CAPE TOWN – The PRO14 Rainbow Cup SA will get started with three consecutive “Super Saturdays”, starting on 1 May with clashes in Cape Town and Pretoria.
SA Rugby and PRO14 Rugby announced the revised fixtures and kick-off times for the PRO14 Rainbow Cup SA on Friday.
The local action will kick off at Cape Town Stadium (2pm) with the Stormers hosting the Sharks, followed by Bulls and the Lions at Loftus Versfeld (7pm).
While he’s disappointed that the competition couldn’t go ahead as planned, SA Rugby CEO Jurie Roux said the amended version should offer some good entertainment.
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“It’s a pity we could not have the competition as we first envisaged it, but to see these four teams slug it out over seven weeks is sure to bring out the best in South African rugby,” said Jurie Roux, CEO of SA Rugby.
“We are very grateful to SuperSport for being so accommodating in the late changes, and to our friends in Europe for allowing our teams to continue in the competition they’ve been preparing for.”
Rassie Erasmus, Director of Rugby, said he’s hoping that the competition will serve as solid preparation for the British & Irish Lions Series.
“We’ll have to wait a bit longer to face the best club sides of Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales, but in the meantime we’ve got a tough competition that will hopefully prepare our players for what promises to be a massive series against the British & Irish Lions,” said Erasmus.
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“The rugby we saw when the season restarted last year was hot and cold, but it got better and in the 2021 Kick-Off Pools the teams were looking much better, and hopefully they can take that form and intensity into the Rainbow Cup SA.
“It was also good to see a number of younger players putting their hands, while our established and experienced players underlined their class. The PRO14 Rainbow Cup SA provides another opportunity for players to stake claims for higher honours and I’m excited to see what our teams can conjure up in the next few weeks.”
The normal PRO14 points’ system will be used – four points for a win, bonus points for scoring four tries or more, or for losing within a margin of seven points or fewer, and two points to each team for a drawn match.
Rounds four to six will see a reverse of the first rounds of fixtures between 22 May and 12 June, with a bye for all four teams, details of the kick-off times which will be confirmed in due course.
PRO14 RAINBOW CUP SA FIXTURES – ROUNDS 1-3
Saturday 1 May
14h00: Stormers v Sharks (Cape Town Stadium, Cape Town)
19h00: Bulls v Lions (Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria)
Saturday 8 May
16h00: Sharks v Lions (Kings Park, Durban)
18h15: Stormers v Bulls (Cape Town Stadium, Cape Town)
Saturday 15 May
KO TBC: Lions v Stormers (Ellis Park, Johannesburg)
18h15: Bulls vSharks (Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria)
ROUNDS 4-6 (home teams named first, kick-off times TBC)
Weekend 21/22 May
Sharks v Stormers
Lions v Bulls
Weekend 4/5 June
Lions v Sharks
Bulls v Stormers
Weekend 11/12 June
Stormers v Lions
Sharks v Bulls
Note: All fixtures are subject to change. Two versions of the competition logos are attached.
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