The fixtures for Varsity Shield 2017 season are out and a crowd-puller between old-time provincial rivals Walter Sisulu University (WSU) All Blacks and University of Fort Hare (UFH) Blues is scheduled for February 9.
This season opener – a provincial derby, one that will definitely see sparks flying high – will take place at the UFH Alice Campus.
With so much talk in rugby circles about who is better between these two sides, this Varsity Shield encounter is expected to end that debate.
WSU, who are newcomers in the Varsity Shield, claimed the bragging rights over their nemesis when they beat UFH in this year’s Border Rugby Union Super League.
But Blues had the last laugh when they emerged victors during the Inter Varsity 2016 match between these two giants.
While WSU will be out to make their mark in the national competition as rookies, UFH will seek redemption following below-par performances in the 2015 and 2016 seasons when they finished bottom of logstandings.
The Alice side won a single outing in the Varsity Shield 2016 campaign while losing a staggering seven matches, but head coach Lumumba Currie believes that those days are gone.
Currie’s counterpart for WSU, Sipho Metula warned that they would outmanoeuvre UFH to announce their arrival among the big boys.
Metula fired the first salvo: “It is a big one to start our maiden season and when we beat them in the league there were many doubting Thomases about how good we are.
“Perhaps this Varsity Shield match will be the one to put the matter to bed but we are not in it to prove anyone wrong but to enjoy ourselves and showcase to the rest of the country what we are made of.”
Currie shot back: “We are looking forward into this match and we know there has never been an easy match between these two sides.
“That they beat us in the Super League will not count because we defeated them in the Inter Varsity, so this will be a different ball game and ours as Fort Hare will be to improve on our disappointing performance in 2015 and 2016.”
Both have hit the ground running with preparations for the match that is four months away.
UFH means business so much so that they have suspended their participation in the coveted Heritage Cup they have participated in for years because, according to Currie, the competition would disrupt their preparations if any of their players get injured.
According to Metula, WSU’s objectives for their inaugural Varsity Shield will simply be to display good and competitive rugby and let results take care of themselves.
WSU will hold trials on Saturday at the university’s Potsdam campus looking for hopefuls with potential to add value of what is already a well-cooked rugby side.
For UFH, who are veteran campaigners in the competition, there will be no excuses but to do better than this year when they finished rock bottom.
Currie said their 2015 and 2016 seasons was affected by the exodus of players at the institution because they graduated or some – such as Masixole Banda, Billy Dutton, Bangi Kobese and Onke Dubase – signed up with Border Bulldogs, where their stars continue to shine. — zingisam@dispatch.co.za
Revenge in the air as WSU prepares for Fort Hare clash
This season opener – a provincial derby, one that will definitely see sparks flying high – will take place at the UFH Alice Campus.
With so much talk in rugby circles about who is better between these two sides, this Varsity Shield encounter is expected to end that debate.
WSU, who are newcomers in the Varsity Shield, claimed the bragging rights over their nemesis when they beat UFH in this year’s Border Rugby Union Super League.
But Blues had the last laugh when they emerged victors during the Inter Varsity 2016 match between these two giants.
While WSU will be out to make their mark in the national competition as rookies, UFH will seek redemption following below-par performances in the 2015 and 2016 seasons when they finished bottom of logstandings.
The Alice side won a single outing in the Varsity Shield 2016 campaign while losing a staggering seven matches, but head coach Lumumba Currie believes that those days are gone.
Currie’s counterpart for WSU, Sipho Metula warned that they would outmanoeuvre UFH to announce their arrival among the big boys.
Metula fired the first salvo: “It is a big one to start our maiden season and when we beat them in the league there were many doubting Thomases about how good we are.
“Perhaps this Varsity Shield match will be the one to put the matter to bed but we are not in it to prove anyone wrong but to enjoy ourselves and showcase to the rest of the country what we are made of.”
Currie shot back: “We are looking forward into this match and we know there has never been an easy match between these two sides.
“That they beat us in the Super League will not count because we defeated them in the Inter Varsity, so this will be a different ball game and ours as Fort Hare will be to improve on our disappointing performance in 2015 and 2016.”
Both have hit the ground running with preparations for the match that is four months away.
UFH means business so much so that they have suspended their participation in the coveted Heritage Cup they have participated in for years because, according to Currie, the competition would disrupt their preparations if any of their players get injured.
According to Metula, WSU’s objectives for their inaugural Varsity Shield will simply be to display good and competitive rugby and let results take care of themselves.
WSU will hold trials on Saturday at the university’s Potsdam campus looking for hopefuls with potential to add value of what is already a well-cooked rugby side.
For UFH, who are veteran campaigners in the competition, there will be no excuses but to do better than this year when they finished rock bottom.
Currie said their 2015 and 2016 seasons was affected by the exodus of players at the institution because they graduated or some – such as Masixole Banda, Billy Dutton, Bangi Kobese and Onke Dubase – signed up with Border Bulldogs, where their stars continue to shine. — zingisam@dispatch.co.za
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