Pukke to defend Club Champs title?
Defending champions FNB Pukke will be aiming for a fourth title in six years when the 35th annual National Club Championships kicks-off this coming Sunday, September 20, at the LC de Villiers sports grounds on the University of Pretoria's Sport Campus.
The country's 14 provincial champions as well as two invited teams, from the Leopards and Limpopo, will contest the tournament, which takes place in the country's capital for the first time since 2003.
Pukke, the losing 2009 Varsity Cup finalists, have made a habit of spacing their titles two years apart - they lifted the trophy in 2004, 2006 and 2008 - and they will have their work cut out to avoid the disappointments of 2005 and 2007 despite the virtual absence of any of their Varsity Cup opponents.
Just this week, their coach Rudy Joubert told varsitcup.co.za: "We're all very excited about the tournament and the prospect of ending the season on a high, but it won't be easy."
Free State champions Shimlas are the only other student (and Varsity Cup) team to have qualified for the 2009 Club Champs, with the championships instead featuring a number of household names from the ranks of the open clubs.
South Africa's oldest club, Hamilton's (WP), and Johannesburg's oldest club, Pirates (Golden Lions), both successful saw off university opposition in their local leagues this year, and will be among the favourites for the title.
Hamilton's, in particular, will arrive in Pretoria full of confidence after they won the WP Super League for the first time since 1936 with a nailbiting 27-22 away victory over exciting Varsity Cup side, UCT, last Saturday - a result that means perennial champions Maties will have to settle for the overall runners-up spot this year.
If their provisional squad is anything to go by, four-time KZN champions College Rovers should fancy their chances of extending their dominance at provincial level to the national stage. Rovers, who lost to Pukke in both the 2006 and 2008 finals, have named a strong 29-man line-up that includes Sharks players Chris Jordaan, Justin Downey, Pat Cilliers and Craig Burden.
Eight first-round matches will be played on Sunday, with the action starting at Tukkies' LC de Villiers stadium at 10.00 with the match between Falcons champions Springs and Griffons champions Welkom Rovers.
The main match of the day kicks off at 16.00 between local Blue Bulls champions Pretoria Police - who beat Tukkies into the Club Champs - and East London club Buffalo, the Border champions.
* Meanwhile, SARU's referee tournament director André Watson has also announced that eight of the country's most promising referees will officiate at the SAA National Club Championships.
Full schedule for Sunday, September 20 (with referees):
Stadium:
10.00 - Springs (Falcons) v Welkom Rovers (Griffons), Gareth Lloyd-Jones
11.30 - Hamiltons (WP) v Kuruman (Griquas), Sindile Mayende
13.00 - College Rovers (KZN) v Impala (Leopards invitees), Joey Salmans
14.30 - NWU Pukke (Leopards) v Noordelikes (Limpopo invitees), Stuart Berry
16.00 - Pretoria Police (Blue Bulls) v Buffalo (Border), Pro Legoete
A field:
11.30 - Rawsonville (Boland) v Great Brakriver (SWD), Lourens van der Merwe
13.00 - Shimlas (Free State) v Park (Eastern Province), Francois Veldsman
14.30 - Pirates (Golden Lions) v Middelburg (Mpumalanga), Jason Jaftha