified for the 2010 showpiece were at the draw. Ninety-one-year-old former South African president and Nobel peace prizewinner Nelson Mandela, affectionately known as Madiba, addressed the audience by video message. “This is the first time that the World Cup will be played in South Africa. We feel privileged and humbled. We must strive for excellence and reap the rewards of the World Cup. Ke Nako – It is time,” said Mandela.

Jacques Kallis

England take series win after Kingsmead wash out
Rain had the final say as the fifth MTN one-day international (ODI) between South Africa and England was washed out without a ball being bowled at Kingsmead in Durban on Friday. The afternoon’s proceedings (or rather lack thereof) meant that the visitors claim the five match series 2-1 after the first match was also abandoned due to rain. England is only the second team to win a bilateral ODI series in South Africa with Australia having done the trick twice, in the 1996/7 and 2001/2 seasons.

It was a very disappointing end to the series for the Proteas who were hoping to win the Kingsmead encounter to even matters after a shockingly poor performance last Sunday at St George’s in Port Elizabeth. Graeme Smith’s men will instead have to wait for the opening game of the four match test series for a chance at redemption. The series begins at SuperSport Park in Centurion on December 16 and the Proteas will be thrilled to have stalwart Jacques Kallis (pictured) back on board their flailing ship.

The 34-year-old South African cricketing legend, undoubtedly the best all rounder this country has ever produced, is simply a must have for the Proteas and his absence for a part of the ODI series was a big factor in their defeat.

Paul Treu

SA falter in Dubai
Neil Powell has been ruled out of the Emirates Airline SA Sevens tournament, which will be held at Outeniqua Park in George on Friday and Saturday. The veteran player injured his shoulder during the Dubai Sevens Plate Final against Australia over the weekend.

The youthful Australians stunned the IRB Sevens World Series champions 7-0 to capture the Plate, a day after they had beaten the same opponents 29-0 in a pool match. Marius Schoeman, who missed the Dubai Sevens tournament due to a calf injury, has replaced Powell, a former Springbok Sevens captain.

South Africa have returned to George along with 15 other international teams for the annual Sevens showpiece in the beautiful Garden Route city. Paul Treu (pictured), the South African coach, said the team’s two defeats last Saturday against Fiji (in the Cup quarter-final) and Australia was a big disappointment. However, Treu added that there were positives to extract from the failures in Dubai.

“The two losses were a massive eye-opener for the guys and they now realise that they will have to play so much better as the defending SA tournament and World Series champions,” explained Treu. “We were also able to give international debuts to youngsters like Cecil Afrika, Deon Helberg and JW Jonker, and that was a big positive for me. The youngsters now have a taste of what it takes to compete at the highest level and that will serve them very well in George this week,” he added.

New Zealand turned back the challenge of Samoa in the Dubai Cup final, 24-12, and take an early lead in the Series standings with 24 points. South Africa picked up eight points after losing to Australia in the Plate Final and the team is well aware that they will have to improve significantly to have any hope of defending their championship.

Meanwhile, a hat trick of tries by Springbok wing Bryan Habana helped the Barbarians to a 25-18 win over New Zealand at Twickenham on Saturday with the invitational team defeating the All Blacks for only the second time in 10 outings. The Barbarians’ only other victory over the All Blacks was the 1973 success in Cardiff, highlighted by the most famous try in rugby, scored by Gareth Edwards.

A clever break by Australia wing Drew Mitchell set up Habana’s first score. His second came via a 70m interception before he bagged his third try of the match with a clinical finish. The Springbok No 11 eventually left the field to a standing ovation after 70 minutes of inspired play.

Wallaby flyhalf Matt Giteau converted two of Habana’s tries and slotted a penalty, with another Springbok, flyhalf Morne Steyn, sealing the win with a second penalty late in the game. The All Blacks replied with tries from Ben Smith and Anthony Boric, but were unable to hold off their determined opponents.

Tyren Arendse

Santos too good for Swallows
Heavy rain played havoc with the Absa Premier Soccer League (PSL) this past week with no less than four games having to be abandoned due to waterlogged pitches. However, there were good wins for second placed Santos, Orlando Pirates (sixth place), Ajax Cape Town (third place) and Kaizer Chiefs (fifth place) and things are getting really interesting now as the top teams jostle for supremacy in a very competitive competition.

Santos ran out comfortable 2-0 winners over Moroka Swallows at the Coetzenburg Stadium on Saturday night. Tyren Arendse (pictured right) opened the scoring in the 33rd minute when his 30-yard effort took a massive deflection off Kagiso Denge, giving Swallows ‘keeper Greg Etafia no chance. The Cape side then made it 2-0 just three minutes into the second half when Arendse’s clever pass gave Graham King a clear run in on goal and he made no mistake as his stylish chip found the back of the net.

Swallows enjoyed a fair amount of possession in the closing stages of the game, but the Cape side’s defence held firm to deny the Dube Birds any chance of staging a recovery. Santos’ next encounter is against struggling Jomo Cosmos who are last on the log, and they will be confident of coming away with another win against a side who are lacking direction and confidence. The match will be played at the Rand Stadium this evening.

Results (from left to right)
Last Wednesday
Golden Arrows 2 Black Aces 1
Bloem Celtic 3 Bidvest Wits 0
Maritzburg United 1 Platinum Stars 3
Jomo Cosmos 1 Orlando Pirates 0
Mamelodi Sundowns vs Santos (washed out)
Kaizer Chiefs vs AmaZulu (washed out)
Moroka Swallows vs Free State Stars (washed out)

Over the weekend
Bidvest Wits 0 Ajax Cape Town 2
Free State Stars 2 Jomo Cosmos 2
Platinum Stars 0 Black Aces 1
Orlando Pirates 1 Golden Arrows 0
Santos 2 Moroka Swallows 0
Maritzburg United 1 Kaizer Chiefs 3
AmaZulu 2 Bloem Celtic 1
SuperSport United vs Mamelodi Sundowns (washed out)

Yesterday
Mamelodi Sundowns 1 Bidvest Wits 0

Platinum Stars

Stars set to shine against Amakhosi
As per usual there are a whole host of PSL matches taking place all around the country over the next few days. The pick of today’s matches is probably going to be the encounter between fifth placed Kaizer Chiefs and Platinum Stars (eighth place) who have had a topsy turvey season so far.

Stars (pictured) are one of those sides who can beat any team in the league when on form, but they can also be terrible as the displayed by going down 1-0 to lowly Black Aces over the weekend. Chiefs have experienced a resurgence in form over the last couple of weeks and their convincing 3-1 win against Maritzburg United over the weekend will not be good news for Stars.

In weekend action, Santos will be aiming to keep on the winning path when they face the always-dangerous Golden Arrows, who are ninth in the standings, in what is likely to be a very interesting encounter at the Coetzenburg Stadium on Saturday evening. Santos have been very consistent this season, but they will have to have their wits about them against Arrows, who have pierced the armour of many a team this season.

Fixtures
Today
Golden Arrows vs Free State Stars Chatsworth Stadium 3.30pm
Black Aces vs Orlando Pirates Puma Rugby Stadium 7.30pm
Ajax Cape Town vs Amazulu Newlands Stadium 7.30pm
Jomo Cosmos vs Santos Rand Stadium 7.30pm
Kaizer Chiefs vs Platinum Stars Orlando Stadium 7.30pm
Bloem Celtic vs Maritzburg Utd Seisa Ramabodu Stadium 7.30pm
Moroka Swallows vs SuperSport Utd Dobsonville Stadium 7.30pm

Saturday
Bidvest Wits vs Moroka Swallows Bidvest Stadium 3.30pm
Free State Stars vs Black Aces Goble Park 3.30pm
Platinum Stars vs Orlando Pirates Royal Bafokeng Stadium 3.30pm
SuperSport United vs Jomo Cosmos Super Stadium 6.00pm
Santos vs Golden Arrows Coetzenburg Stadium 8.00pm
Kaizer Chiefs vs Bloem Celtic Orlando Stadium 8.15pm

Sunday
AmaZulu vs Mamelodi Sundowns Chatsworth Stadium 3.30pm
Maritzburg Utd vs Ajax Cape Town Woodburn Stadium 3.30pm

Tim Clark

Allenby clinches victory in Sun City
Robert Allenby narrowly defeated defending champion Henrik Stenson of Sweden to win the $1,2-million (R9 million) 2009 Nedbank Golf Challenge at the Gary Player Country Club in Sun City on Sunday. Allenby clinched victory on the third hole of a sudden-death play-off on a final day of fluctuating fortunes, which saw the Australian real in playing partner Retief Goosen’s two-shot overnight lead to join Stenson at the top of the leader board on 11-under-par.

The lanky Melbourne native then triumphed in a tense play-off to become the first man from ‘down under’ to capture the title. South African Tim Clark (pictured) and England’s Ross Fisher had their chances to be part of the play-off, but just could not turn up the heat when it mattered.

In the end Allenby was a deserving winner as he undoubtedly was the most consistent golfer over the four days with only six dropped shots and a large number of putts that skimmed the hole.

Scoreboard (South African unless stated)
277 – Robert Allenby (Aus) 68, 70, 68, 71
– Henrik Stenson (Swe) 70, 68, 70, 69
278 – Tim Clark 69, 72, 68, 69
– Ross Fischer (Eng) 73, 69, 66, 70
279 – Retief Goosen 69, 68, 67, 75
281 – Angel Cabrera (Spa) 71, 67, 68,75
282 – Nick Watney (U.S.) 73, 73, 63, 73
283 – Luke Donald (Eng) 72, 71, 68, 72
284 – Robert Karlsson (Swe) 70, 72, 71, 71
286 – Hunter Mahan (U.S.) 70, 71, 72, 73
292 – Richard Sterne 72, 75, 70, 75

With proceedings at the Gary Player Country Club now over, all eyes will be on Richard Sterne as the local player prepares to defend the Alfred Dunhill Championship, which starts on Thursday at the Leopard Creek Country Club in Malelane. Sterne will be looking to make amends for a poor performance in the Nedbank Golf Challenge where he finished last with a disappointing overall score of 292.

Phillip Ndou

‘Time bomb’ set to explode again
Despite his recent points defeat at the hands of International Boxing Organisation (IBO) welterweight champion Lovemore Ndou, Phillip ‘The Time Bomb’ Ndou (32-4; 31 KO’s) will launch another comeback when he tackles Ali Phiri (5-1; 2 KO’s) of Zimbabwe in a scheduled eight round junior-welterweight bout at the Wembley Arena in Johannesburg on Friday night.

The hard-hitting Ndou (pictured) was regarded as one of South Africa’s most exciting fighters before a cyst on the brain forced him into retirement in 2004 at the age of 27. However, in 2008, two neuro-surgeons cleared him to fight again and after just one warm up fight, he took on namesake Lovemore for the vacant IBO welterweight title in July.

Despite showing glimpses of his past form ‘The Time Bomb’ was soundly outpointed by his 38-year-old opponent, and it seemed time for him to retire again. However, many pundits believe that rather than giving himself time to shake off his ring rust, Phillip instead rushed into a major fight without the right kind of build up or preparation. They feel that a couple of warm up fights against the likes of the light hitting Phiri is just what the doctor ordered – and they just may be right.

In the main bout of the Branco Sports Production bill, Isaac Hlatshwayo (29-1-1; 10 KO’s) will defend his International Boxing Federation (IBF) welterweight title against Jan Zaveck of Slovenia (27-1; 15 KO’s). Hlatshwayo won the title in August by outboxing the dangerous Delvin Rodriquez of the Dominican Republic in a bout held in Uncasville, Connecticut, USA. Like Hlatswayo, Zaveck is a slick boxer and earnt his title shot with an excellent knockout victory over rugged Argentine Jorge Daniel Mirande in June.

Whatever happens on the night, Hlatswayo can expect a hard outing against Zaveck, whose only defeat was to the highly regarded Rafal Jackiewicz of Poland in a bout for the European welterweight title in November last year. The Pole was awarded a highly disputed split decision victory over the Slovack in his home country and you can bet your bottom dollar that Zaveck will be aiming to ensure that his encounter with Hlatswayo doesn’t go the distance.

In another upcoming bout, which was supposed to have taken place last Friday night, Nkqubela Gwazela (17-7; 14 KO’s) will take on Nicky Otieno (18-3; 7 KO’s) of Kenya in an international bantamweight contest in East London. The former South African flyweight champion is a dangerous puncher who has the power to knock out anyone he faces, but he can be outboxed, which is something the wily Otieno will be hoping to achieve come Friday night.

Vernon Philander

Cobras and Lions cruise to victory
The Nashua Cape Cobras and the bizhub Highveld Lions proved to be to strong for their respective opponents as both teams recorded comfortable victories in their respective SuperSport Series matches over the weekend.

The Cobras simply had too much firepower in their bowling department for the Diamond Eagles to handle as the Cape franchise recorded a convincing 106 run victory over the Free State outfit at Newlands in Cape Town on Sunday. The Eagles were rolled over for just 131 runs in their second innings with seamer Vernon Philander (4/32 in 13 overs) and spinner Robin Peterson (5/60 off 15.2 overs) the destroyers in chief.

The Cobras had earlier notched up 226 all out in their second innings, which was just five runs shy of their first innings total. The Eagles had recorded 220 all out in their first innings and both teams found themselves in favourable positions until Philander (pictured) and Peterson’s superb efforts sealed the match for the home side.

The Lions made a meal of the Nashua Titans at Senwes Park in Potchefstroom as they crushed their Gauteng rivals by an innings and 216 runs. The Lions piled on the agony for the Titans when they notched up a mammoth 550/7 declared in their first innings with Vaughn van Jaarsveld (135 runs off 174 balls), Zander de Bruyn (144 off 235), Stephen Cook (77 off 164), Grant Mokoena (56 off 85), Neil McKenzie (42 off 88) and Thami Tsolekile (49 off 130) all getting amongst the runs.

The Lions bowlers tore through the Titans batting line up in their first innings with the Pretoria franchise only managing a paltry 134 all out. Cliffie Deacon (4/43 off 15 overs), Friedel de Wet (3/39 off 13 overs) and Pumelela Matshikwe (3/29 off 11 overs) all combined well to send the Titans packing.

Faced with a huge first innings deficit of 416 runs, the Titans wilted under the pressure and could only muster an ordinary 200 all out in their second innings. Farhaan Behardien (50 off 64 balls) was the only Titans batsman who was able to offer any real resistance in another very ordinary batting display by the Pretoria outfit. Deacon (3/73 off 19.1 overs) and DeWet (3/37 off 19 overs) were again among the wickets as the Titans failed to apply themselves.

The weekend’s results left the Cobras on top of the log with 59 points, slightly ahead of the Titans (57.42) and the Lions (57.14). The Chevrolet Warriors (53.14), Eagles (46.62) and Nashua Dolphins (46.42) are in fourth, fifth and sixth place respectively. This week’s fixtures pit the Dolphins against the Warriors at Kingsmead in Durban while the Lions take on the Eagles at the Wanderers in Johannesburg.

Scores in brief
Cape Cobras vs Diamond Eagles
Cobras: 231 & 226
Eagles: 220 & 131
Result: Cobras won by 106 runs
bizhub Highveld Lions vs Nashua Titans
Lions: 550/7 dec
Titans: 134 & 200
Result: Lions won by an innings and 216 runs

Tadhg Slattery

SA Swimmers excel in Rio
The South African team earned six silver and two bronze medals at the weeklong International Paralympic Committee (IPC) World Short Course Swimming Championships in Rio de Janeiro, which finished on Sunday.

South Africa’s medal winners were Shireen Sapiro (silver in the 100m backstroke and 100m butterfly, S10 category), Shannon Ferguson (50m and 100m freestyle and 50m backstroke, S3 category) and Tadhg Slattery (pictured) who captured silver in the 100m breaststroke and bronze medals in the 100m and 200m individual medley races in the SB5 category.

“The results achieved by the South African team at these championships was the perfect way to finish off a highly successful 2009 aquatics campaign for South Africa,” said Swimming SA chief executive Shaun Adriaanse. “On behalf of Swimming SA, I would like to extend my best wishes to the swimmers who did us so proud in Brazil,” he added.

Photo Credits:
Bafana get tough draw – Photo – Bafana Bafana: Source – nelsonmandelabay.gov.za
England take series win after Kingsmead wash out – Photo – Jacques Kallis: Source – samsungcricketlovers.com
SA falter in Dubai – Photo – Paul Treu: Source – www.sabcnews.com
Santos too good for Swallows – Photo – Tyren Arendse: Source – www.de.oleole.com
Stars set to shine against Amakhosi – Photo – Platinum Stars: Source – www.premiercup-bayhill.co.za
Allenby clinches victory in Sun City – Photo – Tim Clark: Source – www.thesibylspeaks.wordpress.com
‘Time bomb’ set to explode again – Photo – Phillip Ndou: Source – www.goldengloves.co.za
Cobras and Lions cruise to victory – Photo – Vernon Philander: Source – www.flickr.com
SA swimmers excel in Rio – Photo – Tadhg Slattery: Source – www.news.bbc.co.uk

Useful Links for Sports Fans:
South Africa 2010 World Cup Stadiums
South Africa Attractions
Things to Do in South Africa
South Africa Accommodation

Alviro Petersen

Up and down weekend leaves Proteas in perilous position
England hardly worked up a sweat in cruising to a comfortable seven-wicket victory over South Africa in the fourth MTN one-day international (ODI) at Axxess DSL St George’s in Port Elizabeth on Sunday.

James Anderson produced an outstanding display of swing bowling, which helped England grab the initiative against the tentative Proteas batsmen. Anderson destroyed the South African innings by taking 5/23 off 10 overs as the Proteas recorded a dismal 119 all out, their lowest total in an ODI at home …

England openers Andrew Strauss and Jonathan Trott put on 74 runs to give their side the best possible platform to win the game. Johan Botha claimed 2/22 in eight overs, but Trott batted through to the end to record his second half-century in three innings as England attained their target with 18 overs and four balls to spare.

Opening bowlers Anderson and Stuart Broad set the stage for an England victory when they combined superbly to reduce South Africa to 40/3 in the first 12 overs. Broad started the rot in his opening over by trapping opener Graeme Smith leg-before for two with fellow opener Hashim Amla (11) perishing shortly thereafter, offering a sharp catch to Graeme Swann at short midwicket off the bowling of Anderson.

JP Duminy contributed just six runs before he was caught behind off a short ball from Anderson, which heralded a brief rally from the South African batsmen as they punished a wayward Luke Wright after the medium pacer had been introduced into the England attack.

However, Tim Bresnan then struck a vital blow for the visitors when he trapped AB De Villiers leg-before for 22 and one got the feeling that this just wasn’t going to be South Africa’s day.  Alviro Petersen (pictured) and Mark Boucher (13) responded fairly positively to De Villiers’ dismissal by putting on 23 for the fifth wicket, only for the irrepressible Anderson to knock over Boucher’s stumps with a virtually unplayable delivery.

The England swing wizard then recorded figures of 3/6 in four overs in his second spell (no pun intended), which ensured there was no comeback from the South Africans. Petersen was the last man out for a defiant 51 off 79 balls, but, in the context of the match, it was ultimately a futile effort as Anderson’s brilliant achievements had effectively won the match for England.

The victory enabled England to take a 2-1 lead in the five match series, with the decider being played at Kingsmead in Durban on Friday night. The Proteas will be hoping for a repeat of their performance in the third ODI last Friday, which saw them record a crushing 112 run win at Newlands in Cape Town, to save the series in Durban.

Schalk Burger

Boks lose their way in the mist
The Springboks’ dismal tour of Europe ended the way it began, namely with a loss, when they were defeated 15-10 by Ireland at Croke Park in Dublin on Saturday afternoon.

The Boks, who have not recorded a win in the Emerald Isle since 2000, produced a lethargic and unfocussed performance despite scoring the only try of the game through flanker Schalk Burger (pictured) in the 15th minute. In the end it was the accurate boot of Ireland’s new flyhalf Jonathan Sexton, which proved to be the difference between the two teams.

The Ireland No 10 calmly slotted five out of seven penalty attempts to score all his team’s points. In stark contrast, the normally accurate boot of opposite number Morné Steyn let the Boks down as he produced arguably his worst performance in a Springbok jersey, missing no less than four penalty attempts and a drop goal. Ruan Pienaar added insult to injury by missing another three pointer, which meant that the Boks had squandered a potential 18 points.
In spite of bitterly cold conditions and a pitch that was shrouded in mist, the Springboks made a promising start to the game as their powerful scrum obtained a clear advantage against their Irish counterparts.

Although Sexton banged over an early penalty to put Ireland 3-0 to the good, the Boks looked as though they had the measure of their opponents when centre Jaque Fourie popped the ball up to Burger who burst through a couple of half hearted tackles to crash over.

Steyn added the extra points and a 23rd minute drop goal to put the Boks 10-3 in front, but that was about as good as it was going to get for the Bok flyhalf as he proved that he is human after all with a string of subsequent failures at the posts.

Sexton slotted his second penalty in the 29th minute to close the gap to four points as Ireland began to claw their way back into the game on the back of numerous unforced errors by the Boks. Steyn squandered a penalty attempt in the 38th minute and attempted another from deep in his own half two minutes later, but just didn’t have the distance. He failed again in the 43rd minute, which must have had Bok coach Pieter de Villiers tearing his hair out.

The missed attempts at goal clearly unnerved the Boks who began to allow ill discipline to get the better of them as they conceded a number of penalties. First, Steyn committed a high tackle on Brian O’Driscoll with Sexton duly punishing the error to make it 9-10; then Andries Bekker stupidly drove a knee into the back of David Wallace which paved the way for another three pointer from the Ireland flyhalf to give his side the lead in the 51st minute.

Sexton made it 15-10 in the 65th minute with another well-taken penalty and, although the Boks tried extremely hard to pull the match out of the fire with a try, they just could not do it as they failed to break through the rock solid Irish defence.

Granted, Beast Mtawarira did come desperately close to scoring as he drove for the line in the right-hand corner in the dying minutes, but the Boks clearly lacked the depth and the variation to strike the blow, which would have evened matters.

And so, 15-10 was how things ended, but truth be told it was a Test the Boks could and should have won. However, as the Boks and their coach will know, you just can’t expect to win an international test match after throwing away 18 points. Point aside, the Boks also seemed to lack the intensity, vitality and passion required to pull off a win against a well-organised and well-drilled Irish side, who must be thrilled with their performance on the day.

The result left the Boks with four losses from five matches on their European tour – a poor way to end a successful year, which saw the men in green and gold defeat the British and Irish Lions and lift the Tri-Nations trophy.

Scorers
Ireland 15 – Penalties: Jonathan Sexton (5).
South Africa 10 – Try: Schalk Burger. Conversion: Morné Steyn. Dropped goal: Steyn.

Shaun Haschick

Pirates and Swallows battle to a draw
Despite two goals from Shaun Haschick (pictured) Moroka Swallows were unable to secure a win against Orlando Pirates in an Absa Premiership match at the Orlando Stadium on Saturday evening. In the end both teams had to settle for a 2-2 draw with Rooi Mahamutsa unquestionably the hero for Pirates having scored the equaliser just four minutes from the whistle.

Despite being on the defensive for the majority of the opening half, Swallows still went into the half-time break a goal to the good courtesy of Haschick who took advantage of a miss-communication in the Pirates’ defence.

A cross from the left came into the box and instead of clearing the danger; Mzondi Mthombeni tried to play the ball back to his goalkeeper Moeneeb Josephs, unaware that Haschick was lurking behind him. Consequently, the Swallows striker was able to step in between Josephs and Mthombeni and stab the ball into the back of the net to put his side 1-0 up.

Thereafter, Pirates applied the pressure as they launched attack after attack on the Swallows goal. The pace of the game was fierce and although Pirates had numerous opportunities to level matters, they just couldn’t finish off.

Shortly after half-time, Haschick once again dismayed the Bucs fans when he scored the Birds’ second goal just nine minutes after the restart. Haschick demonstrated tremendous composure to control a long ball from the back before turning and stylishly firing the ball past a despairing Josephs from just inside the box, to make it 2-0.

However, far from being deflated, the Bucs struck back almost immediately with Phenyo Mongala scored his side’s opening goal just two minutes later. Goalkeeper Greg Etafia, who otherwise had an outstanding game, was the culprit as he parried a cross straight onto the head of Mongala, who headed into an empty net to make it 2-1 to the Birds.

Although Swallows defended their lead like Trojans from that point on, it failed to produce the desired result as Rooi Mahamutsa slotted the equaliser four minutes from time after a goalmouth scramble inside the Swallows box.

Mahamutsa rifled the ball home when it fell at his feet just 12 yards out to make it 2-2, which is the way matters remained until the final whistle. Pirates undoubtedly deserved the draw after dictating proceedings for the majority of the match, while Swallows have Etafia to thank for keeping them in the match with some brilliant saves.

Results (left to right)
Last Wednesday
AmaZulu 2 – Platinum Stars 1
Kaizer Chiefs 0 – SuperSport United 2
Moroka Swallows 1 – Black Aces 1
Bloem Celtic 1 – Santos 1
Pmb United 1 – Bidvest Wits     1
Ajax Cape Town 0 – Free State Stars 0
Mamelodi Sundowns 2 – Orlando Pirates 0

Over the weekend
SuperSport United 0 – Bloem Celtic 0
Free State Stars 2 – Mamelodi Sundowns 2
Platinum Stars 2 – Golden Arrows 1
Black Aces 0 – Jomo Cosmos 0
Orlando Pirates 2 – Moroka Swallows 2
Santos 1 – Ajax Cape Town 0
AmaZulu 0 – Pmb United 1
Bidvest Wits 0 – Kaizer Chiefs 3

Yesterday
Ajax Cape Town 1    SuperSport United 1

Daine Klate

SuperSport stay in front
SuperSport United stayed on top of the Absa Premiership when they drew 1-1 with third placed Ajax Cape Town at the Newlands Stadium in Cape Town last night. United’s goal came from a powerful free-kick from Daine Klate (pictured right) in the 16th minute while Ajax equalised with a thunderous 34th minute strike from Franklin Cale.

SuperSport have a seven point lead over second placed Santos (31 points) who are just one point in front of Ajax, with Mamelodi Sundowns (29), Kaizer Chiefs (28) and Orlando Pirates (28) in fourth, fifth and sixth places respectively. Although Chiefs and Pirates have the same number of points, Chiefs have scored more goals this season, which earns them a higher position on the log.

The pick of today’s matches is likely to be the encounter between Santos and Sundowns at the Super Stadium this evening. Santos defeated Ajax 1-0 at Newlands on Saturday and will want to keep up the good work against Sundowns who struggled to a 2-2 draw with Free State Stars at Goble Park on Saturday.

The match likely to attract the most attention on the weekend is the fixture between SuperSport and Sundowns at the Super Stadium on Saturday evening. Sundowns will be looking to spring a surprise on their more fancied rivals and an intense tussle is expected between these two well-balanced sides.

Fixtures
Today
Golden Arrows vs Black Aces         Chatsworth Stadium            3.30pm
Mamelodi Sundowns vs Santos        Super Stadium            7.30pm
Kaizer Cheifs vs AmaZulu            Orlando Stadium            7.30pm
Bloem Celtic vs Bidvest Wits            Seisa Ramabodu Stadium        7.30pm
Maritzburg United vs Platinum Stars    Woodburn Stadium            7.30pm
Moroka Swallows vs Free State Stars    Dobsonville Stadium            7.30pm
Jomo Cosmos vs Orlando Pirates        Rand Stadium                7.30pm

Saturday
Bidvest Wits vs Ajax Cape Town        Bidvest Stadium            3.30pm
Free State Stars vs Jomo Cosmos         Goble Park                3.30pm
Platinum Stars vs Black Aces        Royal Bafokeng Stadium 3.30pm
Orlando Pirates vs Golden Arrows         Orlando Stadium            6.00pm
Santos vs Moroka Swallows            Coetzenburg Stadium        8.00pm
SuperSport vs Mamelodi Sundowns        Super Stadium            8.15pm

Sunday
Maritzburg United vs Kaizer Chiefs        Woodburn Stadium            3.30pm
AmaZulu vs Bloem Celtic            Ulundi Stadium            3.30pm

Ali Funeka

Funeka foiled by the judges in world title bid
Ali Funeka’s bid for the International Boxing Federation (IBF) lightweight title ended in failure in Quebec City, Canada on Saturday night, when Joan Guzman of the Dominican Republic held the lanky South African to a controversial draw.

Judge Joseph Pasquale from the U.S. had Funeka a justifiable winner with a score of 116-112, but judges Benoit Roussel from Quebec and Allan Davis of Toronto ruined things for the South African with both officials handing in scorecards of 114-114. Their verdicts meant that the title will remain vacant, although Funeka (pictured right) definitely has a case for a rematch.

The South African was clearly in command for most of the fight and undoubtedly deserved the decision. However, instead of adding another win to his record, Funeka’s log now stands at 30-2-3 (25 KO’s), while Guzman remains unbeaten with a record of 29-0-1 (17 KO’s).

It was a second North American disappointment for Funeka, who squared off against Nate Campbell for the IBF and World Boxing Association (WBA) lightweight titles in February. The American failed to make weight and was forced to relinquish the belts. He then defeated Funeka to prevent the South African from capturing the vacant titles.

“I travelled a long way from South Africa to prove I’m the best in the lightweight division,” a frustrated Funeka said. “What can I do? I don’t even know what I can say,” he added grimly.

Meanwhile, in local fight action, unbeaten prospect Johnny Muller (91.26kg) easily outpointed the much larger Mongezi Ndzamela (117.10kg) over six rounds in a scrappy encounter at the Wembley Indoor Arena in Johannesburg on Friday night.

Both combatants came out swinging for the fences from the opening bell and demonstrated very few boxing skills in the process. This amateurish approach was the pattern throughout the contest, with Muller mainly intent on landing his big right cross against Ndzamela, who spent most of his time ducking and clutching his younger opponent.

Judges Boitumelo Madiba and Phillip du Randt scored it 60-54 and Phumeza Zinakile had it 59-55 for the 19-year-old Muller who was coming off a first-round knockout over Sean Santana, who had ended the career of former World Boxing Union (WBU) and International Boxing Organisation (IBO) cruiserweight champion Sebastiaan Rothmann. Muller improved his record to 5-0 (4 KO’s) with the win while Ndzamela fell to a dismal 1-6 (1 KO).

Other results
Muleki Fukile W6 Charity Mokondeleli (junior flyweights)
Marcel Japhta W6 Vusumzi Manyoni (featherweights)
Thompson Mokwana TKO 3 Takalani Dangale (lightweights)
Kgotla Baeti TKO 3 Amosa Nhlapho (lightweights)
Nkululeko Mhlongo KO 2 John Mokgotsa (junior middleweights)
Sylvester Zacky W4 Solomon Letsoale (middleweights)
Earl Strydom TKO 2 Benjamin Wessel (super middleweights)
Gonorenda Sting W4 Kally Kelembe (heavyweights)

Francois Botha

‘White Buffalo’ to get a crack at the ‘Real Deal’
Former International Boxing Federation (IBF) and current World Boxing Foundation (WBF) heavyweight champion Francois ‘The White Buffalo’ Botha will take on former undisputed heavyweight champion Evander ‘The Real Deal’ Holyfield in a 12 round bout on January 16 next year. The contest between the two boxing dinosaurs will be for the vacant World Boxing Federation (also WBF) heavyweight title and will be held at the Nelson Mandela Memorial Stadium in Kampala, Uganda.

Contracts for the fight between the 41-year-old South African and legendary four-time world heavyweight champion Holyfield have been signed and promoters Eddie Bazira and Baltic Pro Box Promotions, in association with Real Deal Events and other parties, will present the fight that could attract up to 80 000 spectators.

The 47-year-old Holyfield boasts a record of 42-10-2 (27 KO’s) while Botha’s log stands at 47-4-3 with 28 wins occurring inside the distance. The American legend lost a controversial decision to Russian giant Nikolay Valuev for the World Boxing Association (WBA) belt in December last year, but hopes a victory over Botha will put him in line to fight for one of the more recognised heavyweight titles. ‘The White Buffalo’ failed to impress in his most recent fight when he struggled to a draw against novice Pedro Carrion of Cuba, in October.

Meanwhile, highly touted lightweight Jason Bedeman crushed Joseph Modise in the opening round of their highly anticipated rematch at Emperors Palace in Kempton Park, Gauteng on Monday night. The bout, an all South African affair, was scheduled for eight rounds, but it was all over after just two and a half minutes of action.

Bedeman and Modise fought to a draw over six rounds earlier this year in a contest that ended with both camps claiming victory. However, in the rematch, Bedeman (61.02 kg) was all business as he unleashed a brutal two-fisted attack from the opening bell, which had the bewildered Modise at sixes and sevens.

Modise (60.88 kg) soon found himself on the canvas after being walloped by a pulverising left hook to the jaw. Clearly hurt, Modise nevertheless managed to drag himself to his feet and beat the count, only to be met with a blizzard of punches from the aggressive Bedeman prompting referee David van Nieuwenhuizen to wisely call a halt to proceedings. The impressive Bedeman improved to 10-0-2 (8 KO’s) with the win, while Modise fell to 5-5-2 with two of those wins coming via the short route.

Other results
Morne Bothma W4 Nhlanhla Mnguni (bantamweights)
Ashley Dlamini TKO 3 Balangani Ndou (featherweights)
Joey Stiglingh W4 Stephen Ntshingila, (junior lightweights)

Grant Fourie W6 Thulani Mbatha (lightweights)
Mbuso Ndlela TKO 2 Kyle Smith (junior welterweights)
Stephen Castle TKO 3 Khayeni Hlungwane (heavyweights)
Florante Simba KO 1 Thato Tholano (heavyweights)

Jeff Ellis of African Ring presented the tournament in conjunction with Rodney Berman of Golden Gloves Promotions.
In upcoming warfare, former South African flyweight champion Nkqubela Gwazela will take on Kenyan Nick Otieno in an international bantamweight contest in East London on Friday night. Gwazela, 17-7 (14 KO’s), is a hard-hitting fighter with wins over the likes of current IBF flyweight champion Moruti Mthalane and former national flyweight champion Ncedo Cecane to his credit. However, he will have his work cut out for him if he hopes to defeat Otieno, 18-3 (7 KO’s), a clever boxer who has never been stopped as a professional.

Cape Cobras

Cobras and Dolphins win while Eagles and Titans settle for draw
The Cape Cobras (pictured) and Dolphins will certainly be pleased with their achievements over the weekend with both sides recording excellent victories in their respective SuperSport Series matches.

The Dolphins got the better of the Highveld Lions by five wickets at the Wanderers while the Cobras had too much venom for the Warriors as the Cape team romped to a crushing nine-wicket victory in Paarl. In another SuperSport Series match played at the OUTsurance Oval, the Diamond Eagles and the Titans played to a draw in a high scoring encounter.

Scores in brief
Highveld Lions versus Dolphins
Lions: 359&226
Dolphins: 353&235/5
Result: Dolphins win by five wickets.
Diamond Eagles versus Titans
Eagles: 404&345
Titans: 468&79/1
Result: Match drawn
Cape Cobras versus Warriors
Warriors: 143&143
Cape Cobras: 240&47/1
Result: Cape Cobras won by nine wickets

The weekend’s results means the Titans regain their spot at the top of the log with 56.42 points, closely followed by the Warriors (53.14) with the Dolphins (46.42) lying in third spot. The Cape Cobras (42.38), Diamond Eagles (40.22) and the Highveld Lions (37.60) find themselves in fourth, fifth and sixth place respectively.

The Warriors and the Dolphins have already played six matches this season with the rest of the teams having only five games under their belt. Upcoming fixtures pit the Lions against the Titans at Senwes Park in Potchefstroom while the Cobras entertain the Eagles at Newlands in Cape Town. Both matches start tomorrow.

Retief Goosen

‘Goose’ looking to lay a golden egg
The biggest event on the South African golfing calendar gets underway tomorrow when some of the best players in the world tea off at the Gary Player Country Club in Sun City to contest the R4 385 000 Nedbank Golf Challenge.

The annual tournament is always a huge crowd puller and defending champion Henrik Stenson of Sweden will have to be in top form as he tries to stave off the likes of local boy Retief Goosen (pictured), Argentine Angel Cabrera and American Hunter Mahan.

Photo Credits:
Up and down weekend leaves Proteas in perilous position – Photo – Alviro Petersen: Source – www.zimbio.com
Boks lose their way in the mist – Photo – Schalk Burger: Source – www.dailymail.co.uk
Pirates and Swallows battle to a draw – Photo – Shaun Haschick: Source – www.footbo.com
SuperSport stay in front – Photo – Daine Klate: Source – www.daylife.com
Funeka foiled by the judges in world title bid – Photo – Ali Funeka: Source – www.donking.com
‘White Buffalo’ to get a crack at the ‘Real Deal’ – Photo – Francois Botha: Source – www.sport24.co.za
‘Goose’ looking to lay a golden egg – Photo – Retief Goosen: Source – www.qatar-masters.com
Cobras and Dolphins win – Photo – Cape Cobras: Source – www.nestaquin.wordpress.com

Useful Links:
South Africa 2010 World Cup
South Africa’s World Cup Stadiums
South Africa Hotels
South Africa Accommodation

Charl Langeveldt

England cruise home against Proteas
Paul Collingwood scored a superb unbeaten century to steer England to a comfortable seven-wicket win over South Africa in the second MTN one-day international (ODI) at SuperSport Park in Centurion on Sunday.

Chasing the home side’s total of 250/9, England cantered to 252/3 to secure victory with 24 balls of their innings remaining and take a 1-0 series lead after the first match of the series was washed out due to persistent rain. Collingwood made 105 runs off 110 balls while notching up seven fours and two sixes. The 33-year-old also made a useful contribution with the ball, picking up 2/24 during South Africa’s innings …

England made a poor start to their innings, slipping to 45/2 before Collingwood and Jonathan Trott broke the back of the Proteas’ bowlers with a third-wicket stand of 162 runs off 189 deliveries. Opening batsman Trott recorded his maiden half-century off 73 balls before being dismissed on 87 off the bowling of paceman Charl Langeveldt (pictured).

Collingwood and Eoin Morgan (27 not out) then teamed up for an unbeaten fourth-wicket partnership that yielded 45 runs in 4.3 overs as Collingwood notched up his fifth ODI century off 108 balls. Langeveldt was the most successful South African bowler, claiming 2/46 off 10 overs.

The Proteas’ innings was built around the efforts of Hashim Amla and Alviro Petersen who both contributed half centuries. Amla scored 57 while Petersen made 64, but England could have won the match by an even bigger margin had they not grassed four catches.

Opening batsmen Amla recorded his fifth ODI half-century off 61 balls before he was deceived by a slower delivery from medium-pacer Collingwood and ended up offering a catch to Andrew Strauss at short cover.  Amla scored his runs off 72 deliveries with his innings including six fours. The KwaZulu-Natalian also shared in a second-wicket partnership with JP Duminy (41) that yielded 73 runs off 89 balls after the home side had spluttered to 38/2.

Duminy was in good form, with his runs coming off 47 balls, before he edged a delivery from medium-pacer Luke Wright to wicketkeeper Matt Prior. Duminy’s demise heralded a poor period with the bat for the Proteas as four wickets fell for the addition of just 54 runs.

Petersen played some splendid shots during his knock, but the right-handed batsman was dropped twice, on 39 and 47, by Strauss at short cover. The second chance was a simple regulation catch that the England captain would have been disappointed not to have pouched.

Petersen recorded his second ODI half-century off 57 balls before he was bowled by seamer Tim Bresnan who ended up with figures of 2/46 off 10 overs. The 28-year-old Petersen faced 65 deliveries while notching up five fours and a six. Speedster James Anderson, although a tad expensive, was the most successful England bowler as he returned figures of 3/60 off 10 overs. The win would have given the visitors a tremendous boost for the next match in the series, which takes place on Friday at Newlands in Cape Town followed by another contest at St George’s Park in Port Elizabeth on Sunday.

Ashwell Prince

Warriors outclass Eagles while Cobras and Dolphins draw
Two SuperSport Series matches were decided over the weekend when the Chevrolet Warriors defeated the Diamond Eagles by six wickets at Buffalo Park in East London, and the Nashua Dolphins and the Nashua Cape Cobras drew at Kingsmead in Durban after heavy rain washed out the first two days.

Proteas test player Ashwell Prince (pictured), who opened the batting for the Warriors, had an excellent game as he plundered 204 runs with knocks of 136 and 68 respectively. Reeza Hendricks was outstanding for the Eagles with scores of 109 and 81, but it was not enough to prevent the Warriors from securing a well-deserved victory.

The chances of a result being possible between the Cobras and the Dolphins was always going to be extremely difficult given the loss of the opening two days, and so it wasn’t surprising that both teams took the opportunity to get in some much needed batting practice without ever bothering to make a real game of it.

Cobra’s opener Andrew Puttick had a memorable outing by scoring a well- played century (169 runs off 279 balls) and was well supported by Stiaan van Zyl (75 off 94 balls) and Alistair Gray (57 off 202 balls) to take the Cape side to an impressive 329/2 off 100 overs. The Dolphins had earlier posted a modest 237 all out in their first innings with none of their batsmen making any notable contributions.

Scores in Brief
Wariors vs Eagles
Eagles: 391/4 dec & 273/6 dec
Warriors: 315/3 dec & 353/4
Dolphins vs Cobras
Dolphins: 237 all out
Cape Cobras: 329/2 dec

The Warriors narrowly top the SuperSport Series log with 49.14 points, a fraction ahead of the second placed Nashua Titans (48.90) and way in front of the third placed Eagles (33.86). The bizhub Highveld Lions (29.48), Dolphins (28.36) and Cobras (25.58) are in fourth, fifth and sixth places respectively.

All six teams will be in action from tomorrow with the Eagles taking on the Titans in Bloemfontein, the Lions facing off against the Dolphins in Johannesburg and the Cobras and the Warriors crossing paths in Paarl.

Kathryn Meaklim

Double gold medallist Meaklim shatters world record
Kathryn Meaklim (pictured) is possibly one of the happiest people on earth at the moment after clocking four mins, 22.88 secs to establish a new world record in the 400m individual medley during the final leg of the FINA/Arena Swimming World Cup in Singapore on Sunday.

Meaklim shattered the previous record held by Mireia Belmonte of Spain by 2.18 secs. The blonde South African lass grabbed another gold medal in the 200m breaststroke (2:22.88) with compatriot Ronwyn Roper finishing fifth in 2:27.34.

Meaklim’s achievements aside, there were many more outstanding performances from a number of other South Africans in Singapore. Cameron van der Burgh won gold in the 100m breaststroke in 56.25, while Neil Versfeld (56.74) claimed silver. Roland Schoeman also captured a silver medal in the 50m freestyle with a time of 20.89, while Wesley Gilchrist finished a credible seventh in 22.37.

Darian Townsend continued to demonstrate excellent form by winning gold in the 200m individual medley in 1:52.49, while Jay-Cee Thomson secured the bronze medal by clocking 1:56.86. Wesley Gilchrist came fifth with a not too shabby 1:59.47.

Townsend achieved another gold in the 200m freestyle in 1:41.65, with Thomson (1:46.04) ending up sixth. Garth Tune grabbed silver in the 100m butterfly with an impressive time of 50.36. Veteran Mandy Loots established an African record of 2:04.24 to secure silver in the 200m butterfly. Terence Parkin came fourth in the 1500m freestyle with a deaf world record-breaking time of 15:31.55, which bettered the previous mark of 16:21.38 set by Alexander Weinhagen of Sweden in 2007.

There was still more to come when Ronwyn Roper came fifth in the 50m breaststroke in 31.74 with Jessica Ashley-Cooper (1:00.02) finishing sixth in the 100m backstroke and Sarah Ferguson ending seventh in the 100m individual medley in a respectable 1:08.64.

Moruti Mthalane

‘Babyface’ outsmarts Mirande to take IBF crown
Moruti Mthalane (pictured right) became the third South African to capture an International Boxing Federation (IBF) world championship this year when he outpointed hard-hitting Julio Cesar Miranda of Mexico at the Wembley Indoor Arena in Johannesburg on Friday night.

The 27-year-old Mthalane, nicknamed ‘Babyface’ because of his youthful features, earned the IBF flyweight crown with scores of 117-111 (twice) and 118-111 in the 12 round bout. Miranda (30-5-1; 23 KO’s), who tipped the scales at 50.70 kg, came out firing at the bell and staggered Mthalane (50.72 kg) with a short right to the head just before the end of the opening round. However, Mthalane (25-2; 16 KO’s) kept his composure and boxed brilliantly from behind his educated left jab through rounds two to four to take an early lead in the fight.

Mirande, to his credit, responded effectively in rounds five and six with some jolting uppercuts, but the South African continued to stick his jab in Miranda’s face through rounds seven to nine to maintain control. However, the Mexican nearly turned the fight around when he uncorked a hellish right to Mthalane’s head just before the end of the ninth round, which had the South African holding on for dear life at the bell.

Miranda’s right eye began to swell up in the 10th round and he also appeared to be tiring as Mthalane continued to outbox him. Nevertheless, the Mexican continued to press forward in the eleventh, unleashing lefts and rights from all angles to possibly shade the round. Mthalane took no chances in the final round and boxed from behind the safety of his jab to take a thoroughly deserved decision and the belt.

There was plenty of action on the undercard of the Branco Promotions tournament with a number of bouts providing the spectators with lots to shout about. In a battle of southpaws, Klaas Mboyane (53.12 kg) successfully defended his South African bantamweight title when he outpointed Cleutus Mbhele (52.96 kg) over 12 entertaining rounds. Mboyane upped his record to 13-7-2; 7 KO’s with the win while Mbhele dropped to 12-3-2; 7 KO’s.

Former World Boxing Foundation (WBF) flyweight champion Zolani Tete  (12-0; 11 KO’s) had an easy night’s work when he bombed out Anthony Matthias (12-7-3; 6 KO’s) of Tanzania at two minutes, 38 seconds of the opening round to win the vacant World Boxing Organisation (WBO) Africa flyweight title. It was Tete’s first fight in eight months.

Michael Schultz (14-1-2; 9 KO’s) had a torrid evening when Tineyi Maridzo (4-6; 3 KO’s) of Zimbabwe blew him away in a shocking upset. Maridzo robbed Schultz of his senses with a smashing right to the jaw to end matters at 1:26 of the opening round in a contest for the vacant interim WBO Africa super middleweight title. Junior featherweight Jeffrey Mathebula also joined in the mayhem when he flattened Rashid Ally of Tanzania at 2:59 of the fourth round.

In upcoming action at the Wembley Indoor Arena in Johannesburg on Friday night, undefeated cruiserweight prospect Johnny Muller (4-0; 4 KO’s) squares off against perennial loser Mongezi Ndzamela (1-5; 1 KO) in a bout scheduled for six rounds. Muller has heavy hands and looks the part, but his handlers must start putting him with better quality opposition if he hopes to make real progress in the professional ranks.

International Boxing Organisation (IBO) Africa lightweight champion Jason Bedeman (9-0-2; 7 KO’s) should have his work cut out for him when he squares off against old rival Joseph Modesi (5-4-2; 2 KO’s) at Emperor’s Palace in Kempton Park on Monday night in a scheduled eight-rounder.

The over-achieving Modesi held Bedeman to a draw in a six round bout at the Nasrec Indoor Arena in July, and will be hoping to once again make life difficult for his more illustrious rival in a contest that is likely to be a real humdinger. Bedeman’s IBO title will not be at stake on the night although that is unlikely to de-motivate either fighter.

Jaque Fourie

Unconvincing Boks triumph over Italy
The Springboks recorded their first win on their overseas tour on Saturday afternoon when they produced a few moments of brilliance to defeat Italy 32-10 at Stadio Friuli in Udine, Italy. However, it was not exactly the kind of performance the Boks were looking for to help erase the memory of the past two weeks, which saw the men in green and gold suffer defeats to British club sides Saracens and the Leicester Tigers as well as to France.

Although the Boks notched up four tries, they were all scored by members of the backline as the South Africans were hammered in the set-scrums. Indeed, the ease with which the Italians handled the Bok scrum will be an area of major concern for coach Pieter de Viliers and company ahead of Saturday’s big clash against Ireland in Dublin.

The goal kicking, too, was an area for some concern with the usually perfect Morné Steyn having an off day with the boot. Thankfully for the Boks though, Steyn’s Italian counterparts Luke McLean and Craig Gowar were even more off target, missing four penalty attempts between them at vital moments.

The Boks opened their account in the sixth minute with an excellent try, which was created by a break from No 8 Ryan Kankowski who then fed wing Bryan Habana who crashed over the line to score. Steyn, who had earlier missed a penalty, struck the post with his conversion, but seven minutes later he was able to convert a try from centre Jaque Fourie (pictured), who was on hand to collect an inside pass from Habana and go over near the posts.

Italy hit back in the 32nd minute with a converted try from inside centre Gonzalo Garcia who ghosted through untouched from a set move that was clearly devised to aim at one of the Bok weaknesses. The gap had now been reduced to five points and with their scrum beginning to falter; the Boks appeared to be in trouble.

However, the Italians failed to capitalise on the momentum they had created when they missed a couple of kicks at goal after Steyn had slotted another penalty to make it 15-7 for the Boks. The South Africans increased their lead when Fourie fed Habana who sprinted down the touchline and then cut inside before throwing a basketball pass to scrumhalf Fourie du Preez who applied the finishing touches to score an excellent try.

Italy replied with a penalty by Gower in the 59th minute to make it 22-10, but Steyn slotted a penalty of his own to take the lead back to 15 points before replacement centre Wynand Olivier scored his first try in 26 tests to put the Boks 30-10 to the good. Steyn made no mistake with the conversion to wrap up the match for the visitors.

Scorers:
Italy 10 – Try: Gonzalo Garcia. Conversion: Craig Gower. Penalty: Gower.
South Africa 32 – Tries: Bryan Habana, Jaque Fourie, Fourie du Preez, Wynand Olivier. Conversions: Morne Steyn (2), Ruan Pienaar. Penalties: Steyn (2).

Katlego Mashego

SuperSport stay on top after Pirates down Ajax
Orlando Pirates defeated second-placed Ajax Cape Town 3-0 at Orlando Stadium in Soweto on Saturday evening – a result which helped defending champions SuperSport United to remain on top of the Premier Soccer League (PSL) log.

The Buccaneers inflicted the Cape side’s first away defeat of the season courtesy of goals from Katlego Mashego (pictured left), Phenyo Mongala and Rooi Mahamutsa. The Urban Warriors must now have a strong dislike for the Orlando Stadium, which was the site of their 6-0 thrashing in the final of the MTN8 tournament against Golden Arrows last month.

Ajax started the game confidently, pressuring Pirates with an attacking and fast-paced approach. However, the Buccaneers gradually worked their way into the match, achieving particular success down Ajax’s left flank where Clayton Daniels was playing out of position at left-back as a result of the absence of both Brett Evans and Aiden Jenniker.

Pirates took the lead in the 28th minute when Mashego collected a pass near the penalty area, turned and unleashed a sizzling low drive that found the bottom corner, giving veteran ’keeper Hans Vonk no chance. One-nil is how it stayed until half time, although Ajax did have their moments where they troubled the Bucs defence.

The Soweto giants began the second half confidently and went 2-0 up in the 53rd minute when Mongala played a tidy one-two with Lucky Lekgwathi before beating Vonk with a powerful, low shot.

Pirates continued to exert their dominance and with 20 minutes to go they found themselves in a position to go three goals up after Mongala had applied pressure on Ajax right-back Nazeer Allie, forcing the defender into handling the ball in his own 18-yard area. Mahamutsa made no mistake with the spot kick, blasting the ball into the top corner to make it 3-0 in favour of the Buccaneers.

The result means Ajax remain in second spot on the standings, though they are five points behind log leaders SuperSport who defeated Maritzburg United 3-2 at the Super Stadium on Saturday afternoon. Pirates move up to fourth on the standings after their win, just one point adrift of Ajax.

Results (left to right)
Last Friday
Bidvest Wits 1 – AmaZulu 2
Santos 0 – Kaizer Chiefs 1

Over the weekend
Platinum Stars 2 – Jomo Cosmos 0
SuperSport United 3 – Pmb United 2
Golden Arrows 1 – Moroka Swallows 3
Orlando Pirates 3 – Ajax Cape Town 0
Free State Stars 0 – Bloem Celtic 1
Black Aces 0 – Mamelodi Sundowns 1

Yesterday
Jomo Cosmos 0 – Golden Arrows 1

Kaizer Chiefs

Plenty of action in store for PSL fans
There are no fewer than 15 Premier Soccer League (PSL) fixtures taking place within the space of the next five days with the pick of today’s matches likely to be the clash between log leaders SuperSport United and sixth placed Kaizer Chiefs (pictured) who are fresh off a win over third placed Santos.

Fourth placed Orlando Pirates will no doubt like to continue their recent good run of from with a win over eighth placed Moroko Swallows, but the Birds will be brimming with confidence after their impressive 3-1 victory over Golden Arrows over the weekend and will be looking to pull off an upset.

Fixtures
Today
AmaZulu vs Platinum Stars – Chatsworth Stadium – 7.30pm
Kaizer Chiefs vs SuperSport United – Orlando Stadium – 7.30pm
Moroka Swallows vs Black Aces – Dobsonville Stadium – 7.30pm
Bloem Celtic vs Santos – Seisa Ramabodu Stadium – 7.30pm
Pmb United vs Bidvest Wits – Woodburn Stadium – 7.30pm
Ajax Cape Town vs Free State Stars – Newlands Stadium – 7.30pm
Mamelodi Sundowns vs Orlando Pirates – Super Stadium – 7.30pm

Saturday
SuperSport United vs Bloem Celtic – Super Stadium – 3.30pm
Free State Stars vs Mamelodi Sundowns – Goble Park – 3.30pm
Platinum Stars vs Golden Arrows – Royal Bafokeng Stadium – 3.30pm
Black Aces vs  Jomo Cosmos – Ackerville Stadium – 3.30pm
Orlando Pirates vs Moroka Swallows – Orlando Stadium – 8.15pm
Santos vs Ajax Cape Town – Newlands Stadium – 8.15pm

Sunday
AmaZulu vs Pmb United – Chatsworth Stadium – 3.30pm
Bidvest Wits vs Kaizer Chiefs – Bidvest Stadium – 3.30pm

Photo Credits:
Double gold medallist Meaklim shatters world record – Photo – Kathryn Meaklim: Source – www.supersport.com
‘Babyface’ outsmarts Mirande to take IBF crown – Photo – Moruti Mthalane: Source – www.daylife.com
Unconvincing Boks triumph over Italy – Photo – Jaque Fourie: Source – www.lions.ireland.com
England cruise home against Proteas – Photo – Charl Langeveldt: Source – www.cricbuzz.com
SuperSport stay on top after Pirates down Ajax – Photo – Katlego Mashego: Source – www.smh.com.au
Plenty of action in store for PSL fans – Photo – Kaizer Chiefs: Source – www.oleole.es
Warriors outclass Eagles while Cobras and Dolphins draw – Photo – Ashwell Prince: Source – www.sportydesktops.com

Graeme Smith

South African openers put England to the sword
Graeme Smith (pictured) and Loots Bosman propelled South Africa to a crushing 84-run victory over England in their Standard Bank Pro 20 match at SuperSport Park in Centurion on Sunday. The Proteas amassed 241/6 in their allotted 20 overs, which was their second highest total in international Pro 20-cricket.

In reply, England could only muster 157/8, which was their biggest defeat in this format of the international game. The win helped South Africa square the Pro 20 series 1-1 after they lost to England by one run on Friday at the Wanderers.

Ryan McLaren (1/26 in four overs), Dale Steyn (2/29 in four overs) and Albie Morkel (2/35 in four overs) all chipped in to restrict England to their paltry total. England’s bowlers, on the other hand, got carted all over the park as Smith and Bosman slammed 170 runs off 81 balls between them to shatter the previous world record of 145 runs for the opening wicket in international T20 cricket. Smith plundered 88 runs off 44 balls with eight boundaries and six sixes, and Bosman smashed 94 runs off 45 deliveries with five fours and nine sixes.

The South African attack, in stark contrast, were superb as they bowled much fuller than their English counterparts and gave the visiting batsmen limited options to score. Jonathan Trott (51 runs off 40 balls) and Kevin Pieterson (29 runs off 19 balls) top scored for England, but their efforts paled in comparison to those of Smith and Bosman who were simply brilliant.

England and the Proteas’ next encounter will be a 50-over one day international (ODI) at the Wanderers on Friday and the English will be hoping to bounce back from their crushing loss, with a win. Friday’s match will be the first of five ODI’s between the two teams. Both sides will also play four test matches against one another, which will stretch early into the New Year.

Although the Proteas soundly beat the visitors on the day, England proved they will still be a force to be reckoned with in the ODI’s when they defeated a full strength South African A side by four wickets in a 50-over match in Potchefstroom yesterday.

England notched up 281/6 in reply to their opponent’s total of 279/9 with Jonathan Trott’s 78 the top score for the visitors. Trott was well supported by captain Andrew Strauss (65) and Matt Prior (54) in an impressive batting display by England. It was just the type of performance Strauss was looking for from his batsmen after their poor performance on Sunday, and it will undoubtedly stand them in good stead for Friday’s match against the Proteas.

Bafana Bafana

Toothless Bafana draw again
Bafana Bafana (pictured) ended 2009 on a tepid note when they were held to a 0-0 draw by a make shift Jamaica in their final friendly of the year at a chilly Free State Stadium in Bloemfontein last night. It was a sub-par performance by Bafana who must have been confident of a win after demonstrating plenty of fighting spirit when they were held to another goalless draw by highly rated Japan in Port Elizabeth over the weekend.

Bafana coach Carlos Alberto Parreira will no doubt be concerned at his team’s inability to score goals and must be wondering what he needs to do to spark his players into action. Bafana clearly lacked enthusiasm and passion on the night and seemed to just be going through the motions for large periods of the match.

The South African team have not scored a goal since September when they recorded a 1-0 victory over lowly Madagascar in a friendly played in Kimberley. With the 2010 World Cup just seven months away, Parreira clearly has his work cut out for him if he hopes to get Bafana anywhere near ready to take on the world’s best teams.

Bafana were far too casual against Jamaica and kept playing the ball sideways and backwards rather than moving forward and gaining momentum. They also displayed a tendency to show off too much by continuing to dribble the ball much longer than was necessary, and as a result, they got nowhere in the opening half against their lightly regarded opponents.

Despite enjoying territorial advantage, Bafana were just as ineffective in the second half as they failed to breach their opponents defence, although they did come close to opening their account in the 67th minute when Kagisho Dikgacoi fired a shot just centimetres over the Jamaican crossbar. However, the match eventually fizzled out into a draw leaving Bafana’s loyal fans disappointed and Parreira with a mountain to climb.

SuperSport United

United keep marching on
SuperSport United (pictured) continued their recent good run of form in the Premier Soccer league (PSL) with a 1-1 draw against Platinum Stars on Wednesday, November 4 and an easy 4-2 win over Amazulu on Saturday, November 7. United currently top the table with 30 points, closely followed by Ajax Cape Town and Santos on 28 and 27 points respectively. Their next opponents will be 12th placed Maritzburg United who have been in terrible form of late and should provide little opposition.

The game kicks off on Saturday at the Super Stadium at 3.30pm. The pick of this weekend’s games is likely to be the clash between Ajax and fourth placed Orlando Pirates, which gets underway at 8.15pm at the Orlando Stadium on Saturday.

Results (from left to right)
Wed, 4 November
Free State Stars 1 – AmaZulu 0
Golden Arrows 1 – Bloem Celtic 1
Jomo Cosmos 0 – Ajax Cape Town 1
Santos 0 – Bidvest Wits 0
Black Aces 3 – Kaizer Chiefs 3
Moroka Swallows 0 – Mamelodi Sundowns 1
SuperSport United 1 – Platinum Stars 1
Orlando Pirates 1 – Maritzburg Utd 1

Saturday, 7 November
Golden Arrows 1 – Mamelodi Sundowns 0
Platinum Stars 3 – Bidvest Wits 1
SuperSport United 4 – AmaZulu 2
Santos 4 – Maritzburg Utd 0
Jomo Cosmos 1 – Moroka Swallows 2
Free State Stars 0 – Kaizer Chiefs 1

Sunday, 8 November
Orlando Pirates 3 – Bloem Celtic 1
Black Aces 1 – Ajax Cape Town 2

Fixtures
Friday
Bidvest Wits vs AmaZulu – Bidvest Stadium 8pm
Santos vs Kaizer Chiefs – Coetzenburg Stadium 8pm

Saturday
Platinum Stars vs Jomo Cosmos – Royal Bafokeng Stadium 3.30pm
SuperSport United vs Pmb United – Super Stadium 3.30pm
Golden Arrows vs Moroka Swallows – Chatsworth Stadium 8.15pm
Orlando Pirates vs Ajax Cape Town – Orlando Stadium 8.15pm

Sunday
Free State Stars vs Bloem Celtic – Charles Mopeli Stadium 3.30pm
Black Aces vs Mamelodi Sundowns – Puma Rugby Stadium 3.30pm

Nashua Titans

Two draws and a win in SuperSport Series
Three SuperSport series matches were decided over the weekend and the only team who came away with a win were the Nashua Titans (pictured) who thumped the Highveld Warriors by 10 wickets at St George’s Park in Port Elizabeth.

Scores in brief
Nashua Titans vs Chevrolet Warriors
Titans: 403 and 41/0
Warriors: 214 and 227
Result: Titans won by 10 wickets.
Venue: St George’s Park in Port Elizabeth.

Diamond Eagles vs Nashua Dolphins
Eagles: 178 and 203/3
Dolphins: 375
Result: Match drawn
Venue: City Oval, Pietermaritzburg

Cape Cobras vs Highveld Lions
Cobras: 332 and 135/7
Lions: 416 and 194/2 declared
Result: Match drawn
Venue: Newlands in Cape Town

The weekend’s results have left the Titans at the top the log on 48.90 points with the Warriors a distant second (33.84) and the Lions third (29.48). The Eagles (28.04), the Dolphins (25.56) and the Cobras (17) find themselves in fourth, fifth and sixth places respectively with most teams, with the exception of the Eagles and the Cobras, having played four games. The next set of fixtures pits the Dolphins against the Cobras in Kingsmead in Durban and the Warriors against the Eagles at Buffalo Park in East London. Both games begin on Thursday.

Andries Bekker

Fiery France too hot for Boks
A highly motivated France defeated the Springboks 20-13 in wet and windy conditions at the Municipal Stadium in Toulouse on Friday night. The Boks, who dispensed with the British and Irish Lions in their three match series before winning their third Tri-Nations title earlier in the year, were a shadow of the side that swept all before them from June through to September.

Although the Boks took a 13-3 lead after 30 minutes, they were outplayed in every facet of the game and conceded 17 points without reply in the remainder of the match. With the exception of some solid performances from Heinrich Brüssow, Victor Matfield, Andries Bekker (pictured left) and Fourie du Preez, it was a sorry night for most of the Boks individually.

The match was an extremely physical encounter with the Boks taking the French head on. Both Bakkies Botha and Matfield were forced off the field at various stages of the first half due to blood seeping from cuts to their faces, and the French were clearly relishing in the punishment they were dishing out to the shell-shocked Boks.

Scrumhalf Julien Dupuy opened the scoring with a penalty to put France 3-0 up after five minutes, only for Bok flyhalf Morné Steyn to level matters after 20 minutes with a penalty. He then added a drop-goal five minutes later to give the Boks the lead once again. And that lead was extended when captain John Smit crashed over the line, after a sloppy lineout by the French.

But it was all downhill from there for the Boks as the French brushed off some feeble tackles, culminating in wing Vincent Clerc scoring in the right hand corner. Even though Dupuy missed the conversion attempt and a penalty kick a few minutes later, the writing was on the wall for the Boks when Steyn was yellow carded in final minute of the first half after flicking out a boot to halt a Frenchman as the home side went on the offensive. Dupuy made no mistake with the penalty, which reduced the deficit to 13-11 at halftime.

The second half belonged to the French as the Springbok problems were compounded by the injury that forced Schalk Burger to leave the field. Danie Rossouw just didn’t make the grade as a replacement and from that moment onwards the Boks began to look terribly disorganised. Dupuy put the French four points ahead with 12 minutes to go with a penalty and Morgan Parra succeed with another three-pointer a few minutes later to seal a great win for the home side.

It has been a very disappointing start to the Boks’ five-match end of the year tour of Europe following their 22-17 loss to British club side Leicester Tigers in their opening match last Tuesday and last nights 24-23 defeat against Saracens, another British club side. One hopes that the men in green and gold can get their act together before their encounter against Italy at the Stadio Friuli, in Udine, Italy on Saturday.

Scorers
France vs South Africa
France 20 – Try: Vincent Clerc. Penalties: Julien Dupuy (4) and Morgan Parra.
South Africa 13 – Try: John Smit. Penalty: Morné Steyn. Conversion: Steyn. Drop-goal: Steyn.

Saracens vs South Africa
Saracens 24 – Tries: Ernst Joubert, Brad Barritt. Penalties: Derick Hougaard (3). Conversion: Hougaard. Drop-goal: Hougaard.
Springboks 23 – Tries: Juan de Jongh, Jongi Nokwe (2). Penalties: Ruan Pienaar (2). Conversion: Pienaar.

Cameron van der Burgh

Van der Burgh rewrites record books again
Cameron van der Burgh (pictured) notched up his second breaststroke world record within a day, and together with a world best from Darian Townsend and a meet record from Roland Schoeman, led the South African charge for glory in the final session of the FINA/Arena Swimming World Cup in Berlin, Germany, on Sunday.

Fresh from having improved his 50m-breaststroke world mark to 25.25 secs the previous evening, the powerfully built Van der Burgh recorded 55.61 in the 100m-breaststroke to dip under his world best of 55.99 set at the Telkom SA Short Course Championships in Pietermaritzburg earlier this year. Another South African, Neil Versfeld, claimed the bronze medal in 57.06.

Townsend continued his excellent form in the World Cup short course series by establishing a world record of 1 min, 51.55 secs in the 200m individual medley. Townsend’s victory resulted in American stalwart Michael Phelps having to settle for the silver medal (1:53.70) with Durban-based Chad le Clos securing bronze in 1:54.28.

Schoeman, the world record-holder in the 50m-freestyle set at this year’s Telkom SA Short Course Championships, was in superb form in the short sprint, clocking 20.57 for a meet record. Gerhard Zandberg’s victory in the 50m-backstroke in an African record time of 22.85 was another special moment for the South African contingent, as he beat off a determined challenge from American world record-holder Peter Marshall, who finished second in 22.86.

In the 200m-freestyle final, Townsend came third in an African record time of 1:40.89, while Mandy Loots (silver in the 200m-butterfly) and Chanelle van Wyk (bronze in the 100m-backstroke) also notched up African records. Russian Arkady Vyatchanin broke George du Rand’s world record in the 200m-backstroke, clocking 1:46.11. Du Rand, whose world best had stood at 1:47.08, came second in 1:48.05. Garth Tune ended up seventh in the 100m-butterfly in 50.62, while Kathryn Meaklim finished ninth in the 400m-individual medley in a credible 4:39.21.

Lovemore Ndou

Ndou keeps title against gutsy Hatton
South African born Lovemore ‘The Black Panther’ Ndou (pictured right) successfully defended his International Boxing Organisation (IBO) welterweight title against Matthew ‘Magic’ Hatton (37-4-2, 14 KO’s) in Stoke, England on Friday night.

The 38-year-old Ndou (47-11-2, 31 KO’s), a 16-year veteran of the professional ring and who has been based in Australia for the past 13 years, did just enough to earn a draw against the determined, but light hitting Hatton in a very close fight. Judge John Coyle awarded the contest to the 28-year-old Hatton by a score of 115-114, while judge Steve Marshall saw it 115-114 for Ndou. However, judge Tom Miller couldn’t decide on a winner and handed in a card of 114-114, which enabled Ndou to keep his title.

Hatton was furious with the decision and clearly thought he won. He was undoubtedly the busier of the two fighters, but most of his punches were blocked or avoided by the wily Ndou, who was never hurt by his opponent at any stage during the 12 round bout. Hatton, on the other hand, was stunned by his much older opponent on several occasions, but Ndou lacked the energy to finish off his courageous opponent, who kept throwing punches right up until the final bell.

The win kept Ndou’s career alive and put him in line for big money fights against the likes of former light-welterweight and welterweight world champion Ricky Hatton (older brother of Matthew) or current International Boxing Federation (IBF) welterweight champion Isaac Hlatshwayo of South Africa.

Samuel Malinga

Van Heerden and Malinga win easily
It was all smiles for South African welterweight champion Chris van Heerden in Meyerton on Friday night when he made short work of Tanzanian import Venance Mponji, recording an easy first round knockout.

Mponji came out swinging at the bell, but was unable to penetrate Van Heerden’s tight defence. Fighting off the back foot, the South African calmly absorbed his opponents punches before ripping in a short right hook to the body, which caused the Tanzanian to topple on to his back where he was counted out by referee Alfred Buqwana just 1 min, 42 secs into the bout. The win upped the 22-year-old Van Heerden’s record to 14-0-1 with nine wins via the short route, while the 25-year-old Mponji dropped to 15-13-2 with seven stoppages.

Undercard results
Mxolisi Mbewu TKO 1 Vincent Gabela (bantamweights)
Bongo Lepembohuges TKO 2 Lukas Moketi (junior welterweights)
Takalani Kwinda technical decision (TD) Patrick Masango (featherweights)

Meanwhile, Samuel Malinga (pictured left) recorded a fifth round TKO over Pius Dipheko to claim the World Boxing Organisation (WBO) Africa interim junior welterweight title at the Wembley Indoor Arena in Johannesburg on Saturday night. The former World Boxing Foundation (WBF) and South African junior welterweight champion gradually wore down the game Dipheko, who was knocked down for a count of nine in the fifth round.

The bout continued for a few more seconds, but referee Jaap van Nieuwenhuizen decided to call a halt to proceedings at 1:04 of the round to save Dipheko from further punishment. The win improved Malinga’s record to 22-6-2, with 13 wins inside the distance, while Dipheko dropped to 8-8-5 with two wins via the short route.

Undercard results
Buli Muravha W6 Wiseman Dlomo (heavyweights)
Godfrey Nzimande TKO 2 Stanford Mabasa (junior lightweights)
Jerry Nekhubve W6 Amon Baloyi (welterweights)

In upcoming warfare, Moruti Mthalane (23-2, 16 KO’s) will take on Mexican Julio Miranda (30-4-1, 23 KO’s) for the vacant International Boxing Federation (IBF) flyweight title at the Wembley Indoor Arena in Johannesburg on Friday night. This 27-year-old South African will be hoping to pull off an upset against the more fancied Mexican, who has won 22 of his last 23 fights, 19 of them by knockout.

Hennie Otto

Otto pips Moore in tense finish
Hennie Otto (pictured) narrowly defeated Titch Moore in a sudden-death playoff to win the 72-hole, R1 million MTC Namibia PGA Championship, which finished at the 6 113m, par-72 Rossmund Golf Course on Sunday. Both players were tied on eight-under 280 after Otto shot a six-under 66 and Moore a three-under 69 in the final round.

Otto had a chance to clinch the title in regulation play when he reached the 18th at nine-under, but his drive landed among a group of palm trees in the desert rough to the left of the fairway. He was only able to get into the middle of the fairway, and left his approach well short of the green. The resulting bogey saw Otto slide into a share of the lead until Moore slotted a birdie on 17 to edge in front by a single stroke.

However, Moore also had trouble hitting the fairway on the 18th, and pulled his drive to the right. He was only able to advance his ball onto the fairway, and was unable to get up and down as Otto was on the driving range preparing for the playoff.

It looked as if Moore’s drive down the middle had gained him the advantage, especially after Otto’s approach missed the green rather badly to the right. However, Moore had also pulled his approach to the right and Otto played an excellent chip to leave himself a tap-in for par.

Moore, on the other hand, missed his 18-inch putt for par to give Otto his eighth Sunshine Tour title. The victory vaulted Otto to 37th on the Order of Merit with the lucrative summer events of the Sunshine Tour now just around the corner.

Top 10 finishers (South African unless stated)
280 – Hennie Otto 72 70 72 66 (won on first hole of playoff)
280 – Titch Moore 75 66 70 69
282 – Brandon Pieters 70 76 68 68, Adilson da Silva (BRA) 70 70 71 71, Tjaart van der Walt 70 71 70 71
283 – Christiaan Basson 73 68 73 69, Vaughn Groenewald 70 71 72 70, Tyrone Mordt 66 70 73 74, Willie van der Merwe 68 77 64 74
284 – Bradford Vaughan 71 70 73 70

Photo Credits:
Toothless Bafana draw again – Photo – Bafana Bafana: Source – www.joburg.org.za
United keep marching on – Photo – SuperSport United: Source – www.supersportunited.co.za
SA openers put England to the sword – Photo – Graeme Smith: Source – www.abc.net.au
Two draws and a win in SuperSport Series – Photo – Nashua Titans: Source – www.flickr.com
Fiery France too hot for Boks – Photo – Andries Bekker: Source – www.guardian.co.uk
Van der Burgh rewrites record books again – Photo – Cameron van der Burgh: Source –  www.zimbio.com
Ndou keeps title against gutsy Hatton – Photo – Lovemore Ndou: Source – www.zimbio.com
Van Heerden and Malinga win easily – Photo – Samuel Malinga: Source – www.namibiasport.com.na
Otto pips Moore in tense finish – Photo – Hennie Otto: Source – www.daylife.com

Useful Links:
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South Africa Accommodation

Francois Hougaard

Bulls tame Cheetahs to take Currie Cup
It was all smiles for the Loftus Versfeld faithful in Pretoria on Saturday night when their darlings, the mighty Blue Bulls, defeated a stubborn Cheetahs outfit 36-24 to become 2009 Absa Currie Cup Premier Division champions. The Bulls stormed to a 24-0 lead after just 25 minutes courtesy of a try from right wing Francois Hougaard (pictured with ball in hand) and a brace from left wing Bryan Habana, but the Cheetahs, as always, staged a spirited fight back to close the gap to just six points after 48 minutes.

Tries by Frans Viljoen, Corné Uys and Nico Breedt got the Free Staters back into the match as the Bulls were forced to make a large number of tackles against a team that were running the ball with confidence. However, ill discipline by the visitors let them down at crucial times and this, combined with the superiority of flyhalf Morné Steyn over his opposite number Jacques-Louis Potgieter, proved to be the difference between the sides.

Steyn slotted eight of his nine kicks at goal to record a personal tally of 21 points via three conversions, a drop goal and four penalties while Potgieter could only contribute nine points via three conversions and a drop goal. With 30 minutes left on the clock it looked like the determined Free Staters might pull off a huge upset against their more illustrious rivals, but the concession of two penalties squashed their chances of victory – the first when Potgieter was forced to hold the ball on the ground at a 22m kick-off and the second when Richardt Strauss lost his cool and interfered with Deon Stegmann, man-handling the Bulls flanker even though he was already in touch.

Steyn added the extra points and suddenly, with the final 10 minutes approaching, the home side were back into a 12-point lead and the Cheetahs were facing the virtually impossible task of having to score two tries against one of the best defensive sides in world rugby.

Any chance of that happening was dealt a death blow by referee Jonathan Kaplan who yellow carded the impetuous Strauss after the burly Free Stater objected to the match officials not allowing a short throw to the front of the lineout. And that as they say was that as the Bulls closed out the match to claim their fifth Currie Cup title in the first decade of the 21st century. The men in blue also had the honour of becoming the first side ever to win both the Super 14 and the Currie Cup in the same year.

Scorers
Bulls 36 – Tries: Francois Hougaard, Bryan Habana (2). Conversions: Morné Steyn (3). Penalties: Steyn (4). Dropped goal: Steyn.
Cheetahs 24 – Tries: Frans Viljoen, Corne Uys, Nico Breedt. Conversions: Jacques-Louis Potgieter (3). Dropped goal: Potgieter.

Cecil Dumond

Pumas go through while Eagles lose out
While the chief focus in local rugby action this weekend was the Absa Currie Cup Premier Division final, there were still other matters to be decided on the domestic front – namely who was going to remain in the Premier Division next year and who was not.

Those matters were resolved on Friday evening when the Pumas easily defeated the Boland Cavaliers 40-3 (aggregate 75-39) in Witbank while the Leopards went down 18-17 to the SWD Eagles in George in their respective Promotion/Relegation matches.

The Pumas were utterly ruthless against their Premier Division opposition, running in six tries without reply as they completely dominated all facets of the game. The Cavaliers’ defeat means that they will compete with the likes of the Eagles, Might Elephants, Griffons, Bulldogs and Valke in the less glamorous First Division next season.

Despite their loss to the Eagles, the Leopards will remain in the top-flight competition next season after managing to secure a bonus point in the match. The Leopards won the first Promotion/Regulation fixture 47-42 in Potchefstroom the previous Friday.

Scorers
Pumas vs Cavaliers: Pumas 40 – Tries: Jaco Bouwer, Marius Coetzer, Pieter Meyer, MJ Mentz, Shaun Venter, Tiaan Marx. Conversions: Braam Pretorius (5). Cavaliers 3 – Penalty: Justin Peach.
SWD vs Leopards: SWD 18 – Tries: Bevin Fortuin, Norman Nelson. Conversion: Ricardo Croy. Penalty: Croy. Drop Goal: Croy. Leopards 17 – Tries: Basil de Doncker, Deon van Rensburg. Conversions: Cecil Dumond (pictured in green jersey), Clayton Durand. Penalty: Durand.

Emille Baron

United too clever for Students
SuperSport United defeated Bidvest Wits 2-1 in an Absa Premiership match played at Bidvest Stadium in Johannesburg on Saturday and in so doing maintained their top spot on the standings. Goals from Brian Umony and Glen Salmon were enough to give United the victory as the Students could only muster a loan score from Mark Haskins in reply.

However, Wits did have their chances in this game but couldn’t convert them into goals. Rene Richards could have opened the scoring for the Students in the 11th minute but was denied by some top-notch work from Emille Baron (pictured) in United’s goal when the ‘keeper parried his well-taken free kick for a corner.

After 15 minutes had elapsed, United were starting to come back into the game and it was Umony who put them on the board with a well-taken strike.  Going a goal behind so early in the match seemed to galvanise Wits into action and they quickly responded with some attacking moves only to be let down by poor finishing.

However, with just a minute gone in the second half, Haskins headed home a Sifiso Myeni cross to level matters for Wits. He was then denied a second goal two minutes later when he connected well with another cross from Myeni only to see his shot whistle over the crossbar. Sniping runs by the fleet-footed Myeni on the right flank kept United’s defenders very busy, but his team-mates failed to make contact with his well-placed crosses letting SuperSport off the hook once again.

The Students suffered a significant blow after 70 minutes when their captain, Tefu Mashamaite, was sent off for dissent and United wasted little time in capitalising on their numerical advantage. Dane Klate unleashed a powerful 78th minute strike which, although blocked by Wits ‘keeper Darren Keet, rebounded into the path of Salmon who was on hand to score the visitors’ second goal.

United were now 2-1 up with 12 minutes left to play and that’s the way things stayed giving SuperSport an excellent win. United are now three points clear of nearest rivals Santos who comfortably despatched lowly AmaZulu 2-0 at the Ulundi Stadium on Sunday.

Full results
Last Wednesday
Mamelodi Sundowns     0         Platinum Stars     2
Maritzburg Utd         1        Black Aces         0
Moroka Swallows         0        Ajax Cape Town     2
Kaizer Chiefs         2        Golden Arrows     0
Bloem Celtic         3        Jomo Cosmos     3
Orlando Pirates         1         AmaZulu         2
Bidvest Wits         1         Free State Stars     1
Over the weekend
Moroka Swallows         1        Platinum Stars         0
Kaizer Chiefs         0        Orlando Pirates         0
SuperSport United     2        Bidvest Wits         1
Maritzburg Utd         1        Free State Stars         1
Ajax Cape Town         0        Golden Arrows         0
Jomo Cosmos         1        Mamelodi Sundowns     3
AmaZulu             0        Santos             2
Bloem Celtic         2        Black Aces             0

Another very busy week lies ahead for all the PSL teams with 16 fixtures taking place over the next couple of days. The pick of today’s games is likely to be the clash between second placed Santos and seventh placed Wits at the Coetzenberg Stadium at 7.30pm with the encounter between Orlando Pirates and Bloem Celtic at the Orlando Stadium on Sunday, promising to be the match to watch as far as weekend action is concerned.

Fixtures
Today
Free State Stars         vs     AmaZulu
Golden Arrows         vs    Bloem Celtic
Jomo Cosmos         vs    Ajax Cape Town
Santos             vs    Bidvest Wits
Black Aces            vs    Kaizer Chiefs
Moroka Swallows        vs    Mamelodi Sundowns
SuperSport United    vs    Platinum Stars
Orlando Pirates         vs    Maritzburg Utd
Saturday
Golden Arrows        vs    Mamelodi Sundowns
Platinum Stars        vs    Bidvest Wits
SuperSport United    vs    AmaZulu
Santos            vs    Maritzburg Utd
Jomo Cosmos         vs    Moroka Swallows
Free State Stars        vs    Kaizer Chiefs
Sunday
Orlando Pirates        vs    Bloem Celtic
Black Aces            vs    Ajax Cape Town

Lonwabo Tsotsobe

Tsotsobe and Boje defang Cobras
Some top quality bowling from Lonwabo Tsotsobe (pictured) and Nicky Boje helped the Chevrolet Warriors defeat the Nashua Cape Cobras by 59 runs in their MTN40 match at Buffalo Park in East London on Sunday.

The Warriors batted first and scored 214 all out while the Cobras could only muster 155 all out in reply. Man of the match Tsotsobe returned figures of 3/36 and was well supported by left-arm spinner Boje who claimed 2/36. The Cobras were on course for victory at 118/5 after 25.1 overs but when Herschelle Gibbs was dismissed for 60 runs off 54 balls, their challenge came to an end. Gibbs, who recorded ten fours and a six during his innings, was batting superbly until he sliced an attempted drive off Boje and was caught by Justin Kreusch at a wide long off.

The Cape franchise had got off to a shocking start as they crumbled to 51/5 after 13.2 overs. Left-arm swing bowler Tsotsobe was the destroyer in chief as his first spell, with the new ball, produced figures of 3/16 off six overs. Gibbs and Justin Kemp then restored some respectability to the Cobras’ innings with a sixth-wicket stand of 67 runs, but when Gibbs lost his wicket the Cobras lost their way once again. The remaining four wickets yielded just 37 runs with Kemp the last man out for a run of the mill 29 off 63 deliveries.

The Warriors’ innings was built on the efforts of Colin Ingram (53 runs off 53 balls), Arno Jacobs (42 off 57) and Johan Botha (42 off 52) as the hosts were dismissed with five balls of their innings remaining. Speedsters Monde Zondeki, with 3/37, and Francois Plaatjies, with 2/26, caused the most problems for the home batsmen.

The Warriors’ next MTN40 outing is against the bizhub Highveld Lions at St George’s Park in Port Elizabeth on December 26, while the Cobras will face the Dolphins at Newlands in Cape Town on Friday. The Warriors are currently in first position in the championship standings with nine points, while the Cobras find themselves in third place on six points.

Although the championship has hardly got under way, the Warriors will stand an excellent chance of lifting the trophy this season if they can maintain their recent good form, while the Cobras remain a class act and can never be discounted.

Dale Steyn

Steyn sends Eagles packing
Paceman Dale Steyn (pictured) grabbed four wickets to lead the Nashua Titans to a 14-run victory over the Diamond Eagles in their MTN40 match at SuperSport Park on Sunday. Steyn recorded figures of 4/36 in eight overs to restrict the Eagles to 240/7, twice claiming a crucial wicket in the opening over of a return spell. The Titans had earlier notched up 254/8 in their allotted 40 overs.

The Eagles were well on course for victory on 130/1, but Steyn, who had earlier dispensed with Morne van Wyk for 12, put a spanner in the works when he removed opener Reeza Hendricks for a well-played 73 off 72 balls, which included 12 boundaries. Next man in Dean Elgar didn’t last long when he edged a nasty lifter from Steyn to a wide slip and the Eagles had suddenly slipped to 136/3.

The rot continued as Boeta Dippenaar (five), Johan van der Wath (12) and Alan Kruger (11) all fell trying over ambitious strokes, while Rilee Rossouw (52 off 70), having laid the foundation to bat through the innings, then hit Steyn straight to long-off to give Faf du Plessis the third of his set of four catches, a record for the Titans in limited-overs cricket.

Ryan McLaren batted well to finish with an unbeaten 39 off 33 balls, but in the end it was not enough to get the Eagles home as they finished just short of their target. Spin bowlers Roelof van der Merwe (2/47) and Paul Harris (1/31) snared the other wickets to fall in a well co-ordinated effort by the Titans’ bowlers.

The Titans’ innings was built around the efforts of Jacques Rudolph (76 off 83) and AB de Villiers (65 off 67) with support from Du Plessis (34 off 20) and Albie Morkel (22 off 17). The Eagles’ bowling was dominated by their speedsters, with McLaren standing out with 2/32 in eight overs.

The Eagles’ next outing in the competition is against the Nashua Dolphins on Sunday at Kingsmead in Durban, while the Titans face the bizhub Highveld Lions on Friday. The Eagles are currently in fourth place in the standings with five points while the Titans are in second position with six points.

Other results
Friday
Chevrolet Warriors beat Nashua Dolphins by 13 runs
Diamond Eagles beat bizhub Highveld Lions by 104 runs
Nashua Titans vs Nashua Cape Cobras (Match washed out)
Last Wednesday
Nashua Cape Cobras beat bizhub Highveld Lions by seven wickets

Cassius Baloyi

Plenty of action in Kempton Park KO feast
Mlungisi ‘The Killer Shark’ Dlamini (21-0-1, 13 KO’s) became a duel world boxing champion at Emperor’s Palace in Kempton Park on Saturday night when he sensationally knocked out former International Boxing Organisation (IBO) junior lightweight champion Zolani ‘Untouchable’ Marali (20-4, 13 KO’s) to capture the vacant IBO lightweight title.

The 27-year-old Dlamini, who hails from Esakawini in KwaZulu-Natal, looked strangely lethargic as he followed his 32-year-old foe around the ring rather than jab his way in to land effective body punches as he normally does. The KwaZulu-Natalian clearly lost the opening three rounds and was losing the fourth when he all of a sudden unleashed a hellish right cross which exploded off Marali’s jaw to send the veteran crashing head first to the canvas.

Marali, to his credit, tried to rise from the knockdown, but his legs weren’t up to the job and he sank back to the canvass. Scottish referee Victor Loughlin reached the count of ten at 2 min, 59 secs of the round and Dlamini found himself the proud owner of an IBO belt to go with his World Boxing Foundation (WBF) lightweight strap.

The win has potentially put Dlamini in line for some big money fights against the holders of some of the more recognised world titles. However, for Marali, the loss has possibly spelt the end of his career as a top-level fighter, as he has now lost three of his last four fights, two of them by knockout.

On the undercard, Thomas ‘Tommy Gun’ Oosthuizen (10-0, 8 KO’s) unleashed a smashing left cross in the fourth round of his scheduled 12 round contest with Tshepang Mohale (7-3, 6 KO’s) to record a knockout victory over the reigning South African super-middleweight champion.

However, the 6’2’ Oosthuizen didn’t have it all his own way against the equally tall Mohale, who landed some heavy jabs and punishing right crosses, which reddened his the face of his opponent. Indeed, Mohale actually exposed Oosthuizen’s somewhat leaky defence as he connected with hurtful punches throughout the opening three rounds. However, it was Oosthuizen, fighting from his tricky southpaw stance, who had the last laugh.

After a furious exchange of blows in the opening seconds of the fourth round, Mohale pulled away from his foe but forgot to keep his hands up allowing Oosthuizen to land a pulverising left cross on his unguarded chin. The 30-year-old Mohale crashed to the canvas as if he’d been shot and, although he made a determined effort to rise, it was ultimately to no avail as the referee counted him out at 0:48 of the round.

The victory earned Oosthuizen the World Boxing Association (WBA) Pan African super middleweight title to go with his IBO Youth super-middleweight and light-heavyweight titles. The lanky 22-year-old from Gauteng is now undoubtedly one of South Africa’s best young prospects and it will surely not be long before he brings home a legitimate world title belt to these sunny shores.

For Mohale, who incidentally remains the South African super-middleweight champion as his title was not at stake in this fight, the future also looks pretty promising. Although he lost by knockout, he was by no means disgraced as he landed some hurtful punches on Oosthuizen and kept him guessing at all times. It was possibly the southpaw prospect’s toughest professional outing to date and Mohale can take comfort in the knowledge that he was holding his own until a split second lapse in concentration gave Oosthuizen the opportunity to end matters.

The World Boxing Council (WBC) International light-heavyweight title fight between challenger Isaac Chilemba (14-1, 8 KO’s) and champion Doudou Ngumbu (20-1, 9 KO’s) resembled more of a chess match than a boxing match as both fighters probed for openings and found very few during the course of the 12 round bout.

Chilemba, a Malawian who is based in South Africa and trained by Colin Nathan, definitely deserved the decision against Ngumbu, who is based in France but hails from the Democratic Republic of Congo. He landed the more effective blows against his shorter opponent and used his superior strength and size to back Ngumbu up on the ropes.

However, it was not all plain sailing for Chilemba who occasionally got tagged by some hard right crosses from Ngumbu and seemed a little confused at times by his awkward and slippery opponent. In the end though Chilemba’s higher work rate paid dividends, as the judges awarded him the decision by scores of 117-112, 115-113 and 118-113. Besides winning the WBC International belt, Chilemba also captured the less prestigious African Boxing Union (ABU) light heavyweight strap and can now look forward to bigger and better things on the international scene.

Gauteng based fighter Hekkie Budler (13-0, 5 KO’s) went into his fight with Motswaki Moselesele (5-2, 2 KO’s) having only scored four stoppages in 12 fights, but that didn’t stop him from making short work of Moselesele, whom he despatched in the opening round to retain his IBO All-Africa junior flyweight title.

Two powerful right crosses had the Free Stater on the canvas halfway through the opening round and when Budler landed a hard left hook a few seconds later, referee Lulama Mtya decided he had seen enough and waved proceedings off at 2:23 of the round. Although Budler’s victory looked impressive, it must be said that Moselesele did not have much to offer and the time has now surely come for ‘The Hexecutioner’ to face sterner competition if he hopes to make an impact on the world scene.

In the opening bout of the Golden Gloves promoted tournament, 20-year-old Flo Simba made short work of an inept Bernard Vance in a scheduled four round cruiserweight contest. Vance, who entered the ring with a black eye and probably left with even an bigger one, was quickly overwhelmed by the powerfully built Simba, prompting referee Alfred Buqwane to wisely call a halt to proceedings at 2:26 of the opening round. Both fighters were making their professional debuts.

At the Wembley Arena in Johannesburg the previous night, former International Boxing Federation (IBF) junior lightweight champion Cassius Baloyi (pictured) comprehensively out pointed Argentinian Roberto Arrieta (34-15-4, 16 KO’s) over 12 rounds in their IBF junior lightweight title eliminator.

All three judges scored the fight 120-107 in the South African’s favour. The 35-year-old Baloyi (37-4-1, 19 KO’s) is now in line to take on the winner of a fight between another South African, Mzonke Fana, and the champion, Robert Guerrero of the United States. Baloyi lost the IBF belt when fellow South African Malcolm Klassen stopped him in the seventh round of a bout that took place in April. Klassen then surrended the belt to Guerrero who out pointed him over 12 rounds in August. The 33-year-old Arrieta lost on points to Fana in 2006.

Other results on the Branco Sports Productions bill
Michael Schultz TKO 3 Samuel Mathebula (super middleweights)
Bongani Mlotshwa TKO 1 Selo Sebothoma (junior middleweights)
Zola Thunyawa TKO 4 Emmanuel Ndou (lightweights)
Jason Kinnear TKO 4 Albert Mudau (bantamweights)
Michael van Heerden KO 7 Theophilus Mpakane  (junior middleweights)

Meanwhile, it has been announced that the result of the WBF heavyweight title bout between South African Francois Botha and Cuban Pedro Carrion has been changed to a majority draw. Botha was declared the winner by majority decision after the fight in Dessau, Germany, last Saturday night.

However, WBF officials later verified the scorecards and discovered that the result was actually a draw. Judges Matteo Fratini and Tonio Tiberi handed in scores of 114-114 and 115-115 and Jean-Marcel Nartz had Botha ahead by 115-114. The South African still retains his title but may be required to give Carrion a rematch.

Hendrick Ramaala

Ramaala finishes sixth in New York
South Africa marathon runner Hendrick Ramaala (pictured) recorded a respectable time of two hours, 12 mins and 31 secs to finish sixth in Sunday’s New York City Marathon. The 37-year-old Ramaala ran well, but didn’t have enough left in the tank to close the gap on the top runners.

Meb Keflezighi became the first American to win the event since 1982 when he took the men’s title in 2:09:15. thiopia’s former world and Olympic 10 000m champion Derartu Tulu won the women’s race in 2:28.52 after running away from Russia’s Ludmila Petrova in the last quarter of a mile.

Keflezighi broke away from Kenyan Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot with just a few miles to go to take the win. Cheruiyot finished 41 seconds behind the American, while former world champion Jaouad Gharib of Morocco was third in 2:10:25. Keflezighi is one of 11 children who moved as a boy from Eritrea to Italy where he went to high school before relocating to San Diego to pursue his tertiary education.

Meanwhile, local runners Tshidiso Bosiu and Rene Kalmer ran away with the honours at the 2009 Nedbank Soweto Marathon on Sunday. Kalmer won the women’s event in a quick 2:44:06 while Bosiu clocked 2:18:10 to take victory in the men’s category. Kalmer’s time also beat the race record of 2:45:37, which was set in 2001. Poppy Mlambo finished second while four-time winner Mamoroallo Tjoka was third in 2:53:13.

The 27-year-old Bosiu took the lead just after the half way mark and was closely followed by two-time winner Mabuthile Lebopo with Tsotang Maine third in 2:19:49. A record entry of 4 923 runners completed the event with another 6 300 participants competing in the 10km walk and run events.

Darren Fichardt

Fichardt pips Moore at the post
Darren Fichardt (pictured) produced some solid all round golf to win the Platinum Classic tournament at the 6 250m par 72 Mooinooi Golf Club course on Saturday. Fichardt birdied the 18th hole and shot a final round 66 for a 15-under 201 to defeat Titch Moore by one shot.

Moore was three strokes ahead going into the 16th, but was too strong with his nine-iron from 147 yards out and overshot the green. He took a further two shots to get onto the green and two putted from there, which allowed Fichardt to draw level after the latter birdied the 17th.

Fichardt then struck a superb approach to the 18th, landing just off the green, and sank his putt to make life difficult for Moore unless the latter was able to birdie the 17th. He wasn’t, and consequently needed to sink a 25-footer for a birdie on the 18th to force a playoff.  Again, he wasn’t successful, giving Fichardt his third title on the 2009 Sunshine Tour. Defending champion Thomas Aiken finished on 11-under for a share of 10th position.

Top 14 finishers (South African unless specified)
201 – Darren Fichardt 70 65 66
202 – Titch Moore 65 68 69
203 – Grant Muller 66 70 67
Alan McLean (SCO) 65 66 72
204 – Steve Basson 71 67 66
Adilson da Silva (BRA) 67 70 67
Ryan Cairns (ZIM) 67 70 67
Teboho Sefatsa 68 67 69
Branden Grace 66 67 71
205 – Trevor Fisher Jnr 67 70 68
Warren Abery 65 72 68
Jbe’ Kruger 63 73 69
Thomas Aiken 67 69 69
Doug McGuigan 66 69 70

Photo Credits:
Bulls tame Cheetahs to take Currie Cup – Photo – Francois Hougaard: Source – www.daylife.com
Pumas go through while Eagles lose out – Photo – Cecil Dumond: Source – www.daylife.com
United too clever for Students – Photo – Emille Baron: Source – www.vg.no
Tsotsobe and Boje defang Cobras – Photo – Lonwabo Tsotsobe: Source – www.commons.wikimedia.org
Steyn sends Eagles packing – Photo – Dale Steyn: Source – www.seshdotcom.wordpress.com
Plenty of action in Kempton Park KO feast – Photo – Cassius Baloyi: Source – www.boxnews.com.ua
Ramaala finishes sixth in New York – Photo – Hendrick Ramaala: Source – www.africanathletics.org
Fichardt pips Moore at the post – Photo – Darren Fichardt: Source – www.dailymail.co.uk

Useful Links:
South Africa 2010 World Cup
South Africa 2010 Stadiums
South Africa Travel
South Africa Accommodation

Joseph Henyekane

Arrows shoot down hapless Ajax
Golden Arrows were crowned MTN8 champions in Soweto on Saturday night when they crushed Ajax Cape Town 6-0 in one-sided MTN8 final at the Orlando Stadium. In the process, Arrows won their first major trophy and a record
R8-million winner-takes-all prize.

The match was effectively over as a contest after 20 minutes when the KwaZulu Natal outfit took an unbeatable 2-0 lead courtesy of some positive attacking soccer and some shocking defending from a woeful Ajax outfit. Despite Ajax’s poor display it was an excellent win for Arrows and their 38-year-old coach Manqoba Mngqithi, who is one of a number of promising young coaches in the Premier Soccer League (PSL). Mngqithi deserves applause for his positive tactics of attacking and taking the game to Ajax and, if he keeps up this sort of approach, it will surely not be too long before Arrows win another major tournament.

Goals in the ninth and 48th minutes by Joseph Henyekane (pictured), Thokozani Mshengu (66th minute), Nhlanhla Zothwane (73rd minute), Njabulo Manqana (90th minute) and an embarrassing own goal by defender Deniss Ivanovs (20th minute) gave Arrows their massive win, which broke the South African record for the biggest winning margin in a final. Their crushing victory will also give Arrows a lot of confidence for their PSL campaign and, with Mngqithi and co at the helm, it won’t be surprising if the KwaZulu-Natalians win that trophy as well this season.

Kaizer Chiefs

PSL season hots up
The PSL soccer season is really beginning to catch fire now with the top teams involved in some intense battles for supremacy. As usual, there are a host of matches taking place all over the country tonight with more to follow on the weekend. The pick of today’s matches is likely to be the clash between eighth placed Kaizer Chiefs (pictured) and highflying Golden Arrows at the Orlando Stadium at 7.30pm.

Arrows, who are currently lying ninth in this year’s standings, will be looking to repeat the form they showed against Ajax Cape Town in Saturday’s MTN8 final. However, the Amakhosi are unlikely to be easy pickings at home and Arrows will have to be on their very best form to pull off a win.

Although there are plenty of good match ups taking place over the weekend, the game to probably look out for is Saturday’s encounter between top of the table SuperSport United and Bidvest Wits who are currently fourth on the standings. Kick off at the Bidvest Stadium is at 8.15pm.

Results (left to right)
Last Wednesday
Santos 2            Free State Stars 2
Bidvest Wits 0         Black Aces 1
SuperSport Utd 3        Orlando Pirates 0
Bloem Celtic 0        Mamelodi Sundowns 2
Kaizer Chiefs 1        Moroka Swallows 2
Maritzburg Utd 1        Jomo Cosmos 1

Yesterday
SuperSport United 2    Santos 2

Fixtures (left to right)
Today
Mamelodi Sundowns vs Platinum Stars
Maritzburg Utd vs Black Aces
Moroka Swallows vs Ajax Cape Town
Kaizer Chiefs vs Golden Arrows
Bloem Celtic vs Jomo Cosmos
Orlando Pirates  vs AmaZulu
Bidvest Wits  vs Free State Stars
Saturday
Moroka Swallows vs Platinum Stars
Kaizer Chiefs vs Orlando Pirates
SuperSport United vs Bidvest Wits
Maritzburg Utd vs Free State Stars
Sunday
Ajax Cape Town vs Golden Arrows
Jomo Cosmos vs Mamelodi Sundowns
AmaZulu vs Santos
Bloem Celtic vs Black Aces

Carlos Alberto Parreira

Safa replace one Brazilian with another
Meanwhile, the South African Football Association (Safa) have appointed Brazilian World Cup winning coach Carlos Alberto Parreira (pictured right) as the new Bafana Bafana coach. Parreira will replace fellow Brazilian Joel Santana who quit the post last Monday after a string of poor results.

Safa president Kirsten Nematandani officially announced that Parreira would be their coach of choice after a lengthy Safa National Executive meeting held at the OR Tambo Airport. However, the Brazilian will not be earning the huge R1.8-million per month salary he enjoyed in his previous stint at the helm of Bafana or the R1.4-million Santana earned each month. The 66-year-old Parreira had previously coached Bafana before relinquishing his post to return to his native Brazil citing his wife’s ill health.

Safa also announced that a third assistant coach would be added to help Parreira. The likely coach is SuperSport United’s Gavin Hunt who many felt should have been appointed instead of Parreira. The two current assistant coaches, Pitso Mosimane and Jairo Leal, have been retained. However, Hunt, Clive Barker and Jomo Sono will continue as assessors for Bafana.

Parreira won the respect of the players when he was coach last time round and is expected to boost their moral and consequently their performance when he takes charge of the squad once again. Safa are hoping that Parreira arrives in time to take charge of Bafana ahead of their friendly matches on home soil against Japan on November 14 and against Jamaica three days later.

JP Duminy

Brilliant Bravo blasts Cobras
Former West Indies player Dwayne Bravo steered Trinidad&Tobago to a comfortable seven-wicket victory over the Cape Cobras in the Champions League semi-final at Hyderabad, India on Thursday. Bravo hammered 58 runs off just 34 balls which included four fours and three sixes and featured in a valuable fourth wicket partnership of 93 runs with Daren Ganga (44 runs off 31 balls) to set up the win for the Caribbean franchise.

The pair came together with the score on 85/3 after 10.1 overs and faced the daunting task of chasing down the 175/5 scored by the South Africans. However, the always-dangerous Bravo smashed Rory Kleinveldt to the boundary in the final over to seal the win for his team. JP Duminy (pictured) had earlier plundered 61 off 40 balls with four fours and three sixes, and with Herschelle Gibbs (42 off 27 balls) had given the Cobras a competitive total.

However, the Cobras failed to defend their score against a rampant Trinidad. Adrian Barath (29 off 16 balls) and William Perkins (20 off 16 balls) scored 53 runs in the opening five overs with paceman Monde Zondeki, in particular, bearing the brunt of their assault. Bravo then picked up where they left off, smashing Kleinveldt and Vernon Philander all over the park to help steer his side to victory.

Duminy finished as the top run-scorer in the tournament and played a superb innings against Trinidad, but it was not enough to save his team from being knocked out of the competition after having promised so much in the early running. In the end, the Cobras were let down badly by a shoddy bowling and fielding display and Bravo and company made them pay dearly for their sloppy efforts. The tournament was eventually won by New South Wales who defeated Trinidad by 41 runs in the final the following day.

Stephen Cook

Triple ton Cook gets into the record books
Stephen Cook (pictured left) set a new South African first-class batting record when he scored 390 runs for the bizhub Highveld Lions against the Chevrolet Warriors in a SuperSport Series match at Buffalo Park in East London on Sunday.

Cook’s mammoth knock helped his team to a colossal 690/9, an overall lead of 158 runs on the first innings, before rain brought proceedings to a halt 30 minutes after the tea break leaving the umpires no choice but to declare the match a draw. The Lions’ opener batted for 13 hours and 58 minutes and faced 648 balls while notching up 45 fours and a six, before he was trapped leg-before by off-spinner Johan Botha shortly after tea.

The 26-year-old’s innings bettered the previous highest score by a South African of 356 scored by Barry Richards for South Australia against Western Australia in Perth during the 1970/71 season. The previous best individual first-class score by a South African on home soil was an unbeaten 337, which Daryll Cullinan achieved for Transvaal against Northern Transvaal in Johannesburg during the 1993/94 season. Cook also went past 5 000 first-class career runs during his knock and his innings was the 12th highest individual score in all first-class cricket.

It was also a great day for Lions batsmen Thami Tsolekile who, together with Cook, posted a record first-class sixth-wicket partnership for matches in South Africa. The duo notched up 365 runs in 107.4 overs, comfortably beating the previous record of 317 runs scored by Damien Martyn and Adam Gilchrist for Australia versus South Africa at the Wanderers during the 2001/02 season. Cook and Tsolekile’s record-breaking partnership was finally brought to an end when Tsolekile, with his score on 141, top-edged a delivery from off-spinner Michael Smith and was caught at mid-off by Rusty Theron.

Left-arm swing bowler Lonwabo Tsotsobe, with 3/95 off 30 overs, and speedster Rusty Theron, with 3/57 off 22 overs, were the only Warriors’ bowlers who had anything to shout about on a day dominated by the batsmen. The Warriors has earlier posted 532 runs in their first innings with Ashwell Prince getting 154 and Botha 97. The Warriors’ next match is against the Diamond Eagles at Buffalo Park, East London on November 19 while the Lions tackle the Nashua Cape Cobras at Newlands in Cape Town a week earlier.

Loots Bosman

Dolphins and Lions fight to a draw
The weather had the last laugh in the SuperSport Series match between the Nashua Dolphins and the Nashua Titans, which ended in a draw at SuperSport Park in Centurion on Sunday. The Dolphins scored 209/4 in their second innings, still needing 82 runs for victory before the contest was called off due to the overcast conditions.

Andrew Hall on 10 and David Miller, who was yet to open his account, were at the crease for the visitors when the umpires called a halt to proceedings. The KwaZulu-Natalians were well placed to pull off a win at 152/2 before quick bowler Morne Morkel trapped Loots Bosman (pictured) lbw for 53 off 125 balls. The hard-hitting Bosman had shared in a third-wicket partnership of 59 with Ahmed Amla, brother of team-mate Hashim, who scored 37.

Amla then departed just one run after Bosman when he was clean bowled by Morkel. Amla’s dismissal opened the door for 20-year-old Cameron Delport to play an enterprising knock of 36 off 32 balls, which put the Durban based team back in the hunt for a win. However, the youngster was forced to retire hurt after being struck on the head by a bouncer from the always-aggressive Dale Steyn, which, together with the inclement weather, ended the Dolphins’ chances of victory.

The home side had begun the day on 187/7, an overall lead of 214 runs, with the visitors in search of quick wickets to give themselves any hope of victory. Morkel (11) and Paul Harris (30 not out) contributed a further 24 runs to the overnight total before the former was trapped lbw by Louw.

However, the Dolphins’ hopes of wrapping up the innings were dashed by a determined ninth-wicket stand between Harris and Steyn who made an unbeaten 26. The pair put on 52 runs off 97 balls before the declaration came just over an hour before lunch, which meant the KwaZulu-Natalians needed 291 runs to win the game. The Titans’ next outing is against the Diamond Eagles in Bloemfontein on November 26, while the Dolphins will face the same team on November 12.

Shuaib Samaai

Cavaliers and Leopards go one up
The Boland Cavaliers and the Platinum Leopards both came away with wins in their respective Absa Currie Cup promotion/relegation matches played on Saturday. In Wellington, the Cavaliers held on to defeat First Division champions, the Pumas, 36-35 at the Boland Stadium while in Potchefstroom, the Leopards survived a spirited challenge from the SWD Eagles to prevail 47-42 at Olen Park.

Both matches featured plenty of entertaining, running rugby with 10 tries being scored in the Wellington game and eleven in the other. The Leopards ran in six tries to the five scored by the Eagles while the Cavaliers and the Pumas shared five apiece.

Scorers
In Wellington
Boland Cavaliers 36 – Tries: Zandré Jordaan (2), Marnus Hugo (pictured), Wendal Wehr, Penalty try. Conversions: Justin Peach (4). Penalty: Peach.
Pumas 35  – Tries: Allistair Kettledas (2), Hyron Thyse, Jacques Coetzee, Jaco Bouwer. Conversions: Braam Pretorius (2). Penalties: Pretorius (2).
In Potchefstroom
Platinum Leopards 47 – Tries: Jovan Bowles (2), Shuaib Samaai (pictured left), Danie Dames, Basil de Doncker, Theo van Wyk. Conversions: Cecil Dumond (4). Penalties: Dumond (3).
SWD Eagles 42 – Tries: Bobby Joubert, Dougie Hellmuth, Jandre’ Blom, Junior Leota, Baldwin McBean. Conversions: Ricardo Croy (3), Blom. Penalties: Croy (3).

Both teams will face each other again this weekend with the Eagles and the Leopards doing battle at the Oteniqua Stadium in George and the Pumas and the Cavaliers squaring off at the Pumas Stadium in Witbank.

Tommy Oosthuizen

Mixed results for SA fighters overseas
Former International Boxing Federation (IBF) heavyweight champion Francois ‘The White Buffalo’ Botha (48-4-2, 28 KO’s) successfully defended his lightly regarded World Boxing Foundation (WBF) heavyweight title against 39-year-old Pedro Carrion (8-2, 6 KO’s) in Dessau, Germany on Saturday night.

The 41-year-old Botha won an unpopular majority decision over the 6’7’ Cuban at the Anhalt Arena with the judges giving the verdict to the South African by scores of 114-110, 115-115 and 114-113. Botha has difficultly landing punches on his much taller opponent, who enjoyed a five inch height advantage over the South African.

The bout proceeded at a slow, mostly uneventful pace and at times resembled nothing but a glorified sparring session. However, given that the combatants had a combined age of 80, this was not surprising. After the bout, Botha said that he injured his right hand in the opening round, which prevented him from throwing meaningful punches. The win kept Botha’s career alive, although, based on his performance on Saturday, he would have little chance of pulling off a win against a legitimate top ten contender – something which Carrion is clearly not.

Meanwhile, at the Agua Caliente Casino in California, USA, Mexican Tomos Rojas successfully defended his interim World Boxing Council (WBC) super flyweight title against South African Evans Mbamba on Saturday night. The 29-year-old Rojas (32-11-1, 22 KO’s) knocked the 28-year-old Mbamba (16-1, 8 KO’s) down once in the third and eleventh rounds to prevail by scores of 119-108 and 117-109 (twice). It was a dominant performance by the highly experienced Rojas who has shared a ring with many top calibre fighters, including the likes of the fearsome punching and legendary Mexican world champion, Jorge Arce.

The loss was a major disappointment for Mbamba, who will now have to return to the drawing board to figure out what went wrong on Saturday night. Rojas, on the other hand, can look forward to a December bout with highly regarded Australian Vic Darchinyan.

In local action, Mfundo Gwayana retained his South African junior flyweight title when he recorded an easy TKO victory over Thabo Sishwane in Mdantsane, East London, on Friday night. Southpaw Gwayana nailed Sishwane with a left cross forcing referee Andile Matika to call a halt to the bout at two min, six secs of the 10th round with the challenger lying face down on the canvas.

Sishwane paid the price for not taking proceedings seriously. He often danced around the ring with his hands by his side instead of focussing on the job at hand and showed a reluctance to fight the champion. It was this lack of focus that allowed Gwayana to land the decisive blow, which ended the fight. The champion improved his record to 11-3-1 (6 KO’s) while the challenger dipped to 6-3 (1 KO) and, based on this performance, did not deserve a shot at a national title.

On the same bill, Tshepo Lefele retained his South African mini-flyweight title when he knocked out Mawanda Sineko in the sixth round. Lefele (16-4, 10 KO’s), was outboxed by Sineko (20-10-2, 7 KO’s) through the first four rounds, but started to rally in the fifth.

Early in the sixth round, Lefele staggered Sineko with a right to the head and then sent the challenger crashing to the canvas with a vicious right to the jaw prompting referee Allen Matakane to call a halt to proceedings at 2:35 of the round. It was Lefele’s second successful defence of the title he won from Gideon Buthelezi in September last year.

There’s going to be plenty of action for fight fans to feast their eyes on this weekend when former International Boxing Organisation (IBO) junior lightweight champion Zolani Marali (20-3, 13 KO’s) squares off against current WBF lightweight champion Mlungisi Dlamini (20-0-1, 12 KO’s) for the IBO lightweight belt. Marali and Dlamini will clash for the vacant title at Emperors Palace, Kempton Park, on Saturday night in a tournament promoted by Golden Gloves.

On the same bill, undefeated Tommy ‘Tommy Gun’ Oosthuizen (pictured right) will swap leather with Tshepang Mohale (7-2, 6 KO’s) in a super middleweight bout, while Malawian Isaac Chilembe (13-1, 8 KO’s) will do battle with Frenchman Doudou Ngumbu (20-0, 9 KO’s) in a contest for the WBC International light-heavyweight title.

Rene Kalmer

South African athletes excel in England
South African half-marathon and 10km champion Stephen Mokoka finished second behind Britain’s Mo Farah in Sunday’s Great South Run in Portsmouth, England. Farah spent much of the race duelling with the South African, but held on to break the tape in 46 minutes and 25 seconds for the 16.09km course. Mokoka, who has had an excellent season and was the country’s top finisher at the World Half-Marathon Championships in Birmingham earlier this month, finished just a second behind Farah.

South Africans Rene Kalmer (pictured) and Tanith Maxwell finished fourth and 13th respectively in the women’s race, which was won by Ines Monteiro of Portugal, who clocked 52:32. Ana Felix was second in 53:58 with Australian Benita Willis third in 54:41. Kalmer was a further 30 seconds behind, finishing in 55:11 and one position ahead of former world marathon champion Catherine Ndereba.

Maxwell started quickly and covered the first 5km in 17:22, but she was unable to maintain the torrid pace and had to be content with a modest 58:58. South Africans have a good track record in the event, which was won by Gert Thys in 2000 and Hendrick Ramaala in 2004.

The New York City Marathon will be taking place over the weekend and Ramaala, currently South Africa’s leading distance runner, is expecting a tough challenge from Martin Lel when the 37-year-old lines up at the starting line on Sunday.

Lel hasn’t run a marathon since winning the London race in April 2008, but the 31-year-old is a class act and Ramaala won’t be underestimating the Kenyan who won the New York event in 2003 and 2007, and has three London Marathon titles to his credit.

But Lel won’t be the South African’s only major opposition. Ramaala will be up against the likes of Robert Kipkoech Cheruiyot, a four times Boston marathon champion and former Chicago Marathon winner, Olympic silver medallist and twice world champion Jaouad Gharib of Morocco, defending champion Marilson Gomes dos Santos of Brazil and Kenyan Patrick Makau, the second fastest half-marathon runner in history.

Ramaala, who leaves for New York on Wednesday, has been in top form this year, finishing fifth in London in April in his second fastest time of two hours, seven minutes and 44 seconds and hopes to reproduce his New York performances from 2004, when he won the race, and 2005 when he finished second.

Fekken & Arries

VW pair clinch rally title
Reigning South African rally champions Hergen Fekken and Pierre Arries (pictured) successfully defended their titles on the Toyota Dealer Rally that ended near Bapsfontein on Saturday. The pair steered their Class S2000 BP Volkswagen Polo into second position on the season-ending rally, which was won by team-mates Enzo Kuun and Guy Hodgson in 1 hour, 43 mins and 35.9 seconds, with Fekken and Aries just 24.6 seconds adrift.

At the start of the rally only one point separated Fekken and Arries and the Toyota Castrol Auris team of Johnny Gemmell and Peter Marsh. The Toyota crew needed to finish ahead of Fekken and Aries to score their maiden SA National Rally Championship titles, but this was not to be as the Auris’ engine blew up on Saturday morning, ending a season-long challenge.

The event lost some of its allure once it became evident that there would be no stopping Fekken and Arries from winning their second consecutive national championship. Rookie national championship driver, Tjaart Coetzee (Midas Subaru) and his co-driver Etienne Lourens triumphed in Class N4. It was Coetzee’s first class win on a national rally.

Lindani Ndwandwe

Lindani lands Highveld Classic after playoff
Lindani Ndwandwe (pictured) won his second Sunshine Tour title on Sunday when he beat Alex Haindl on the opening hole of a sudden-death playoff at the R500 000 Highveld Classic at Witbank Golf Club.

The duo finished on 19-under-par 197 for the 54-hole tournament only for Ndwandwe to triumph in the playoff by birdying the 18th as opposed to Haindl who could only manage par. Ndwandwe’s previous victory came in the 2002 Western Cape Classic, so it was a long wait for the tall Durban Country Club professional.

After making just one bogey in his opening two rounds on his way to 16-under ahead of the final round, Ndwandwe dropped two shots in his final nine to allow the fast closing Haindl to force the playoff.

Top 12 finishers (South African unless stated)
197 – Lindani Ndwandwe 62 66 69
197 – Alex Haindl 63 67 67
198 – Doug McGuigan 65 69 64
199 – Alan McLean (SCO) 68 66 65
201 – Brandon Pieters 66 69 66
202 – Jacques Blaauw 65 71 66, Darren Fichardt 68 68 66, Ulrich van den Berg 65 70 67, Warren Abery 68 67 67, Neil Cheetham (ENG) 67 67 68, Grant Muller 66 68 68, Trevor Fisher Jnr 69 64 69

The next tournament on this year’s Sunshine Tour is the R705 000 Platinum Classic which will be held at Mooinooi Golf Club from Thursday till Saturday.

Photo Credits:
Arrows shoot down hapless Ajax – Photo – Joseph Henyekane: Source – www.mtn8.mtnfootball.com
PSL season hots up – Photo – Kaizer Chiefs: Source – www.ru.oleole.com
Safa replace one Brazilian with another – Photo – Carlos Alberto Parreira: Source – www.cosafa.com
Brilliant Bravo blasts Cobras – Photo – JP Duminy: Source – www.cricketworld.com
Triple ton Cook gets into the record books – Photo – Stephen Cook: Source – www.cricinfo.com
Dolphins and Lions fight to a draw – Photo – Loots Bosman: Source – www.mysportsblog.wordpress.com
Cavaliers and Leopards go one up – Photo – Shuaib Samaai: Source – www.daylife.com
Mixed results for SA fighters overseas – Photo – Tommy Oosthuizen: Source – www.flickr.com
SA athletes excel in England – Photo – Rene Kalmer: Source – www.chasingglory.org
VW pair clinch rally title – Photo – Hergen Fekken and Pierre Arries: Source – www.quickpic.co.za
Lindani lands Highveld Classic after playoff – Photo – Lindani Ndwandwe: Source – www.flickr.com

Useful Links:
South Africa 2010 World Cup
South Africa 2010 Stadiums
South Africa Accommodation

Jacques-Louis Potgieter

Cheetahs stun Sharks in Durban
Cometh the hour cometh the man and that man was none other than Free State Cheetahs flyhalf Jacques-Louis Potgieter (pictured) who slotted a last minute drop goal against the Sharks at the Absa Stadium in Durban on Saturday, to book his side a place in the 2009 Absa Currie Cup Premier Division Final.

Potgieter’s stroke of genius spelt doom for the Sharks who were leading 19-18 with just one minute to go. However, a solid scrum by the Cheetahs set the platform for Potgieter to deliver the killer blow and ensure an excellent 23-21 win for the visitors. It was a devastating blow for the Sharks and their loyal supporters who had a great season with 12 wins from 14 league outings.

However, the Cheetahs, heavy underdogs going in the match given that they were up against a team in top form and packed with Springboks, never read the script and fought like Trojans to send the home side tumbling out of the competition. Their hero on the day was undoubtedly the 25-year-old Potgieter, who contributed 18 points via a try, four conversions, two penalties and that excellent snap drop which killed off the Sharks.

The match was an ill-tempered affair that was played in a cauldron like atmosphere despite the overcast and wet conditions. At times things looked like they were going to get completely out of hand. However, no punches were thrown and referee Marius Jonker managed to maintain law and order although he endured regular boos from the home crowd for heavily penalising the Sharks at the breakdowns.

The Cheetahs made their intentions clear right from the kickoff, applying plenty of pressure, which resulted in numerous errors from the KwaZulu-Natalians. Potgieter opened the scoring with a penalty after Sharks lock Johann Muller was penalised by Jonker. However, the home side replied with an excellent try from the evergreen Stefan Terblanche who pounced on a chip ahead from wing Odwa Ndungane. Scrumhalf Ruan Pienaar fluffed the conversion, but the Sharks were ahead 5-3 and looking threatening.

However, stiff resistance from the Cheetahs in the form of their excellent and determined pack of forwards, hampered the Sharks’ progress. Prop WP Nel was outstanding and put huge pressure on Beast Mtawarira, out-scrumming the Sharks powerhouse on numerous occasions. However, despite gaining the ascendancy in the scrums, the Cheetahs failed to convert their advantage into points as Potgieter missed penalties in the 18th and 22nd minutes.

Pienaar put the Sharks 8-3 ahead in the 37th minute with a well-taken penalty, following which the home side scored their second try on the stroke of halftime after a sniping run by left wing JP Pietersen, who spun a pass to flank Jacques Botes, who in turn threw a long pass in field to the hard running Pienaar who went over for a brilliant team try. The Sharks No 9 converted his own try to put the home side 15-3 in front at the break.

However, if the Sharks thought the stuffing had been knocked out of the Cheetahs they were seriously mistaken as the visitors staged a determined fight back. After Sharks No 10 Juan Hernandez had struck a drop goal to stretch their lead to 18-6, the Cheetahs rallied with tries from Nel in the 45th minute and Potgieter 14 minutes later to grab a 20-18 lead with 20 minutes to go. Pienaar put the Sharks back in front with a penalty to make it 21-20 only for Potgieter to land the finishing blow to book the Cheetahs a place in the final.

“We showed a lot of character in this match and that pulled us through,” said Cheetahs captain Nico Breedt. Indeed, the Cheetahs fought tenaciously against their more fancied rivals and it paid off as the Sharks had their defences breached twice to set the stage for Potgieter’s knockout punch.

Scorers
Sharks 21 – Tries: Stefan Terblanche, Ruan Pienaar. Conversion: Pienaar. Penalties: Pienaar (2). Drop goal: Juan Hernandez.
Cheetahs 23 – Tries: WP Nel, Jacques-Louis Potgieter. Conversions: Potgieter (2). Penalties: Potgieter (2). Drop goal: Potgieter.

Morné Steyn

Bulls scrape home against fiery Province
The Blue Bulls survived a spirited fight back from Western Province at Newlands in Cape Town on Saturday to qualify for the 2009 Absa Currie Cup Premier Division final. Victor Matfield’s men prevailed 21-19 in a pulsating semi-final encounter with the verdict only being decided after Morné ‘Superman’ Steyn (pictured) landed his seventh penalty from as many attempts to secure the win for the visitors.

It was another brilliant display of place kicking from the 25-year-old Steyn who undoubtedly has the deadliest boot in world rugby. Not only did Steyn notch up a perfect goal-kicking record on the day, he was also solid in defence and his tactical play was outstanding. Without him, the Bulls would definitely have been beaten on Saturday, after Province produced one of their best ever Currie Cup performances against their more fancied rivals from Pretoria.

The home side were 19-18 ahead with just three minutes remaining and looked like they were going to get the win, but a high tackle from substitute winger Sireli Naqelevuki on Jaco Pretorius cost his side a penalty from just inside their half and near to the right touchline. It was the type of kick that would have intimidated most goal kickers, but Steyn is in a class of his own as a place kicker and judged his strike to perfection to put his side up 21-19 with two minutes to go. The Bulls then held on for victory and a place in the final against the Cheetahs at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria on October 31.

Despite the banishing of Bakkies Botha to the sin bin in the opening minute for dangerous play, the Bulls made a solid start to the game going up 6-0 after two minutes courtesy of two well-taken penalties by Steyn. Province tried to recover from their bad start but they were unable to penetrate the rock solid Bulls defence and some aimless punts from flyhalf Peter Grant, scrumhalf Dewaldt Duvenhage and fullback Joe Pietersen didn’t help their cause.

Steyn doubled his side’s lead after 18 minutes with two further penalties and the visitors were sitting pretty at 12-0 to the good with 11 minutes left in the opening half. However, Pietersen slotted a penalty after Province took play up to the fringes of the Bulls’ 22m area to reduce the deficit to nine points.

Putting points on the board seemed to energise Province, who finished the half strongly and looked like scoring a try for the first time in the match after taking the ball through several phases. However, the Bulls defence held firm to deny the home side a much needed try although the diminutive Pietersen did mange to slot another penalty to close the gap to six points on the stroke of half-time.

Province came out smoking at the start of the second 40 minutes and tried desperately to find a way over their opponents’ tryline only to have their efforts thwarted by the resolute Bulls defence. But Pietersen was able to land another penalty for the home side to make it 12-9 to the Bulls after 50 minutes.

Steyn then tried to put a damper on Province’s spirits by banging over another penalty in the 56th minute, but the Capetonians were having none of it. Nippy wing Gio Aplon threw a cat among the pigeons two minutes later when he outpaced the Bulls’ cover defence to dive onto a through kick to score a brilliant try. Pietersen added the conversion to put Province 16-15 in front only for the ever-consistent Steyn to slot his sixth penalty of the match to put the visitors back in the lead.

However, if the Bulls thought Province were simply going to lie down and die, they were sadly mistaken as Pietersen stroked over a 68th minute penalty to give the home side a 19-18 lead. With 12 minutes to play it was anyone’s game and just when it seemed like time was running out for the visitors, Naqelevuki’s blunder provided Steyn with the opportunity to win the match for the Bulls.

It was a desperately disappointing loss for Province who came within a whisker of pulling off a major upset against the men from Pretoria, but it was not to be as Steyn sealed their fate with his deadly accurate placekicking. “Well done to Province for putting up a great performance, it must have been hard for them to loose after getting so close, but Morné (Steyn) kicked one hundred percent to see us home,” said an elated Matfield.

The Bulls will go into the final against the Cheetahs as clear favourites given their greater experience and home ground advantage, but the plucky Free Staters can never be discounted, as they proved against the Sharks in the earlier semi-final.  Indeed, if the Cheetahs can reproduce the type of form they demonstrated in Durban on Saturday, the Bulls will need to be at the top of their game to win. It should be a fascinating contest in the cauldron that is Loftus Versfeld. I can’t wait.

Scorers
Western Province 19 – Try: Gio Aplon. Conversion: Joe Pietersen. Penalties: Pietersen (4).
Bulls 21 – Penalties: Morné Steyn (7)

Meanwhile, the Pumas were crowned 2009 Absa Currie Cup First Division champions on Friday when they defeated the SWD Eagles 47-19 in Witbank. The Pumas outscored the Eagles by six tries to one in a very one-sided final.

Scorers
Pumas 47 – Tries: Hannes Franklin (2), Ronnie Uys, Allistair Kettledas (2), Ashwin Scott. Conversions: Braam Pretorius (4). Penalties: Pretorius (2). Drop goal: Valentine van Wyk.
Eagles 19 – Try: Norman Nelson. Conversion: Gaffie du Toit. Penalties: Ricardo Croy (3), Du Toit.

Erwin Isaacs

Bucs suffer first defeat
Santos handed Orlando Pirates their first loss of the 2009/10 Premier Soccer League (PSL) season when they defeated their more fancied opponents 1-0 at the Orlando Stadium on Saturday evening. Erwin Isaacs’ first half strike was enough to ensure victory for the People’s Team in a hard fought encounter between two well-matched teams.

Both sides concentrated on defence rather than attack in the early going, which made for a rather dull opening 30 minutes. However, things started to liven up a little after that with both teams having opportunities to score only for poor finishing to let them down. However, Isaacs (pictured) eventually broke the deadlock in the 44th minute after latching onto a cross from Phikolethu Spelman to steer the ball past Pirates goalkeeper Moeneeb Josephs. The Buccaneers tried their utmost to score an equaliser, but Santos ‘keeper Tshepo Motsoeneng was up to the challenge and pulled off a number of excellent saves to deny the home side a goal.

Santos will be very satisfied with their win and will go into today’s fixture against Free State Stars as clear favourites. Pirates play log leaders SuperSport United and are likely to face an uphill battle against a side brimming with confidence after their 5-0 hammering of Black Aces over the weekend.

Results (left to right)
Free State Stars 0         Platinum Stars 1
Black Aces 0             SuperSport Utd 5
Mamelodi Sundowns 2         Kaizer Chiefs 2
Golden Arrows 3             Bidvest Wits 3
Jomo Cosmos 1             AmaZulu 1
Orlando Pirates 0         Santos 1
Ajax Cape Town 1         Bloem Celtic 0
Moroka Swallows 2         Maritzburg Utd 0

Fixtures (left to right)
Today
Santos         vs     Free State Stars
Bidvest Wits     vs     Black Aces
SuperSport Utd     vs     Orlando Pirates
Bloem Celtic     vs     Mamelodi Sundowns
Kaizer Chiefs     vs     Moroka Swallows
Maritzburg Utd     vs     Jomo Cosmos
MTN8 final

Saturday
Golden Arrows vs Ajax Cape Town  (Orlando Stadium – 8.15pm)

Meanwhile, the South African Football Association (SAFA) has decided to axe Bafana Bafana coach Joel Santana following the Brazilian’s dismal record this year. Under Santana’s tutorship, Bafana not only failed to qualify for the 2010 African Nations Cup, but have also slumped to eight defeats in their last nine outings – a most embarrassing record considering the 2010 Fifa World Cup is only eight months away.

Santana’s assistants Pitso Mosimane and Jairo Leal have been appointed caretaker coaches until a suitable candidate has been identified to lead the country to the World Cup. Let’s hope they choose wisely as time is rapidly running out for Bafana to get ready for next year’s international showpiece.

Rilee Rossouw

Brilliant Rilee can’t save Eagles
A whirlwind knock of 44 runs off just 19 balls from opener Rilee Rossouw (pictured) was not enough to save the Diamond Eagles from defeat against Trinadad and Tobago in their Champions League Twenty20 encounter at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on Sunday. The loss means the Eagles will take no further part in the competition while Trinadad and Tobago will now advance to the semi-finals.

Batting first, Trinidad and Tobago posted a tournament high of 213/4 with opener Adrian Barath top scoring with a quick fire 63 off just 41 balls. William Perkins (35 off 25), Lendl Simmons (40 off 25), Kieron Pollard (23 off 13) and Navin Stewart (33 off 11) all weighed in with useful contributions to help the their side to an impressive total. The Eagles’ bowlers all suffered, with only seamer Ryan McLaren having anything to shout home about with 1/29 off four overs.

In reply, the Eagles could only muster 189/5 with Rossouw, Morne van Wyk (25 off 14), Dillion du Preez, (35 off 41) and Boeta Dippenaar (33 off 19) getting among the runs. Sherwin Ganga and Kieron Pollard were the destroyers in chief, each grabbing 2/25 off three overs. Despite their defeat, the Eagles can hold their heads up high as they did very well in reaching the quarter-final stages.

Henry Davids

Henry hammers hapless Victoria
A superb unbeaten knock of 69 off 54 balls from Henry Davids (pictured) helped the Cape Cobras to a comfortable eight wicket victory over Victoria in their B league Champions League Twenty20 match at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore on Saturday.

Davids notched up seven fours and two sixes in his innings to steer the Cobras past Victoria’s score of 125/5. Davids was involved in a third wicket partnership of 88 off 69 balls with JP Duminy (18 off 23), which propelled the Cobras to 129/2 off 16 overs. The Cape franchise got off to a flying start courtesy of a superb 29 off 15 balls from stand-in opening batsmen Derek Brand.

Victoria’s innings never got going with wickets falling at regular intervals. Speedster Monde Zondi wrecked havoc early on by dismissing openers Rob Quiney and Brad Hodge for ducks in the space of just three balls. Aiden Blizzard (22 off 16 balls), David Hussey (19 off 22), Cameron White (24 off 30), Andrew McDonald (29 not out off 22) and Matthew Wade (18 not out off 10) kept the scoreboard ticking, but in the end Victoria were at least 15 runs short of posting a score that would have threatened the Cobras.

Zondeki was the pick of the Cobras’ bowlers with 2/21 off four overs while veteran Claude Henderson was very economical with 0/19, also off four overs. The Cobras’ win means that the Cape franchise will now play Trindad and Tobago in the semi-finals of the competition tomorrow. The match was reduced from 20 to 17 overs as a result of a bomb scare and security concerns in the stadium.

Johan Botha

Botha blasts Dolphins
The Chevrolet Warriors ascended to the top of the SuperSport Series log after defeating the Nashua Dolphins by 43 runs at St George’s Park in Port Elizabeth on Sunday. The Dolphins, chasing 282 for victory, were bowled out for 238 in their second innings on the final day of the match with Johan Botha (pictured) the destroyer in chief with 4/69 off 23 overs. Botha was well supported by flame-haired speedster Rusty Theron who grabbed 3/32 off 15.1 overs.

The KwaZulu-Natalians started the final day needing a further 48 runs for victory after resuming on 234/7, but only added four runs to their overnight total as Theron mopped up the tale with three quick wickets. Botha was named man of the match for scoring his maiden first-class century to help his side to their 281 lead on Saturday morning.

The all rounder scored 109 runs off 150 balls and shared a tenth-wicket partnership of 78 with Makhaya Ntini (16 not out) to boost the Warriors to 254 all out in their second innings. The Warriors had earlier scored 174 all out in their first innings to which the Dolphins replied with 147 all out. The Warriors next clash is against the bizhub Highveld Lions at Buffalo Park in East London tomorrow while the Dolphins host the Nashua Cape Cobras at Kingsmead in Durban.

All the teams in the competition have played just two games thus far and it is the Warriors who top the standings with 22.98 points closing followed by the Diamond Eagles (22.48) and the Nashua Titans (21.72). The Lions (16.10), Nashua Cape Cobras (11.14) and Nashua Dolphins (10.66) are in fourth, fifth and sixth position respectively.

Meanwhile, Cricket South Africa (CSA) has announced that the SuperSport Series match between the Nashua Titans and the Warriors will be replayed at St George’s Park from November 12-15. The CSA announced the decision on Thursday after they had carried out a detailed examination of the circumstances surrounding the abandonment of the original fixture at Willowmoore Park on October 8. The decision was reached after considering written submissions from the team captains, the match officials, the groundsman and the CSA grounds consultant.

Francois Botha

‘White Buffalo’ to take on Cuban giant
Former International Boxing Federation (IBF) heavyweight champion Francois ‘The White Buffalo’ Botha (pictured hitting the deck against ‘Iron’ Mike Tyson in their January 1999 bout in Las Vegas) will defend his World Boxing Foundation (WBF) heavyweight title against Cuban challenger Pedro Carrion (8-1, 6 KO’s) in Desau, Germany on Saturday evening. The South African will be making the third defence of the title he won by defeating Australian journeyman Bob Mirovic on points in July 2007.

Although clearly at the tale end of his career, the 41-year-old Botha (47-4-2, 28 KO’s) should still have enough gas left in the tank to take care of nine-fight novice Carrion who got a late start to professional boxing after a long amateur career. The 39-year-old Cuban hasn’t beaten anyone of note as a professional and how he managed to earn a title shot against Botha is a mystery. Nevertheless, any man who stands 6’7’ tall and weighs in at around 120kg cannot be taken lightly and Botha will be wise to keep his hands up and his chin down against the huge Cuban.

Indeed, the 6’2’ Botha, who normally weighs in at around 115kg these days, is undoubtedly the smaller man, but his greater experience should see him through against Carrion, who turned professional at the advanced age of 36, effectively nullifying his chances of making a significant impact on the world scene.

Botha is an accomplished fighter, having shared a ring with the likes of former world champions Michael Moorer (L TKO 12), Tyson (L KO 5), Shannon Briggs (D 10), Lennox Lewis (L TKO 2) and Wladimer Klitschko (L TKO 8). Granted, Botha never won any of those fights, but he is a high profile fighter that shared the ring with two living legends in the form of Tyson and Lewis and arguably one of the best heavyweights active today in the guise of current World Boxing Organisation (WBO), International Boxing Organisation (IBO) and IBF champion Klitschko.

The South African briefly held the IBF title in 1995 when he defeated Germany’s Axel Schulz on points in Stuttgart, but was stripped of that belt when he tested positive for steroids. He then went onto to challenge Moorer for the IBF title in November 1996, but was brutally stopped in the 12th round after putting up a tremendously brave effort against the hard-hitting American. Subsequent fights against the likes of Tyson, Briggs, Lewis and Klitschko kept Botha in the limelight, but he faded into obscurity after fighting to a draw against lightly regarded American Clifford Etienne in July 2002.

Botha returned to the ring against Mirovic after a five year absence from boxing and followed up that win with further victories against Ron Guerrero (W 12) and the capable Timo Hoffmann (W 12) to set the stage for Saturday’s fight against the unheralded Carrion.

Syrian Manuel Charr beat the Cuban on points in his third professional fight and although Carrion has won his last six bouts, the quality of his opposition has been questionable. Indeed, it would undoubtedly be a major surprise if he could pull off a win against the vastly more experienced Botha, who will be looking to win impressively to keep his hopes of securing one more big pay day alive.

Cameron van der Burgh

Van der Burgh wins in Durban
Powerfully built Cameron van der Burgh won the 100 metres breaststroke in a championship record of 56.60 seconds on the second day of the FINA / ARENA Swimming World Cup at the Kings Park Aquatic Centre in Durban on Saturday evening.

Roland Schoeman beat the 21-year-old Van der Bergh, who entered the competition as the 50m and 100m short course record holder, in the 50m final on the first day of the meet. However, the defeat motivated Van der Burgh to give a better account of himself in the 100m final, which he did by bettering his own record of 56.88 set in Moscow, Russia, in November last year.

The Pretoria born Van der Burgh is trained by Japanese breaststroke coach Norimasa Hirai and his strong performances in Durban have encouraged him to do even better for the remainder of the World Cup series. The next rounds of the championship are in Moscow (November 6-7), Stockholm, Sweden (November 10-11), Berlin, Germany (November 14-15) and Singapore (November 21-22).

Sheridan Morais

Thrills and spills abound in Kyalami extravaganza
There was plenty of drama at a wet Kyalami on Saturday in the WesBank Super Series finale, with a number of championships going down to the wire. On a day full of outstanding performances it was ultimately Sheridan Morais (pictured) and veterans Hennie Groenewald and Anthony Taylor who walked away with title honours.

Morais made South African motorsport history while Groenewald and Taylor were involved in nail-biting championship finishes. By winning the first heat of the Interfile SA Superbike championship, Morais became the first rider to win both the SA Superbike and Supersport championships in the same season.

The diminutive Emtek Kawasaki rider had already wrapped up the Supersport title earlier in the season, setting a world record of 13 victories in a row in the process. Going into the final meeting, Morais held a 24-point lead over veteran Lance Isaacs (PS Honda), who was the only other rider who had a mathematical chance of winning the championship. However, Morais put the issue beyond doubt with a brilliant ride that earned him the win, and the title, ahead of the hard chasing Isaacs.

With the championship settled, race officials decided to cancel the second Superbike race when a torrential downpour made conditions too dangerous for the riders. Morais decided not to compete in the Supersport races with the wins going to Clinton Seller and Ronan Quarmby.

In the closest possible finish to a championship, Anthony Taylor (Afrox BMW 330) won the Bridgestone Production Car title on a count-back from defending champion Johan Fourie (Indy Audi A4). Fourie arrived at Kyalami with a nine-point lead, but a terrible first heat squashed the Cape driver’s chances of victory.

Taylor came second behind Melville Priest (VMP Audi A4), with team-mate Robert Wolk third, to take a two-point lead into the final race. A wet track and persistent drizzle put Taylor, in his two-wheel-drive BMW, at a distinct disadvantage against the four-wheel-drive Audi’s and Subaru’s. Dawie Olivier (Sasol Subaru) drove a faultless race to romp to victory ahead of Leeroy Poulter (GP Nissan 350Z) while Fourie was third, Shawn Watson-Smith (Xtreme Audi) fourth and Taylor fifth.

The overall result was a tie on points between Fourie and Taylor who both picked up three wins during the course of the season. However, the title was awarded to Taylor, who finished the season with five second places to Fourie’s three.

There was also a dramatic end to the Class T championship. Gary Formato (Nando’s Ford Focus) began the day one point ahead of archrival Graeme Nathan in his Indy VW Golf Gti, but the VW driver won the first heat to gain the advantage. However, the second race proved disastrous for Nathan after a collision ended his race on lap one, which paved the way for Formato to win the race and the title.

There was yet more drama to come when Groenewald, who looked to be out of the running at the halfway mark of the season, made a tremendous comeback to win his fourth successive WesBank V8 Supercar championship. Young Marc Auby led the championship by five points going into the Kyalami shootout, but Groenewald (Timken Jaguar) drove superbly to win the first heat, in wet conditions, from Auby and his younger brother, Brandon, both driving ELT Jaguars.

The second heat took place in appalling conditions, but that didn’t stop Groenewald from producing a sterling performance to move from ninth on the grid to first at the end of the opening lap. However, the veteran campaigner then experienced tyre problems allowing the Auby’s to catch up, but Marc spun two laps from the end causing him to drop to third behind Brandon. That sealed the championship for Groenewald who won three of the last four races to edge past Marc in the points standings.

The final championship to be decided on the day saw Mathew Hodges take the Engen VW Polo Cup title ahead of the hard working Gennaro Bonafede. A win in the opening race and a third place in the second race were sufficient to see Hodges (PG Glass) edge out Bonafede (Champion) and his team-mate Devin Robertson in the championship stakes. It was a fitting end to a great day’s racing which, despite the atrocious conditions, proved very entertaining for the few spectators who braved the inclement weather.

Arran Brown

Arran aces Amashovashova
Team Medscheme rider Arran Brown (pictured) edged out team-mate Malcolm Lange and MTN rider Christoff van Heerden in a sprint finish to win the MTN Amashovashova National Cycle Classic in Durban on Sunday. The 24-year-old Brown, who hails from Johannesburg, crossed the line a time of two hours, 19 minutes and 53 seconds while Lange and Van Heerden were credited with the same time in the 106km race between Pietermaritzburg and Durban.

Swedish rider Jennie Stenerhag out sprinted MTN riders Lynette Burger and Marissa van der Merwe to win The Elite Women’s race in 2:44:53. Brown, who is only in his third year as a professional, has now set his sights on winning the Pick n Pay 94,7 Cycle Challenge in Johannesburg on November 15.

There was a chaotic ending to Sunday’s race when the motorcycle with the TV cameraman on board rode over the timing pads on the finish line causing one of the pads to spring up into the path of the leading riders. The first seven riders managed to avoid the mat, but four others were sent hurtling through the air when their front wheels slammed into the pad causing them to lose control of their bikes.

South African road champion Jamie Ball (Team House of Paint) was taken to hospital with suspected back and neck injuries; African Road Champion Dan Carven of Namibia sustained a broken collarbone; Shaun Ward suffered a broken elbow; and Dennis van Niekerk’s bike was totally destroyed.

Ball was later discharged from hospital after scans and X-Rays revealed no fractures, but according to House of Paint team captain Dean Edwards, he was still in a great deal of pain and battling to walk. It was subsequently revealed that the timing pads were not taped down and although no one was seriously injured or killed in the incident, an investigation should surely be conducted as to why this was not done.

Jacques Blaauw

Canadian wins at Glendower
Canadian Graham DeLaet won his maiden Sunshine Tour event with a one-stroke victory in the 54-hole R500 000 BMG Classic, which finished on Sunday. DeLaet recorded a third-round 69 at the 6 914m par-72 Glendower Golf Club to finish on 11-under-par 205 ahead of England’s Jeff Inglis in second place. It was the Canadian’s fifth tournament in South Africa, having finished 12th in the Joburg Open, 12th in the Africa Open, second in the Vodacom Championship and second in the Telkom PGA Championship before his victory on Sunday.

Inglis scythed his way through the field with a final round of eight-under 64, recording eight birdies along the way, but it was not enough to deny DeLaet victory.  Third place was shared by Jacques Blaauw (pictured), Louis de Jager and Brandon Pieters. The 22-year-old Blaauw had a chance to snatch victory, but a double bogey on the 18th saw him slide back to nine-under for the tournament – a pity after a brilliant run of six consecutive birdies from the sixth to the 11th. Defending champion Doug McGuigan finished with a 69 to secure a share of seventh with Trevor Fisher Jnr.

Top eight finishers (RSA unless specified)
205 – Graham DeLaet (CAN) 68 69 68
206 – Jeff Inglis (ENG) 73 69 64
207 – Louis de Jager 65 76 66, Jacques Blaauw 70 71 66, Brandon Pieters
68 69 70
208 – Neil Cheetham (ENG) 72 66 70
209 – Trevor Fisher Jnr 69 72 68, Doug McGuigan 68 72 69

The next tournament on the Sunshine Tour is the R600 000 Highveld Classic, which will be held at the Witbank Golf Club from October 23-25. Defending champion James Kamte, who finished six shots off the pace at the BMG Classic, will be hoping to reproduce the kind of form that saw him lift the title last season.

Photo Credits:
Cheetahs stun Sharks in Durban – Photo – Jacques-Louis Potgieter: Source – www.zimbio.com
Bulls scrape home against fiery Province – Photo – Morné Steyn: Source – www.sport24.co.za
Bucs suffer first defeat – Photo – Erwin Isaacs: Source – www.sport24.co.za
Brilliant Rilee can’t save Eagles – Photo – Rilee Rossouw: Source – www.ditsem.net
Henry hammers hapless Victoria – Photo – Henry Davids: Source – www.sport24.co.za
Botha blasts Dolphins – Photo – Johan Botha: Source – www.beerandsport.net
‘White Buffalo’ to take on Cuban giant – Photo – Francois Botha: Source – www.upi.com
Van der Burgh wins in Durban – Photo – Cameron van der Burgh: Source – www.swimnetwork.com
Thrills and spills abound in Kyalami extravaganza – Photo – Sheridan Morais: Source – www.quickpic.co.za
Arran aces Amashovashova – Photo – Arran Brown: Source – www.m.zoopy.com
Canadian wins at Glendower – Photo – Jacques Blaauw: Source – www.compleatgolfer.co.za

Useful Links:
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South Africa Accommodation

Stefan Terblanche

Sharks to face Cheetahs in semis
The Sharks managed to overcome a spirited effort by Griquas in their final league match of the season to qualify for the 2009 Absa Currie Cup Premier Division semi-finals when they defeated the diamond miners 45-30 at GWK Park in Kimberley on Saturday afternoon.

The KwaZulu-Natalians outscored their opponents by seven tries to four and deserved their win, but will have to tighten up their defence considerably if they hope to prevail in Saturday’s semi-final against the resurgent Cheetahs at the Absa Stadium in Durban. The Sharks missed 25 tackles against Griquas and conceded some soft tries with some of their defenders showing a distinct lack of commitment. Griquas centre Barry Geel exploited these defensive frailties to grab a hat trick of tries with Sarel Pretorius adding another to ensure a bonus point for the home team …

However, the diamond miners needed to finish within seven points to secure another bonus point in order to qualify for the semi-finals after the Cheetahs had thumped Boland 55-10 in Wellington. They were unable to do so, going down by 15 points despite putting up a credible performance against their more fancied opponents. Griquas did in fact finish with the same number of league and bonus points as the Cheetahs after 14 matches, but the Cheetahs’ superior points difference enabled them to get through despite a terrible start to the season which saw the lose their opening four matches.

Defensive frailties aside, there were a number of positives for the Sharks to take away from their match against Griquas. The KwaZulu-Natalians were superb on attack, with the cohesion between backs and forwards particularly impressive. Fullback and captain Stefan Terblanche (pictured), scrumhalf Ruan Pienaar, wing JP Pietersen, hooker Bismarck du Plessis, eighth-man Ryan Kankowski and reserve hooker Craig Burden, who scored twice, all crossed the Griquas tryline, with Pienaar converting five of the tries for a personally tally of 15 points.

The Sharks had the better of the scrums and secured more possession than their opponents, and seemed able to turn up the heat and score whenever they pleased. In fact, with the exception of their leaky defence and scrappy lineout work, it was a convincing performance by the KwaZulu-Natalians who were never really in danger of losing the match.

Pienaar’s performance was particularly encouraging for the Sharks as the Springbok utility back had been entrusted with the kicking duties ahead of flyhalf Juan Hernandez. The elusive scrumhalf did not disappoint his backers by proving he can get the ball through the uprights if he puts his mind to it. Pienaar’s performance with the boot will also be encouraging for Springbok coach Pieter de Villiers, who now has additional options for his team’s end of the year tour of Europe and Great Britain.

Sharks coach John Plumtree will be a happy man going into Saturday’s semi-final against the Cheetahs who, despite a recent resurgence which has seen them win eight of their last 10 matches, must start as underdogs against the Sharks. The KwaZulu-Natalians defeated the Cheetahs in both of their league encounters this season and on paper are clearly the better team, however they will have to tighten up their defence considerably against the Free Staters who possess a lot of firepower on attack with the likes of Fabian Juries, Jongi Nokwe and Lionel Mapoe proving a headache for even the best defenders.

Whatever happens at the Absa Stadium on Saturday afternoon, one can be assured that the contest will be an enthralling one with no quarter asked or given. The prize for the winner will be a place in the Currie Cup final and no one can ask for a bigger incentive than that. The Sharks, with 12 wins from 14 starts this season, an arsenal of experienced Springboks and vitally important home ground advantage must start as clear favourites, but the Cheetahs with their never say die attitude are always dangerous and can never be discounted. It should be a fascinating contest.

Scorers
Griquas versus Sharks
Griquas 30 – Tries: Barry Geel (3), Sarel Pretorius. Conversions: Naas Olivier (2). Penalty: Riaan Viljoen. Drop Goal: Viljoen.
Sharks 45 – Tries: Stefan Terblanche, Ruan Pienaar, JP Pietersen, Bismarck du Plessis, Craig Burden (2), Ryan Kankowski. Conversions: Pienaar (5).

Boland versus Free State
Boland 10 – Try: Danré Gerber. Conversion: Gerber. Penalty: Gerber.
Free State 55 – Tries: Heinrich Brussow (2), Jongi Nokwe (2), Tewis de Bruyn, Frans Viljoen, JW Jonker (2), Fabian Juries. Conversions: Louis Strydom (5).

Chris Jonck

Lions edge Province in Joburg thriller
Western Province won’t be happy with what transpired at Cola Cola Park in Johannesburg on Saturday when they went down 27-25 to the Lions in their final league match of the 2009 Absa Currie Cup Premier League season. The loss means the Capetonians finish second in this year’s competition and will now have to face the mighty Blue Bulls at Newlands in Cape Town on Saturday afternoon in the second Currie Cup semi-final. This is an unenviable task to say the least given that the Bulls will field an awesome side packed with Springboks and brimming with confidence after winning their last four games.

Indeed, the Bulls are on something of a role after defeating Boland, the Cheetahs, Griquas and the Leopards on successive weekends. The Bulls gored the hapless Leopards 61-24 on Friday evening at the Royal Bafokeng Sports Palace in Phokeng to finish third on the log with 46 points – six clear of nearest rivals, the Cheetahs. The men in blue have now amassed a colossal 224 points in their last four outings whilst conceded just 94 and will undoubtedly start as favourites against Province on Saturday, despite having to travel away from their hallowed ground of Loftus Versfeld.

Province started well enough against the Lions on Saturday, going 17-3 up in the opening quarter but they lost their way as the match progressed with the Lions fighting their way into contention with a display of raw courage that seemed to sap the strength of the home side. With the score 25-24 in favour of Province with just seven minutes to play, livewire Lions scrumhalf Chris Jonck (pictured) put his team ahead with a well-taken penalty, forcing the home side to go for broke to secure a win and a bonus point for scoring four tries.

With just 31 seconds remaining they looked as though they might do just that when they were awarded a scrum and launched a backline movement, which saw them carry the ball into the Lions’ 22. However, replacement flank Todd Clever, who plays international rugby for the American Eagles, bundled towering Province lock Andries Bekker into touch to secure an excellent win for the Lions, who will be thrilled with their gutsy performance against their more fancied opponents.

The Lions had a less than stellar season, but the way they finished their campaign must have been very encouraging for coach Hans Coetzee and captain Cobus Grobbelaar, who was very happy with his team’s performance. “The guys played well, we said before the game that we had to start winning these tight games and show character, and we did exactly that today,” he said.

It was a result that must give the Lions a lot of hope for next season’s competition. They have come through a difficult year with flying colours and the result is a team brimming with confidence after three excellent performances in their last three league outings against Boland, (won 88-15), the Sharks (lost 19-17) and Province (won 27-25).

Scorers
Lions versus Western Province
Lions 27 – Tries: Doppies la Grange (2), Dusty Noble. Conversions: Herkie Kruger (3). Penalties: Kruger, Chris Jonck.
Western Province 25 – Tries: Juan de Jongh, Joe Pietersen, Francois Louw. Conversions: Pietersen (2). Penalties: Pietersen (2).

Leopards versus Blue Bulls
Leopards 24 – Tries: Jovan Bowles, Shuaib Samaai, Theo van Wyk. Conversions: Cecil Dumond (2), Clayton Durand. Penalty: Dumond.
Blue Bulls 61 – Tries: Deon Stegmann, Zane Kirchner, Morné Steyn, Bakkies Botha, Wynand Olivier, Francois Hougaard, Gerhard van den Heever (2), Jaco Pretorius. Conversions: Steyn (6), Burton Francis (2).

Meanwhile, the 2009 Absa Currie Cup First Division finalists were decided over the weekend when the Pumas defeated the Elephants 31-18 in Witbank while the SWD Eagles accounted for the defending champions, the Griffons, by the same score in George. The final will be held on Friday at the Pumas Stadium in Witbank. Both finalists will be playing in a series of promotion/relegation matches later this month. Their opponents will be the Platinum Leopards and the Boland Cavaliers who had a torrid season in the Premier Division.

Both teams won only one of their 14 matches (against each other), and were merely cannon fodder for the bigger unions, which could not have been good for their morale. It will be interesting to see how they fair against the likes of the Pumas and the Eagles, who have both had excellent seasons in the First Division and must fancy their chances against the Premier League whipping boys.

Joel Santana

Lame Bafana lose again
Bafana slumped to their eighth defeat in nine outings when they lost 1-0 to lowly Iceland in Reykjavik last night. The South Africans played with little passion and clearly lacked the will to win by putting on a very dour display against the Scandinavians. Viegar Pall Gunnarsson scored the only goal of the match in the 50th minute, but other than that there was little to excite the spectators in an exceptionally dull match that was about as interesting as watching paint dry.

The time has clearly arrived for the South Africa Football Association (Safa) to axe Bafana coach Joel Santana (pictured) who persists in applying the same defensive strategy game after game despite a lack of results. Bafana need someone to inspire them to score goals, which is unlikely to happen under the ultra cautious and defensive minded Santana.

Bafana’s loss against Iceland comes just days after their 1-0 defeat to Norway, another team who are lightly regarded on the international scene. Bafana are clearly in urgent need of a major overhaul before they take on Japan on and Jamaica next month. Replacing Santana will go along way to kick-starting the process and it is imperative that this is done immediately. The World Cup is just eight months away and if Bafana don’t get their house in order very soon, they are likely to run the risk of being the laughing stock of the world come June 2010.

Meanwhile, the PSL season resumes after a short break of 13 days between matches with another full round of fixtures scheduled for the weekend. The pick of the encounters is likely to be the clash between log leaders Orlando Pirates and fifth placed Santos at Coca-Cola Park on Saturday.

The Buccaneers are unbeaten in the competition thus far with five wins and four losses from nine games and are sitting pretty with 19 points. Santos are having a good season with four wins, three draws and two losses from their nine outings and will be looking to spring an upset against their esteemed opponents. Kick off is at 8.15pm.

Fixtures
Saturday
Free State Stars vs Platinum Stars
Black Aces vs SuperSport Utd
Mamelodi Sundowns vs Kaizer Chiefs
Golden Arrows vs Bidvest Wits
Jomo Cosmos vs AmaZulu
Orlando Pirates vs Santos

Sunday
Ajax Cape Town vs Bloem Celtic
Moroka Swallows    vs Maritzburg Utd

Mthobisi Buthelezi

Buthelezi fails to lift IBF title
Gauteng based Mthobisi Buthelezi (pictured) suffered the first defeat of his professional boxing career when he was narrowly out-pointed by Stefan Stevanovic for the International Boxing Federation (IBF) Youth welterweight title at the Sport Hall Banjica in Belgrade, Serbia on Saturday evening.

The 21-year-old Stevanovic (9-0, 2 KO’s) triumphed by scores of 97-94, 96-94 and 96-95 to win by a unanimous decision in the 10 round bout. Buthelezi, also 21, had fought only mediocre opposition in his young career which began on May 8 last year with a second round TKO win over Lucky Mavimbela, and therefore was not expected to give the more experienced Serbian a run for his money.

However, the South African produced a credible performance to keep the fight interesting, forcing Stevanovic to dig deep to pull off the win. Nevertheless, the young pugilist will undoubtedly be disappointed as not being able to bring home the IBF belt to South Africa after having travelled such a long way to meet the Serbian. Buthelezi (10-1, 6 KO’s), a former mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter, will most probably return to fighting domestic opposition to sharpen his skills before he tries to have another crack at an international belt.

Andrew Puttick

Puttick turns up the voltage to shock Otago
Opener Andrew Puttick (pictured), a late replacement for Graeme Smith, smashed 104 runs off 62 balls as the Cape Cobras carved out a convincing 54-run victory over the Otago Volts in their Champions League Twenty20 match at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad, India on Saturday.

The Cobras notched up 193/4 in their allotted 20 overs, thanks to the efforts of Puttick, Justin Ontong (39 not out) and JP Duminy (33). Puttick bettered his previous Twenty20 best of 86 as he raced to his century off just 60 balls, which included 12 fours and a glorious six. Ontong got stuck into the Otago bowlers towards the end of the Cobras’ innings, clubbing two fours and four sixes in his 14 ball innings, which enabled the Cobras to get 67 off the last five overs.

With Otago having to score at nearly 10 an over to win from the outset, they were always facing an uphill task. It wasn’t surprising then that they could only muster 139 all out in response to their opponents’ impressive total. Brothers, Brendon (21) and Nathan McCullum (38), were the only batsmen who made any significant contributions, and once Rory Kleinveldt dismissed Nathan it was all over bar the shouting as Otago lost their remaining four wickets for the addition of just 23 runs.

Kleinveldt, with three for 24 off three overs, and Duminy, with two for ten off seven deliveries, were the destroyers in chief for the Cobras. The wins means the Western Cape franchise advance to the Super Eights stage of the tournament after beating the Royal Challengers Bangalore by five wickets in their opening match.

CJ de Villiers

CJ sinks Sussex
Some brilliant fast bowling by CJ de Villiers (pictured centre) ensured a memorable win for the Diamond Eagles in their Champions League Twenty20 match against the Sussex Sharks at the Feroz Shah Kotla stadium in Dehli, India last night.

The lanky De Villiers grabbed two wickets in two balls in a super over tie breaker after both teams had scored the same number of runs off their allotted 20 overs. Set 10 runs for victory after the Eagles had scored 9/1 in their over, Sussex were blown out of the water by the impressive de Villiers who destroyed the stumps of Dwayne Smith and Rory Hamilton-Brown with his first two deliveries.

It was a very satisfying win for the Eagles and de Villiers looks like a real find. The 23-year-old bowled accurately and quickly giving the Sharks very few scoring opportunities, and restricting them to a rather modest 119/7. He was full value for his figures of 2-20 off four overs and was well supported by Dillon du Preez (2-23), Ryan Bailey (1-11) and Victor Mpitsang (1-20). Ed Joyce with 21 runs off 34 balls and Joe Gatting with 25 off 22 were the top scorers for the English franchise.

Needing to score at exactly six to the over for victory, the Eagles were cruising along on 72 without loss before Adrian McClaren was caught by wicketkeeper Andy Hodd off the bowling off Hamilton-Brown for 16. Morne van Wyk (2) and Boeta Dippenaar (7) quickly followed suit leaving the Eagles on 93/3 with just 22 deliveries remaining in the innings.

Rilee Rossouw was dismissed for a well-played 65 off 62 balls with the total on 106 and it looked like the Eagles were going to fall just short of their target. However, two fours off the last over by Ryan McClaren (14 off 13 balls) helped the Eagles to tie the scores and force the super over where de Villiers wrapped up the game for the South African franchise. The win booked the Eagles a place in the tournament Super Eights.

Davey Jacobs

Titans versus Warriors match fails to get going
Sloppy preparation by the ground staff at Willowmoore Park ruined a potentially interesting SuperSport Series encounter between the Nashua Titans and the Chevrolet Warriors. The umpires abandoned the match on Thursday after the Titans bowlers had sent down a meagre seven overs on the opening day.

At that early stage the Warriors were 17/1 before soft areas on the bowlers’ run-ups and follow-throughs forced the umpires to call a halt to proceedings. A dangerous indentation had taken shape at the Chalets End and umpires Karl Hurter and Dennis Smith put their hopes in saving the match on the use of the roller the following day.

However, its use depends on the decision taken by the batting captain, and Warriors skipper Davey Jacobs (pictured) was not at all pleased with the idea, forcing the umpires and match referee Tiffie Barnes to abandon the match. Jacobs’ decision is likely to anger the Titans, with the defending champions unable to score any points from the game and also facing the possibility of penalties in terms of points and money for the shoddy state of the pitch.

At this early stage of the competition, with most teams having played only two matches, the Gesterner Diamond Eagles find themselves at the top of the standings with 22.48 points closely followed by the Nashua Titans on 21.72. The bizhub Highveld Lions are in third position on 16.10 points with the Nashua Cape Cobras fourth on 11.14, while the Chevrolet Warriors (7.50) and Nashua Dolphins (6.66) are in fifth and sixth positions respectively, although the Dolphins have only had one outing. However, that will soon change when the KwaZulu-Natalians take on the Warriors at St George’s Park in Port Elizabeth tomorrow in what promises to be an interesting encounter between two well-balanced sides.

Stephen Mokoka

SA excel in gruelling World Champs
South Africa’s men and women teams had a very successful World Half-marathon Championships when both teams finished in sixth position in Birmingham on Sunday. National champion Stephen Mokoka (pictured) and debutant Rene Kalmer had excellent runs when they placed eighth and 15th respectively.

Mokoka was particularly impressive, keeping up with the race leaders from the beginning despite the fast pace. The 24-year-old Mokoka passed the 5km mark in 14 minutes and 30 seconds, only three seconds behind the front runners, and although he had dropped an additional 32 seconds back by 10km, which he passed in 13th position in 29:29, he still managed to work his way through the field.

The South African moved up another position by the 15km mark and over the final 6.1km passed another four competitors to finish eighth in 1:01:36 – a meagre 10 seconds off his personal best. Countrymen Olebong Masire and Mbongeni Ngxazozo finished 29th in 1:03:13 and 36th in 1:03:47 respectively. Eritrea’s Zersenay Tadese, who set a new championship record of 59:35, won the race. Bernard Kipyego (59:59) of Kenya took silver and American Dathan Ritzenhein (1:00:00) captured bronze.

Kalmer paced herself well over the 21.1km course to finish 15th in 1:10:37, breaking her personal best by well over a minute. Although it was the 28-year-old’s first global running championship, she handled the pressure well to go through the first 5 km in 16:09, 52 seconds behind the leaders and in 18th position.

The South African improved to 15th overall after 10km in 33:03 and moved up to 13th place after 15km in 49:47. However, the final 6.1km proved taxing as Kalmer dropped back to 15th position and remained there until the finish. Nevertheless, she will be pleased with her performance given that she was a novice who was competing against the very best the world had to offer.

South African champion Annerien van Schalkwyk ran the race of her life to finish 20th in 1:11:26, breaking her personal best by 23 seconds. Tiny and petite Poppy Mlambo paced herself well to cross the line in 1:14:27, which was good enough for 40th position and an improvement on her personal best by 14 seconds. Kenyan Mary Keitany won the race in a record time of 1:06:36 while team-mate Philes Ongori (1:07:38) and Ethiopian Aberu Kebede (1:07:39) finished second and third respectively.

Farah Fredericks

South Africa too good for Japan
South Africa turned back a spirited effort from Japan to record a convincing 4-2 victory in their hockey challenge match in Cape Town on Monday. The South Africans played positively from the outset, using their tried and tested tactic of attacking down the flanks which paid dividends when Jennifer Wilson opened the scoring by tapping the ball past goalkeeper Ikuko Okamura.

However, Japan responded with a goal from Mazuki Arai just seconds later, which heralded an intense period of play as both sides pressed for more goals. It was therefore not surprising when Tarryn Bright scored South Africa’s second goal with a powerful shot and home-town girl Farah Fredericks (pictured) added a third two minutes into the second half to make it 3-1 in favour of South Africa. Japan went further behind when Kate Woods scored with a drag-flick from a 57th minute penalty corner.

Confident they had done enough to win, the South Africans abandoned their attacking style of play and became thoroughly defensive minded. Their strategy, although boring, worked as the Japanese failed to close the gap, although they did manage to score a second goal when a deflection from Arai found its way over the line.

Their win means South Africa will play in Pool C in the second stage of the tournament, which will guarantee them a top four placing. They will also carry the points from this match forward to the next stage. In other matches, New Zealand defeated Spain 3-0 and Chile drew 0-0 with Azerbaijan.

Brandon Pieters

Pieters claims third Vodacom Tour victory
Brandon Pieters (pictured) shot a final round 69 for a total of eight under par to win the final tournament on the Vodacom Business Origins of Golf Tour at Simola Golf and Country Estate in Knysna on Friday. The 33-year-old finished one stroke clear of Doug McGuigan and Jaco van Zyl to become only the second golfer to win three tournaments in one year on the Vodacom Tour.

Pieters made some “crucial putts at the right times” to thwart the challenge of Van Zyl who shot a superb final round of 67 and McGuigan, who needed to sink a seven-foot putt on the last hole to force a playoff with the Gauteng resident. However, McGuigan failed with his attempt, giving a very happy Pieters the victory.

“It’s like a dream come true for me. I’ve got a goal before the end of 2011, and I don’t mind making a habit of this. This is a wonderful feeling,” he said. Pieters now joins an exclusive club of three-time winners on the series. The only other player to have won three tournaments in one year on the series is Thomas Aiken in 2004.

The Vodacom Business Origins of Golf Tour is the mainstay of the winter schedule of the Sunshine Tour, and serves as excellent preparation for the main summer schedule, which begins next month.

Top eight finishers (South African unless stated)
208 – Brandon Pieters 70 69 69
209 – Jaco Van Zyl 69 73 67
Doug McGuigan 73 66 70
210 – Tyrone Ferreira 70 71 69
211 – Darren Fichardt 71 72 68
Trevor Fisher Jnr 67 72 72
Andrew Curlewis 69 70 72
Mark Murless 70 68 73

The next tournament on the Sunshine Tour is the BMG Classic, which takes place at the Glendower Golf Club from October 16-18. McGuigan will be hoping to defend his title against a quality field and an enthralling three days play should await spectators.

Photo Credits:
Sharks to face Cheetahs in semis: Photo – Stefan Terblanche; Source – www.zimbio.com
Lions edge Province in Joburg thriller: Photo – Chris Jonck; Source – www.daylife.com
Lame Bafana lose again: Photo – Joel Santana; Source – www.blogs.reuters.com
Buthelezi fails to lift IBF title: Photo – Mthobisi Buthelezi; Source – www.joburgnews.co.za
Puttick turns up the voltage to shock Otago: Photo – Andrew Puttick; Source – www.content.cricinfo.com
CJ sinks Sussex: Photo – CJ de Villiers; Source – www.eaglescricket.co.za
Titans versus Warriors match fails to get going: Photo – Davey Jacobs; Source – www.flickr.com
SA excel in gruelling World Champs: Photo – Stephen Mokoka; Source – cuanruns.wordpress.com
Story title – SA too good for Japan: Photo – Farah Fredericks; Source – www.hokoa.com
Pieters claims third Vodacom Tour victory: Photo – Brandon Pieters; Source – www.life.com

Useful Links:
South Africa 2010 Stadiums
Things to Do in South Africa
South Africa Hotels
South Africa Accommodation

Ruan Pienaar

Sharks scrape home against fiery Lions
The Sharks overcame a spirited and determined effort from the Lions to secure a semi-final spot in the Premier Division of the 2009 Absa Currie Cup at the Absa Stadium in Durban on Saturday afternoon. Stefan Terblanche’s men were made to fight every inch of the way to secure victory against the Lions who produced a sterling defensive effort against their more fancied rivals.

In the end however, the KwaZulu-Natalians squeaked home 19-17 against the visitors from Johannesburg, thanks largely to the boot of scrumhalf Ruan Pienaar (pictured), the domination of their Springbok laden forward pack and a gutsy all round performance from the 34-year-old Terblanche, who is currently playing some of the best rugby of his career.

Despite having the majority of the possession and territory in the opening 40 minutes, the Sharks failed to translate their huge advantage into points as they went into the break just 16-11 to the good. The home side made far too many mistakes close to their opponent’s tryline, which meant they squandered numerous scoring opportunities allowing the Lions to stay in the match.

In fact, the Lions were the first to score a try courtesy of a 14th minute effort by wing Chris Jonck, who dived over his opponent’s tryline after a well-worked break by Doppies la Grange. Flyhalf Herkie Kruger failed to add the extra points, but his earlier penalty gave the Lions an 8-6 advantage after Pienaar had slotted two penalties of his own in the opening minutes.

Sharks No 10 Juan Martin Hernandez put the home side back in front with a well struck drop goal in the 33rd minute and the Sharks went further ahead six minutes later when Bismarck du Pleassis crashed over. Pienaar added the extra points to make it 16-8 in favour of the home side, but Kruger replied with another penalty seconds before the hooter to close the gap to just five points, setting the stage for an interesting second half.

And interesting it was as the Lions came out fighting with Kruger adding another penalty after a couple of minutes to make it 16-14 in favour of the Sharks. This score heralded an intense passage of play, which saw the visitors secure more possession and territory than they did in the first stanza to give the Sharks a run for their money. However, despite some intense attacks from both teams, neither side managed to score any tries as their finishing let them down at crucial moments.

Bother defences were giving it a hundred percent, with Kruger’s efforts in particular standing out. The Lions No 10 sustained a nasty bruised eye in the 47th minute after a clash of heads with Sharks centre Andries Strauss, but was unwilling to leave the pitch despite the eye closing completely. However, with Kruger’s facial features resembling something akin to a one eyed monster, sanity prevailed and the Lions stalwart left the field several minutes later. But if the Sharks thought that their opponents would fold at the demise of their trusty goal kicker they were sadly mistaken as Jonck put the visitors in front again with a 64th minute penalty.

The Sharks turned up the heat in response but were unable to cross their opponent’s tryline, falling foul of some excellent defence. However, Pienaar slotted a 72nd penalty to restore his side’s fragile two point lead, which proved just enough to sneak the win. Despite the loss, which denied them a semi-final berth, the Lions can be proud of their achievements as they ran the Sharks close, denying them a bonus point and leaving them second on the log behind Western Province, courtesy of an inferior points difference.

Sharks captain Terblanche gave an intelligent summary of the evening’s proceedings.  “We have to give credit to the Lions, they played for their lives and we have a lot to do in preparation for the semi-finals,” he remarked. Indeed, the Lions played with remarkable spirit and will go into their final league fixture against Province in Johannesburg this Saturday confident of pulling off an upset. The Sharks’ last outing ahead of next Saturday’s semi-finals is a tricky encounter against the always dangerous Griquas in Kimberley. The diamond miners have had a surprisingly good season and are lying fourth on the log, and a win against the Sharks would secure them a semi-final spot.

Pierre Spies

Bulls outclass Griquas, while Cheetahs, WP win easily
The Blue Bulls romped to a convincing 61-27 win over Griquas in their Absa Premier Division Currie Cup clash at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria on Saturday afternoon. The men from Pretoria outscored the diamond miners by eight tries to four, thereby securing themselves a semi-final berth in this year’s competition.

Griquas could well lose their berth to the Cheetahs, who trounced the Leopards 60-17 in Bloemfontein on Friday, if they don’t beat the Sharks at home this Saturday. However, it was not all doom and gloom for Griquas as they did manage to secure a bonus point by scoring four tries against their illustrious rivals – an achievement not to be sniffed at.

In fact, Griquas made a game of it in the opening stages, going 10-7 up after 12 minutes, but when captain Jonathan Mokuena w