Springbok coach Jacques Nienaber on Monday named a 34-man squad for the Australian leg of the Castle Lager Rugby Championship, with the uncapped Canan Moodie earning a call-up for his first tour in a settled national squad.

Nienaber said the touring squad, which features a good mix of youth and experience, was in line with the standard travelling squad for the Rugby World Cup and he believed that they were the right group of players to achieve what they set out to do in the two Tests against Australia in Adelaide (Saturday, 27 August) and Sydney (Saturday, 3 September).

Nienaber said he would make changes to the squad for the two Tests against Argentina in Buenos Aires and Durban as he looks to give his expanded group of players a chance to prove themselves with an eye on the Rugby World Cup which will be hosted in France next year.

“We have been working with a large group of players for the last few months and we believe this will pay off in the long run as we look to expand our depth for the Rugby World Cup and beyond,” said Nienaber.

“Since we are going on tour, however, we will take a group of players that is more in line with the size of a Rugby World Cup squad, and our thought process is that we will have two groups of players – one who will participate in the Australian leg of the competition and another for the Argentina matches.

“This way we can manage the players as well as possible on tour, while at the same time ensuring we continue to develop our depth and give the players opportunities to prove themselves with a little over a year to go before the Rugby World Cup kicks off.”

Moodie, who was called up to the squad as utility back cover following the suspension handed to wing Kurt-Lee Arendse for a dangerous tackle, is the only uncapped player in the group and will travel with the Springboks for the first time, providing cover at wing and fullback. His presence also fills the void left by Cheslin Kolbe, who is on the road to recovery from a broken jaw, which will see him only return for the last Test against Argentina.

With Bongi Mbonambi (hooker) ruled out for four weeks after suffering a knee injury at training last week, Deon Fourie will serve as back-up to Malcolm Marx and Joseph Dweba, while Damian Willemse’s versatility in the backline will see provide cover at flyhalf, centre and fullback.

“Bongi has been ruled out for four weeks, but Deon, who is an experienced hooker and flank, has been practicing his lineout throws with us, so we are confident that he will be able to fill that void for us in these matches,” said Nienaber.

“We are also excited to see how Canan slots in during the next few weeks and to see how he adapts to our structures and systems, and we believe he has the skills to slot in for Kurt-Lee and Cheslin.

“This is a settled group of players and includes a wide spread of experience and young players who have made their presence felt, and we believe that they have what it takes to guide us back on track in the Castle Lager Rugby Championship in the matches against Australia.”

The Springboks are currently on a short break and will depart on Thursday for the tour to Australia and Argentina.

“We are bitterly disappointed about the defeat against New Zealand last weekend, and we know that we have to be at our best to fight back in the next four matches of the competition to keep us in contention to win the tournament,” said Nienaber.

“We saw what Australia are capable at home last year and we know that we will be tested thoroughly.

“The last time we beat the Wallabies in Australia was in 2013, so we have a big mountain to climb over there, but that said, we have looked at our game against New Zealand and we know what areas we need to improve on, and we will put in the hard work on the field to iron out those aspects when we arrive in Australia.

“It is going to be a tough tour, but we know what our players are capable of, and we are determined to make our nation proud.”

Springbok touring squad:
Props
Steven Kitshoff (DHL Stormers)
Vincent Koch (Wasps)
Frans Malherbe (DHL Stormers)
Ox Nche (Cell C Sharks)
Trevor Nyakane (Racing 92)

Hookers
Joseph Dweba (DHL Stormers)
Malcolm Marx (Kubota Spears)

Locks
Eben Etzebeth (Cell C Sharks)
Lood de Jager (Wild Knights)
Salmaan Moerat (DHL Stormers)

Loose forwards
Pieter-Steph du Toit (Toyota Verblitz)
Siya Kolisi (Cell C Sharks)
Elrigh Louw (Vodacom Bulls)
Kwagga Smith (Shizuoka Blue Revs)
Jasper Wiese (Leicester Tigers)
Duane Vermeulen (Ulster)

Utility forwards
Deon Fourie (DHL Stormers)
Franco Mostert (Honda Heat)

Scrumhalves
Faf de Klerk (Canon Eagles)
Jaden Hendrikse (Cell C Sharks)
Herschel Jantjies (DHL Stormers)
Cobus Reinach (Montpellier)

Flyhalves
Elton Jantjies (NTT Docomo Red Hurricanes)
Handre Pollard (Leicester Tigers)

Midfielders
Lukhanyo Am (Cell C Sharks)
Damian de Allende (Wild Knights)
Andre Esterhuizen (Harlequins)

Outside backs
Makazole Mapimpi (Cell C Sharks)
Willie le Roux (Toyota Verblitz)
Canan Moodie (Vodacom Bulls)
Warrick Gelant (Racing 92)

Utility Backs
Damian Willemse (DHL Stormers)
Jesse Kriel (Canon Eagles)
Frans Steyn (Toyota Cheetahs)





[Submitted by Kevin Rademeyer]

The Algorithm Soccer Oracle is the application created thanks to Italian soccer prosecutor Alessio Sundas, which using an algorithm, has the ability to measure the qualities and strength of a player in a scientific and objective way.

Once purchased by clubs or the individual, on an average of only 6 matches, of which a video of the 90 minutes played will be uploaded, "KPI" data can be collected, and produce a certified average score.


The system offers cutting-edge technology, because through a simple button crosses, dribbles, offensive duels, shots on target, saves and distance, shots blocked and rejected, but also exits the goal line , long passage or pass completed are tracked.

The score from a scale of 1a 1000 and Clubs will be grouped based on their score. Up to 250 points, bronze clubs can aim for divisions 5 and 4, from 250 to 500, silver clubs can aim division 3 from 500 to 750, gold clubs can aim to medium divisions 2 and 1, above 750 to 1000 points, platinum clubs are only Top Clubs.

For the single player, you have a list of many characteristics and criteria you can score the player on and the algorithm will analyze the data you entered and give you a score from 1 to 1000 for the player.


A long list of advantages ensues such as, less auditions and selections of young players, knowing exactly what to work on to improve performance, facilitation for intermediaries to transfer a young footballer, valorization of the technical sheet for collages and universities.

The Algorithm Soccer Oracle has already exploded in Brazil, Argentina and Honduras. Amabassor of the algorithm in Argentina is Guillermo Szeszurak, deputy and friend of Diego Armando Maradona, and currently Uefa B coach, now a promoter of the use of the application for all Argentine players.
But among the names that have benefited from AGSM for market negotiations are many.

For example, Brazilian Luca Limas, class of '90, who after wearing the Palmeiras jersey, thanks to Alessio Sundas has entered the sights of Inter Miami, the U.S. MLS club that belongs to former player David Beckham. Also in Brazil, Andrea Alves da Silva, who now plays for SERIEA club ASROMA under the management of Alessio Sundas, but also the case of Tunisian midfielder Ferjani Sassi, who on the field at the World Cup in Russia scored against England, and Sundas has dealt with Napoli, Juventus, Milan, Lazio, Roma, Torino, Fiorentina, Udinese, Atalanta, Frosinone, and other clubs in Europe.
And to go into the youth ranks, 16-year-old Mattia Vaccaro, who has been noticed by clubs com Barcelona, Real Madrid, and PSG.

This system makes sure that each player is motivated to work on his score through his performance, and that the club has concrete numerical data on the qualities of the player.

A revolution adopted by the U.S. soccer system, would not only open the doors for countless athletes to enter college, but by making the scouting work less strenuous. It makes it easier for intermediaries to transfer players from one team to another, and keeps track of blossoming talents that could easily make it to Europe to compete in the world's most famous Leagues.

[Submitted by Lavinia Colasanto]

---

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/algorithm-soccer-oracle-asm/id1635809889

Tabraiz Shamsi headed an incredible bowling performance by the Proteas by bagging a career-best five-for as they claimed a crushing 90-run victory over England in the third T20 International at the Ageas Bowl in Southampton on Sunday.

The result ensured South Africa claimed the series in the process with a 2-1 overall triumph.

And they were full value for the win, the margin of which was their biggest over the home side in T20Is.

Spinner Shamsi was the undoubted star with the ball, finishing with supreme figures of five for 24 to help bundle out the hosts for a poor 101 in pursuit of 192.

His return, which beat the previous best figures of four for 25 against Pakistan in Lahore, was one of an overall brilliant display by the Proteas in the field where the bowlers were at their best and the fielding electrifying.

Earlier in the day the in-form Reeza Hendricks, named Player of the Series afterwards, and Aiden Markram starred with the bat by propelling the tourists to 191 for five after they lost the toss and were put in to bat.

It was Hendricks' third successive half century after scores of 57 and 53 in matches one and two. Here he went even better by blasting 70 off 50 balls (9 fours) as the South Africans recovered from losing Quinton de Kock for a third-ball duck to reach 55 for one in the seventh over.

That was when Rilee Rossouw departed for 31, before Markram (51 not out off 36 balls, 5 fours) and Hendricks added 87 for the third wicket to give their side a fine platform for the finish.

The former completed his 10th career 50 in the process and the latter his seventh, with captain David Miller celebrating his 100th cap for South Africa by helping to add the finishing touches with 22 off nine balls.

England made a strong enough start to the reply with 28 coming inside the first four overs, before Keshav Maharaj (2/21) removed Jos Buttler (14).

But things then unraveled quickly thanks to the brilliance of the South Africans in the field.

The out-of-sorts Jason Roy (17) edged Anrich Nortje (1/12) behind to Quinton de Kock, with Dawid Malan (7), Moeen Ali (3) and Liam Livingstone (3) all falling during a spell of more than seven overs when there were no boundaries struck.

Moeen's dismissal off Markram (1/5) came on account of a brilliant one-handed diving catch by Tristan Stubbs, which tipified the excellence of the Proteas.

Andile Phehlukwayo (1/23) was the other wicket-taker for his side and then Player of the Match Shamsi mopped up the tail leaving England all out in 16.4 overs.

Proteas T20I squad against England
David Miller (captain, Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Gerald Coetzee (ITEC Knights), Quinton de Kock (Momentum Multiply Titans), Reeza Hendricks (Imperial Lions), Heinrich Klaasen (Momentum Multiply Titans), Keshav Maharaj (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Aiden Markram (Momentum Multiply Titans), Lungi Ngidi (Momentum Multiply Titans), Anrich Nortje (Gbets Warriors), Wayne Parnell (Six Gun Grill Western Province), Andile Phehlukwayo (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Dwaine Pretorius (North West Dragons), Rilee Rossouw (ITEC Knights), Tabraiz Shamsi (Momentum Multiply Titans), Tristan Stubbs (Gbets Warriors), Rassie van der Dussen (Imperial Lions).

South Africa T20I Tour to England Itinerary

Wednesday, 27 July - 18:30
England beat South Africa by 41 runs – Seat Unique Stadium, Bristol

Thursday, 28 July - 18:30
England lost to South Africa by 58 runs – Sophia Gardens, Cardiff

Sunday, 31 July - 14:30
England lost to South Africa by 90 runs – Ageas Bowl, Hampshire


[Submitted by Kevin Rademeyer]

The Absa RUN YOUR CITY Series returns to Jozi in September and in celebration event organizer, Stillwater Sports, is excited to launch the Absa RUN YOUR CITY JOBURG 10K Ambassador Search Campaign. “We are looking for the runner that brings the gees. Someone that enjoys being outdoors, lives life to the fullest, loves the sport of road running and the Absa RUN YOUR CITY JOBURG 10K,” says Michael Meyer, Managing Director of Stillwater Sports, and founder of the Absa RUN YOUR CITY Series. Seen here: Mbali Mashaba and Ntokozo Ngcobo joined the #RYCStrideTribe in July as the winners of the Absa RUN YOUR CITY DURBAN 10K Ambassador Search Campaign.
[Submitted by Kevin Rademeyer]

The Springbok Sevens team won the gold medal at the Rugby Sevens event of the Commonwealth Games when they produced a brilliant performance to defeat Fiji 31-7 in a pulsating Final on Sunday evening in Birmingham, where New Zealand claimed bronze.

The SA Women’s Sevens team comfortably beat Sri Lanka by 52-0 to conclude the tournament on a high, finishing in seventh position, which is one spot better than in 2018 in Australia and made Paul Delport (coach) smile as he knew his inexperienced squad were facing a massive task in England.

Meanwhile, the Blitzboks played the final without the dynamic playmaker Ronald Brown, who was injured in the semi-final win over Australia earlier in the day, while regular skipper Siviwe Soyizwapi was also out injured and didn’t play at all on Sunday.

Zain Davids, who took over the captaincy, said: “I have a little bit of mixed emotions at the moment, but mostly I’m happy as we came out here and gave our all, and I think we can be very happy with our performance against a great team like Fiji.

“When ‘Shakes’ got injured, I had to take over the captaincy and I was happy to do that, because I know the guys support me, but I also knew that in this team you don’t really have to be a captain as you have a bunch of guys behind you that’s helping and supporting you.”

The South African men’s side made a great start to the final and scored three well-worked tries in the opening half while keeping the dangerous Fijian runners in check with excellent tackling and great counter-attacking play.

They deservingly led 17-0 at the break in the Coventry Stadium, while in the second half they combined their heroic defensive effort with equally great finishing performances. Muller du Plessis opened the scoring from a pinpoint Selvyn Davids cross-kick, an early sign of things to come.

JC Pretorius scored the second in the same corner after a sustained passage of attacking play, with South Africa looking well after the ball in contact. That put them 12-0 ahead.

Shaun Williams scored the third try as the menacing Pretorius stole another crucial turnover to put the little speedster away, the try handing South Africa a 17-0 half-time advantage.

After the break, Du Plessis then ran in for his second off an excellent cut-out pass from Selvyn Davids. Williams nailed the angled conversion to stretch the lead to 24-0 and left Fiji with a mountain to climb.

Fiji eventually got on the scoreboard when Nacuqu went over for converted try to reduce the deficit to 27-7.

But the Blitzboks were not to be denied. Mfundo Ndhlovu scored the final try with seconds remaining to seal a brilliant gold medal performance, denying Fiji the remaining major title that have escaped them at previous Commonwealth Games.

South Africa also won the gold medal at the 2014 Commonwealth Games staged in Glasgow.

Scorers:

South Africa 31 (17) – Tries: Muller du Plessis (2), JC Pretorius, Shaun Williams, Mfundo Ndhlovu. Conversion: Shaun Williams (2), Dewald Human.

Fiji 7 (0) – Try: Waisea Nacuqu. Conversion: Nacuqu.

The Springbok Sevens team qualified for the gold medal match by defeating Australia 24-12 on Sunday afternoon, with Angelo Davids scoring his third hat-trick of the Commonwealth Games as the South Africans recovered from an early 5-0 deficit to gain a comfortable victory.

The two teams went into the lead locked even at 12-12 after an entertaining first half but South Africa pulled away in the second half to book their spot in the grand finale.

Australia drew first blood when Mark Nawaqanitawase powered through to put the Aussies 5-0 ahead, but Angelo Davids then continued his prolific try-scoring form in Birmingham with his eighth try following a clever grubber from playmaker Selvyn Davids, with Ronald Brown’s conversion putting SA 7-5 ahead.

But the Aussies hit back immediately with a clever attack which saw Matthew Gonzalez go in under the posts to regain the lead at 12-7. However, there was just enough time before halftime for Angeloa Davids to score his second of the half, from a lineout set play, to draw the teams level at the break.

After the restart, Selvyn Davids charged down a kick and collected the loose ball to score in the corner, with a brilliant conversion edging SA ahead by 19-12.

Angelo Davids bagged his third try when the flyer scored out wide from a well-worked move. SA was now in control at 24-12 and all they needed to do was to manage out time until the final whistle.

Scorers:

South Africa 24 (12) – Tries: Angelo Davids (3), Selvyn Davids. Conversions: Ronald Brown, Selvyn Davids.

Australia 12 (12) – Tries: Mark Nawaqanitawase, Matthew Gonzales. Conversion: Dietrich Roache.




[Submitted by Kevin Rademeyer]

Choose the convenience of smaller payments

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USL Championship,at Trinity Health Stadium in Hartford, CT, PITTSBURGH RIVERHOUNDS defeat HARTFORD ATHLETIC 2-1'
#28 Conor McGlynn scored for Hartford Athletic
#10 Russell Cicerone and #3 Shane Wiedt for Pittsburgh
[Submitted by Daniel Ferrari]

Members of the 2023 Family will have access to an exclusive pre-sale window of 24 hours from Tuesday, 13 September at 18:00 CEST before general public sales open at 18:00 CEST on Thursday, 15 September.

Demand is expected to be high for this exciting sales phase, which will take place exclusively on the official ticketing platform at tickets.rugbyworldcup.com, on a first come, first served basis.

Ticket prices will be announced on 8 September, to mark “One Year to Go” before the kick-off of Rugby World Cup 2023. With record demand for Rugby World Cup 2023 tickets, fans are being urged to only purchase tickets from official sources to avoid disappointment.

When purchasing tickets, fans will once again have the opportunity to make a donation to Rugby au Cœur, Rugby World Cup 2023’s Official Charity, which works to support meaningful projects using rugby for social development with a focus on education, equal opportunities and working with people with disabilities. More information is available at tickets.rugbyworldcup.com/donation.

KEY DATES
Thursday 8 September 2022: individual match ticket prices announced
Tuesday 13 September 2022 – 12:00 CEST: Deadline for 2023 Family registrations
Tuesday 13 September 2022 – 18:00 CEST: Launch of the 2023 Family pre-sale
Thursday 15 September 2022 – 18:00 CEST: Launch of the general public sale
[Submitted by Kevin Rademeyer]

The full 40-team line-up for Rugby World Cup Sevens 2022 has now been confirmed, following an enthralling weekend of action in Bucharest.

The remaining eight tickets to Cape Town – four men’s and four women’s – were decided at the RWC Sevens 2022 Europe Qualifier, which took place at Stadionul National Arcul de Triumf on Saturday and Sunday.

A pool stage whittled down the 24 hopeful teams that had arrived in Romania to eight men’s and as many women’s sides, who competed in a round of one-off play-off matches.

The winners of those ties secured their place at the showpiece tournament in Cape Town, which is scheduled to be staged between 9-11 September this year.

Spain, England, Poland and Ireland claimed their places in the women’s tournament at RWC Sevens 2022, while Wales, Germany, Portugal and Ireland made sure of their entry into the men’s draw.


With qualification now complete and the full 40-team line-up for RWC Sevens 2022 confirmed, teams will now focus on fine tuning their preparations ahead of the highly anticipated event, which kicks-off in less than two months’ time.

The 24 teams to qualify for the men’s tournament are South Africa, Argentina, England, Fiji, France, New Zealand, Scotland, USA, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Kenya, Hong Kong, Korea, Australia, Samoa, Tonga, Chile, Uruguay, Canada, Jamaica, Germany, Ireland, Portugal and Wales.

Following the weekend’s action in Bucharest, the 16 teams that will compete in the women’s tournament are South Africa, Australia, France, New Zealand, USA, Madagascar, Japan, China, Fiji, Brazil, Colombia, Canada, England, Ireland, Poland and Spain.

For further information visit www.rwcsevens.com



[Submitted by Kevin Rademeyer]

DURHAM: Stand-in captain Keshav Maharaj says the Proteas will be aiming to improve on their recent One-Day International (ODI) form when they take on England in their series-opener at the Riverside in Durham on Tuesday.

South Africa face the world champions in three 50-over matches as they get the business end of their two-month long tour to the United Kingdom under way.

The tourists mixed an impressive 3-0 series win over India over the past 12 months with defeats to Sri Lanka and Bangladesh either side, but they have also introduced several new players to their squad in that period as they build towards the World Cup in India next year.

“We haven’t done relatively well in the ODI format, but we’ve tried various formats and combinations, so hopefully we’ve found that rhythm to our game now when we can start off on a positive note come this England series,” Maharaj told the media on Monday.

“Obviously England have come off quite a bit of cricket and they’re pretty much a more settled team. But having put in the hard work over the past 12 months, I think it’s about time we see some good results come this series and moving forward.”

South Africa last played an ODI in March when they faced Bangladesh in Centurion. Maharaj, who is leading the Proteas in the absence of injured captain Temba Bavuma, says they are looking ahead to ODI cricket again.

“The boys are really excited, it’s been a while since we’ve played our last ODI game and it’s been a substantial and lengthy build-up to the game, so the boys are ready to get onto the park, so come tomorrow and hit the ball running,” he said.

“Results haven’t really gone our way, but it’s a nice way to build that confidence and filter in towards ODI cricket up until the World Cup next year.”

South Africa enjoyed two productive warm-up games against England Lions ahead of the series, while the home side were beaten by India in their three-match ODI sequence against India.

The Proteas have also not historically done very well in limited-overs cricket in England and Maharaj is hopeful of changing that.

“It does present an opportunity to do something special,” he explained. “We’ve come a long way as a team and as a unit. So it is an opportunity to create history, but we’ll take it one ball at a time and hopefully achieve something really big as the ODI unit.”

Looking ahead to the clash against an England side that has become famous for its attacking brand of batting, the skipper added: “It’s all about doing the basics correctly and following our own game plan.

“We just need to make sure we execute our plans right, adapt to conditions on the day and hopefully the rest will take care of itself. It’s one thing we have been good at and hopefully we can replicate much of that in this series and going forward.”

Quinton de Kock, who missed the warm-up matches as an injury precaution, is fit and available for the game.

Proteas ODI squad against England
Keshav Maharaj (captain, Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Quinton de Kock (Momentum Multiply Titans), Reeza Hendricks (Imperial Lions), Marco Jansen (Gbets Warriors), Heinrich Klaasen (Momentum Multiply Titans), Janneman Malan (GbetsRocks), Aiden Markram (Momentum Multiply Titans), David Miller (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Lungi Ngidi (Momentum Multiply Titans), Andile Phehlukwayo (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Dwaine Pretorius (North West Dragons), Anrich Nortje (Gbets Warriors), Tabraiz Shamsi (Momentum Multiply Titans), Rassie van der Dussen (Imperial Lions), Lizaad Williams (Momentum Multiply Titans), Khaya Zondo (Hollywoodbets Dolphins), Kyle Verreynne (Six Gun Grill Western Province).

South Africa ODI Tour to England Itinerary

Warm-up matches
Tuesday, 12 July
England Lions beat South Africa by 6 wickets – Coopers Associates County Ground, Taunton

Thursday, 14 July
England Lions lost to South Africa by 107 runs – New Road, Worcester

ODIs
Tuesday, 19 July
England vs South Africa – The Riverside, Durham

Friday, 22 July
England vs South Africa – Emirates Old Trafford, Manchester

Sunday, 24 July
England vs South Africa – Headingley Stadium, Leeds

[Submitted by Kevin Rademeyer]