Elephants in battle for rugby crown
Western Province clash launches contest
THE EP Elephants will begin their Supersport Rugby Challenge campaign against champions Western Province at the Wolfson Stadium in Kwazakhele on April 22.
Last year more than 10 000 fans watched the SuperSport Challenge day triple-header at the stadium and another big crowd is expected next month.
With the kick-off looming, EP have yet to announce who will coach the team or the squad members.
EP Rugby Union president Andre Rademan has promised that his teams will fare better this season in the age-group competitions, including the SuperSport Challenge.
One of Rademan’s main objectives will be to get the EP senior and junior teams back on the winning track.
“We start with a clean slate, and our next objective is to start winning on the field,” Rademan said.
“EPRU had two objectives. One was to win the financial battle and the other was to start winning on the field.”
The community-centred provincial tournament, launched last year, will again feature a number of televised tripleheader match-ups.
The Sunday Rugby Festivals are played in community venues and will be free to the public.
The format of the tournament will again see five teams battle it out in each of the North, South and Central pools, with all 14 unions and Namibia taking part.
It promises to be another exbetween citing opportunity for new prospects to emerge and for more fans to get the opportunity to see their heroes in action on their doorsteps.
As happened last year, Sunday Festivals will kick off with a televised Gold Cup qualifying match featuring a big derby two local premiership clubs.
The SuperSport Rugby Challenge Pools are:
North: Vodacom Blue Bulls, Xerox Golden Lions, Hino Valke, Steval Pumas, Namibia Welwitschias
Central: Toyota Free State, Down Touch Griffons, Tafel Lager Griquas, Leopards, Cell C Sharks
South: Boland Cavaliers, Border Bulldogs, EP Elephants, SWD Eagles, DHL Western Province
The top two teams from each pool, together with the two third-placed teams with the most log points, will qualify for the quarterfinals, scheduled for the weekend of June 30 and July 1.
The semifinals will once again take the form of a televised double-header on Sunday July 8, with the final a week later, on Sunday July 15. The dates are:
April 22: Wolfson Stadium, Kwazakhele, Port Elizabeth
May 13: Newrak Impala Rugby Club, Rustenburg
May 20: Bridgton Sports Ground, Oudtshoorn
June 17: Sisa Dukashe Stadium, Mdantsane
24 June: Bill Jardine Stadium, Longdale, Johannesburg.