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The Citizen
3 days ago
- Sport
- The Citizen
British media slams Sharks for ‘shameless gamesmanship'
Jaden Hendrikse's 'cramp' during Saturday's penalty shootout at Kings Park has been questioned after the Sharks scrumhalf winked at Munster flyhalf Jack Crowley. After slotting his second attempt of the shootout, from straight in front but further back than his first, Hendrikse yelled out from apparent pain and went down on the spot where where Crowley was set to kick his second. While lying on the ground, TV cameras caught Hendrikse winking at an infuriated Crowley, who nailed his kick before telling a Sharks staff member to 'f**k off' as they finally left the field. With Munster replacement Rory Scannell having missed his first attempt, Sharks sub Bradley Davids then secured a 6-4 shootout win for the hosts – and a Vodacom URC semi-final meeting with the Bulls at Loftus – by slotting his second. The Sharks, and Hendrikse in particular, were slammed by Munster fans on social media after the shootout, while Sharks fans were criticised for booing Munster's men as they lined up their kicks. MORE: Bradley showed huge BMT – Plum In its report, the UK Telegraph called it 'shameless gamesmanship' from the Sharks and said the quarter-final would always be 'remembered for actions of Sharks' Jaden Hendrikse'. Watch a video of Hendrikse here: Rugby needs heroes and villains and people talking about it.. so I actually wish that moment was even more high profile. Jaden Hendrikse played his part, love it or hate it — Grant Constable (@GrantConstable) May 31, 2025 Watch the extra time penalty shootout here: The post Sharks slammed for 'shameless gamesmanship' appeared first on SA Rugby Magazine.
The Citizen
5 days ago
- Sport
- The Citizen
John Dobson on Stormers loss: This is not how we wanted to say goodbye
John Dobson on Stormers loss: This is not how we wanted to say goodbye John Dobson rues the 'worst performance in a couple of years' as the Stormers bid farewell to several stalwarts in the aftermath of the Vodacom URC quarter-final defeat in Glasgow on Friday night. Defending champions, Glasgow Warriors beat the Stormers 36-18 at Scotstoun Stadium, eliminating the Cape outfit from the URC playoffs in the quarter-finals for consecutive seasons, and leaving director of rugby Dobson to bid farewell to several departing stars in devastating circumstances. Joseph Dweba, Herschel Jantjies and Ben Loader have now played their last game for the Stormers before leaving the franchise, along with Paul de Wet and Dave Ewers, while Libbok has previously been linked with a sabbatical overseas. 'It's actually sitting pretty tough in the throat, emotionally,' Dobson told reporters in a post-match teleconference. 'We didn't think we were not going to be playing next week, that was our plan. RECAP: Glasgow power past Stormers into semis 'Paul de Wet was URC one, and [Leolin Zas] didn't get on the field. Obviously Joe, Manie and Hersch are big players for us that we wanted to fade out into the night… Dave Ewers also didn't get on the field. 'We'll go have a chat now when we get back to the hotel because that changing room is so sad now. It's like an American Civil War tent. The guys are really, really distraught and it's not the way I want to say goodbye to these guys who, as I say, have put a lot in. 'We really, honestly, in our heart of hearts believed we'd be playing next week. 'All those names … Ben Loader too … have been really good Stormers, so not how we wanted to say goodbye to them like this.' The Stormers took a 3-0 lead at Scotstoun through Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu's penalty before captain Salmaan Moerat's HIA departure and Seabelo Senatla's yellow card shifted momentum toward Glasgow. The Warriors capitalised ruthlessly, with Rory Darge and Kyle Rowe crossing before half time. Despite Senatla's response upon returning from the sin-bin, Henco Venter's try gave Glasgow a 19-13 interval advantage. The second half began promisingly when Senatla completed his brace but Feinberg-Mngomezulu's missed conversion proved costly as Glasgow pulled away decisively. Rowe's second try and George Horne's stunning individual effort established a commanding 33-18 lead, effectively ending the contest before Horne's penalty sealed the comprehensive victory. 'I couldn't sit in the changing room now and complain about the efforts,' Dobson said. 'I think after the last try, the last half an hour… we were just playing very, very poorly. They put us under a lot of pressure. 'We weren't getting any yardage in our carry and a plethora of mistakes and massive credit to Glasgow for their defence. And then their ability with ball in hand. If we're going to kick as inaccurately as we kicked tonight with their attack, they punished us. 'We've been going 90% lineouts the last four games, suddenly dropped in the 70s, dropped down to giving away 17 line breaks, dropped down to 65% tackle completion, which is credit to Glasgow, how they attacked. 'But we kept our worst performance probably in a couple of years for a knockout game, which is really disappointing.' KEO: Hard luck for Sharks at Kings Park Despite the disappointment, Dobson tried to find positives from both the match and 2024-25 campaign, during which the Stormers lost several key players such as Steven Kitshoff, Frans Malherbe and Deon Fourie to injury. 'Our scrum and Seabelo were the two silver linings to a very dark cloud, and some of the youngsters coming through… youngsters like Paul [de Villiers] will be better for the experience; in terms of broadening our depth, we've had a good season,' he said. 'What worried me today, I felt like we didn't win the gainline; we can fix the lineout or the kicking plan, it just worried me a little bit that we didn't dominate the collisions as much as I'd like to have. But to fade off like we did tonight is disappointing. 'I think we weren't far off getting ourselves into fourth [on the log], despite everything that happened over the season. And the growth in terms of the squad… Our scrum culture is superb. That gives me a lot of reason for optimism.' The post Dobbo: This is not how we wanted to say goodbye appeared first on SA Rugby Magazine.
The Citizen
17-05-2025
- Sport
- The Citizen
Stormers coach: Damian Willemse's red is a disaster
John Dobson says the Stormers face a challenge in the Vodacom URC play-offs following a red card for star playmaker Damian Willemse in last night's win against Cardiff. The head coach was addressing the media after the Stormers secured fifth place on the log with a 34-24 bonus-point victory at Cape Town Stadium. The match featured two red cards: Willemse's dismissal for a high hit on Cardiff winger Gabe Hamer-Webb and Danny Southworth for a dangerous tackle on Stormers prop Neethling Fouche . While pleased with the performance, Dobson acknowledged the potential impact of Willemse's dismissal on the Cape outfit's play-off campaign. 'I haven't seen it enough to comment on what the impact is,' said Dobson of the Willemse high hit. 'He was stuck. I don't think he was trying to hit with the shoulder… I think he was trying to turn. 'The implications, I'm sure, are going to be poor for us. I've got no doubt. We can't appeal until there is a decision. I don't see them overturning that. It's a disaster for us.' Also read: Stormers lash Cardiff to lock in fifth Despite this setback, Dobson praised his team's performance against a spirited Cardiff outfit. Wingers Suleiman Hartzenberg and Leolin Zas each scored a brace of tries as the Stormers converted a 19-12 half-time advantage into a convincing win, though Cardiff fought until the final whistle. 'As good as they were, and they fought and they were organised and never really went away, I don't think we ever really looked like losing. That's a good performance given the changes,' he said. Despite playing with 14 men, the Stormers' attack proved too potent for the Welsh visitors. 'It's nice that we've played four teams with really good attacks over the last four weeks. It's a good play-off test,' Dobson said. 'The whole thing today was to keep our momentum, protect some players and say goodbye to some guys who won't play another home game. I think we got all that right.' The Stormers now await today's results to determine whether they'll face the Sharks in Durban or travel to Scotland to battle defending champions Glasgow Warriors. 'I was absolutely equivocal that we wanted to go to Durban, and now I think we're quite relaxed. This team will play whoever,' Dobson said, open to whatever challenge materialises. 'Obviously our goal was to host a quarter-final, so that's a disappointment. I think we're good enough to be in the top four despite our budget, and that's got to be our goal for next season.' The post Dobson: Damian's red is a disaster appeared first on SA Rugby magazine.
The Citizen
17-05-2025
- Sport
- The Citizen
How the URC quarter-finals are shaping up
How the URC quarter-finals are shaping up With the top eight confirmed, today's Vodacom URC matches in Pretoria, Durban and Dublin will determine the Vodacom Bulls, Sharks and Stormers' quarter-final opponents. Last night, Edinburgh and Munster booked their play-off spots, with Edinburgh claiming a 47-17 bonus-point win against Ulster at Hive Stadium and Munster beating Benetton 30-21 in Limerick. Those results ended the top-eight hopes of Cardiff, who lost 34-24 to the Stormers in Cape Town. Also read: Stormers lash Cardiff to lock in fifth As it stands, the second-placed Bulls would host Edinburgh in the quarter-finals, with the fifth-placed Stormers heading to Durban to play the fourth-placed Sharks. But that would change if the Sharks beat Scarlets at Kings Park today and Glasgow lost to log-leaders Leinster in Dublin. The Sharks would then host Munster in the quarter-finals, with the Stormers travelling to Scotland to take on Glasgow. In the unlikely event that the Bulls lost to bottom-placed Dragons at Loftus Versfeld and Glasgow got a bonus-point win against Leinster, Glasgow would finish second and the Bulls third. The post How URC quarter-finals are shaping up appeared first on SA Rugby magazine.
13-05-2025
- Sport
Who is the Welsh club signing eyeing a Springbok call-up?
Scarlets hooker Marnus van der Merwe will have the perfect opportunity to press his case for a Springboks call-up when he takes on the Sharks in Durban this weekend. That will likely see him going head to head with the man currently in possession of the South African No 2 jersey, double World Cup winner Bongi Mbonambi. It will also be a chance for Van der Merwe to help the Scarlets reach the Vodacom URC playoffs as they look to build on last Sunday's historic victory over the Lions in Johannesburg. The Nelspruit-born forward was selected for the Springboks' wider alignment camp in February of last year when he was with the Bloemfontein-based Cheetahs, but he is yet to play for his country. Given his outstanding form, you would have to think he is in with a shout of another call up. He has been one of the signings of the season, making a huge impact with his ball carrying, his work at the breakdown and his all round physicality. The 28-year-old readily admits that playing international rugby remains a big ambition. 'I think as a child, any South African watching the game, with the Springboks doing well, everyone wants to play for that team, just like people in Wales who grew up watching their team,' he said. 'So everyone wants to play for their nation. It's definitely a thing I am going for, but I focus on the next thing which is helping the Scarlets where I can. Then, through that, I hope the Springbok coaches can see what I bring and see that I have the talent to be there. 'My goal is to get into international rugby. Everyone hopes for that. I just go out and play the best I can every single day. Hopefully that's enough.' Van der Merwe, who was with the Cheetahs for eight years, spent a month on loan at the Ospreys last season, making one appearance, before returning to Wales on a permanent move to the Scarlets. 'It was a very easy decision because it felt like my career was standing still in South Africa,' he said. 'I'd had a few injury problems and the Cheetahs weren't involved in the top competitions. They were out of Super Rugby and out of the URC. 'I had planned to go overseas for a couple of years, so when the Scarlets came and gave me an offer, I couldn't refuse. 'It was a good opportunity to be somewhere where I could get some game-time and show what I have against the big teams. It was a chance to improve my rugby and I was grateful for that. 'If you get an opportunity, some players take it, some players lose out. I think I have taken it with both hands. I am doing well and the coaches are backing me. Hopefully I can keep performing in this Scarlets jersey and show people what I am. 'I have enjoyed it so much here. The guys are very nice. They let me in quickly and just showed me the ropes. Everyone has been so welcoming. They made it so easy for me. It's become a home from home and my rugby has improved a lot. 'I love playing with the boys. It's a great side with amazing characters and thanks also to the fans. They help us do what we want to do. 'We can build a really good team here. I think the Scarlets are going to be in a good place in the next five years with all the youngsters coming up. There is something building here.' Having shared in the 32-19 victory over the Lions at Ellis Park, Van der Merwe is now after another South African scalp as he prepares for Saturday's showdown with the Sharks and the 77-cap Mbonambi. 'I think about winning every game. That's my mentality. I am very competitive,' he said. 'My character is to stand and fight and never give up. 'I look to get stuck in, slotting into the big five forward game, while also being like an extra back rower in the loose, so mixing it up really.' The Scarlets will go into the weekend in sixth place after four successive bonus point victories in the league. A win over the Sharks in their final regular season match would guarantee them a spot in the play-offs, while they have a good chance of progressing even if they lose. 'From day one, we have been competitive,' said Van der Merwe, who is contracted through to the summer of 2026. 'We had a few narrow losses, but we are starting to click as a team. Everyone is playing their part.' Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1. Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
