1.
Rugby Australia
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The Australian Rugby Union is the governing body of rugby union in Australia. It was officially constituted in 1949 and is a member of World Rugby and it consists of eight member unions, representing each state and territory. It organises the Australia national rugby team, known as the Wallabies. The original administrative body for rugby in Australia was the Southern Rugby Union, following the first inter-colonial rugby match in 1882 between the New South Wales and Queensland teams, a Northern Rugby Union was formed in Brisbane in 1883. Interest in rugby developed rapidly over the decade as matches between New South Wales and Queensland became annual events and inter-colonial fixtures with New Zealand were also arranged. The first British Isles team toured in 1888 and played 16 rugby matches in Australia, Rugby at that time was the most prominent football code in New South Wales and Queensland, whereas Victorian rules was the main game in the other Australian colonies. The Southern and Northern Rugby Unions became the New South Wales Rugby Football Union, Australias first international rugby match was against the touring British Isles team of 1899, a year and a half before federation established the Commonwealth of Australia. The match was played at the Sydney Cricket Ground and won 13–3 by Australia, the Australian team for the first match consisted of six players from Queensland and nine from New South Wales. New South Wales, as the union, was responsible for administration of the Australian team, including all tours. Additional impetus came in 1948 when the International Rugby Football Board invited Australia specifically, the ACT Rugby Union gained membership in 1972. The Northern Territory Rugby Union joined in 1978, initially as a union before later being granted membership. In 1985 the Australian Rugby Football Union was incorporated as a company and, in 1997, the ACT Rugby Union became the ACT and Southern NSW Rugby Union in 2004, after two regions in southern New South Wales switched their rugby affiliation to the Australian Capital Territory. The record for the most international appearances in rugby union is held by George Gregan, the governing structures of the ARU were overhauled in December 2012, following a review authored by the former federal senator and Minister for Sport, Mark Arbib. The ARUs members include the unions representing Australias states and territories, together with the Super Rugby bodies within the country, Members exercise their voting rights at the ARUs annual general meeting. Under the new constitution adopted in 2012, the eight existing member unions, additionally, each of the Super Rugby teams also provide a delegate who has one allocated vote. At this stage, only the Rebels and Waratahs are independently administered so the votes for the three teams are effectively controlled by the respective member unions that own each team. Finally, any delegate from a union with more than 50,000 registered players in their region is granted a second vote. Only the New South Wales and Queensland unions exceed that mark at present, the ARU also has a number of affiliated groups that do not have voting rights
2.
Rugby union in Queensland
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Rugby union is one of the leading professional and recreational team sports in Queensland. The Rugby game continued for three seasons, when clubs reverted to Victorian Rules in 1879. Fred Lea, an Englishman educated at Allesley College near Rugby in Warwickshire, Lea took up the Victorian game, playing it in 1879-81. However, in 1880 he was able to sway two of the clubs, Brisbane F. C. and Wallaroo, to try rugby. Three matches were played between the clubs, in the following seasons, Brisbanes four football clubs played matches under both codes, although the majority were overwhelmingly Victorian rules games. In the late winter of 1882 the Brisbane F. C. contacted the Sydney Wallaroo club, as the NSWRU were keen to keep the inter-colony matches going, a NSW team journeyed to Brisbane in 1883. Trained in readiness by Fred Lea, the Queensland team ambushed the visitors, the win gave rugby in Brisbane a huge boost, with many footballers wanting to try the code. It was thought that Brisbanes four clubs would simply increase the number of matches for 1884. However, it became clear that moves were afoot to form a ‘Queensland Football Association’. With Fred Lea actively involved, it was decided to form the Northern Rugby Football Union now named Queensland Rugby Union. On November 2,1883, a meeting was held at the Exchange Hotel, in Brisbane and the decision was made to form a rugby association in the Colony of Queensland. The name of the newly founded union the Northern Rugby Union, was used to distinguish it from the Southern Rugby Union, enough players aligned with the rugby body to form two clubs. The decisive blow to Victorian rules came after the decision to make the NSW v Queensland matches an annual fixture, teams from New Zealand soon followed. The formation of this new governing body generated large amounts of interest in Queensland, the top-level rugby competition begun by those schools all those years ago continues to this day. The year 1893 saw the Northern Rugby Union formally constituted and the changed to the Queensland Rugby Union. An annual challenge trophy competition, the Hospitals Cup was introduced in 1899 and this trophy is now the Premiership trophy contested by Queensland Premier Rugby clubs. The first decade of the 20th century brought with it a drop in the fortunes of rugby union in Queensland, in 1908, the QRU banned its players from going to Sydney to play league, which resulted in disgruntled players forming the Queensland Rugby League. Of particular note was that at time, league put down strong roots in the bush and in working class communities
3.
Super Rugby
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Super Rugby is the preeminent professional mens rugby union football competition in the Southern Hemisphere and Japan. By 2006, matches were being broadcast in 41 countries, SANZAAR is the body that administers Super Rugby, and has the Australian, New Zealand, South African and Argentine rugby unions as its sole members. The organisation was formed in 1995 to establish and run the Super 12, prior to 2011, Super Rugby was a round-robin competition where each team played with every other team once, a team had six or seven home games, and six or seven away games each. The winner received four points, if the game was a draw two points were awarded to each team. The Rugby union bonus points system was used, where any team scoring four or more tries, and/or losing by seven points or less. In 2016, the try bonus changed, a team now has to score three more tries than their opponents. The top four teams at the end of the round-robin phase then played semi-finals – the first placed team hosting the fourth placed team, the two winners then played the final at the home ground of the top surviving seed. There were 91 regular season games in total, games were held over 14 weekends with each team receiving one bye. From 2011 –2015 the format changed, with each country forming its own conference, each team within a conference plays each of the other teams in its conference twice, once at home and once away. Each team then plays four out of the five teams each of the other conferences once. Competition points are awarded on a basis as before. The four lower ranking teams are paired in two sudden death games, the winners of two games each play one of the two top ranked teams. Those winners play for the championship, in 2016 the format changed with three more teams joining. There are four conferences with Africa getting two conferences, the finals now have eight teams with each conference winner getting a home quarter final. They are joined by four wild card teams, three will be from the Australasian group and one from the South African group, before 1996, a number of transnational competitions involving regional and provincial rugby union teams had taken shape in the southern hemisphere. The earliest of these was the South Pacific Championship, which was launched in 1986, after the demise of the South Pacific Championship, with no tournament played in 1991, the competition was relaunched as the Super 6 in 1992. In 1993, the Super Six competition was revamped and expanded into the Super 10 tournament, the inaugural competition featured the following teams, Waikato, Auckland, Otago and North Harbour, Natal, Transvaal and Northern Transvaal, Queensland and New South Wales and Western Samoa. The Super 10 was won by Transvaal in 1993, and by Queensland in 1994 and 1995, the official declaration of professionalism in rugby union in August 1995 led to a restructuring of the Super 10 competition
4.
Brisbane
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Brisbane is the capital of and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland, and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbanes metropolitan area has a population of 2.35 million, the Brisbane central business district stands on the original European settlement and is situated inside a bend of the Brisbane River, about 15 kilometres from its mouth at Moreton Bay. The demonym of Brisbane is Brisbanite, one of the oldest cities in Australia, Brisbane was founded upon the ancient homelands of the indigenous Turrbal and Jagera peoples. A penal settlement was founded in 1824 at Redcliffe,28 kilometres north of the business district. The city was marred by the Australian frontier wars between 1843 and 1855, and development was set back by the Great Fire of Brisbane. Brisbane was chosen as the capital when Queensland was proclaimed a colony from New South Wales in 1859. During World War II, Brisbane played a role in the Allied campaign. Today, Brisbane is well known for its distinct Queenslander architecture which forms much of the built heritage. It also receives attention for its damaging flood events, most notably in 1974 and 2011. Several large cultural, international and sporting events have held at Brisbane, including the 1982 Commonwealth Games, World Expo 88, the final Goodwill Games in 2001. Prior to white settlement, the Brisbane area was inhabited by the Turrbal and they knew the area that is now the central business district as Mian-jin, meaning place shaped as a spike. The Moreton Bay area was explored by Matthew Flinders. On 17 July 1799, Flinders landed at what is now known as Woody Point, in 1823 Governor of New South Wales Sir Thomas Brisbane instructed that a new northern penal settlement be developed, and an exploration party led by John Oxley further explored Moreton Bay. Oxley discovered, named, and explored the Brisbane River as far as Goodna,20 kilometres upstream from the Brisbane central business district, Oxley recommended Red Cliff Point for the new colony, reporting that ships could land at any tide and easily get close to the shore. The party settled in Redcliffe on 13 September 1824, under the command of Lieutenant Henry Miller with 14 soldiers and 29 convicts. However, this settlement was abandoned after a year and the colony was moved to a site on the Brisbane River now known as North Quay,28 km south, chief Justice Forbes gave the new settlement the name of Edenglassie before it was named Brisbane. Non-convict European settlement of the Brisbane region commenced in 1838, German missionaries settled at Zions Hill, Nundah as early as 1837, five years before Brisbane was officially declared a free settlement. The band consisted of ministers Christopher Eipper and Carl Wilhelm Schmidt and lay missionaries Haussmann, Johann Gottried Wagner, Niquet, Hartenstein, Zillman, Franz, Rode, Doege and they were allocated 260 hectares and set about establishing the mission, which became known as the German Station
5.
Queensland
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Queensland is the second-largest and third-most-populous state in the Commonwealth of Australia. Situated in the north-east of the country, it is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west, to the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean. Queensland has a population of 4,750,500, concentrated along the coast, the state is the worlds sixth largest sub-national entity, with an area of 1,852,642 km2. The capital and largest city in the state is Brisbane, Australias third largest city, often referred to as the Sunshine State, Queensland is home to 10 of Australias 30 largest cities and is the nations third largest economy. Tourism in the state, fuelled largely by its tropical climate, is a major industry. Queensland was first inhabited by Aboriginal Australians and Torres Strait Islanders, the first European to land in Queensland was Dutch navigator Willem Janszoon in 1606, who explored the west coast of the Cape York Peninsula near present-day Weipa. In 1770, Lieutenant James Cook claimed the east coast of Australia for the Kingdom of Great Britain. The colony of New South Wales was founded in 1788 by Governor Arthur Phillip at Sydney, New South Wales at that time included all of what is now Queensland, Queensland was explored in subsequent decades until the establishment of a penal colony at Brisbane in 1824 by John Oxley. Penal transportation ceased in 1839 and free settlement was allowed from 1842, the state was named in honour of Queen Victoria, who on 6 June 1859 signed Letters Patent separating the colony from New South Wales. The 6th of June is now celebrated statewide as Queensland Day. Queensland achieved statehood with the Federation of Australia on 1 January 1901, the history of Queensland spans thousands of years, encompassing both a lengthy indigenous presence, as well as the eventful times of post-European settlement. The north-eastern Australian region was explored by Dutch, Spanish and French navigators before being encountered by Lieutenant James Cook in 1770, the Australian Labor Party has its origin as a formal organisation in Queensland and the town of Barcaldine is the symbolic birthplace of the party. June 2009 marked the 150th anniversary of its creation as a colony from New South Wales. The Aboriginal occupation of Queensland is thought to predate 50,000 BC, likely via boat or land bridge across Torres Strait, during the last ice age Queenslands landscape became more arid and largely desolate, making food and other supplies scarce. This led to the worlds first seed-grinding technology, warming again made the land hospitable, which brought high rainfall along the eastern coast, stimulating the growth of the states tropical rainforests. In February 1606, Dutch navigator Willem Janszoon landed near the site of what is now Weipa and this was the first recorded landing of a European in Australia, and it also marked the first reported contact between European and Aboriginal Australian people. The region was explored by French and Spanish explorers prior to the arrival of Lieutenant James Cook in 1770. Cook claimed the east coast under instruction from King George III of the United Kingdom on 22 August 1770 at Possession Island, naming Eastern Australia, including Queensland, the Aboriginal population declined significantly after a smallpox epidemic during the late 18th century
6.
Australia
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Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and numerous smaller islands. It is the worlds sixth-largest country by total area, the neighbouring countries are Papua New Guinea, Indonesia and East Timor to the north, the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu to the north-east, and New Zealand to the south-east. Australias capital is Canberra, and its largest urban area is Sydney, for about 50,000 years before the first British settlement in the late 18th century, Australia was inhabited by indigenous Australians, who spoke languages classifiable into roughly 250 groups. The population grew steadily in subsequent decades, and by the 1850s most of the continent had been explored, on 1 January 1901, the six colonies federated, forming the Commonwealth of Australia. Australia has since maintained a liberal democratic political system that functions as a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy comprising six states. The population of 24 million is highly urbanised and heavily concentrated on the eastern seaboard, Australia has the worlds 13th-largest economy and ninth-highest per capita income. With the second-highest human development index globally, the country highly in quality of life, health, education, economic freedom. The name Australia is derived from the Latin Terra Australis a name used for putative lands in the southern hemisphere since ancient times, the Dutch adjectival form Australische was used in a Dutch book in Batavia in 1638, to refer to the newly discovered lands to the south. On 12 December 1817, Macquarie recommended to the Colonial Office that it be formally adopted, in 1824, the Admiralty agreed that the continent should be known officially as Australia. The first official published use of the term Australia came with the 1830 publication of The Australia Directory and these first inhabitants may have been ancestors of modern Indigenous Australians. The Torres Strait Islanders, ethnically Melanesian, were originally horticulturists, the northern coasts and waters of Australia were visited sporadically by fishermen from Maritime Southeast Asia. The first recorded European sighting of the Australian mainland, and the first recorded European landfall on the Australian continent, are attributed to the Dutch. The first ship and crew to chart the Australian coast and meet with Aboriginal people was the Duyfken captained by Dutch navigator, Willem Janszoon. He sighted the coast of Cape York Peninsula in early 1606, the Dutch charted the whole of the western and northern coastlines and named the island continent New Holland during the 17th century, but made no attempt at settlement. William Dampier, an English explorer and privateer, landed on the north-west coast of New Holland in 1688, in 1770, James Cook sailed along and mapped the east coast, which he named New South Wales and claimed for Great Britain. The first settlement led to the foundation of Sydney, and the exploration, a British settlement was established in Van Diemens Land, now known as Tasmania, in 1803, and it became a separate colony in 1825. The United Kingdom formally claimed the part of Western Australia in 1828. Separate colonies were carved from parts of New South Wales, South Australia in 1836, Victoria in 1851, the Northern Territory was founded in 1911 when it was excised from South Australia
7.
Lang Park
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While now a multi-purpose stadium, it is better known locally as a rugby league venue. The current facility comprises a three tiered rectangular sporting stadium with a capacity of 52,500 people, the top tier is closed for events less than 30,000 enhancing the intimacy. Its playing field is 136 metres x 82 metres, Lang Park was established in 1914, on the site of the former North Brisbane Cemetery, and in its early days was home to a number of different sports, including cycling, athletics and soccer. The lease of the park was taken over by rugby league and it hosted the 2008 Rugby League World Cup Final. The site of Lang Park was originally the North Brisbane Cemetery, by 1911 the area was heavily populated, so the Paddington Cemeteries Act was introduced and the site was redeveloped as a recreational site. In 1914 it was fenced off and named Lang Park after John Dunmore Lang, the ground was leased by the Queensland Amateur Athletics Association in the 1920s. In 1935, the Queensland Soccer Council became a sub-tenant of the QAAA, the Latrobe Soccer Club, in turn, became a sub-tenant of the QSC, using the ground for its home games. However, by 1937, the QSC was considering sub-leasing Lang Park to another code of football as it was not satisfied with the financial returns, under the sub-lease to the Latrobe-Milton club. Latrobe in turn responded that If no action Is taken to introduce the Ipswich clubs into the Brisbane competition this season, the Latrobe-Milton Club cannot accept an increase in rental for Lang Park. Give us competition play with Ipswich and my club will hold the ground as headquarters for the code, on 11 February 1950, the official opening of the Lang Park Police Citizens Youth Club took place and youth activities commenced because of the concerns with the increase of juvenile delinquency. Activities such as boxing, wrestling, basketball and gymnastics all occur at these premises to this day, contemporaneous records are scant, but it appears the QSC did not renew the lease the ground after the intervening World War II. In 1953 the Brisbane Rugby League amalgamated with the Queensland Rugby League, QRL secretary Ron McAullife negotiated a 21-year lease of Lang Park from the Brisbane City Council in order to give the QRL a financially viable base of operations. The park had only the most basic facilities, and the QRL contributed £17,000 to its development, Lang Park hosted its first game of first grade rugby league during the 1930s, with regular BRL games commencing there in 1955. In 1958 it hosted its first Brisbane rugby league final in which Brothers defeated Valleys 22 points to 7. A record crowd of 19,824 saw Northern Suburbs defeat Fortitude Valley at Lang Park in the BRL grand final in September 1961, as the ground was used increasingly by the QRL, it became no longer viable for use as a public recreation facility. In 1962 the Lang Park Trust was created under an act of Parliament and this allowed for the construction of the Frank Burke Stand, Ron McAuliffe Stand and the Western Grandstand. From the 1960s Lang Park hosted interstate and international rugby league, up until 1972, it was the home ground of the Western Suburbs Panthers and from 1988 to 1992 it was also the home ground of the Brisbane Broncos. In 1994, the name was changed to Suncorp Stadium
8.
Brad Thorn
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Bradley Carnegie Thorn is a professional rugby union player. He has in the past represented Australia at rugby league, a lock, Thorn is a former All Black, and is currently playing for the Leicester Tigers in the Aviva Premiership. Thorn is one of the most successful rugby players and was the first player to win a World Cup, a Super Rugby title. He previously played rugby league for ten years for the Brisbane Broncos in the National Rugby League competition and has also represented Queensland in the State of Origin series and his preferred position in rugby league was in the second-row, though he was equally effective as a prop. In 2000 Thorn was awarded the Australian Sports Medal for his contribution to Australias international standing in rugby league, having relocated with his family from New Zealand to Australia at age eight, Thorns junior football was rugby league played in Queensland with Aspley and Wests Arana. He was signed as a junior with the Brisbane Broncos in 1994, Thorn made his first grade debut in the NSWRL for the Brisbane Broncos, who were then defending premiers, in the 1994 Winfield Cup seasons 12th round against the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs. At seasons end he was awarded the rookie of the year award. The following year, when all players were allowed to be selected for representative football. He held his place at forward for all three games of that series. In the 1997 Super League season Thorn played in all three games for Queensland in that years Super League Tri-series and he also made his international representative debut for Australia against New Zealand. Thorn also won his first premiership with the Broncos when they defeated the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks in the 1997 Super League grand final in Brisbane and it was on this tour that his front-row partner Jason Stevens helped convince Thorn to convert to Christianity. Following the sports re-unification under the National Rugby League, Thorn was selected in Game II of the 1998 State of Origin series and he also continued to represent Australia in all three Tests of the 1998 international series against New Zealand. Thorn also played at forward in the Broncos victory at the 1998 NRL Grand Final. Thorn was selected to play for Queensland again in Game III of 1999 State of Origin series and he then played at second-row forward for the Broncos in their 2000 NRL Grand Final win over the Sydney Roosters, claiming a 3rd premiership. After that Thorn returned to New Zealand to play rugby union, in 2001 Thorn moved to New Zealand and switched to rugby union, playing for the Crusaders in the Super 12 and Canterbury in the National Provincial Championship. He was part of the Canterbury squad that won the NPC in 2001 and he had initially been picked for the end of year All Black tour in 2001 but he pulled out due to his own uncertainty of commitment to the 15 man game. In 2003, Thorn went on to play for New Zealands All Blacks, appearing in 12 tests and he thus became a dual rugby-code international, the second man in history to have represented Australia in league and New Zealand in union. In 2004 Thorn won the NPC with Canterbury and he also won the Tri-Nations with NZ in 2003
9.
Scott Higginbotham
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Scott Higginbotham is an Australian rugby union player. He currently plays for the Queensland Reds and holds 32 caps for Australias national team and his usual positions are blindside flanker and number eight. Higginbotham currently holds the record for highest try-scoring forward in Super Rugby history, Higginbotham was educated at The Southport School, on the Gold Coast, Queensland. His mother was born in Fiji and is part-Fijian, which made him eligible to play internationally for Fiji, in 2007-2008, Higginbotham played international rugby sevens for the Australian national rugby sevens team. In 2007, Higginbotham was the Queensland Reds Academy Player of the Year, Higginbotham was an integral member of the Reds team that won the Super Rugby championship in 2011. In August 2010, Higginbotham was named as a reserve for Australia to play against South Africa in Pretoria, Higginbotham made his international test debut for the Wallabies against France on November 27,2010 at the State de France. In 2013, Higginbotham commenced a contract for the Melbourne Rebels. Higginbotham was expected to bring size and versatility to the Rebels loose-forwards, Rebels coach Damien Hill said that youve got one of the best ball-running, lineout jumping options in Australian rugby. Hill praised Higginbotham for his aggression and intent at contact, in 2015, Higginbotham left the Melbourne Rebels after signing a two-year contract with the NEC Green Rockets, based in Abiko, Chiba, Japan. Higginbotham signed a contract in 2016 to return to the Queensland Reds for the 2017 Super Rugby season. As of 15 June 2015 Melbourne Rebels profile
10.
Cap (sport)
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In British sport, a cap is a metaphorical term for a players appearance in a game at international level. The term dates from the practice in the United Kingdom of awarding a cap to every player in a match of association football. An early illustration of the first international match between Scotland and England in 1872 shows the Scottish players wearing cowls, and the English wearing a variety of school caps. These to be termed International Caps, the act of awarding a cap is now international and is applied to other sports. Thus, a cap is awarded for each game played and so a player who has played x games, the practice of awarding a physical cap varies from sport to sport. It may be awarded prior to a debut or, particularly for national teams. As an example, the England mens association football teams still awards physical caps, Players are awarded one cap for every match they play — unless they play in a World Cup or European Championship finals tournament. Then they are given a cap for the competition — with the names of all their opponents stitched into the fabric of the cap itself. In mens association football, the record belongs to former player Ahmed Hassan of Egypt, the first footballer to win 100 international caps was Billy Wright of Englands Wolverhampton Wanderers. Wright went on to appear 105 times for England,90 of them he obtained whilst he was a captain, however, it is a players choice to refuse to play for or retire from his or her national team. In cricket, there are two types of caps, firstly, there is the international type, as described above. Some countries also award a domestic type generally known as a county cap, the latter system is most commonly applied in English county cricket. Most counties do not automatically award caps to players on their first appearance, instead, indeed, one can play at the highest domestic level for several years, and have a quite significant career in first-class cricket, without ever winning a cap. The world record for the number of caps in Test cricket is held by Sachin Tendulkar of India, Tendulkar also holds the record for One Day Internationals, with 463 caps. In rugby union,35 players have reached 100 international caps as of 5 June 2012, Players from England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland are eligible for selection to the British and Irish Lions touring squad. Lions matches are classed as full international tests, and caps are awarded, the Pacific Islanders team, composed of players from Fiji, Samoa, Tonga, Niue and Cook Islands have a similar arrangement, although no players involved have so far reached 100 caps. Players still active at Test level are in bold type, the record for most caps is held by former Australian Kangaroos player & captain Darren Lockyer with 59 games and second place is former New Zealand Kiwis player & captain Ruben Wiki with 55 games. Players still active at Test level are in bold type, mens Records and Facts FIFA Players with 100+ Caps RSSSF Picture of International Football Cap National Museum of Scotland Gallery of International Caps and Honours Caps
11.
Quade Cooper
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Quade Santini Cooper is a professional rugby union player and occasional boxer. Although a New Zealand citizen, he has represented Australia in rugby at international level and he currently plays for the Queensland Reds in the Super Rugby competition in Australia. Cooper was born in Auckland, but moved with his family to Tokoroa at a young age and he attended Forest View High School before moving to Brisbane, Australia, as a 13-year-old in 2001. In Brisbane, Cooper attended Springwood State High School before winning a scholarship to Anglican Church Grammar School, churchie shared the Queensland GPS Premiership with Brisbane State High School in 2005. Cooper was selected for the Australian Schoolboys in both 2005 and 2006 and he played Fly-half and won nine schoolboy caps, which was the equal record at that time. Cooper joined the ARU-funded high performance program with the National Talent Squad, Cooper made his debut for the Reds in Round 2 of the 2007 season in super 14, against the Crusaders at Jade Stadium, Christchurch. The Reds went on to lose the game 33–22,2008 saw the Reds win 40–8 in a huge upset against the Bulls in Coopers first start of the 2008 season. In November 2008 Cooper make his debut against Italy, coming off the bench to scoring the winning try in a 30–20 win. In 2009, Cooper featured in all of the Reds Super 14 games scoring 27 points and he also featured in 8 Tests for the Wallabies playing at Inside Centre. Playing at Fly Half in the Wallabies 1st Tri-Nations Series Test against South Africa, later he was suspended from two Tests against New Zealand, the Bledisloe Cup clashes in Melbourne and Christchurch. He returned from suspension to face South Africa in Pretoria and Bloemfontein and he featured in the final Tri-Nations clash against the All Blacks in a 22–23 loss at ANZ Stadium in Sydney. Cooper took part in all of the Wallabies Spring Tour games, in 2011 Cooper signed with player agent Khoder Nasser. In 2011, the Queensland Reds won the inaugural Super Rugby title, with Cooper featuring prominently, Cooper played in all of the Wallabies Tri-Nations games. Cooper was selected for the Wallabies for Rugby World Cup 2011 in New Zealand, starting all games at flyhalf, Cooper was booed by New Zealand crowds because he had earlier used his knee to smash the face of New Zealand captain Richie McCaw. Coach, Robbie Deans, through his experience with the judiciary, had been able to get him off, Cooper was selected for the third-place playoff at Eden Park against Wales. Cooper set up the opening try before succumbing to a cruciate ligament injury that later ruled him out of the opening rounds of the Reds title defence in the 2012 Super Rugby season. In mid-2012, while recovering from the injury, Cooper signed a three-year deal to stay with the Reds through to 2015. Coopers return from the injury came in Round 13 of the 2012 Super Rugby season against the Lions, in Round 18, Cooper was yellow-carded and placed on report for a high tackle on former Reds and current Wallabies teammate Berrick Barnes
12.
Rugby union equipment
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A traditional rugby union kit consists of a collared jersey, shorts, jockstrap / compression shorts, long rugby socks and boots with studs. Some modest padding is allowed on the head, shoulders and collarbone, most players also opt to wear a mouthguard to guard against concussion and chipping of the teeth. Traditionally, rugby boots were of a cut above the ankle. Over the years, such boots have become common, although many players still wear mid-cut boots. Additional ankle support was seen as appropriate given the nature of the game, particularly the stresses of forward play, higher cut boots also provided some protection against knocks. Modern boots are now similar to football boots, with a low cut offering less ankle support. It is essential for safety considerations, particularly in the scrum, the studs may be metal or plastic and must conform to Regulation 12 of World Rugby. This regulation dictates the permissible dimensions of the studs and also defines a standard for the hardness of the material, backs would be advised, on most ground types, to wear boots with some form of stud, to ensure adequate grip when changing direction. Referees are required to all players studs before a game. Any studs that are worn down so that the steel fixing is showing must be changed before the player is allowed to join in the game. The intent of the standard and these pre-match checks is to eliminate the potential for a stud to cause a cut if it comes into contact with a players skin, generally there are two types of stud pattern worn, the 8 stud or the 6 stud. The 8 stud is most often worn by the forwards to provide them with extra grip for scrummaging and mauling. The 6 stud is worn by backs as it allows for more agility, plastic blade studs, common in football, are an increasingly frequent choice among backs. Tackle bags are use during training and warm up in rugby union, tackle bags are padded equipment which allows players to tackle without another player being involved. Tackle bags come in two forms, the shield and the tackle bag. The rucking shield is held in the hand of a coach or fellow player, the tackle bag stands on the ground held loosely by another person, it allows the tackler to practice a full tackle
13.
Rugby union
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Rugby union, known in some parts of the world simply as rugby, is a contact team sport which originated in England in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its most common form, a game is between two teams of 15 players using a ball on a rectangular field with H-shaped goalposts on each try line. Historically an amateur sport, in 1995 restrictions on payments to players were removed, World Rugby, originally the International Rugby Football Board and from 1998 to 2014 the International Rugby Board, has been the governing body for rugby union since 1886. Rugby union spread from the Home Nations of Great Britain and Ireland, early exponents of the sport included Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and France. Countries that have adopted rugby union as their de facto national sport include Fiji, Georgia, Madagascar, New Zealand, Samoa, Tonga, Rugby union is played in over 100 countries across six continents, there are 101 full members and 18 associate members of World Rugby. The Rugby World Cup, first held in 1987, takes place four years with the winner of the tournament receiving the Webb Ellis Cup. The Six Nations Championship in Europe and The Rugby Championship in the Southern Hemisphere are major annual competitions. The origin of football is reputed to be an incident during a game of English school football at Rugby School in 1823. Although the evidence for the story is doubtful, it was immortalised at the school with a plaque unveiled in 1895, despite the doubtful evidence, the Rugby World Cup trophy is named after Webb Ellis. Rugby football stems from the form of game played at Rugby School, Old Rugbeian Albert Pell, a student at Cambridge, is credited with having formed the first football team. During this early period different schools used different rules, with pupils from Rugby. Other important events include the Blackheath Clubs decision to leave the Football Association in 1863, despite the sports full name of rugby union, it is known simply as rugby throughout most of the world. The first rugby football international was played on 27 March 1871 between Scotland and England, by 1881 both Ireland and Wales had representative teams, and in 1883 the first international competition, the Home Nations Championship had begun. 1883 is also the year of the first rugby tournament, the Melrose Sevens. During the early history of union, a time before commercial air travel. The first two notable tours both took place in 1888—the British Isles team touring New Zealand and Australia, followed by the New Zealand team touring Europe, All three teams brought new styles of play, fitness levels and tactics, and were far more successful than critics had expected. After Morgan began singing, the crowd joined in, the first time a national anthem was sung at the start of a sporting event, in 1905 France played England in its first international match
14.
New South Wales Waratahs
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The New South Wales Waratahs (/ˈwɒrətɑːz/ or /ˌwɒrəˈtɑːz/, referred to as the Waratahs, are an Australian rugby union team representing the majority of New South Wales in the Super Rugby competition. The Riverina and other parts of the state, are represented by the Brumbies. The name and emblem comes from the waratah, the flower for New South Wales. Their home ground is Allianz Stadium in Sydney, some matches are also held at ANZ Stadium. The NSWRU was established in 1874, and the very first club competition took place that year, by 1880 the SRU had over 100 clubs in its governance in the metropolitan area. In 1882 the first New South Wales team was selected to play Queensland in a two-match series, NSW would go on to win both the games. That same year the first NSW touring squad was selected to go, in 1907, several of the New South Wales rugby union teams players defected to play for the New South Wales rugby league team against a visiting rebel New Zealand rugby team. This was essentially the birth of rugby league in Australia, during World War I, the NSW Rugby Unions ceased senior competition. The Queensland body however would not reform until 1929, which saw NSW have more responsibilities for Australian rugby, in 1921 the Waratahs toured New Zealand again, and out of their 10 fixtures, won nine games, including the Test. They won 24 and drew two of their 31 official matches, seven members of this 1927/8 side were from the Drummoyne Rugby Club. Upon returning home, were greeted with a parade through Sydney, matches against Queensland would soon resume also. The 1930s were a successful time for NSW. The height of the success of NSW is best represented by the defeat of the South African Springboks in 1937 at the SCG, in 1963 the Sydney Rugby Union was established for the growth of the game in the city area. The NSW Rugby Union would celebrate its 100th anniversary in 1974, as part of the anniversary celebrations, a match was played at the SCG on 18 May against the All Blacks, though the Waratahs lost nil to 20. In their inaugural Super 12 season of 1996, the Waratahs won just under half of their games, finishing mid table, the following season of 1997 saw the Waratahs end in a 9th place, winning four fixtures. The Waratahs won four fixtures the next season and they won five games in the 2000 season and the Tahs finished their season in 9th place. In 2001 after replicating their 2000 performance, the Waratahs were still out of reach of finals contention, in 8th position. 2002 was a record breaking season for the Waratahs, as the team won eight out of their 11 season games, however, in the final game of the regular season the Waratahs lost 96–19
15.
Brumbies
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The Brumbies are an Australian professional rugby union football team competing in the Super Rugby. The team is based in Canberra, Australian Capital Territory and named for the horses which inhabit the capitals hinterland. The team represents the ACT and southern New South Wales regions, the Brumbies were formed in 1996 to provide a third Australian franchise for the newly formed Super 12 competition. It was predicted that the Brumbies, made up of so-called reject – players not wanted by the two teams – would perform poorly. Since then, they have enjoyed more success than all the other Australian teams combined, reaching six finals, the Brumbies play in navy blue, white and gold kits. The team plays at GIO Stadium in Canberra and is coached by former Wallabies fly-half Stephen Larkham. Rugby union football has a history in the ACT. The British Isles opened their 1899 tour of Australia with a match in Goulburn, however, it was not until 1938 that the ACT Rugby Union was finally established. Four clubs made up the first local competition, University, Easts, RMC, also in 1938, a representative ACT side faced off against the All Blacks, losing 5 to 56. The first international victory for an ACT representative side was in 1973, in 1978 an ACT side defeated Wales, who were Five Nations champions at the time. ACT had trailed at half time,6 to 16, but came back, the ACT representative side became known as the Kookaburras in 1989. ACT became Australias third provincial team in the new competition, known officially as the ACT Brumbies, in the inaugural Super 12 season, under coach Rod Macqueen, the Brumbies finished fifth on the table after the regular season, narrowly missing out on a finals position. The following season was more successful as the Brumbies entered the 1997 Super 12 Final. Eddie Jones took over as coach in 1998, but the Brumbies fell to tenth place on the 1998 season ladder. However, the season saw a big improvement, as they finished fifth for the second time in their Super rugby history. In 2000, the Brumbies made it to the 2000 Super 12 Final for the second time and they were however beaten by the Crusaders, losing 19 to 20. In 2001 they backed up their performance in 2000 to again enter the final. The Brumbies won the match, and in doing so, became the first team outside of New Zealand to be crowned Super 12 champions and that year the British Lions also came to Australia, and played a match against the Brumbies
16.
Brisbane Australian Football Club
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The Brisbane Football Club is a defunct Australian rules football club. Formed in May 1866, it was the first known football club of any code in Brisbane, the club commenced playing according to what was then known as the Melbourne rules. However, in 1876 the club adopted rugby rules, to fit in two newly formed football clubs, before reverting to Australian rules football in 1879. The club was to last around only 20 years, disappearing from the record in the late 1880s. Football has been played in Brisbane from very early times, as evidenced by this notice in The Moreton Bay Courier in 1849, TO the SPORTING BLADES of BRISBANE. Given the inchoate nature of the types of football at that time. Alternatively, they could have been playing in accordance with the recently published Rugby school rules or the Cambridge Rules, the game that was to become Australian rules football was not to be codified for another 10 years. A committee was appointed to prepare a code of rules, the prospects of the club must be certainly very encouraging to the promoters, as already more than twenty gentlemen have joined, and a large number of others have signified their wish to do so. At a subsequent meeting on 31 May About 20 members were present, the annual subscription was fixed at 5s. The uniform chosen was a shirt, with a distinguishing color for the captain. It is not recorded why the club chose to adopt the contemporary Melbourne, rather than the Sydney and it may be significant that Watterstons adolescent years spent in Melbourne coincided with the period when the Melbourne game was being codified. This was the first general turn out of the new club, the club also played matches on the cricket ground, located in the area then known as Green Hills, where cricket matches were also played since at least the early 1860s. The Brisbane Courier reported in July 1866, THE members of the Brisbane Football Club had an out on Saturday afternoon. The place of meeting was the cricket ground, though the muster was not large, the play was conducted in a spirited manner, and there were many good struggles before a goal was kicked. The ground was slippery in places, and, as a matter of course. There will be a practice at the Queens Park this afternoon, the club initially played intra-club matches, with teams selected arbitrarily. A newspaper report listed the players for a Civil Service team to play the All Comers team, the football season will end in a few weeks and the committee of the club contemplate getting up some athletic sports as an appropriate finale. By early 1868, it appears the club was struggling somewhat – at its annual meeting
17.
The Courier-Mail
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The Courier-Mail is a daily tabloid newspaper published in Brisbane, Australia. Owned by News Corp Australia, it is published daily from Monday to Saturday in tabloid format and its editorial offices are located at Bowen Hills, in Brisbanes inner northern suburbs, and it is printed at Murarrie, in Brisbanes eastern suburbs. It is available for purchase throughout Queensland, most regions of Northern New South Wales, the history of The Courier-Mail is through four mastheads. The Moreton Bay Courier later became The Courier, then the Brisbane Courier, the Moreton Bay Courier was established as a weekly paper in June 1846. Issue frequency increased steadily to bi-weekly in January 1858, tri-weekly in December 1859, the recognised founder and first editor was Arthur Sidney Lyon who was assisted by its printer, James Swan, the later mayor of Brisbane and member of Queensland Legislative Council. Lyon was encouraged to emigrate by Rev. Dr. John Dunmore Lang and he persuaded James Swan, a printer of Langs Sydney newspaper The Colonialist to join him. Lyon and Swan established themselves on the corner of Queen Street and Albert Street, Brisbane, the first issue of the Moreton Bay Courier, consisting of 4 pages, appeared weekly on Saturday 20 June 1846, with Lyon as editor and Swan as publisher. After some 18 months, Lyon and Swan disagreed on many aspects of policy, including transportation of convicts. Lyon took over control in late 1847, but had money problems. Swan sold out to Thomas Blacket Stephens in about November 1859. The Moreton Bay Courier became The Courier, in June–July 1868, Stephens floated a new company, and transferred the plant and copyright of the Brisbane Courier to The Brisbane Newspaper Company. He was the director until retired in November 1873, when the paper was auctioned. The Journal was, from November 1873 to December 1880, managed by one of the new part owners, although called managing editor, actual writing and editing was by William Augustine OCarroll. Carl Feilberg followed William Henry Trail in the role of political commentator and he succeeded William OCarroll as Courier editor-in-chief from September 1883 to his death in October 1887. Lukins roles as part owner-editor changed on 21 December 1880, charles Hardie Buzacott, former Postmaster General in the first McIlwraith government, had been a staff journalist. John James Knight was editor-in-chief of the Brisbane Courier 1906–16, later managing director, the first edition of The Courier-Mail was published on 28 August 1933, after Keith Murdochs Herald and Weekly Times acquired and merged the Brisbane Courier and the Daily Mail. In 1987, Rupert Murdochs News Limited acquired newspaper control, the Courier-Mail was inducted into the Queensland Business Leaders Hall of Fame in 2015. The Courier-Mail is a right of center newspaper with four editorial endorsements for the coalition to one for Labor in the period 1996–2007, the Courier-Mail generally supports free market economic policies and the process of globalisation. It supported the 2003 invasion of Iraq, the Courier-Mail has the fourth-highest circulation of any daily newspaper in Australia
18.
City Botanic Gardens
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The City Botanic Gardens is a heritage-listed botanic garden on Alice Street, Brisbane City, City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It was also known as Queens Park and it is located on Gardens Point in the Brisbane CBD and is bordered by the Brisbane River, Alice Street, George Street, Parliament House and Queensland University of Technologys Gardens Point campus. The Gardens include Brisbanes most mature gardens, with many rare, in particular the Gardens feature a special collection of cycads, palms, figs and bamboo. The City Botanic Gardens was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 3 February 1997 and it remains the premier public park and recreational facility for the capital of Queensland, which role it has performed since the early 1840s. Originally the gardens were planted by convicts in 1825 with food crops to feed the prison colony, in 1855 a portion of several acres was declared a Botanic Reserve. In the same year Walter Hill was appointed as curator of the Botanic Reserve and he began an active planting and experimental program. Some of the trees planted in the Gardens were the first of their species to be planted in Australia. Plants with potential commercial value were tested in the gardens, first to see if they were viable, to determine what they needed for growth and if a profit could be made. Hill introduced mango, pawpaw, ginger, tamarind, mahogany, poinciana and jacaranda trees as well as tobacco, sugar, grape vines, wheat, tropical fruits, tea, coffee, spices and textile plants. He encouraged the work of the sugar pioneer John Buhot which culminated in the first production of granulated sugar in Queensland in April 1862, a cairn was erected at the site where the sugar cane was grown. Hill also supported the work of the Queensland Acclimatisation Society which was formed in 1862, by 1866 Hill had succeeded in having the extent of the Botanic Gardens enlarged to approximately 27 acres. A10 acre strip along Alice Street was not part of the Gardens but served as a park, the fountain, designed by Colonial Architect Charles Tiffin, was erected only a year after reticulated water from the Enoggera reservoir was introduced to Brisbane. It later became known as the Walter Hill fountain, a row of figs were planted in the 1870s. Hill also planted avenues of Bunya pines and Cook pines, scientific activity was complemented by public recreational use of the Gardens, along with the Domain and Queens Park. By the 1880s, some of the work previously performed by the Botanic Gardens was being carried out by the Queensland Acclimatisation Society at Bowen Park. The Herbarium and Botanic Library were moved from the Gardens for a period but were returned in 1905 when John Frederick Bailey was appointed Curator of the Botanic Gardens, underground electricity supply was installed in 1907. The extant City Botanic Gardens was formed by the amalgamation of the original Botanic Gardens with the Domain and Queens Park in 1916, the former curators cottage built for J. F. Bailey, curator from 1905-1917, is now a cafe. The City of Brisbane Act of 1924 transferred responsibility for the Botanic Gardens to the Brisbane City Council, due to the proximity to the river, the Botanic Gardens have been flooded nine times between 1870-2011
19.
Eagle Farm Racecourse
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Eagle Farm Racecourse is a heritage-listed horse racing venue in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It is located at the end of Racecourse Road in the suburb of Ascot,7 kilometres from the Brisbane central business district. The turf track is 28 metres wide, with a circumference of 2,027 metres, races are run in a clockwise direction. Doomben Racecourse is located nearby in the same suburb, the Eagle Farm Racecourse was established in 1863 and it is now the premier racecourse in Brisbane. In 1889–1890, the architecture partnership Hunter and Corrie and architect John H. Buckeridge jointly designed the grandstands and they also designed stables and sheds. In 1941 the racecourse was taken over by the authorities to house thousands of American troops during the Pacific War. It was then known as U. S, a combined entry Eagle Farm Racecourse and Ascot Railway Station was listed on the Queensland Heritage Register in 2004. Ascot railway station has access to the racecourse and is located on the Doomben line. The racecourse can also be accessed by bus and, from Bretts Wharf, the following is a list of Group races which are run at Eagle Farm Racecourse, Media related to Eagle Farm Racecourse at Wikimedia Commons Brisbane Racing Club
20.
British and Irish Lions
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The British and Irish Lions is a rugby union team selected from players eligible for any of the Home Nations – the national sides of England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. The Lions are a Test side, and generally select international players, the side tours every four years, with these rotating among Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. The 2009 Test series was lost 2–1 to South Africa, while the 2013 Test series was won 2–1 over Australia, from 1888 onwards combined rugby sides from the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland toured the Southern Hemisphere. The first tour was a venture, and was undertaken without official backing. The six subsequent visits enjoyed a degree of support from the authorities, before the 1910 South Africa tour. In 1949 the four Home Unions formally created a Tours Committee and for the first time, the 1950s tours saw high win rates in provincial games, but the Test series were typically lost or drawn. The winning series in 1971 and 1974 changed this pattern, the last tour of the amateur age took place in 1993. The multi-nation team that is named the British and Irish Lions first came into existence in 1888 as the Shaw & Shrewsbury Team. It was then primarily English in composition but also contained players from Scotland, later the name British Isles became associated with the team. When the team first emerged in the century, it represented the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. The team continued to exist after the Irish war of independence and civil war, from the 2001 tour of Australia, the official name British and Irish Lions has been used. The team is referred to simply as the Lions. As the Lions represent two states, they do not have a national anthem. For more than half a century, the Lions have been synonymous with the red jersey that sports the amalgamated crests of the four unions, however, prior to 1950 the strip went through a number of significantly different formats. In 1888, the promoter of the first expedition to Australia and New Zealand, Arthur Shrewsbury, demanded something that would be good material, the result was a jersey in thick red, white and blue hoops, worn above white shorts and dark socks. The tours to South Africa in 1891 and 1896 retained the red, white and blue theme but this time as red and white hooped jerseys and dark blue shorts and socks. The 1899 trip to Australia saw a reversion to red, white and blue jerseys, but with the used in thick hoops. The shorts remained blue, as did the socks although a white flash was added to the latter, in 1903, the South Africa tour followed on from the 1896 tour, with red and white hooped jerseys
21.
Rugby league
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Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field. One of the two codes of football, it originated in England in 1895 as a split from the Rugby Football Union over the issue of payments to players. Its rules gradually changed with the aim of producing a faster, in rugby league, points are scored by carrying the ball and touching it to the ground beyond the opposing teams goal line, this is called a try, and is the primary method of scoring. The opposing team attempts to stop the side scoring points by tackling the player carrying the ball. In addition to tries, points can be scored by kicking goals, after each try, the scoring team gains a free kick to try at goal with a conversion for further points. Kicks at goal may also be awarded for penalties, and field goals can be attempted at any time. Rugby league is a sport in Northern England, the states of Queensland and New South Wales in Australia, New Zealand. The European Super League and Australasian National Rugby League are the club competitions. Rugby league is played internationally, predominantly by European, Australasian and Pacific Island countries, the first Rugby League World Cup was held in France in 1954, the current holders are Australia. The first of these, the Northern Rugby Football Union, was established in 1895 as a faction of Englands Rugby Football Union. Similar breakaway factions split from RFU-affiliated unions in Australia and New Zealand in 1907 and 1908, renaming themselves rugby football leagues, in 1922, the Northern Union also changed its name to the Rugby Football League and thus over time the sport itself became known as rugby league football. In 1895, a schism in Rugby football resulted in the formation of the Northern Rugby Football Union, within fifteen years of that first meeting in Huddersfield, more than 200 RFU clubs had left to join the rugby revolution. In 1897, the line-out was abolished and in 1898 professionalism introduced, in 1906, the Northern Union changed its rules, reducing teams from 15 to 13 a side and replacing the ruck formed after every tackle with the play the ball. A similar schism to that which occurred in England took place in Sydney, There, on 8 August 1907 the New South Wales Rugby Football League was founded at Batemans Hotel in George Street. Rugby league then went on to rugby union as the primary football code in New South Wales. On 5 May 1954 over 100,000 spectators watched the 1953–54 Challenge Cup Final at Odsal Stadium, Bradford, England, also in 1954 the Rugby League World Cup, the first for either code of rugby, was formed at the instigation of the French. In 1966, the International Board introduced a rule that a team in possession was allowed three play-the-balls and on the tackle a scrum was to be formed. This was increased to six tackles in 1972 and in 1983 the scrum was replaced by a handover,1967 saw the first professional Sunday matches of rugby league played
22.
Super 10 Rugby
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The Super 10 was a rugby union football tournament featuring ten teams from Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Tonga, and Western Samoa. The competition ran for three years from 1993 to 1995 and was the predecessor of Super 12 and Super 14, the South African Broadcasting Corporations Top Sport channel committed to a three-year sponsorship of the competition, allowing it to be launched. The official declaration of professionalism in rugby union in August 1995 led to a reworking of the competition, the winner of the previous years Pacific Tri-Nations between Fiji, Tonga and Western Samoa. The ten teams were split into two pools to minimize the problems caused by the travel required and the timezone differences between the participating countries. Each team played the four teams in their pool once, with four competition points being awarded for a win. Bonus points for scoring four or more tries were not introduced until the formation of the Super 12, the top team in each pool met in a final to decide the championship. For the inaugural competition, New Zealand were represented by NPC champions Waikato, along with Auckland, Otago, South Africa were represented by Currie Cup champions the Sharks, along with Transvaal and Northern Transvaal. Western Samoa were the representatives from the Pacific Tri-Series, in 1994, New Zealand were represented by NPC champions Auckland, along with Waikato, Otago and North Harbour. South Africa were represented by Currie Cup champions Transvaal, along with the Sharks, Western Samoa were once again the representatives from the Pacific Tri-Series. Queensland were ranked top of Pool A on points difference, in 1995, New Zealand were represented by NPC champions Auckland, along with Canterbury, Otago and North Harbour. South Africa were represented by Currie Cup champions Transvaal, along with Western Province, Tonga were the representatives from the Pacific Tri-Series. Queensland defeated Transvaal 30–16 at the final at Ellis Park in Johannesburg
23.
Sharks (Currie Cup)
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The Sharks are a South African rugby union team that participates in the annual Currie Cup tournament. The Sharks home stadium is Kings Park and they draw most of their players from the KwaZulu-Natal Province. The Sharks are the current representative team of the Natal Rugby Union, the team is the fourth most successful provincial union in the country having won the Currie Cup title seven times. Natal won its first Currie Cup competition until 1990, the year the union celebrated its centenary anniversary. Since then the Sharks have won the Currie Cup in 1992,1995,1996,2008,2010, for most of their history team was known simply as Natal, with a nickname of The Banana Boys until the mid-1990s when they were re-branded as the Sharks. The Sharks team that plays in the Super Rugby competition is essentially the same team - they also play in Durban and draw their players from the KwaZulu-Natal area. The Natal Rugby Union, renamed the kwaZulu-Natal Rugby Union in 1999 was formed in 1890, but it took 66 years for the union to enjoy its first Currie Cup final. Natal didnt enjoy any success prior to the 1960s, although legendary coach Izak van Heerden did manage to fashion two unbeaten seasons in ’61 and ’63, when the Currie Cup competition wasn’t held. The 1956 final saw Natal up against Northern Transvaal and even though it was contested at Kingsmead in Durban, with so many Springbok test matches in the early 1960s, the Currie Cup was contested only four times in that decade. Natal failed to make an impression, despite being able to call on the likes of Springboks Ormond Taylor, what followed was a rare third-place finish in the Currie Cup in 1980, with Claassen receiving inspirational support from Welshman Roger Gardner and former Wallaby Mark Loane. The standout result was a 22-19 defeat of Northern Transvaal – Natal’s first win over Northerns at Loftus Versfeld in 41 years, Northern Transvaal went on to win the Currie Cup again that year, but Natal were the only side to get the better of them. During the 80s, Natal could call on players of the calibre of Gawie Visagie, Henry Coxwell, Rob Hankinson and Mort Mortassagne, the side made up for this in 1984 by qualifying for the Currie Cup final, despite plying their trade in the B-Section. That was after a stunning victory over Free State, thanks to two tries from Des McLean and one each from Derek la Marque and Claassen. The Banana Boys gave an account of themselves in the 1984 final. For much of the 1980s Natal were written off as a B-Section team punching above their weight and it wasn’t until the arrival of legendary coach Ian McIntosh from Zimbabwe and the return to the A-Section in 1987 that they started to lay the foundations for success in the 1990s. After arriving in 1986, McIntosh quickly made his mark in Durban and spent the late 1980s building a squad and recruiting players he felt would serve the greater good of Natal Rugby. Despite Natal’s great season, the men from Pretoria were heavily favoured to win, and with match-winning flyhalf Naas Botha at the helm, it was widely accepted that the Blue Bulls just had to show up to win. The victorious side was captained by scrumhalf Craig Jamieson, who led the team on a parade through central Durban later in the week
24.
Durban
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Durban is the largest city in the South African province of KwaZulu-Natal. Durbans metropolitan municipality ranks third among the most populous areas in South Africa after Johannesburg. It is also the second most important manufacturing hub in South Africa after Johannesburg and it forms part of the eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality. Durban is famous for being the busiest port in South Africa and it is also seen as one of the major centres of tourism because of the citys warm subtropical climate and extensive beaches. It is the largest city in KwaZulu-Natal which is the 2nd most populous province in South Africa and it has the highest number of dollar millionaires added per year of any South African city with the number rising 200% between 2000 and 2014. In May 2015, Durban was officially recognised as one of the New7Wonders Cities together with Vigan, Doha, La Paz, Havana, Beirut, archaeological evidence from the Drakensberg mountains suggests that the Durban area has been inhabited by communities of hunter-gatherers since 100,000 BC. He named the area Natal, or Christmas in Portuguese, accompanying Farewell was an adventurer named Henry Francis Fynn. Fynn was able to befriend the Zulu King Shaka by helping him to recover from a wound he suffered in battle. As a token of Shakas gratitude, he granted Fynn a 30-mile strip of coast a hundred miles in depth. During a meeting of 35 European residents in Fynns territory on 23 June 1835, it was decided to build a town and name it dUrban after Sir Benjamin dUrban. The Voortrekkers established the Republic of Natalia in 1838, with its capital at Pietermaritzburg, piet Retief, leader of the Voortrekkers in Natal, negotiated with the Zulu King, Dingane, in order to obtain land for their farming purposes. After negotiations were concluded, Dingane however reneged and had Retief, thereafter the Zulus attacked and killed more than 500 Voortrekkers at Retiefs laager. The Voortrekkers retaliated and broke Dinganes power at the Battle of Blood River, the force arrived on 4 May 1842 and built a fortification that was later to be The Old Fort. On the night of 23/24 May 1842 the British attacked the Voortrekker camp at Congella, the attack failed, and the British had to withdraw to their camp which was put under siege. A local trader Dick King and his servant Ndongeni were able to escape the blockade and rode to Grahamstown, the reinforcements arrived in Durban 20 days later, the Voortrekkers retreated, and the siege was lifted. Fierce conflict with the Zulu population led to the evacuation of Durban, a British governor was appointed to the region and many settlers emigrated from Europe and the Cape Colony. The British established a sugar industry in the 1860s. Farm owners had a difficult time attracting Zulu labourers to work on their plantations, as a result of the importation of Indian labourers, Durban has the largest Asian community on the African continent, and has the largest Indian population outside of India
25.
Free State Cheetahs
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The Free State Cheetahs, currently named the Toyota Free State Cheetahs, for sponsorship reasons, are a South African rugby union team that participates in the annual Currie Cup tournament. They are governed by the Free State Rugby Union and are based at the 48,000 capacity Free State Stadium in Bloemfontein, the Cheetahs have only won the Currie Cup 5 times. However, they have one of the most successful teams in recent history. Since the advent of professionalism in rugby union, they have been considered one of South Africas Big 5 provincial rugby Unions, the Cheetahs are a very well supported team across the Free State as well having large fan bases in Cape Town, Johannesburg and Pretoria. They are also known as the darlings of South African rugby, the Cheetahs average home crowds of approximately 17,000 in the Currie Cup when they play at Free State Stadium in Bloemfontein. Their biggest rivals are traditionally Western Province, however, in recent times the Blue Bulls have also become fierce rivals of the Cheetahs. The Orange Free State Rugby Union was established in 1895, but did not make it to their first Currie Cup final appearance until 1973, when they lost to Northern Transvaal 30-22 at Loftus Versfeld. Just two seasons later, the Orange Free State met Northern Transvaal again in the Currie Cup final, the following season, Orange Free State met the Western Province in the final, defeating them 33-16 in Bloemfontein, claiming their first Currie Cup championship. The next season, Orange Free State met Northern Transvaal in the Currie Cup final again, for the fourth successive time, Orange Free State were in the final again, and again with Northern Transvaal, who defeated them 13-9. They met Northern Transvaal in the 1981 season final, the Orange Free State/Free State Cheetahs made two final appearances in the 1990s, being runners-up to Transvaal and the Western Province in 1994 and 1997 respectively. In 2004, they were runners-up to the Blue Bulls in the final, however, the following season, the Free State defeated them in the final,29 points to 25. The Free State finished at the top of the table of the 2006 season, the Cheetahs hosted the final, which ended in a 28-all draw after 20 minutes of extra-time. In the 2007 season, the FS Cheetahs continued their great form, after beating the Blue Bulls in the semis at home, they won the Currie Cup for a third consecutive time by coming from behind to beat the Golden Lions by 20-18 in the final. In the 2016 season, they emerged undefeated in the Currie Cup, in addition to the Free State Cheetahs that play in the Currie Cup competition, a Free State XV also compete in the Vodacom Cup / Currie Cup qualification series on an annual basis. This team play their matches at the time as the Super Rugby season. While the Free State XVs matches are classified as first class matches by the South African Rugby Union, in previous seasons, an Emerging Cheetahs team also participated in first class compulsory friendly matches prior to the Currie Cup season
26.
Golden Lions
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The Golden Lions is a rugby team based in Johannesburg, South Africa who compete in the annual Currie Cup and Vodacom Cup. The GLRU also operate a side in the Super Rugby competition, the Lions, prominent clubs involved in the process were Pirates, Wanderers, Pretoria, Potchefstroom and Kaffrarians. The first elected president was Bill Taylor, transvaal’s first match was against Griquas in Kimberley on 31 August 1889. The original colours used by Transvaal were dark blue and white jerseys, blue shorts and it is unsure when the union decided to switch over to a white jersey with a red hoop with black shorts and socks. These colours are still in use today and it is also from these colours that the teams’ nickname, Rooibontes came from. The original union encompassed a bigger catchment area than it does currently. Unions that gained independence from Transvaal are Western Transvaal in 1920, Northern Transvaal in 1938), robert Owen Loftus Versfeld, after which the stadium in Pretoria is named, was a lifetime member of the Transvaal Rugby Football Union. According to a Lions tale –120 years of the red and white, the GLRU competes in the Currie Cup and Vodacom Cup competitions under the sponsorship name of Xerox Golden Lions. The GLRU serves as the main union for the Lions, in Super Rugby, which also encompass the Pumas. The Golden Lions and Lions share the home stadium, Ellis Park. In the 1980s the union ran into financial trouble, mostly as a result of redeveloping Ellis Park. Transvaal supporters nearly didn’t have a union to support anymore as at one stage the most likely outcome was that the union would disband, in 1984 the union had R37 million of debts to repay, which forced Volkskas Bank to carry the union for a period. This debt mainly came from the union redeveloping the old Ellis Park into a modern 80, the union started out with R1 million of its own money, and intended to raise another R12 million through the sales of suites and life memberships. However, due to the team, the union had a hard time to sell these ideas to businessmen. In March 1984 Volkskas took over the management of Ellis Park, by August the union was told to repay debts of more than R40 million by 4 September. According to Louis Luyt in his autobiography, Walking Proud, the union was left with interest amounting to R20,000 per day, through the business acumen of Dr Luyt, the union was able to become financially stable once again. Thus the rugby union had no representation on the board, the rugby union would however be contractually obliged to play all future matches at the venue, and would have first right over the use of Ellis Park. However, 20% of all gate receipts generated would be paid over to EPSI, however, Volkskas was not fond of this idea, and eventually took complete control over the stadium as a new company called Ellis Park Stadium Pty Ltd
27.
Ellis Park Stadium
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Ellis Park Stadium is a rugby union and association football stadium in the city of Johannesburg, Gauteng Province, South Africa. It hosted the final of the 1995 Rugby World Cup, which was won by the national team. The stadium was the countrys most modern when it was upgraded in 1982 to accommodate almost 60,000 people, today, the stadium hosts both football and rugby and is also used as a venue for other large events, such as open-air concerts. It has become synonymous with rugby as the time when rugby was not played at Ellis Park was during 1980 and 1981. The stadium was named after Mr J. D. Ellis. A five-year ZAR450 million naming rights deal was signed in 2008 with The Coca-Cola Company, league, provincial, and international soccer games have all been played at the stadium, and it has seen such teams as Brazil, Manchester United and Arsenal play. Ellis Park hosted six Test matches between 1948 and 1954, but it has not been used for cricket since New Wanderers Stadium opened in 1956 and is now used only for rugby. In 1889 when after a long and hard battle the Transvaal Rugby Football Union was formed and established a domain. The first games were played at the Wanderers Club’s stadium whose grounds were situated where Johannesburg Park Station is today. Rows between the different rugby clubs as well as the Wanderers Clubs claim of the field for the use of cricket games, an area with a quarry and garbage dumps in Doornfontein was identified in,1927 as the possible alternative. The Transvaal Rugby Football Union negotiated with the Johannesburg City Councils, Mr. J. D. Ellis, on 10 October 1927 the final rental agreement was signed. A quote of £600 was accepted for the grass and with a loan from the city council to the amount of £5,000, the stadium was built in eight months and in June 1928 the first test was played against the All Blacks. Thus was born Ellis Park which became renowned and synonymous with rugby. Crowds of between 38,000 and a crowd of 100,000 against the British and Irish Lions attended the matches. Ellis Park played the host for cricket matches after an agreement was reached between Transvaal Rugby Football Union and The Transvaal Cricket Union. From 1947 when the pitch was laid until 1956, Ellis Park was host to various cricket matches with the final games played in the 1953/54 series against New Zealand. Cricket then moved to its new venue where the current Wanderers still is today, on 28 April 1969 the Transvaal Rugby Football Union formed a stadium committee to investigate the possibilities of a new stadium since the one in use did not meet all the modern requirements. Fifteen years later, after the game between Transvaal and the World Team on 31 March 1979, the old Ellis Park was demolished, games were played at the Wanderers while the stadium was being rebuilt
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Johannesburg
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Johannesburg is the largest city in South Africa and is one of the 50 largest urban areas in the world. It is the capital of Gauteng, which is the wealthiest province in South Africa. While Johannesburg is not one of South Africas three capital cities, it is the seat of the Constitutional Court, the city is located in the mineral-rich Witwatersrand range of hills and is the centre of large-scale gold and diamond trade. In 2011, the population of the city of Johannesburg was 4,434,827, in the same year, the population of Greater Johannesburg Metropolitan Area was 7,860,781. Some view the surrounding the city of Johannesburg yet more broadly than the metropolitan area, adding Ekurhuleni, West Rand and Lenasia. The land area of the city is large in comparison with those of other major cities, resulting in a moderate population density of 2. The city was established in 1886 following the discovery of gold on what had been a farm, the city is commonly interpreted as the modern day El Dorado due to the extremely large gold deposit found along the Witwatersrand. The name is attributed to one or all of three men involved in the establishment of the city, in ten years, the population was 100,000 inhabitants. A separate city from the late 1970s until the 1990s, Soweto is now part of Johannesburg, Soweto, although eventually incorporated into Johannesburg, had been separated as a residential area for blacks, who were not permitted to live in Johannesburg proper. Lenasia is predominantly populated by English-speaking South Africans of Indian descent, controversy surrounds the origin of the name. There were quite a number of people with the name Johannes who were involved in the history of the city. Among them are the principal clerk attached to the office of the surveyor-general Johannes Rissik, Christiaan Johannes Joubert, another was Stephanus Johannes Paulus Paul Kruger, president of the South African Republic 1883-1900. Johannes Meyer, the first government official in the area is another possibility, precise records for the choice of name were lost. Rissik and Joubert were members of a delegation sent to England to attain mining rights for the area. Joubert had a park in the city named after him and Rissik Street is today a street where the historically important and dilapidated Post Office, since burnt out. The region surrounding Johannesburg was originally inhabited by San people, the Sotho–Tswana practised farming and extensively mined and smelted metals that were available in the area. The most prominent site within Johannesburg is Melville Koppies, which contains an iron smelting furnace, the main Witwatersrand gold reef was discovered in June 1884 on the farm Vogelstruisfontein by Jan Gerritse Bantjes that triggered the Witwatersrand Gold Rush and the start of Johannesburg in 1886. The discovery of gold rapidly attracted people to the area, making necessary a name, Johannes Meyer, the first government official in the area is another possibility
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SANZAAR
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SANZAAR is the body which operates Super Rugby and The Rugby Championship competitions in Rugby Union. SANZAAR meets annually and is composed of the CEOs from its member unions and it was formed as SANZAR in 1996 as a joint venture of the South African Rugby Union, the New Zealand Rugby Union and the Australian Rugby Union. Prior to the 2016 season, its name was changed to SANZAAR following the inclusion of the Argentine Rugby Union as a member of the organisation. Created shortly after rugbys move to professionalism in 1995, SANZARs two products were the Super 12 and the Tri Nations and this concept was developed by Queensland Rugby Union CEO Terry Doyle, New South Wales Rugby Union CEO David Moffett and Australian Rugby Union CEO Bruce Hayman. To fund the competition SANZAR looked to News Limited, eventually being offered $555 million over 10 years for television rights. Rian Oberholzer was the first CEO of SANZAR, in 2002, a proposal to expand the Super 12 to fourteen teams, supported by Australia and South Africa, was vetoed by the New Zealand Rugby Union. By the addition of two teams, SANZAR agreed to expand the Super 12 competition for the 2006 season and to increase the number of Test matches played in the Tri-Nations. Licences were granted for franchises based in Bloemfontein and Perth, creating the Central Cheetahs, the joint venture must remain intact, he urged. I have dealt with the South Africans for years in business, part of their DNA is to take it to the brink. Theres a moment when they realise they have taken it far enough. On 20 May 2009, SANZAR announced it had reached agreement on a new deal involving all three nations beginning in the 2011 season. The deal for 2011 to 2015 included, Super Rugby expanded to 15 teams, the four current Australian teams would be joined by a new team in the Australia conference, this license was later awarded to the Melbourne Rebels. Super Rugby taking three weeks off in June for the mid-year Tests, the play-offs expanded to six teams, with the conference winners joined by the three non-winners with the most competition points without regard to conference affiliation. The two conference winners with the most competition points received a bye in the play-offs. The Rugby Championship opening each year in South Africa, and concluding with the two of the three Bledisloe Cup matches between Australia and New Zealand that fall within the Rugby Championship and this allowed Springboks to be released early for their domestic competition, the Currie Cup. Further expansion was agreed in 2015 to include the Argentine Rugby Union as a member of SANZAAR from 2016. Three additional teams were included in the Super Rugby competition, one each from South Africa, Argentina, while a Japanese team has been invited to participate in the Super Rugby competition from 2016, Japan is not a member of SANZAAR at this stage. Super Rugby The Rugby Championship Official SANZAAR Super Rugby website SANZAAR broadcasters by territory
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New Zealand Rugby
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New Zealand Rugby is the governing body of rugby union in New Zealand. It was founded in 1892 as the New Zealand Rugby Football Union,12 years after the first provincial unions in New Zealand. In 1949 it became an affiliate to the International Rugby Football Board, now known as World Rugby and it dropped the word Football from its name in 2006. The brand name New Zealand Rugby was adopted in 2013, NZR Headquarters are located in Wellington, New Zealand, with an office in Auckland. New Zealand Rugby’s purpose is to lead, grow, support and it is committed to New Zealand rugby being financially secure, attracting top partners and contributing actively to the global game. There are currently 11 NZRU Board members, the President, David Rhodes, was elected in 2015. The President may attend Board meetings but is not a Board member, Steve Tew is the current chief executive and Sir Brian Lochore is the current Patron. It also delivers Investec Super Rugby in New Zealand and manages Test matches in New Zealand, New Zealand Rugby has a staff of approximately 90 people, mostly based in Wellington and Auckland but also working in locations all around New Zealand. NZR was initially governed by a committee of delegates from the provincial unions until replaced in 1894 by a seven-member Wellington-based management committee, administrative responsibilities were initially held by honorary secretaries, and then secretaries, from 1907. This was expanded 43 years later to two entities, the ruling NZRU Council and an executive committee. In 1986, three geographical zones were formed to elect the members of the council, and the executive committee was replaced by an administration committee. Since 1990, the NZRU has been managed by a CEO, in 1996, the NZRUs ruling council was replaced by an expanded board to include independent members and an elected Maori representative. New Zealand Rugbys Patron fills a role as the figurehead for the organization. The current Patron is former All Blacks captain Sir Brian Lochore, the President and Vice President are the Unions two officers who represent New Zealand Rugby at functions and events. Unlike the Patron, the President and Vice President may attend meetings of New Zealand Rugby. The President and Vice President are elected for two years each, the current President is David Rhodes and the current Vice President is Maurice Trapp. The Board is charged with setting strategy, direction and policy for the New Zealand Rugby Union, many of the decisions concerning New Zealand’s national teams, domestic competitions, financial management and rugby traditions are made by the Board. As of April 2015, the Board has nine members, six elected members, any provincial union in New Zealand may nominate candidates for vacant elective positions
31.
South African Rugby Union
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The South African Rugby Union is the governing body for rugby union in South Africa and is affiliated to World Rugby. SARU organises several national teams, most notably the national side. SARU is now attempting to recover from the tenure of former president Brian van Rooyen. Straeuli would resign, as did Rian Oberholzer, the director of South Africa Rugby Ltd. Soon afterwards, SARFU president Silas Nkununu, facing a strong challenge, withdrew from consideration for election. He soon became a highly polarising figure in South African sport, with detractors accusing him of financial shenanigans, favouritism and his management style was also widely perceived as autocratic. One of the major gripes against the van Rooyen administration was the allocation of Springboks Test matches, the KwaZulu-Natal union did not receive a Tri Nations Test in either 2005 or 2006, the Free State union received no Tests in either year. Both unions, vocal opponents of van Rooyen, accused him of punishing them for their opposition, however, the biggest bone of contention surrounded the expansion of the Super Rugby competition. SANZAR, a consortium of the South African, Australian, and New Zealand governing bodies, expanded their Super 12 competition to 14 teams, South Africa was entitled to add one franchise to the four from the Super 12 era. Van Rooyen was widely viewed as being responsible for this arrangement, the South African government attempted to step in to address perceived problems within van Rooyens administration, but he survived two years of attempts to oust him. Finally, at the 2006 SARU General Meeting, van Rooyen was voted out in favour of Oregan Hoskins, Hoskins soon announced that a planned investigation into van Rooyens administration would go forward. As for the Spears issue, the SARU Presidents Council issued a recommendation on 24 March that SA Rugby revisit the decision to admit the Spears
32.
Crusaders (rugby union)
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The Crusaders are a New Zealand professional rugby union team based in Christchurch that competes in the Super Rugby competition. They are the most successful team in Super Rugby history with seven titles, the franchise represents the Buller, Canterbury, Mid-Canterbury, South Canterbury, Tasman and West Coast provincial Rugby Unions. Their main home ground is AMI Stadium, formerly known as Jade Stadium and before that, formed in 1996 to represent the upper South Island of New Zealand in the Super 12, the Crusaders struggled in their first season and finished last. Their performance improved in 1997 and the team finished sixth, the team went on to win all three titles from 1998 to 2000 despite each final being played away from home. They again won the competition in 2002 after going through the season unbeaten, in the following two seasons, they again reached the final, although they were beaten on both occasions. 2005 was the last season of the Super 12 before its expansion, after finishing top of the table in that season, the Crusaders went on to host the final in which they defeated the Waratahs. As a result of winning their fifth Super 12 title, the Crusaders were given the trophy to keep, in 2006, the Crusaders hosted the Hurricanes in the inaugural Super 14 final and won 19–12. In 2008 the Crusaders hosted the final at AMI Stadium against the Waratahs, ironically the Crusaders also hold the record for the least points scored in a game when they were defeated by the Highlanders 6–0 in 2009. They have also scored the most points and most tries in one season, individual players also hold records, Andrew Mehrtens for most points in a Super 12 season, and Rico Gear for most tries in a season. They also have three International Rugby Board Players of the Year, Dan Carter, Richie McCaw, and, the original Crusaders team of 1996 was captained by All Blacks prop Richard Loe and coached by Vance Stewart. The Crusaders struggled in the season and finished bottom of the table with only two wins. Their eight losses included a 49–18 loss to the Blues and a 52–16 loss to the Queensland Reds, and the First ever tour was a pre-visit to South Africa prior start of Super 12. The following season saw a change in captain and coach, with Todd Blackadder succeeding Loe as captain, with five wins, the team finished the round-robin stage in sixth place. The improvement was particularly illustrated by the Crusaders 29–28 loss to the champions, the Blues. During this loss, Leon MacDonald was taken out with a charge by Robin Brooke. While the Crusaders attempted to get MacDonald back on the field, in their last game of 1997, the Crusaders beat the Queensland Reds 48–3 at Lancaster Park, now known as AMI Stadium. The Crusaders won their first title in 1998, despite starting the season with three losses in their first four games. They finished the round-robin by winning their last seven games, culminating in a win over the Coastal Sharks that gave them second place in the round-robin phase of the competition
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Western Force
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Western Force is a rugby union team based in Perth, Western Australia, playing in the international Super rugby competition. They first competed in the 2006 season and finished with the spoon in that year. In 2008 they finished in 8th place, just missing out on the finals again, the team is the fourth Australian team to be accepted into the competition. It was coached by former New Zealand All Blacks coach, John Mitchell for the first five seasons before former Australian sevens captain Richard Graham took charge ahead of the 2011 season. The bid for entry into an expanded Super 12 competition started in the early 2000s, when in 2002, the groups objective was to ensure that if SANZAR agreed to a fourth Australian franchise, that RugbyWA would be ready. RugbyWA were invited to bid for the fourth Australian team, and the union assembled a project team, which was given four weeks to formulate their bid. The bid was backed by the government, which loaned more than one million dollars to RugbyWA. It was announced in December 2004 that RugbyWA had beaten Rugby Union Victoria for the right to host the fourth Australian franchise, on 10 February the Western Force made their 2006 season rugby debut against the Brumbies at a near sold out Subiaco Oval in Perth, losing 25–10. Since this result, the Force have had a debut in Super 14. A one-sided loss to the Hurricanes and a loss at home to the Chiefs in Perth followed. Many fans were unimpressed, with only approximately 23,000 turning up to watch a match against the Bulls, on 31 March, in front of 24,000, the Force came closest to their first win, losing 26–25 to the Stormers at Subiaco Oval. This was after leading 10–0 early on in the match and this was the Forces first competition point ever, and is the longest it has ever taken a side to get a point in Super rugby history. On 21 April a crowd of 32,231 saw the Force nearly pull off the upset of the year, drawing 23-all with the undefeated defending champion Crusaders. Though the Force were leading 7–0 after several minutes the feeling was still that the Crusaders would win, only when the Force had blown the score out to 17–5 did anyone begin to talk of an upset. Leading 20–8 at half time the Force did not hold on for the win after the Crusaders scored two tries and a penalty within the closing half, at 23-all with seconds left the Force crashed over the line but were denied by the television match official. Two days after the draw with the Crusaders, the Force were able to sign rising star Matt Giteau from the Brumbies, on Saturday,6 May, the Force announced they had managed to sign another player, Reds winger Drew Mitchell. The Force notched up their first win by defeating the Central Cheetahs 16–14 on 6 May, on 19 April, RugbyWA unveiled the franchise team name as well as the logo, at a reception at the Burswood International Resort in Perth. Months of detailed community involvement went into selecting the name for the team, Western Force was chosen as the name, which best reflected the franchises location and its values of strength, energy and community
34.
Cheetahs (rugby union)
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The Central Cheetahs, known for sponsorship reasons as the Toyota Cheetahs, is a South African rugby union team that entered the Super Rugby competition in 2006. They are based at the Free State Stadium in Bloemfontein, the franchise area encompasses the western half of the Free State province, the same as that of provincial Currie Cup side the Free State Cheetahs. The Cheetahs was one of the two new franchises that entered the expanded Super 14 competition in 2006, the other being Australias Western Force, the Central Union was awarded the fifth South African franchise over the SEC franchise in April 2005. In its first season the Cheetahs did surprisingly well, finishing tenth in the final standings, prior to being accepted into the 2006 Super 14 season, the Cheetahs areas were represented as a part of the Cats franchise. In addition, before South Africa entered franchises into the Super 14, the primary strip for the Toyota Cheetahs is a orange jersey with a white collar and white trim. Black shorts with socks and white trim. The colours are representative of the Free State Currie Cup side, orange and white The alternative jersey is the design, though it is an white jersey with an orange collar. Black shorts with socks and white trim. Prior to South Africa entering franchises into the then Super 12, the Free State Cheetahs, one of the sides that make up the current Central Cheetahs, competed in one Super 12 season in 1997. The Free State played 11 matches, winning 5 and losing 6 and they placed 7th on the end of season standings. Proposals by the Central Union franchise and the SEC franchise were studied for the allocation of a fifth Super Rugby team licence. The Central Union emphasized points to the SARU such as that the region is only to the Western Province in terms of producing players for the national side. The Central Union noted that they have a strong and stable fanbase that would be able to meet financial and administrative responsibilities and demands of a Super 14 rugby side. In mid April 2005, the South African Rugby Union announced that the Central Unions franchise would be its fifth team for the expanded Super 14 competition that would begin in 2006 and they were awarded the franchise ahead of the Southern and Eastern Cape. The Cheetahs proved to be the strongest out of the new sides, demolishing the Spears 48 to nil, the Cheetahs won their first Super 14 game in week two, defeating the Sharks in a thrilling match seeing the Cheetahs win by a single point,27 to 26. Entering round four of the 2006 season, the Cheetahs were facing the table leaders, in a surprise result, the Cheetahs beat the table leaders, thus winning their first home game and proving they deserve to be in the Super 14. The Cheetahs finally broke their drought in overseas matches with an upset over the New South Wales Waratahs on 19 March 2011, the Cheetahs home stadium is the Free State Stadium, previously referred to as Vodacom Park for sponsorship purposes, located in Bloemfontein. The stadium had its capacity increased to 48,000 for the 2010 FIFA World Cup
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Ben Tune
Filipo Daugunu
Bulls
Chiefs