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Super 14 Fixtures for 2010

admin — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 14:09:53 +0000

It’s almost that time of the year again. The 2010 Super 14 Rugby tournament will start on the weekend of the 12th of February 2010. Like previous years, it promises to be a display of the best rugby in Southern Hemisphere. Teams from South Africa, Australia and New Zealand will once again be competing for the Super 14 trophy and the honor of being named the best team in the Southern Hemisphere for 2010. In 2009 a South African team, The Bulls (from my native Pretoria) won the competition (repeating their victory of 2007). The Super 14 will take place of 16 weeks. The final for the competition will be played on the 29th of May 2010.

This is the schedule of matches to be played in the 2010 Super 14 Tournament:

Friday, February 12:
Blues v Hurricanes (Auckland)
Western Force v Brumbies (Perth)
Cheetahs v Bulls (Bloemfontein)

Saturday, February 13:
Crusaders v Highlanders (Christchurch)
Reds v Waratahs (Brisbane)
Lions v Stormers (Johannesburg)
Sharks v Chiefs (Durban)

Friday, February 19:
Highlanders v Blues (Dunedin)
Reds v Crusaders (Brisbane)
Sharks v Cheetahs (Durban)
Lions v Chiefs (Johannesburg)

Saturday, February 20:
Hurricanes v Western Force (Wellington)
Bulls v Brumbies (Pretoria)
Stormers v Waratahs (Cape Town)

Friday, February 26:
Crusaders v Sharks (Christchurch)
Stormers v Brumbies (Cape Town)

Saturday, February 27:
Hurricanes v Lions (Wellington)
Reds v Blues (Brisbane)
Western Force v Chiefs (Perth)
Cheetahs v Highlanders (Bloemfontein)
Bulls v Waratahs (Pretoria)

Friday, March 5:
Chiefs v Reds (Hamilton)
Brumbies v Lions (Canberra)

Saturday, March 6:
Crusaders v Blues (Christchurch)
Waratahs v Sharks (Sydney)
Stormers v Highlanders (Cape Town)
Cheetahs v Hurricanes (Bloemfontein)

Friday, March 12:
Chiefs v Crusaders (Hamilton)
Waratahs v Lions (Sydney)

Saturday, March 13:
Brumbies v Sharks (Canberra)
Bulls v Highlanders (Pretoria)
Stormers v Hurricanes (Cape Town)

Sunday, March 14:
Reds v Western Force (Brisbane)

Friday, March 19:
Blues v Brumbies (Auckland)
Bulls v Hurricanes (Pretoria)

Saturday, March 20:
Crusaders v Lions (Christchurch)
Highlanders v Sharks (Dunedin)
Western Force v Waratahs (Perth)
Stormers v Cheetahs (Cape Town)

Friday, March 26:
Highlanders v Lions (Dunedin)
Brumbies v Chiefs (Canberra)
Cheetahs v Reds (Bloemfontein)

Saturday, March 27:
Hurricanes v Sharks (Wellington)
Waratahs v Blues (Sydney)
Western Force v Bulls (Perth)

Friday, April 2:
Hurricanes v Crusaders (Wellington)
Western Force v Stormers (Perth)

Saturday, April 3:
Blues v Bulls (Auckland)
Chiefs v Highlanders (Mt Maunganui)
Waratahs v Cheetahs (Sydney)
Sharks v Reds (Durban)

Friday, April 9:
Chiefs v Bulls (Hamilton)

Saturday, April 10:
Highlanders v Western Force (Queenstown)
Blues v Stormers (Auckland)
Crusaders v Waratahs (Christchurch)
Brumbies v Cheetahs (Canberra)
Lions v Reds (Johannesburg)

Friday, April 16:
Chiefs v Stormers (Hamilton)
Brumbies v Hurricanes (Canberra)

Saturday, April 17:
Blues v Western Force (Auckland)
Crusaders v Cheetahs (Christchurch)
Reds v Bulls (Brisbane)
Lions v Sharks (Johannesburg)

Friday, April 23:
Chiefs v Cheetahs (Hamilton)
Reds v Stormers (Brisbane)
Western Force v Crusaders (Perth)

Saturday, April 24:
Highlanders v Hurricanes (Dunedin)
Waratahs v Brumbies (Sydney)
Bulls v Lions (Pretoria)
Sharks v Blues (Durban)

Friday, April 30:
Highlanders v Waratahs (Invercargill)
Stormers v Crusaders (Cape Town)

Saturday, May 1:
Hurricanes v Chiefs (Wellington)
Brumbies v Reds (Canberra)
Cheetahs v Blues (Bloemfontein)
Lions v Western Force (Johannesburg)
Bulls v Sharks (Pretoria)

Friday, May 7:
Hurricanes v Reds (Wellington)
Lions v Blues (Johannesburg)

Saturday, May 8:
Chiefs v Waratahs (Hamilton)
Brumbies v Highlanders (Canberra)
Bulls v Crusaders (Pretoria)
Cheetahs v Western Force (Bloemfontein)
Sharks v Stormers (Durban)

Friday, May 14:
Blues v Chiefs (Auckland)
Waratahs v Hurricanes (Sydney)
Sharks v Western Force (Durban)

Saturday, May 15:
Crusaders v Brumbies (Christchurch)
Reds v Highlanders (Brisbane)
Cheetahs v Lions (Kimberley)
Stormers v Bulls (Cape Town)

Friday, May 21 – Semi Final 1
Saturday, May 22 - Semi Final 2

Saturday, May 29 – Final

October 14, 2009 -- Currie Cup 2009 – Update (0)
October 9, 2009 -- Currie Cup 2009 – Update (0)
October 6, 2009 -- Australia win 2009 ICC Champions Trophy (0)
September 7, 2009 -- Wallabies bring Springboks down to earth in Brisbane (0)
September 3, 2009 -- Currie Cup 2009 Update (0)
September 2, 2009 -- ICC Champions Trophy 2009 around the corner (0)
September 2, 2009 -- Springboks make history in Tri-Nations (0)
January 18, 2010 -- Proteas pull one back against England (0)
December 7, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Groups (0)
November 2, 2009 -- Bulls are 2009 Currie Cup Champions (0)

Proteas pull one back against England

admin — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 07:32:21 +0000

Going into the final 5 day test of the 4 test series against England the Proteas were trailing by 1 test in the series. England were ahead 1-0 in the series. 2 of the 5 day tests in the series ended in draws. From the get-go the South African cricket team seemed determined not to loose the series. On the first day of the final test at the Wanderers in Johannesburg, South Africa Dale Steyn was the star of the show, taking 5 wickets in 13.5 overs. England were dismissed for 180. South Africa came in to bat and achieved a total 29 without loss at the end of play. On the 2nd day South African captain Graeme Smith scored a century and in the process helped South Africa to gain a total of 215 for the loss of only 2 wickets. Graeme Smith did have a little bit of luck on his side though. He was clearly caught behind when he had only 15 runs behind his name. A distinct sound could be heard. Even though the appeal was referred to the television umpire (who clearly did not have his sound on) and he survived. On day 3 South Africa added more runs to their total (thanks to contributions by AB De Villiers and Mark Boucher) and declared with their total at 423 runs for the loss of 7 wickets. England were sent in to bat. The English team suffered a top order collapse and the day ended with England at 48 runs for the loss of 3 wickets. The 4th day of the test match belonged to the Proteas. The South African team managed to bowl out England just before lunch for only 169 runs. All credit to Morne Morkel who took 4 wickets for 59 runs in 16 overs against the visitors. All credit to the Proteas for fighting back. This win means that South Africa retains the Basil D’Oliveira Trophy. It also means that the series against the visitors ends in a draw. Definately a better performance by the South African cricket team.

January 21, 2010 -- Super 14 Fixtures for 2010 (1)
December 7, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Groups (0)
November 16, 2009 -- Proteas have mixed results against England (0)
October 1, 2009 -- England 2009 / 2010 Tour to South Africa – Match Schedule (0)
September 28, 2009 -- South Africa knocked out of ICC Champions Trophy (0)
September 2, 2009 -- ICC Champions Trophy 2009 around the corner (0)
November 17, 2009 -- France teach Springboks a lesson (0)
November 13, 2009 -- Springboks to take on France tonight (0)
November 11, 2009 -- Famous Cricketers: Graeme Pollock (0)
November 9, 2009 -- Famous Footballers: Gary Lineker (0)

World Cup 2010: Groups

admin — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 06:22:20 +0000

This past weekend the group draw for the FIFA World Cup 2010 was staged in Cape Town, South Africa at the Cape Town International Convention Centre. The ceremony was presented by South African actress Charlize Theron, assisted by FIFA Secretary General Jérôme Valcke. The results of the draw had mixed response internationally. It seems that the whole world is in FIFA World Cup football fever now.

Here are the results of the draw.

Group A:

South Africa
Mexico
Uruguay
France

Group B:

Argentina
Greece
South Korea
Nigeria

Group C:

England
United States
Algeria
Slovenia

Group D:

Germany
Australia
Ghana
Serbia

Group E:

The Netherlands
Denmark
Japan
Cameroon

Group F

Italy
Paraguay
New Zealand
Slovakia

Group G

Brazil
North Korea
Côte d’Ivoire / Ivory Coast
Portugal

Group H:

Spain
Switzerland
Honduras
Chile

This really was an interesting FIFA World Cup draw. There could be some surprise results in the group matches of the tournament which kicks off on the 11th of June 2010 in Johannesburg. Only time will tell who will make it into the knockout stage of the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa.

January 21, 2010 -- Super 14 Fixtures for 2010 (1)
January 18, 2010 -- Proteas pull one back against England (0)
November 17, 2009 -- France teach Springboks a lesson (0)
November 16, 2009 -- Proteas have mixed results against England (0)
November 13, 2009 -- Springboks to take on France tonight (0)
November 11, 2009 -- Famous Cricketers: Graeme Pollock (0)
November 3, 2009 -- Springbok Squad announced for 2009 European Tour (0)
October 6, 2009 -- Australia win 2009 ICC Champions Trophy (0)
October 1, 2009 -- England 2009 / 2010 Tour to South Africa – Match Schedule (0)
September 28, 2009 -- South Africa knocked out of ICC Champions Trophy (0)

France teach Springboks a lesson

admin — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 09:50:42 +0000

The Springboks are currently still on tour in Europe and have lost both their tour matches, the first match against Leicester in the United Kingdom and the second match against France in Toulouse. I hope that they break out of this losing streak. Perhaps it was the poor portrayal of the South African National Anthem before the match by Ras Dumisani that jinxed the performance of the Springboks in the match against the France. Or maybe the Springboks were just completely outplayed by the French on their home ground. Or it could have been the referee (Springbok fans love blaming the referee). It seems that everyone’s looking for a scapegoat to blame for the Springboks’ poor performance on Friday night in Toulouse. The Springboks have not beaten France on their home ground in a game of rugby since 1997 (when Nick Mallet’s Springboks beat the French by 52 points to 10). This may have been in the back of their minds as they started the match on Friday night. Julien Dupuy scored the first points of the game for France in the 6th minute of the first half. The Springboks only managed to reply with a penalty by Morne Steyn in the 20th minute. A few minutes later Morne Steyn kicked over a drop goal for South Africa, followed by a try for South Africa by the captain, John Smit. The Springboks were leading by 13 points to 3, but failed to score in the rest of the match. They had no reply to French try by wing Vincent Clerc and the other points scored by the French. 2 Yellow cards handed out to Kankowski and Morne Steyn didn’t help the Springboks either. In the end France beat the Springboks convincingly by 20 points to 13. The Springboks face Saracens in the UK in a mid week clash this week before facing Italy on the weekend. Let’s hope South Africa have their rugby playing boots on for the rest of their European tour.

This is video of Ras Dumisani performing the SA National Anthem before the match:

November 13, 2009 -- Springboks to take on France tonight (0)
November 16, 2009 -- Proteas have mixed results against England (0)
November 3, 2009 -- Springbok Squad announced for 2009 European Tour (0)
September 25, 2009 -- South Africa bounce back in ICC Champions Trophy (0)
September 23, 2009 -- Sri Lanka crush Proteas in ICC Champions Trophy (0)
September 14, 2009 -- Springboks clinch 3rd Tri-Nations victory (0)
September 2, 2009 -- ICC Champions Trophy 2009 around the corner (0)
September 2, 2009 -- Springboks make history in Tri-Nations (0)
January 21, 2010 -- Super 14 Fixtures for 2010 (1)
January 18, 2010 -- Proteas pull one back against England (0)

Proteas have mixed results against England

admin — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 08:40:34 +0000

This past weekend the South African cricket team played in 2 different T20 Internationals against England. England were victorious in the first match played at the Wanderers in Johannesburg on Friday night. The Proteas won the 2nd match played at Supersport Park in Centurion yesterday.

On Friday night Graeme Smith sent England in to bat first after winning the toss at the Wanderers. England managed to score 202 for the loss of 6 wickets. Contributions of 33 by Trott, 57 by Collingwood and 85 by Morgan helped to power the English innings. Mclaren (fairly new to the South African side) manage to take 3 wickets for 33 runs in 4 overs (the best South African bowler in the match). Langeveldt managed to take 1 wicket for 39 runs in 4 overs. The other 2 dismissals in the English innings were run-outs. Batsmen Loots Bosman and Graeme Smit opened the South African innings and put up an impressive opening partnership for the Proteas in 8.3 overs. They scored 97 runs between the two of them before Graeme Smith was dismissed for 41 runs. Loots Bosman joined him shortly after this on the pavillion and England were back in the game (dismissed for 58 runs). A small contribution by JP Duminy did not help the Proteas (managing to score only 6 runs from 5 balls). A thunderstorm was brewing in Johannesburg. South Africa needed to progress from 121/3 to 129/3 in 1 over to clinch the match for South Africa (according to the Duckworth / Lewis system). The batsmen, AB De Villiers and Albie Morkel only managed to score 6 runs (instead of before rain came pouring down at the Wanderers. South Africa lost by a single run (again). South Africa were a bit unlucky, but would have won this match if the batsmen were not so cautious in the last over.

On Sunday, South Africa batted first in the 2nd T20 International match against England at Supersport Park in Centurion. The Proteas scored the second highest total ever in T20 Internationals, 241 runs for 6 wickets. Loots Bosman and Graeme Smith opened the South African batting innings and managed to put the highest ever opening partnership total in T20 cricket. South Africa only lost the first wicket of their innings with their total on a 170. Graeme Smith scored 88 runs from 44 balls. Loots Bosman scored 94 runs from only 45 balls. Minor contributions by AB De Villiers (24) and Albie Morkel (14) helped the home side to reach 241 runs from 20 overs. England came in to bat but could only manage a total of 157 runs for 8 wickets. South Africa won the match by 84 runs. Loots Bosman was awarded the Man of the Match award for his contribution. The Proteas have proved once again that they are a force to aware of in International cricket. Only time will tell if they manage to keep up this reputation.

September 2, 2009 -- ICC Champions Trophy 2009 around the corner (0)
January 18, 2010 -- Proteas pull one back against England (0)
November 17, 2009 -- France teach Springboks a lesson (0)
November 13, 2009 -- Springboks to take on France tonight (0)
October 1, 2009 -- England 2009 / 2010 Tour to South Africa – Match Schedule (0)
September 28, 2009 -- South Africa knocked out of ICC Champions Trophy (0)
September 25, 2009 -- South Africa bounce back in ICC Champions Trophy (0)
September 23, 2009 -- Sri Lanka crush Proteas in ICC Champions Trophy (0)
September 14, 2009 -- Springboks clinch 3rd Tri-Nations victory (0)
September 2, 2009 -- Springboks make history in Tri-Nations (0)

Springboks to take on France tonight

admin — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 09:15:16 +0000

The Springboks are currently on tour in Europe. Unfortunately they lost their first tour match against Leicester in England last week Friday. Guthro Steenkamp and Chillyboy
Ralepelle were injured in the match and sent home to South Africa. 2 Cheetahs players have been called up to replace these 2 players, Wian du Preez (prop) and Adriaan Strauss (hooker). Tonight’s match against France kicks off at 9:45 PM (South African time) and will be broadcast on Supersport 1 and M-net in South Africa. The match is being played in Toulouse in France, at the Municipal stadium. This promises to be a cracking game of rugby, but I think the Springboks will be victorious at the end of it. The French are a force to be reckoned with on their own soil. Only time will tell if the Springboks will be victorious in this match against France. Hopefully we’ll get to see Bryan Habana score one of his world famous tries (example in the photo below)

French Team: Damien Traille, Vincent Clerc, Yann David, Maxime Mermoz, Cedric Heymans, Francois Trinh-Duc, Julien Dupuy, Louis Picamoles, Imanol Harinordoquy, Theirry Dusautoir (captain), Romain Millo-Chluuski, Lionel Nallett, Nicolas Mas, Willem Servat, Fabien Barcella. Reserves: Dimitri Szarzewzski, Sylvain Marconnet, Sebastien Chabal, Julien Bonnaire, Morgan Parra, David Marty, Maxime Medard.

South Africa: Zane Kirchner, JP Pietersen, Jaque Fourie, Adi Jacobs, Bryan Habana, Morne Steyn, Fourie du Preez, Ryan Kankowski, Schalk Burger, Heinrich Brussow, Victor Matfield, Bakkies Botha, John Smit (captain), Bismarck du Plessis, Tendai Mtawarira. Reserves: Adriaan Strauss, Wian du Preez, CJ van der Linde, Andries Bekker, Danie Rossouw, Ruan Pienaar, Wynand Olivier.

November 17, 2009 -- France teach Springboks a lesson (0)
November 16, 2009 -- Proteas have mixed results against England (0)
November 3, 2009 -- Springbok Squad announced for 2009 European Tour (0)
September 25, 2009 -- South Africa bounce back in ICC Champions Trophy (0)
September 23, 2009 -- Sri Lanka crush Proteas in ICC Champions Trophy (0)
September 14, 2009 -- Springboks clinch 3rd Tri-Nations victory (0)
September 2, 2009 -- ICC Champions Trophy 2009 around the corner (0)
September 2, 2009 -- Springboks make history in Tri-Nations (0)
January 21, 2010 -- Super 14 Fixtures for 2010 (1)
January 18, 2010 -- Proteas pull one back against England (0)

Famous Footballers: Roberto Baggio

admin — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 13:48:35 +0000

Roberto Baggio was born in 1967 in Caldogno, Italy. He represented Italy in 56 games between 1988 and 2004. He scored 27 goals for his country in his career (the fourth most in Italian Football history). He played in 3 different FIFA World Cup tournaments for Italy. Roberto Baggio is also the only Italian player in history who has scored goals in 3 different FIFA World Cup tournaments. He played 488 games and scored 218 goals for various football clubs in Italy. He played in games for Vicenza, Florentina, Juventus, Milan, Bologna, Internazionale and Brescia during his career (between 1982 and 2004). In 1993 Roberto Baggio was named European Footballer of the Year and FIFA World Player of the year, a truly remarkable achievement. Brazilian football legend Pele named him as one of the 25 greatest living footballers in his 2004 FIFA 100 list. In his career Roberto Baggio scored 9 goals in FIFA World Cup tournaments, 32 goals in European competitions and 78 goals from 91 penalties (highest in Italian football history). It’s that fans won’t see him play in next year’s FIFA World Cup in SA. He truly is one of Football’s greats.

Related Links:
Roberto Baggio – Fansite
Roberto Baggio – Official Website.

November 3, 2009 -- Springbok Squad announced for 2009 European Tour (0)
October 23, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Teams – Italy (0)

Famous Cricketers: Graeme Pollock

admin — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 07:35:44 +0000

Graeme Pollock was born in Durban, Kwazulu Natal province in South Africa in 1944. He’s widely regarded as the best South African cricketer and batsmen of all time. Graeme Pollock played for Eastern Province and Transvaal on in the South African domestic cricket competition. In his cricketing career Graeme Pollock played in 262 first class matches and 23 Test matches for South Africa. He scored 2256 test runs, an average of 60.97 per innings (second best in history behind Donald Bradman of Australia). He played in 14 test matches against Australia, 8 against England an 1 against New Zealand. He managed to score 7 test centuries and 11 test fifties in his career. In 1970 he scored 274 against Australia (his highest score in a test) against Australia in Durban at Kingsmead. This was a record which was only broken in 1999 by Daryll Cullinan. He also bowled 414 balls in test cricket and took 4 wickets. He played in his last test for South Africa against Australia in 1970. Unfortunately his international career was cut short by the International Sporting Boycott of South Africa. The boycott was only lifted in 1992 when South Africa was allowed to play in the Cricket World Cup. One can only wonder what would’ve happened if he continued to play international cricket. Graeme Pollock was named as South African player of the year in 1961 and 1984. His nephew, Sean Pollock (son of Peter Pollock) played in 108 test matches for South Africa and captained South Africa between 2000 and 2003.

Related Links:
Graeme Pollock – Who’s Who SA
Graeme Pollock – South Africa.info

January 21, 2010 -- Super 14 Fixtures for 2010 (1)
January 18, 2010 -- Proteas pull one back against England (0)
December 7, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Groups (0)
November 17, 2009 -- France teach Springboks a lesson (0)
November 16, 2009 -- Proteas have mixed results against England (0)
November 13, 2009 -- Springboks to take on France tonight (0)
November 3, 2009 -- Springbok Squad announced for 2009 European Tour (0)
October 6, 2009 -- Australia win 2009 ICC Champions Trophy (0)
October 1, 2009 -- England 2009 / 2010 Tour to South Africa – Match Schedule (0)
September 28, 2009 -- South Africa knocked out of ICC Champions Trophy (0)

Famous Rugby Players: Jonah Lomu

admin — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 06:29:47 +0000

Jonah Lomu was born on the 12th of May 1975 in Auckland, New Zealand. Many people regard him as the first international superstar of rugby union. He played in 63 tests for the New Zealand All Blacks between 1994 and 2002. He’s also played in 62 provincial matches for North Harbour,
Wellington, Counties Manukau (in New Zealand) and Cardiff (In Wales) and in 59 Super rugby matches for the Blues, Hurricanes and Chiefs. Jonah Lomu underwent a kidney transplant operation in 2004, but did make a comeback afterwards. He retired from International Rugby in 2007 but is currently playing for the Marseille club in France. He holds the record for the most tries scored by an All Black against England (8) and also holds the record for the most tries scored in Rugby World Cup tournaments (15). Jonah Lomu was part of the New Zealand Rugby World Cup squad who toured South Africa in 1995. In the semi-final match against England, he scored 4 tries, but could not score against South Africa in the final match at Ellis Park Stadium (now Coca Cola Park stadium) in Johannesburg. He was also part of the New Zealand 7’s squad between 1994 and 2001. Jonah Lomu was inducted into the Rugby Hall of Fame in 2007. He’s truly one of rugby’s greats and will be spoken about by generations to come.

This is a video featuring some of Jonah Lomu’s best moments:

Related Links:
Jonah Lomu – Facebook Fan Page
Jonah Lomu – Kids World

January 21, 2010 -- Super 14 Fixtures for 2010 (1)
October 6, 2009 -- Australia win 2009 ICC Champions Trophy (0)
September 25, 2009 -- South Africa bounce back in ICC Champions Trophy (0)
September 14, 2009 -- Springboks clinch 3rd Tri-Nations victory (0)
September 7, 2009 -- Wallabies bring Springboks down to earth in Brisbane (0)
September 2, 2009 -- ICC Champions Trophy 2009 around the corner (0)
September 2, 2009 -- Springboks make history in Tri-Nations (0)

Famous Footballers: Gary Lineker

admin — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 08:15:13 +0000

Gary Lineker was born in 1960 in Oadby, Leicester, England. He played for Leicester City during his youth footballing career between 1976 and 1978. He moved on to play for Leicester City, Everton and Tottenham Hotspur in England. He also played for Barcelona in Spain and Nagoya Grampus in Japan in his professional football career (between 1978 and 1994). He scored 239 goals in the 461 he played in professional. He was the top scorer in the English Football league in 1985, 1986 and 1990. But that’s not all. He also played in 80 matches for the English National Football team. He scored 48 goals for England in those matches. 10 of those goals were scored for England in FIFA World Cup Tournaments (In 1986 in Mexico and 1990 in Italy). He truly is one of the best footballers who has ever walked on the face of the earth. Nowadays Gary Lineker is a sports broadcasting for the BBC and Eredivisie Live. During his career as a footballer he was never cautioned by a referee for foul play with a yellow or red card. For this achievement he received the FIFA Fair Play Award in 1990. It’s unclear if Gary Lineker will be part of the BBC’s broadcasting team for next year’s FIFA World Cup in South Africa, but it would be great to have one of football’s greats on African soil.

January 18, 2010 -- Proteas pull one back against England (0)
November 16, 2009 -- Proteas have mixed results against England (0)
October 1, 2009 -- England 2009 / 2010 Tour to South Africa – Match Schedule (0)
September 28, 2009 -- South Africa knocked out of ICC Champions Trophy (0)
September 22, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Teams – England (0)
September 2, 2009 -- ICC Champions Trophy 2009 around the corner (0)

Stadiums of the world: Wembley Stadium

admin — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 13:30:36 +0000

This stadium is situated in Wembley Park in London in the United Kingdom. Construction on the first Wembley Stadium was completed in 1923. When it was closed down in 2000, the old stadium had seating for 82,000 fans. At a stage seating for 127,000 was available though. The old Wembley Stadium hosted the 1966 FIFA World Cup Final. The old stadium was demolished to make space for the new Wembley stadium in 2003. In 2007 construction was completed of the new Wembley stadium. The new Wembley stadium is owned by the FA (Football Association). Wembley stadium has always been the ground where the English National football team plays its home games. The FA Cup final is also played at this venue. The new Wembley stadium has covered seating for 90,000 spectators, making it the largest stadium in the world of its kind. It’s also the 2nd biggest stadium in Europe. The new Wembley Stadium has 2,618 toilets, more than any other venue in the world.

The stadium is primarily used for Football (Soccer), but is also a venue used for American Football & Rugby League games and Athletics. For Athletics and American Football the seating capacity is reduced though. The new Wembley Stadium is also a very popular concert venue, capable of accommodating 75,000 to 90,000 seating and 15,000 standing concert goers. Artists like Muse, Foo Fighters, AC/DC, U2 and Coldplay (to name just a few) have performed at the new Wembley Stadium since 2007. The new Wembley Stadium is scheduled to host the 2011 UEFA Champions League Final. This truly is one of the best sporting venues in the world.

Related Link:
Wembley Stadium – Official Website

Random Posts

November 16, 2009 -- Proteas have mixed results against England (0)
October 14, 2009 -- Currie Cup 2009 – Update (0)
September 17, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Stadiums – Part 4 (0)
October 13, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Teams – Denmark (0)
October 12, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Teams – United States (0)
October 15, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Teams – Chile (0)
September 3, 2009 -- Currie Cup 2009 Update (0)
October 9, 2009 -- Currie Cup 2009 – Update (0)
November 11, 2009 -- Famous Cricketers: Graeme Pollock (0)
January 21, 2010 -- Super 14 Fixtures for 2010 (1)

Famous Rugby Players: Gareth Edwards

admin — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 08:52:59 +0000

Gareth Edwards was born in Pontardawe, Wales in the United Kingdom in 1947. He’s considered to be one of the best rugby players of all time. “The Prince” played played in 53 rugby tests for Wales (scoring 88 points) and 10 for the British Lions. He also played in 195 games for Cardiff RFC in Wales between 1966 and 1978 (scoring 67 tries). Gareth Edwards was part of the British Lions squad who toured SA in 1974 (a series which the British Lions won). In 1997 he was inducted into the Rugby Hall of Fame (he was one of the first 15 players to be inducted). In 2001 he was voted as the “Greatest Welsh player of all time” at a dinner for the Welsh Rugby Former International Players Association. In 2007 Gareth Edwards was named as a CBE (Commander of the British Empire) for his services to sport. Nowadays Edwards commentates on rugby games for the BBC (in English) and S4C (in his Welsh mother tongue). If you visit St. David’s Centre in Cardiff you will find a statue of Gareth Edwards. He truly is one of the best rugby players of all time and worthy of being named as one of the famous rugby players on this blog.

Gareth Edwards scored a try for the Barbarians in a match against New Zealand. Rugby fans refer to the try as “That Try” and its considered to be the best try ever scored in the sport by many fans.

This is a video clip of “That Try” from Youtube:

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December 7, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Groups (0)
October 26, 2009 -- Famous Cyclists: Miguel Indurain (2)
September 9, 2009 -- IAAF to release Caster Semenya’s Test Results in 2 weeks (0)
October 20, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Teams – Mexico (0)
October 8, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Teams – South Korea (0)
November 9, 2009 -- Famous Footballers: Gary Lineker (0)
October 13, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Teams – Denmark (0)
September 8, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Stadiums – Part 1 (1)
October 19, 2009 -- Bulls and Cheetahs to play in Currie Cup 2009 Final (0)

Springbok Squad announced for 2009 European Tour

admin — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 10:40:28 +0000

After the Vodacom Bulls beat the Vodacom Cheetahs convincingly in this past Saturday’s Currie Cup final, the Springbok squad was announced for the upcoming 2009 South African tour to Europe. 37 players have been chosen to represent their country. South African rugby is really doing well in 2009, so this promises to be one of the best tours in history. Pierre Spies was selected but has withdrawn from the squad. He’s undergoing surgery one of his fingers (an injury sustained in the Vodacom Bulls Currie Cup campaign). He has been replaced by another player (Jean Deysel from the Sharks). South Africa will face Leicester in on the 6th of November, France on the 13th of November, Saracens on the 17th of November, Italy on the 21st of November and Ireland on the 28th of November.

Here is the list of players who were selected:

Forwards (20):

John Smit (Sharks) – Captain
Victor Matfield (Vodacom Bulls) – Vice-Captain
Andries Bekker (Vodacom Western Province)
Bakkies Botha (Vodacom Bulls)
Heinrich Brüssow (Vodacom Cheetahs)
Schalk Burger (Vodacom Western Province)
Bismarck du Plessis (Sharks)
Jannie du Plessis (Sharks)
Alistair Hargreaves (Sharks)
Ashley Johnson (Vodacom Cheetahs)
Ryan Kankowski (Sharks)
Bandise Maku (Vodacom Bulls)
Tendai Mtawarira (Sharks)
Dewald Potgieter (Vodacom Bulls)
Chiliboy Ralepelle (Vodacom Bulls)
Davon Raubenheimer (GWK Griquas)
Danie Rossouw (Vodacom Bulls)
Gurthrö Steenkamp (Vodacom Bulls)
Heinke van der Merwe (Xerox Lions)
Jean Deysel (Sharks)

Backs (17)

Heini Adams (Vodacom Bulls)
Meyer Bosman (Vodacom Cheetahs)
Juan de Jongh (Vodacom Western Province)
Fourie du Preez (Vodacom Bulls)
Jaque Fourie (Xerox Lions)
Bryan Habana (Vodacom Bulls)
Francois Hougaard (Vodacom Bulls)
Adi Jacobs (Sharks)
Zane Kirchner (Vodacom Bulls)
Odwa Ndungane (Sharks)
Jongi Nokwe (Vodacom Cheetahs)
Wynand Olivier (Vodacom Bulls)
Ruan Pienaar (Sharks)
JP Pietersen (Sharks)
Earl Rose (Xerox Lions)
Morne Steyn (Vodacom Bulls)
Riaan Viljoen (GWK Griquas)

The selected SA Squad features 9 new caps. 14 Vodacom Bulls players have been selected. 11 Sharks players have been selected. 4 Vodacom Cheetahs players have been selected. 3 Xerox Lions players have been selected. 3 Vodacom Western Province players have been selected. 2 GWK Griquas players have been selected. In all, this promises to be a great Springbok team. I’m sure that all the new players are quite excited to be selected. South Africa has a great opportunity to prove to the world that they’re still the World Champions of Rugby Union.

November 17, 2009 -- France teach Springboks a lesson (0)
November 13, 2009 -- Springboks to take on France tonight (0)
January 21, 2010 -- Super 14 Fixtures for 2010 (1)
January 18, 2010 -- Proteas pull one back against England (0)
December 7, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Groups (0)
November 16, 2009 -- Proteas have mixed results against England (0)
November 11, 2009 -- Famous Footballers: Roberto Baggio (1)
November 11, 2009 -- Famous Cricketers: Graeme Pollock (0)
October 27, 2009 -- Famous Rugby Players: Philippe Sella (0)
October 23, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Teams – Italy (0)

Famous Golfers: Arnold Palmer

admin — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 09:20:32 +0000

Arnold Palmer was born in 1929 in Latrobe, Pennsylvania in the United States. Arnold Palmer was the first star of sport’s television age (in the 1950s). He’s considered by many as one of the greatest Golf players of all time. He won the US Masters tournament in 1958, 1960, 1962 and 1964. He also won the US Open in 1960. He also has the 1961 and 1962 British Open titles behind his name. Arnold Palmer was inducted in the World Golf Hall of Fame in 1974. He also received the PGA Tour Lifetime Achievement Award in 1998. He participated in his first PGA Tour in 1955. In his career Arnold Palmer had 62 PGA Tour wins. He also has 94 Professional wins behind his name. He is nicknamed as “The King”. He also known as one of “The Big Three” (the other two being Gary Player from SA and Jack Nicklaus from the United States). They are well-known for popularizing the sport of golf. In 2004 he completed his last US Masters. It was the 50th consecutive US Masters tournament he’d played in. In 2000 he was ranked the 6th greatest player of all time in Golf Digest magazine’s rankings.

November 2, 2009 -- Famous Athletes: Jesse Owens (0)
October 12, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Teams – United States (0)
September 15, 2009 -- Famous Tennis Players: John McEnroe (0)

Famous Athletes: Jesse Owens

admin — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 12:49:30 +0000

James Cleveland “Jesse” Owens was born in 1913 in Alabama in the United States. He’s considered by many as one of the greatest athletes of all time. He won 4 gold medals at the Olympic games in 1936 in Berlin (in then Nazi occupied Germany). He won the Gold medal in the 100m, 200m, long jump and 4 x 100m relay at the games. Jesse Owens received several tributes in his later years and following his death. In 1970 Jesse Owens was inducted into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame in the US. President Gerald Ford Awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom to him in 1976. A. Mrkos at Klet discovered an asteroid in 1980 and named it after Jesse Owens. Jesse Owens died of lung cancer in 1980 after smoking for 35 years. Before his death in that year he was trying to convince then US President Jimmy Carter not to boycott the 1980 Olympic Games in Moscow (then in the USSR). A street close to the Olympic stadium in Berlin, Germany was named after Jesse Owens in 1984. In 1990 US President George H. W. Bush awarded the Congressional Gold Medal posthumously to Jesse Owens. Two US postage stamps have been issued to honor Jesse Owens, 1 in 1990 and 1 in 1998. At this year’s World Athletics Championships in Berlin, Germany all US Track and Field team members wore badges with “JO” to commemorate his victories in the same stadium 73 years ago.

November 3, 2009 -- Famous Golfers: Arnold Palmer (0)
October 12, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Teams – United States (0)
September 15, 2009 -- Famous Tennis Players: John McEnroe (0)

Bulls are 2009 Currie Cup Champions

admin — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 08:39:09 +0000

I attented the 2009 Currie Cup final at Loftus Versveld Stadium in Pretoria on Saturday. The Bulls and Cheetahs faced eachother for the 3rd time in the last 4 years in South Africa’s premier domestic rugby competition’s final. Me and my dad arrived at the stadium at about 2:30 PM on Saturday. Pretoria is renowned countrywide for build-up before a big game at Loftus Versveld. Bulls supporters were already driving around with flags mounted on their cars and bakkies on Thursday (2 days before the game). Vendors were already selling flags on the streets of Pretoria on Thursday morning. The capital city truly loves the Bulls. It’s one thing Pretoria can be proud of. The match started at 5:30 PM. Pretoria gets way too hit this time of year so that was probably the reason for the match starting that late in the afternoon (kickoff is usually at 5 PM for rugby games in Pretoria). Well-known South African singer, Steve Hofmeyer (one of the biggest Bulls fan in the country) made an appearance just before the game kicked off.

The Bulls and Cheetahs treated the sell-out crowd of 53,000 people to a brilliant game of rugby. An early try by Bulls wing Francois Hougaard (converted by Morne’ Steyn) put the home team on the scoreboard. The Bulls were ahead by 7 points to 0 in the 4th minute. In the 8th minute Free State flyhalf Jacques-Louis Potgieter missed a penalty right in front of the Bulls post. In the 14th minute Bryan Habana (the Bulls and Springbok left wing) sailed over for a try in the corner (also converted by Morne’ Steyn). This put the Bulls ahead by 14 points to 0. Just 3 minutes later Bryan Habana sailed over again (in the same corner) for his 2nd try of the match. Morne’ Steyn converted this try as well. This put the Bulls ahead by 21 points to 0 in the 18th minute (very impressive if you ask me). In the 25th minute flyhalf Morne’ Steyn kicked over his first penalty of the game. The Bulls were leading by 24 points to 0. The Bulls were clearly dominating the game, but not for long. The Cheetahs came back with force. Frans Viljoen scored a try for the visitors in the 31st minute for the visitors, barely stretching over the Bulls tryline. Just 5 minutes later Corne’ Uys sailed over the Bulls line for the Cheetahs second try. Both tries were converted by Potgieter, putting the Cheetahs only 10 points behind the Bulls. In the last minute of the first half, Morne’ Steyn kicked over a drop goal for the home side. The Bulls were leading the game by 27 points to 14.

After a well deserved smoke break (to calm down the nerves) I returned to my seat on the main stand for the 2nd half of the game. At this stage Bulls fans were hoping that the Bulls could extend their lead or at least defend their score. Free State supporters were hoping for a comeback by the Cheetahs. In the 4th minute the Bulls were awarded a penalty (which Morne’ Steyn kicked over), put them ahead by 30 points to 14. The Cheetahs replied with a try by Nico Breedt 1 minute later. The conversion by Jacques-Louis Potgieter put the Cheetahs only 9 points behind. The Bulls were leading by 30 points to 21. 3 minutes later Jacques-Louis Potgieter put the Cheetahs only 6 points behind when he kicked over a drop goal. Bulls fans were sitting on the edge of their seats. In the 54th minute of the game Morne’ Steyn calmed fears by kicking over another penalty putting the Bulls ahead by 33 points to 24. Shortly after this Habana nearly scored his 3rd try of the game, but was denied by great defending by the Cheetahs. However a penalty was reversed by referee Jonathan Kaplan for retaliation by JP Joubert against Habana. Morne’ Steyn missed the attempt to put the Bulls ahead by 9 points again. However, in the 68th minute the Bulls were awarded another penalty which was kicked over by the Bulls flyhalf putting them ahead by 9 points again. In the 75th minute one of the Cheetah’s players was yellow carded for what is described as “verbals” by referee Jonathan Kaplan. The Bulls held out till the end of the match, winning by 36 points to 24. They completed “the double” by beating the Cheetahs. The Bulls are the first team in South African rugby history to win both the Currie Cup and the Super 14 in the same year. Well done to the Bulls!

It truly has been a brilliant year for South African rugby in general. A South African team won the Super 14 trophy. SA won the series against the British & Irish Lions. South Africa also won the 2009 Tri Nations tournament. The Springbok squad for the upcoming tour was announced after the Currie Cup final match on Saturday. I will be covering this in an upcoming post.

January 21, 2010 -- Super 14 Fixtures for 2010 (1)
November 17, 2009 -- France teach Springboks a lesson (0)
November 16, 2009 -- Proteas have mixed results against England (0)
November 13, 2009 -- Springboks to take on France tonight (0)
October 19, 2009 -- Bulls and Cheetahs to play in Currie Cup 2009 Final (0)
October 14, 2009 -- Currie Cup 2009 – Update (0)
October 9, 2009 -- Currie Cup 2009 – Update (0)
September 30, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Stadiums – Part 5 (0)
September 25, 2009 -- South Africa bounce back in ICC Champions Trophy (0)
September 23, 2009 -- Sri Lanka crush Proteas in ICC Champions Trophy (0)

Famous Cricketers: Donald Bradman

admin — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 13:10:44 +0000

Sir Donald George Bradman was an Australian cricketer. He was born in 1908 in Cootamundra, New South Wales, Australia. He was nicknamed as “The Don”, “The Boy from Bowral” and “Braddles”. He’s widely acknowledged as the best batsmen in World Cricketing history. His test average of 99.94 is considered one of the biggest achievements in World Sport. In his career he played for Australia in 52 test matches between 1928 and 1948. 37 of those matches were played against England, 5 were played against India, 5 were played against South Africa and 5 were played against the West Indies. He made his debut against England in 1928. He finished his career against England as well, playing in his last test against them in 1948. Even though he retired as a player Donald Bradman was involved in the Australian Cricket Administration until 1980. The Australian Government awarded him with the Companion of the Order of Australia in recognition of his service to the sport of cricket in the country in 1979.

Donald Bradman still holds the following records in Cricket today:

Highest career batting average (minimum 20 innings): 99.94
Highest series batting average (5 Test series): 201.50
Highest ratio of centuries per innings played: 36.25% (29 centuries from 80 innings)
Highest 5th wicket partnership: 405 (with Sid Barnes, 1946–47)
Highest 6th wicket partnership: 346 (with Jack Fingleton, 1936–37)
Highest score by a number 5 batsman: 304 (1934)
Highest score by a number 7 batsman: 270 (1936–37)
Most runs against one opponent: 5,028 (v England)
Most runs in one series: 974 (1930)
Most centuries scored in a single session of play: 6 (1 pre lunch, 2 lunch-tea, 3 tea-stumps)
Most runs in one day’s play: 309 (1930)
Most double centuries: 12
Most double centuries in a series: 3 (1930)
Most triple centuries: 2 (equal with Brian Lara and Virender Sehwag)
Most consecutive matches in which he made a century: 6

We’re living in the year 2009 now and it’s amazing that he still holds all the above records in cricket. A truly remarkable achievement. He’s truly worthy of being featured as a Famous Cricketer on Sports Fanatic.

January 21, 2010 -- Super 14 Fixtures for 2010 (1)
October 6, 2009 -- Australia win 2009 ICC Champions Trophy (0)
September 28, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Teams – Australia (0)
September 7, 2009 -- Wallabies bring Springboks down to earth in Brisbane (0)
September 2, 2009 -- ICC Champions Trophy 2009 around the corner (0)
September 2, 2009 -- Springboks make history in Tri-Nations (0)

Famous Rugby Players: Philippe Sella

admin — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 10:08:48 +0000

Philippe Sella was born in 1962 in Tonneins, France. He played in 111 Rugby Union Matches for his country and scored 125 points in his international career. He played in the centre position for both France and for the French rugby club Agen. After retiring from International Rugby he played for the Saracens rugby club in England (joining Michael Lynagh from Australia) in 1996. Philippe Sella has been inducted into the International Rugby Hall of Fame and the IRB Hall of Fame. He held the record as the most internationally capped player .He was part of the French squad for the 1995 Rugby World Cup in South Africa. He played against South Africa in that nail biting rainy semi-final match in Durban (which France lost). Philippe Sella was definately one of the best players in International Rugby history. He scored 30 tries in his 111 matches. Sella retired from rugby in 1999 at the age of 36.

November 17, 2009 -- France teach Springboks a lesson (0)
November 13, 2009 -- Springboks to take on France tonight (0)
November 3, 2009 -- Springbok Squad announced for 2009 European Tour (0)

Famous Footballers: Fernando Torres

admin — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 11:41:04 +0000

Fernando José Torres Sanz was born in 1984 in Madrid, Spain. He’s a professional footballer currently signed to the Liverpool football club in England. Before moving to this club he played for Atlético Madrid in Spain between 2001 and 2007. He scored 82 goals in 214 matches for Atlético Madrid. In 2003 he made has debut for the Spanish national football team. He’s played for Spain in the UEFA Euro 2004, 2006 FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 2008 tournaments. He scored the winning goal for Spain against Germany in the UEFA Euro 2008 final. In 2009 he played for his country in the FIFA Confederations Cup tournament in South Africa. He scored his second hat-trick for Spain after 17 minutes into the match against New Zealand in the Confederations Cup. He clinched the record for the fastest hat trick ever scored by a Spanish player. Fernando Torres is definately one of the players to watch in the 2010 FIFA World Cup. He’s definately talented and has proved to be one of the best players for his current club, Liverpool. He’s been named Premier League player of the month in England a few times since his move there in 2007. Yesterday Fernando Torres scored 1 of the 2 goals against rivals Manchester United at Anfield in Liverpool helping to break the biggest losing streak in 22 years for the club. So far he’s scored 23 goals for Spain in 70 matches. He’s also scored 47 goals in 66 matches for Liverpool. Truly worthy of being featured as one of the Famous Footballers on this blog.

October 26, 2009 -- Famous Cyclists: Miguel Indurain (2)
September 25, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Teams – Spain (0)

Famous Cyclists: Miguel Indurain

admin — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 10:49:38 +0000

Miguel Indurain was born in 1964 in Spain. He’s a retired cyclist now, but still involved in Spanish cycling at an administrative level. He’s well-known for becoming the fourth person in history to win the Tour de France 5 times and the first person ever to do it 5 times in a row. He’s 1,88m tall, no wonder this earned him the “Miguelón” (Big Mig) nickname. Miguel Indurain became a professional cyclist in 1985. He won his first Tour de France in 1991 and his last one in 1995. He finished in 11th place in 1996. In his career he achieved 12 stage wins in the Tour de France from 1989 until 1995. He also won the Giro d’Italia (Tour of Italy) in 1992 and 1993. He finished 3rd in this competition in 1994. At the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta Miguel Indurain won the Gold medal in the Individual Time-Trial competition for cycling. He was also the 1995 World Time-Trial Champion. He’s often referred to as one as the best cyclists in history and definately worthy of being featured as a Famous Cyclist on this blog. Miguel Indurain nowadays attends cyclotourist events such as L’Etape du Tour and the Cape Argus Pick & Pay Cycle Tour in Cape Town, South Africa.

Related Links:
Miguel Indurain – Cycling Hall of Fame
Miguel Indurain – Laureus

October 26, 2009 -- Famous Footballers: Fernando Torres (0)
September 25, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Teams – Spain (0)

World Cup 2010: Teams – Italy

admin — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 12:01:12 +0000

The Italian national football team have qualified for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. Italy is currently ranked at #4 on the FIFA rankings. The country will be playing in their 17th World Cup Tournament in history in 2010. Italy have won the FIFA World Cup 4 times, in 1934 (In Italy), 1938 (In France), 1982 (In Spain) and 2006 (In Germany). Italy will be looking to win their 5th title next year. Italy have played in 7 European Championships as well. They have one European Championship title on their belt (they won the competition in 1968). Italy have been runners-up twice in the history of the FIFA World Cup. The first time in 1970 (In Mexico) and the 2nd time in 1994 (In the United States). Earlier in 2009 Italy played in their first ever FIFA Confederations Cup in South Africa. They were knocked out in the first round. Marcello Lippi is the current coach of the Italian National Football team (since 2008). The current Italian national football team captain, Fabio Cannavaro is also the most capped player in Italian football history. He’s played in 130 matches for his country since 1997. Luigi Riva is top goal scoring Italian footballer in history. He scored 35 goals in 42 matches between 1965 and 1974 (almost averaging a goal a match). I had the privilege of watching Italy take on the United States in a FIFA Confederations Cup match at Loftus Versveld Stadium in Pretoria earlier this year. They won the match by 3 goals to 1. They’re still one of the favorites to win the 2010 FIFA World Cup in my opinion.

November 11, 2009 -- Famous Footballers: Roberto Baggio (1)
November 3, 2009 -- Springbok Squad announced for 2009 European Tour (0)

World Cup 2010: Teams – Côte d’Ivoire / Ivory Coast

admin — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 14:07:56 +0000

Côte d’Ivoire have qualified for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. This will be the 2nd time that the country also known as the Ivory Coast will compete in a FIFA World Cup Tournament. At the moment the country is ranked at #19 on the FIFA Rankings. Vahid Halilhodžić (a former Yugoslav footballer) is the current coach of the Ivory Coast national football team. Didier Drogba is the current captain of the Côte d’Ivoire national football team. He’s also the top scoring player and the most capped player in Ivory Coast football history. He’s scored 41 goals in 75 matches for Côte d’Ivoire. Drogba plays for English Football Club Chelsea. The country has been represented 17 times in the Africa Cup of Nations since 1965. Côte d’Ivoire won the Africa Cup of Nations in 1992. The country also competed in 1 FIFA Confederations Cup tournament in 1992 and ended in 4th place. Côte d’Ivoire promises to be one of the most interesting teams in next year’s FIFA World Cup. This will be the 2nd time a team from the Ivory Coast will play in a World Cup in South Africa. In 1995 the Côte d’Ivoire rugby team played in the IRB Rugby World Cup (which was hosted by South Africa).

Random Posts

November 3, 2009 -- Springbok Squad announced for 2009 European Tour (0)
October 23, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Teams – Italy (0)
September 25, 2009 -- South Africa bounce back in ICC Champions Trophy (0)
September 14, 2009 -- Springboks clinch 3rd Tri-Nations victory (0)
January 21, 2010 -- Super 14 Fixtures for 2010 (1)
September 29, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Teams – Ghana (0)
October 28, 2009 -- Famous Cricketers: Donald Bradman (1)
September 15, 2009 -- Famous Tennis Players: John McEnroe (0)
October 14, 2009 -- Currie Cup 2009 – Update (0)
September 22, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Teams – England (0)

World Cup 2010: Teams – Netherlands

admin — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 13:13:04 +0000

The Netherlands have qualified for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. The country will be participating in its 9th FIFA World Cup. The country played in its first FIFA World Cup in 1934. The Netherlands were runners-up in 2 FIFA World Cup tournaments, in 1974 and 1978. The Netherlands national football team is currently ranked at #3 on the FIFA rankings. The team is also referred to as Holland by fans all over the world. The Netherlands have also participated in 8 European Championships over the years and won the competition in 1988. Edwin van der Sar is the most capped played in Dutch football history. He played in 134 matches for the Netherlands between 1995 and 2008. Patrick Kluivert is the highest scoring footballer in Dutch football history. He scored 40 goals in 79 matches between 1994 and 2004. Bert van Marwijk is the current Dutch head coach. He took over from Marco van Basten in 2008. Giovanni van Bronckhorst is current team captain of the Netherlands national football squad. The team is managed by the Royal Netherlands Football Association (Koninklijke Nederlandse Voetbal Bond). This association was founded in 1889. Soccer is very popular in the Netherlands and fans of the Dutch team are easily identifiable by their orange shirts. The Netherlands are definately a team to watch at the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

Random Posts

November 3, 2009 -- Famous Golfers: Arnold Palmer (0)
September 25, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Teams – Spain (0)
October 21, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Teams – Côte d’Ivoire / Ivory Coast (0)
September 7, 2009 -- Wallabies bring Springboks down to earth in Brisbane (0)
September 2, 2009 -- Springboks make history in Tri-Nations (0)
October 6, 2009 -- Australia win 2009 ICC Champions Trophy (0)
September 15, 2009 -- Famous Tennis Players: John McEnroe (0)
September 7, 2009 -- Famous Golfers: Gary Player (0)
October 26, 2009 -- Famous Footballers: Fernando Torres (0)
November 9, 2009 -- Famous Footballers: Gary Lineker (0)

World Cup 2010: Teams – Mexico

admin — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 08:02:01 +0000

Mexico have qualified for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. The country will be playing in its 14th FIFA World Cup. The made it to the Quarter finals of the FIFA World Cup in 1970 and 1986. Mexico hosted the competition in 1986. The country has also played in 5 FIFA Confederations Cup tournaments since 1995. They won the FIFA Confederations Cup in 1998. In 1987 Mexico beat the Bahamas 13 – 0 (the country’s biggest win in history). In 1961 they lost 8 – 0 against England (their biggest loss in history). Claudio Suárez is the most capped footballer in Mexican Football history. He represented Mexico in 178 matches between 1992 and 2006. Jared Borgetti is the top scoring player in Mexican football history. He’s scored 46 goals in 89 appearances so far. He’s still part of the Mexican national squad. Earlier in 2009 Javier Aguirre (from Mexico) took over from Sven-Göran Eriksson (from Sweden) as the Mexican National Football team coach. Soccer is the most popular sport in Mexico. They will be definately be a team to keep an eye on in the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

Random Posts

September 2, 2009 -- Springboks make history in Tri-Nations (0)
October 23, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Teams – Italy (0)
January 21, 2010 -- Super 14 Fixtures for 2010 (1)
October 9, 2009 -- Currie Cup 2009 – Update (0)
September 3, 2009 -- Currie Cup 2009 Update (0)
September 14, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Stadiums – Part 3 (0)
September 28, 2009 -- South Africa knocked out of ICC Champions Trophy (0)
September 10, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Stadiums – Part 2 (0)
October 19, 2009 -- Bulls and Cheetahs to play in Currie Cup 2009 Final (0)
September 25, 2009 -- South Africa bounce back in ICC Champions Trophy (0)

Bulls and Cheetahs to play in Currie Cup 2009 Final

admin — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 07:28:42 +0000

South African rugby fans were treated to 2 very close matches this past weekend. The result is that we’ll see a repeat of the 2005 and 2006 final. The Bulls will face the Cheetahs on their home ground, Loftus Versveld on the 31st of October in the 2009 Currie Cup Final. Both the teams will be out to perform at their best. The 2006 final between the Bulls and Cheetahs ended in a 28 all draw which meant that the 2 teams shared the trophy in that year. I remember watching that game in my local Pretoria pub and the difficulty I had explaining why the 2 teams had to share the 2006 Currie Cup to German & Belgian exchange students. They could not understand why.

This past weekend in Durban, the Sharks played against the Cheetahs in a 2009 Currie Cup Semi Final match. The Sharks lead by 15 points to 3 at half time. Sharks flyhalf Hernades kicked over a penalty early in the 2nd half putting the Sharks ahead by 18 points to 3. The Cheetahs scored 2 unanswered tries (1 by WP Nel in the 45th minute and 1 by Jacques-Louis Potgieter 14 minutes later) resulting in taking the lead in the match (20 – 18). The Sharks managed to get back into the match, kicking over another penalty putting them in the lead again (21 – 20). However, in the dying moments of the match, Jacques-Louis Potgieter kicked over a drop goal ensuring the Cheetahs passage to the 2009 Currie Cup Final. The Cheetahs won the game by 23 points to 21.

At Newlands in Cape Town, Western Province hosted a North / South derby against their age old rivals, the Bulls. 7 penalties by Bulls flyhalf Morne’ Steyn secured the Bulls passage to a home final at Loftus Versveld Stadium in 2 weeks time. Steyn scored all the points for the Bulls. The Bulls led 12 – 6 at half time. Western Province did make a comeback in the 2nd half, Gio Aplon scored the only try of the match for them. At one stage Western Province we’re leading by 16 points to 15, but the Bulls managed a comeback and holding on for the last 3 minutes for a victory. The Bulls narrowly won the game by 21 points to 19.

Only time will tell which team will be victorious at Loftus Versveld on the 31st of October, 2009 in the Currie Cup final. Being a Pretoria boytjie my money is on the Bulls (even though I don’t bet on sports). The Bulls are a hard team to beat on their home ground. Judging by the fighting spirit of both the Bulls and the Cheetahs displayed this past weekend, the final should be a very exciting display of rugby. Bulls fans have already started queing for tickets at the stadium last night. The Loftus ticket offices opened at 8 AM today. Tickets for the final should sell out as it promises to be a humdinger of a match. Hopefully there will be tickets for sale in Bloemfontein for Free State supporters, otherwise Loftus Versveld Stadium will be a sea of Bulls supporters on the 31st of October.

October 14, 2009 -- Currie Cup 2009 – Update (0)
October 9, 2009 -- Currie Cup 2009 – Update (0)
September 3, 2009 -- Currie Cup 2009 Update (0)
January 21, 2010 -- Super 14 Fixtures for 2010 (1)
November 2, 2009 -- Bulls are 2009 Currie Cup Champions (0)

World Cup 2010: Teams – Switzerland

admin — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 08:50:45 +0000

The Swiss National Football team have qualified for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. Switzerland is currently ranked at #15 on the FIFA rankings. They will play in their 9th FIFA World Cup next year. Switzerland have reached the Quarter final stage of the FIFA World Cup 3 times in history, in 1934, 1938 and 1954. Switzerland have also appeared in 3 European Championships over the years (the first in 1996). Switzerland co-hosted the European Championships with Austria. Ottmar Hitzfeld (from Germany) is the current coach of the Swiss National Football team (since 2008). Heinz Hermann is the most capped player in Swiss football history. He represented his country 117 times between 1978 and 1991. Alexander Frei is the top scoring Swiss football player in history, he’s scored 40 goals for Switzerland in 71 games from 2001 and is still currently active. Switzerland set a record in 2006 at the FIFA World Cup in Germany for being the first team in history to be eliminated from the competition without conceding a goal against them. They lost against the Ukraine in a penalty shootout which knocked them out of the competition. The Swiss Football Association was founded in 1895. It’s still unsure which city Switzerland will be based at in the 2010 FIFA World Cup, could be Cape Town or Johannesburg, who knows?

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November 11, 2009 -- Famous Cricketers: Graeme Pollock (0)
September 14, 2009 -- Springboks clinch 3rd Tri-Nations victory (0)
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September 14, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Stadiums – Part 3 (0)
November 2, 2009 -- Bulls are 2009 Currie Cup Champions (0)
November 3, 2009 -- Famous Golfers: Arnold Palmer (0)
October 26, 2009 -- Famous Footballers: Fernando Torres (0)
October 13, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Teams – Denmark (0)
September 15, 2009 -- Famous Tennis Players: John McEnroe (0)
October 27, 2009 -- Famous Rugby Players: Philippe Sella (0)

World Cup 2010: Teams – Chile

admin — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 10:09:22 +0000

The Chilean National Football team has qualified for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. The Chilean is the 2nd oldest South American Football federation (founded in 1895). Chile is one of the original 13 national teams that competed in the inaugural 1930 World Cup in Uruguay. Chile will be playing in their 8th FIFA World Cup in 2010. It will be first time since 1998 that Chile will be playing in the tournament. This was the result of a controversial incident before the 1990 FIFA World Cup. On 3 September 1989 Brazil were playing against Chile in a FIFA World Cup Qualifier. A Chilean defeat would mean that they would not play in the 1990 FIFA World Cup in Italy. In the 67th minute of the game the Chilean goalkeeper, Roberto Rojas claimed that he had been hit by a firecracker (thrown by a Brazilian spectator) on his forehead. Rojas was carried off the pitch and the Chilean team claimed that conditions were too unsafe for the game to continue. The match did not end. Brazil was ahead by 1 – 0. After an official investigation it was found that the firecracker did not make contact with Rojas. FIFA awarded Brazil with a 2 – 0 victory. Rojas was banned for life. Chile was banned from the 1994 FIFA World Cup Qualification. It seems that Chilean football has finally recovered from this incident though. Chile has also appeared 35 times in the Copa America (since 1916), but have never won the competition. They have finished as runners-up in 1955, 1956, 1979 and 1987 though. They also reached 3rd place in the 1962 FIFA World Cup (which was hosted by them). Chile is currently ranked at #21 on the FIFA rankings. Leonel Sanchez is the most capped player in Chilean Football history. He represented Chile 75 times and scored 23 goals between 1955 and 1967. Marcelo Salas is top scoring Chilean footballer in history, he scored 37 goals in 70 games for his country between 1994 and 2009. It will be interesting to see how Chile will perform in next year’s FIFA World Cup in South Africa. At this stage it’s still unknown in which South African city Chile will be based, could be Johannesburg, Pretoria, Durban or Cape Town. Who knows?

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Currie Cup 2009 – Update

admin — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 10:30:06 +0000

It seems that my predictions in the previous report of the 2009 Currie Cup came true. I predicted that the Bulls, Sharks, Cheetahs and Western Province will be playing in the semi-finals of the 2009 Currie Cup tournament in South Africa.

The Bulls beat the Leopards on Friday night in Rustenburg by 61 points to 24 securing their 3rd place on the 2009 Currie Cup tournament log. On Saturday the Free State Cheetahs beat the team from Boland convincingly by 55 points to 10 ensuring their place in this coming week’s play-offs. The Sharks knocked Griquas out of contention when they faced them on Saturday in Kimberley beating them convincingly by 45 points to 30. The biggest surprise of the weekend was the Gauteng Lions beating Western Province narrowly by 27 points to 25 in Johannesburg at Coca-Cola Park, denying the visitors from the Western Cape the top spot on the 2009 Currie Cup log. A Lions player has been sighted for biting one of allegedly biting one of the Western Province players on his ear.

This coming weekend brings us the 2009 Currie Cup semi-final games on Saturday. The Free State Cheetahs will be taking on the Sharks on their home ground in Durban. The Bulls will be facing Western Province at Newlands in Cape Town in a North vs South derby. Both games promise to be very interesting. All 4 teams play high quality rugby and are the 4 best in the country (in my opinion). Only time will tell which 2 teams make it to the 2009 Currie Cup final.

October 9, 2009 -- Currie Cup 2009 – Update (0)
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November 2, 2009 -- Bulls are 2009 Currie Cup Champions (0)

World Cup 2010: Teams – Denmark

admin — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 08:41:32 +0000

Denmark has qualified for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. They gained entry into the tournament by beating rivals Sweden on the 10th of October. The Danish National Football team is currently ranked at #16 on the FIFA Rankings. The country will compete in it’s 4th FIFA World Cup tournament in 2010. Denmark made it into the round of the last 16 teams in the 1986 FIFA World Cup in Mexico and 2002 FIFA World Cup which was hosted South Korea / Japan. The country also made it to the quarter finals of the 1998 FIFA World Cup in France (their best performance ever in a FIFA World Cup tournament). Denmark has appeared in 7 European Championship tournaments (since 1964) and have won it once (in 1992). They also achieved victory in the 1995 FIFA Confederations Cup (beating Argentina 2 – 0). Morten Olsen has been the coach of the Danish National Football team since 2000. Goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel is the most capped Danish footballer in history. He represented Denmark 129 times between 1987 and 2001. Poul Nielsen is the highest scoring player in Danish football history. He scored 52 goals in 38 matches between 1910 and 1925. Denmark has been a solidly competitive side in international soccer since the 1980s. I expect that they will do well in the 2010 FIFA World Cup. They will probably make the round of the last 16 teams.

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World Cup 2010: Teams – United States

admin — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 08:53:59 +0000

The United States of America have qualified for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. This will be the 6th consecutive and 8th overall FIFA World Cup that the country competes in. The United States played in its first FIFA World Cup in 1930. They managed to reach 3rd place in that year’s competition (the best they’ve ever done in the FIFA World Cup tournament). Soccer is not the most popular sport in the United States but it has grown in popularity since the 1970s. The United States hosted the 1994 FIFA World Cup. The final of that year’s tournament was played at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. The United States have competed in 4 FIFA Confederations Cup and achieved their best result in history this year. They reached the final of the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup in South Africa, but lost to Brazil in the final at Coca Cola Park Stadium in Johannesburg. The United States are currently ranked at #11 on the FIFA Rankings. The country is part of CONCACAF, the North American Soccer Confederation. The team is currently coached by Bob Bradley (since 2006). Cobi Jones is the most capped player in United States soccer history. He represented his country 164 times between 1992 and 2004. Landon Donovan is the top goal scorer in United States soccer history. He’s currently still an active player and has scored 42 goals in 115 matches. Landon Donovan has been involved in US soccer since 2000. The United States National Soccer team are also referred to as “The Yanks”, “The Stars and Stripes”, “The Red, White, and Blue”. I’m sure that the United States will be one of the teams to watch in South Africa when they play in the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The US has really improved it’s soccer in the last few years.

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Currie Cup 2009 – Update

admin — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 09:07:09 +0000

The 2009 Currie Cup Rugby Tournament in South Africa is nearing it’s end. This final round of the league matches will be played this weekend. On the 17th of October both Currie Cup Semi Final matches will be played. The semi-final venues are already known. The matches will be played in Cape Town and Durban. The question of “Who’s Playing Who?” will be answered after the 4 remaining 2009 Currie Cup matches this weekend. The Bulls are facing the Leopards at the Royal Bafokeng Stadium near Rustenburg tonight. Bakkies Botha is return to the Bulls squad. It’s expected that the Bulls will probably win this game easily. It’s highly unlikely for the Leopards to cause an upset. Nonetheless, if the Bulls loose the game the Griquas will overtake them on the points table.

Griquas are facing the Sharks in Kimberley at 15:00 tomorrow. Griquas are known to be a formidable side on their home ground. I’m sure that this will probably be an interesting match to watch. The Cheetahs are playing against Boland in Wellington in the Western Cape at 15:00 tomorrow as well. It’s likely that Free State will win this match, but who knows? Boland could cause an upset. At 17:00 tomorrow Western Province will be facing the Lions at Coca Cola Park in Johannesburg. The Lions have nothing to loose, making them pretty dangerous. This match will probably also be worthy of the South African public’s time.

In conclusing Griquas and Free State will be fighting for survival and Western Province and the Sharks will be battling for the top spot on the 2009 Currie Cup log. This weekend promises to be the one of the most interesting in this year’s competition. Currently Western Province is on the top of the Currie Cup log with 49 points. The Sharks are in second position, also with 49 points. The Bulls are in 3rd place with 41 points. The Griquas are in 4th place with 39 points. The Cheetahs are in 5th place with 35 points. There are various scenarios that could play out this weekend but it’s my prediction that Western Province will probably play against the Cheetahs at Newlands next weekend and that the Sharks will face the Bulls in their semi final match in Durban. Only time will tell if this prediction will come true or not.

October 14, 2009 -- Currie Cup 2009 – Update (0)
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November 2, 2009 -- Bulls are 2009 Currie Cup Champions (0)

World Cup 2010: Teams – South Korea

admin — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 10:49:23 +0000

FIFA recognizes South Korea as Korea Republic. South Korea have qualified for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. They are part of the AFC (Asian Football Confederation). Huh Jung-Moo is the head coach of the South Korean National Football team. He took over from the former coach Pim Verbeek (from the Netherlands) in December 2007. 4 different Dutch coaches have coached the South Korean National Football team over the years. South Korea have won the Asian Cup 2 times (in 1956 and 1960). They made their first appearance at the FIFA World Cup in 1954. South Korea will compete in their 8th FIFA World Cup in 2010. South Korea ended in 4th place in the 2002 FIFA World Cup. The country co-hosted the competition with Japan in that year. They made history by being the first Asian team in history to reach the Semi Finals of the FIFA World Cup. The 2002 South Korean FIFA World Cup team was coached by Guus Hiddink (from the Netherlands). Since 2002 Football has become very popular in South Korea, even surpassing Baseball as the sport in South Korea which pulls the most spectators. South Korea qualified for the 2001 FIFA Confederations Cup but were knocked out in the first round. In 2003 South Korea achieved their biggest win by beating Nepal 16 – 0. They suffered their biggest defeat when they played against Sweden in 1948, losing 12 – 0. South Korea is currently ranked as at #49 on the FIFA Rankings. Hong Myung-Bo is most capped player in South Korean Football history, he represented his country 136 times. The is also known by fans as “Jeonsa” (Taegeuk Warriors), “Reds Devils” and the “Tigers of Asia”. It will be interesting to see how South Korea will perform in next years FIFA World Cup in South Africa.

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Australia win 2009 ICC Champions Trophy

admin — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 14:15:11 +0000

Australia faced New Zealand yesterday in the final of the 2009 ICC Champions Trophy at Supersport Park in Centurion, Gauteng, South Africa. Australia beat England and New Zealand beat Pakistan in respective semi-final matches to reach the final of the tournament. New Zealand won the toss and elected to bat. The Black Caps were in trouble in the 27th over of their innings, only managing 94 runs for the loss of 5 wickets. The Australians restricted them to 200 for the loss of 9 wickets (not a very defendable total). New Zealand’s highest scoring batsmen in the match was Martin Guptill who managed to score 40 runs. Neil Broom achieved a career-best total of 37 runs. Even though they managed to bat through their 50 overs, I’m sure that the Black Caps probably wanted a higher score to defend against Australia.

Australia came in to bat. 2 early Australian wickets put the team in trouble at 6 runs for the loss of 2 wickets after the 3rd over. Kyle Mills and Shane Bond were responsible for the 2 wickets. Australia only managed 37 runs in the first 16 overs of their innings. White (who later survived a dropped catch with his total on 15) joined opening batsmen Shane Watson (who scored 136 not out against England in the semi-final) and brought stability back to the Australian innings. White eventually scored 62 runs. Watson stayed on till the end of the innings and scored 105 not out. Australian achieved a comfortable 6 wicket victory over New Zealand in the 45th over of the match. Shane Watson was named the Man of the Match. Australian captain Ricky Ponting was named as the player of the series. Australia successfully defended their ICC Champions Trophy title.

It would’ve been interesting if South Africa wasn’t knocked out in the early stages of the tournament. Hopefully the Proteas will perform better in the upcoming series against England. I just hate the fact they have a tendency to choke in big tournaments, a reason why I don’t watch cricket in the pubs anymore.

January 21, 2010 -- Super 14 Fixtures for 2010 (1)
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September 25, 2009 -- South Africa bounce back in ICC Champions Trophy (0)
September 14, 2009 -- Springboks clinch 3rd Tri-Nations victory (0)
January 18, 2010 -- Proteas pull one back against England (0)
December 7, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Groups (0)
November 17, 2009 -- France teach Springboks a lesson (0)
November 16, 2009 -- Proteas have mixed results against England (0)

World Cup 2010: Teams – Japan

admin — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 09:51:30 +0000

Japan have qualified for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. The country will be playing in their 4th FIFA World Cup Tournament. Japan played in their first FIFA World Cup tournament in 1998 in France. They were co-hosts with South Korea for the 2002 FIFA World Cup and made it into the round of the last 16. Japan also competed in the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany. The country has also played in 4 FIFA Confederations Cup Tournaments (in 1995, 2001, 2003 and 2005) and in various Asian Cup Tournaments (which they’ve won 3 times). Japan has competed in 8 Olympic Games. In 1968 Japan won the Bronze medal for Football at the Olympic Games in Mexico. FIFA currently ranks Japan as the 40th best team in the world. Masami Ihara is most capped player in Japanese football history, he represented Japan 123 times between 1988 and 1999. Kunishige Kamamoto is the top goalscorer in Japan football history, he scored 75 goals for them between 1964 and 1977. In Japan the team is known as “Soccer Nippon Daihyō”, translated as the “Japanese representatives”. The current Japanese football coach is Takeshi Okada. The team is currently captained by Yuji Nakazawa. It’s still unsure if Japan will play in Cape Town, Johannesburg or another South African city in the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

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England 2009 / 2010 Tour to South Africa – Match Schedule

admin — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 14:23:23 +0000

The Proteas have been knocked out of the 2009 ICC Champions Trophy, so there’s almost no need to report on what’s happening in that tournament, since South Africa is not in it anymore (even though we’re hosting it). England is facing Australia today in the 1st semi final of the ICC Champions Trophy at Supersport Park in Centurion. Hopefully the Proteas have learned something from this year’s ICC Champions Trophy tournament. I’m sure that Graeme Smith and the boys are turning their sights and focus towards the upcoming England Cricket tour to South Africa later in 2009. England and South Africa will be facing each other in 2 T20 Internationals, 5 One Day Internationals (ODIs) and 4 five day tests. This promises to be a very exciting series. It’s always exciting to see the Proteas take on England with home ground advantage.

Here is a list of the matches that will be played between the 2 nations:

13 November 2009 – SA vs England, 1st T20 International – The Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg
15 November 2009 – SA vs England, 2nd T20 International – Supersport Park, Centurion
20 November 2009 – SA vs England – 1st One Day International – The Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg
22 November 2009 – SA vs England – 2nd One Day International – Supersport Park, Centurion
27 November 2009 – SA vs England – 3rd One Day International – Newlands, Cape Town
29 November 2009 – SA vs England – 4th One Day International – St George’s Park, Port Elizabeth
4 December 2009 – SA v England – 5th One Day International – Kingsmead, Durban
16 December – 20 December 2009 – SA vs England – 1st Test – Supersport Park, Centurion
26 December – 30 December 2009 – SA vs England – 2nd Test – Kingsmead, Durban
3 January – 7 January 2010 – SA vs England – 3rd Test – Newlands, Cape Town
14 January – 18 January 2010 – SA vs England – 4th Test – The Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg

Hopefully the Proteas will brush off the bad experience which was the South African Campaign in the 2009 ICC Champions Trophy and perform much better in this series against England. I’m sure that Graeme Smith and the boys will be giving their best, are at least be trying to.

January 18, 2010 -- Proteas pull one back against England (0)
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September 28, 2009 -- South Africa knocked out of ICC Champions Trophy (0)
September 2, 2009 -- ICC Champions Trophy 2009 around the corner (0)
January 21, 2010 -- Super 14 Fixtures for 2010 (1)
December 7, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Groups (0)
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November 13, 2009 -- Springboks to take on France tonight (0)
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World Cup 2010: Stadiums – Part 5

admin — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 11:27:44 +0000

This is the last in my series of posts about the stadiums that are to be used in the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. I hope you all have found this quite interesting. Today we will be covering 2 more stadiums, 1 in Nelspruit (in Mpumalanga province) and 1 in Pretoria (the capital of South Africa).

Here are few more facts about South Africa:

The country gained independence from Great Britain on the 31st of May 1961.
More than 70% of South Africans live in urban / metropolitan areas.
A South Africa, Dr Chris Barnard was responsible for the first successful heart transplant in history.
The swimming pool vacuum cleaner (generally referred to as the Kreepy Krauly) was invented by Ferdinand Chauvier, a hydraulics engineer who came to South Africa from the Belgian Congo in 1951.
Pratley’s famous glue is the only South African invention that has been to the moon. In 1969 the putty was used to hold bits of the Apollo XI mission’s Eagle landing craft together.

Mbombela Stadium: This stadium is one of the newly-built stadiums for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The Mbombela stadium takes it’s name from the local municipality which incorporates the city of Nelspruit in the Mpumalanga province of South Africa. Mbombela means “many people together in a small space.” The Mbombela stadium has a seating capacity of 46,000. The signature feature of the stadium are the 18 roof supports that resemble giraffes. The multi-purpose stadium is expected to host key soccer and rugby matches in the future and will also be equipped for conferences. The Mbombela stadium will host 4 first round matches in the 2010 FIFA World Cup. It’s located 7 km from the Nelspruit city center and 12 km from the Kruger-Mpumalanga Airport. The stadium is also within driving distance from a few game parks and other tourist attractions. Before the construction of the Mombela Stadium Nelspruit had no top football venue to host international matches. Nelspruit is a buzzling city with more than 220,000 inhabitants. Nelspruit is situated 330 km East of Johannesburg. Nelspruit was founded in 1905. The city is a major stopover point for tourists travelling to the Kruger National Park and to Mozambique.

Related Links:
Nelspruit, Mpumalanga – Wikipedia
Mbombela Stadium, Nelspruit – SA Venues

Loftus Versfeld Stadium: This stadium needs no introduction in South Africa. It’s situated in the heart of South Africa’s capital city, Pretoria / Tshwane. The stadium was first known as the Eastern Sports Ground. In 1932, Robert Owen Loftus Versfeld, a sports administrator, suffered a heart attack on the Eastern stand and died. In tribute to him, the stadium was renamed. Loftus Versfeld stadium has been used for major sporting events in South Africa since the early 1900s. It’s one of the oldest sport stadiums in South Africa and has been upgraded more than once over the years. The stadium has a seating capacity of 50,000. Loftus Versfeld stadium was slightly upgraded before the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup. A roof was added over the Eastern pavilion. Loftus Versveld stadium was a key venue in the 1995 Rugby World Cup and the 1996 African Cup of Nations. The stadium is currently the home of the Blue Bulls rugby team (2007 and 2009 Super 14 champions), Supersport United FC and Mamelodi Sundowns FC (teams in the PSL in South Africa). Pretoria / Tshwane is situated 50 km from Johannesburg and has a population of more than 2.3 million.

Related Links:
Pretoria – Wikipedia
Loftus Versfeld – The Stadium Guide

November 2, 2009 -- Bulls are 2009 Currie Cup Champions (0)

World Cup 2010: Teams – Ghana

admin — Tue, 29 Sep 2009 06:56:39 +0000

A few teams from Africa will be playing in the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. Today we are featuring the first one. The Ghana National Football team is commonly known as the Black Stars. Before Ghana gained independence from Great Britain, Ghana played football as the Gold Coast. In 2006 the country played in their first ever FIFA World Cup in Germany. Ghana has won the Africa Cup of Nations 4 times though, in 1963, 1965, 1978 and 1982. The Ghana Olympic Team, the Black Meteors became the first ever African country to win a medal for Football at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. Ghana is currently ranked by FIFA as the 32nd best team in the world. The country won the award for Most Improved Team in 2005. The Ghana Football Association was founded in 1957, a year before the country’s independence. Ghana achieved their biggest win against Kenya in 1965, beating them by 13 – 0. Brazil was responsible for Ghana’s biggest loss in 1996 when they beat them 8 – 2 in Brazil. Abédi “Pelé” Ayew is Ghana’s most capped player and he also holds the record as the top goal scorer for the country. He scored 33 goals in 73 matches. Milovan Rajevac (from Serbia) is the current Ghana football coach (since August 2008). Ghana will definately be one of the African contenders to watch in next year’s FIFA World Cup (which kicks off in Johannesburg on 11 June 2010).

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South Africa knocked out of ICC Champions Trophy

admin — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 08:27:32 +0000

South Africa faced England in their last match of the group stage of the ICC Champions Trophy. The Proteas had a chance of making it in the semi-final for the tournament, but lost by 22 runs at Supersport Park, Centurion in Gauteng. England batted first, racking up a total of 332 for the loss of 8 wickets. Collingwood was the 2nd highest scoring batsmen for England, knocking 82 runs off 94 balls before being dismissed by Wayne Parnell. Shah was the best batsmen for England hitting 98 runs off 89 balls. Johan Botha dismissed Shah, he was caught behind by Mark Boucher. On the bowling side, Wayne Parnell managed to get 3 wickets for South Africa. Johan Botha picked up 2 wickets.

South Africa came in to bat, chasing the biggest total ever at Supersport Park, but once again choked under pressure from a very well disciplined English team. At least South African captain Graeme Smith finally found some form, scoring 141 runs off 134 balls. AB De Villiers was the 2nd highest scoring South African batsmen, only managing 36 runs off 41 balls. Minor contributions by Gibbs (22), Kallis (12), JP Duminy (24), Mark Boucher (8) and Morkel (17) wasn’t really instrumental into helping South Africa reach the target quicker. Broad and Anderson each took 3 wickets for England. Shah was named as the man of the match. Some people might say that the Proteas are continuing the old trend of “choking” in big matches. One could also argument that South African Cricket is in a transformation stage. New, unexperienced players are coming in it will be a while before the Proteas are on top form again. I don’t go pub crawling to watch them play any more, since I can’t handle the disappointment of South Africa losing yet another big game. Well done to the Proteas for trying harder than usual. In my opinion, this was just a case of South Africa being outplayed by England, pure and simple.

January 18, 2010 -- Proteas pull one back against England (0)
November 16, 2009 -- Proteas have mixed results against England (0)
October 1, 2009 -- England 2009 / 2010 Tour to South Africa – Match Schedule (0)
September 2, 2009 -- ICC Champions Trophy 2009 around the corner (0)
January 21, 2010 -- Super 14 Fixtures for 2010 (1)
December 7, 2009 -- World Cup 2010: Groups (0)
November 17, 2009 -- France teach Springboks a lesson (0)
November 13, 2009 -- Springboks to take on France tonight (0)
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World Cup 2010: Teams – Australia

admin — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 06:55:55 +0000

The Australian National Football team is nicknamed the “Socceroos”. They will be playing in their 3rd FIFA World Cup in 2010 in South Africa. Australia played in their first FIFA World Cup in 1974. Australia reached the round of the last 16 teams at the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany. FIFA ranks Australia as the 14th best team in the world. They were one of the first countries to qualify for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The first Australian National Football team was constituted in 1922. Australia holds the world record for the biggest win in an international match. They beat American Samoa 31 – 0 in 2001. In 1955 Australia suffered their biggest loss in history against South Africa (8 – 0). They’ve played 62 matches against New Zealand over the years. Alex Tobin is the most capped player in Australian soccer history. He played in 87 matches for his country between 1988 and 1998. Damian Mori holds the record for the most goals scored by an Australian player. He scored 29 goals in 45 matches between 1992 and 2002. Australia could be responsible for one of the upsets at the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa, who knows? Australia faced the 2010 FIFA World Cup hosts, South Africa in a friendly match in 2008 which resulted in 2 – 2 draw. In 2005 Australia also played against South Africa in Durban, Kwazulu Natal and drew 1 – 1. The Australian National football team has been coached by Pim Verbeek (former player from the Netherlands) since 2007.

January 21, 2010 -- Super 14 Fixtures for 2010 (1)
October 28, 2009 -- Famous Cricketers: Donald Bradman (1)
October 6, 2009 -- Australia win 2009 ICC Champions Trophy (0)
September 7, 2009 -- Wallabies bring Springboks down to earth in Brisbane (0)
September 2, 2009 -- ICC Champions Trophy 2009 around the corner (0)
September 2, 2009 -- Springboks make history in Tri-Nations (0)

South Africa bounce back in ICC Champions Trophy

admin — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 09:22:28 +0000

After suffering a 55 run defeat at the hands of Sri Lanka earlier in the week, the South African national cricket team have bounced back with a 5 wicket victory over New Zealand at Supersport Park in Centurion yesterday. New Zealand were sent in to bat first after South Africa won the toss and decided to have a bowl first. New Zealand did not manage to bat through their allowed 50 overs and were bowled out for 214 runs in the 48th over. Wayne Parnell was the Proteas best bowler for South Africa, taking 5 wickets for 57 runs (a bit expensive but not bad at all for a 19 year old). Ross Taylor was the Black Caps’ best batsman, scoring 72 runs off 106 balls.

After the lunch interval South Africa began their batting innings. Graeme Smith, the SA captain was dismissed in the 6th over. Hashim Amla and Jacques Kallis put up a 2nd wicket partnership of 52 runs. Kallis was caught behind off the bowling of Shane Bond and managed to score 36 runs off 39 balls. South African lost the wickets of Amla and JP Duminy in quick succession and were on 138 runs for the loss of 4 wickets in the 27th over. AB De Villiers and Mark Boucher managed to restore order and put up a 5th wicket partnership of 42 runs. Boucher was caught behind off the bowling of Daryl Tuffey and South Africa were on 180 runs for the loss of 5 wickets. AB De Villiers was joined by Albie Morkel and they closed the deal with an unbeaten 6th wicket partnership of 37 runs off 32 balls. Albie Morkel was responsible for 19 of those runs.

This was much better play by the Proteas and a well-deserved victory indeed. South Africa face England in their next match in the ICC Champions Trophy on the 27th of September at Supersport Park. This promises to be an interesting match. England face Sri Lanka today in the their first match of the tournament. It seems that Gauteng province is the place to be for International cricket this week, if you can find a ticket, most of the games are sold out.

September 14, 2009 -- Springboks clinch 3rd Tri-Nations victory (0)
September 2, 2009 -- ICC Champions Trophy 2009 around the corner (0)
September 2, 2009 -- Springboks make history in Tri-Nations (0)
January 21, 2010 -- Super 14 Fixtures for 2010 (1)
November 17, 2009 -- France teach Springboks a lesson (0)
November 16, 2009 -- Proteas have mixed results against England (0)
November 13, 2009 -- Springboks to take on France tonight (0)
October 6, 2009 -- Australia win 2009 ICC Champions Trophy (0)
September 23, 2009 -- Sri Lanka crush Proteas in ICC Champions Trophy (0)
September 7, 2009 -- Wallabies bring Springboks down to earth in Brisbane (0)

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