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Ken Borland


CSA left undisclosed why Newlands is not hosting the New Years Test for the first time in 107 years 0

Posted on October 28, 2020 by Ken

Cricket South Africa announced on Tuesday the big news that both festive season Tests this season will be played on the Highveld, but what their press release left undisclosed was the reason for the New Years Test being shifted from Cape Town for the first time in more than a century.

Newlands has been the host every time South Africa has played a New Years Test at home since January 1, 1914, when England clinched their 5-match series with a 91-run win in the third Test, at the Old Wanderers.

But this Christmas, due to Covid-19 and the need to play in a biobubble, Sri Lanka will play the Boxing Day Test against the Proteas at SuperSport Park in Centurion starting on December 26, with the New Years Test beginning on December 3 at the new Wanderers Stadium.

The costs of setting up a biobubble for just one game in Cape Town were deemed to be too much, with Sri Lanka and the Proteas able to stay in the same place for their two Tests over the festive season, which makes financial sense, especially with no spectators expected to be allowed to attend. England are paying for a substantial portion of the biobubble for their white-ball series against South Africa in a month’s time, and they insisted on staying in Cape Town.

“It’s great for our brand and for our sponsors, so it’s a really great thing to be the host from that point of view, but we are sad that we won’t see any fans here at the Wanderers. We are thankful and excited that Cricket South Africa have chosen us as hosts. It certainly wasn’t something we planned for at the start of the year.

“But with the Boxing Day Test happening at Centurion, it means the players can stay and travel from the same place, plus Cape Town will have the England series. If even a reduced number of fans are given the go-ahead to attend then we will be ready to go. We’ve geared ourselves to be ready for whenever fans can return and all safety measures are already in place,” Jono Leaf-Wright, the CEO of the Central Gauteng Lions, told The Citizen on Tuesday.

While only the Proteas fixtures up to that second Test against Sri Lanka were confirmed on Tuesday, that is certainly not the sum total of their summer. CSA revealed that Australia and Pakistan would also feature during the summer.

Australia will arrive for three Tests in February/March, which will undoubtedly be the pinnacle of the season, while a Pakistan tour comprising three ODIs and three T20s will end the summer.

South Africa are also scheduled to tour Pakistan in January for the first time since 2007, with CSA saying a delegation leaves for the subcontinental country at the weekend to do a security assessment.

Fixtures

England tour – Friday, 27 November (18h00):1st T20I Newlands, Cape Town; Sunday, 29 November (14h30):2nd T20I Boland Park, Paarl; Tuesday, 1 December (18h00): 3rd T20I Newlands, Cape Town; Friday, 4 December (13h00): 1st ODI Newlands, Cape Town; Sunday, 6 December (10h00): 2nd ODI Boland Park, Paarl; Wednesday, 9 December (13h00): 3rd ODI Newlands, Cape Town.

Sri Lanka Tour – Saturday, 26-30 December (10h00): 1st Test SuperSport Park, Centurion; Sunday, 3-7 January (10h00):2nd Test Imperial Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg.

Tags:
Category Cricket, Sport

Beyers has amnesty after one game 0

Posted on September 24, 2014 by Ken

Fullback Ulrich Beyers has received amnesty after just one game for his undisclosed disciplinary offence and been included in the Vodacom Blue Bulls starting XV for their Absa Currie Cup match against the Toyota Free State Cheetahs in Bloemfontein on Friday.
Beyers is one of six changes to the Bulls’ starting line-up after their 26-15 defeat by the Sharks last weekend, replacing young prospect Jesse Kriel in the No 15 jersey.

“Ulrich was withdrawn from the match against the Sharks for personal reasons, it was an off-field matter and we’re happy with the way the disciplinary hearing went,” Bulls coach Frans Ludeke said on Tuesday, without revealing any further details, although there have been suggestions the misdemeanour was alcohol-related.

The return of Beyers is one of four changes to the backline, with the Bulls welcoming back Springboks Akona Ndungane, JJ Engelbrecht and Piet van Zyl.

Engelbrecht’s campaign to get back into international rugby begins in earnest on Friday and the 25-year-old will fill the number 13 jersey left vacant by William Small-Smith’s knee injury suffered against the Sharks last weekend. With the outside centre position in the Springbok team the subject of much debate, Engelbrecht will be eager to finish the year strongly.

The Port Elizabeth-born Engelbrecht played the last of his 12 Tests in November against Scotland at Murrayfield and the time for him to impress is short, with the Bulls struggling to make the Currie Cup playoffs.

The Cheetahs are the team immediately above the Bulls on the log, five points ahead in fifth place, so the importance of victory for Frans Ludeke’s team in their third-last round-robin game is clear. And the coach has responded to the urgency by making six changes to his starting line-up, four of them in the backline.

Apart from Engelbrecht’s return, long-serving star Ndungane replaces fellow Springbok Bjorn Basson, who is yet to regain his spark after a long injury layoff, on the wing, Beyers is back at fullback in place of Kriel after being dropped for the Sharks game for disciplinary reasons, and Van Zyl will be the starting scrumhalf, rotating with Rudy Paige.

There are just two changes up front with captain Deon Stegmann returning in the number six jersey after serving a one-match suspension for elbowing an EP Kings player, and Bongi Mbonambi rotating with Callie Visagie at hooker.

Although flank Jacques du Plessis did not train on Monday due to a badly-bruised thigh, he will be fit for the Bloemfontein trip.

Ludeke said his team are still in the running for the knockout stages of the Currie Cup in October, but they need perfect execution of their game-plan from here on in.

“We’re still in the running, but talking about it doesn’t help, we have to come out and perform. Exerting pressure will be vital, it’s knockout rugby for both teams, and ball-control will be vital for us, we have to be clinical and play in the right areas.

“A bunch of things work for us – like our shift to being more dangerous from broken play, the driving maul from the lineout – we just need to get it all to come together this weekend. We need to get the crucial decisions right in this game,” Ludeke said on Tuesday.

Team: 15-Ulrich Beyers, 14-Akona Ndungane, 13-JJ Engelbrecht, 12-Burger Odendaal, 11-Sampie Mastriet, 10-Jacques-Louis Potgieter, 9-Piet van Zyl, 8-Jono Ross, 7-Jacques du Plessis, 6-Deon Stegmann, 5-Grant Hattingh, 4-Paul Willemse, 3-Werner Kruger, 2-Bongi Mbonambi, 1-Dean Greyling. Reserves – 16-Callie Visagie, 17-Morne Mellet, 18-Nicolaas Janse van Rensburg, 19-Wiaan Liebenberg, 20-Rudy Paige, 21-Tian Schoeman, 22-Jesse Kriel.

 

Full report – http://citizen.co.za/247061/bulls-beyers-off-the-hook/

Tags:
Category Rugby, Sport

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