Tony McKeever

While SA Rugby deals with charges from the IRB about bringing the game into disrepute and receives a sanctioning or fine regarding the senseless “masking-tape protest” there are distractions like the roll-out of the Currie Cup around the country, Craven Week in East London, Tri-Nations on July 25 in Bloemfontein against the All Blacks, Rugby […]

There has been a little bit of a dust-up and finger pointing between SA Rugby and the Lions over the question of some unsold tickets and why? The number of unsold British & Irish Lions Tour tickets after 9 matches is a staggering 170 000. Take the average round value cost for provincial and mid-week games […]

1. “They are banged up enough without me giving them a ‘snorter’ on the scrum machine.” Graham Rowntree — British & Irish Lions scrumming coach 2. “The Beast was pretty impressive. There was one scrum after nine minutes when we got lifted off the floor and if I was their scrum coach I would have […]

We have witnessed five very interesting games, in which the British & Irish Lions have played and beaten: 1. The Royal XV — 25-37 2. The Lions — 10-74 3. The Cheetahs — 24-26 4. The Sharks — 3-39 5. Western Province — 23-26 Next up on the Lions menu are the Southern Kings on […]

“I met a couple of South Africans in the hotel lobby the other day and they asked me how I was involved with the Lions. When I told them I was the defence coach they just said, ‘best of luck mate’.” Shaun Edwards, British & Irish Lions defence coach “I have invited Australia and New […]

The good news is that the South African government and Eastern Cape government, along with the Nelson Mandela Bay municipality, have collectively spent R2 billion in developing a magnificent and spectacular multipurpose sports facility in the Eastern Cape for soccer and rugby. This excludes the billions going into support infrastructures to ensure the stadium becomes an […]

The British & Irish Lions landed in Johannesburg a few days ago and have been the most gracious, complimentary visitors. They have visited under-privileged schools, some by helicopter, to which they will donate funds and resources, hold press conferences and laud the South African players and coaches, like they were a travelling social side. Their […]

Last week Thursday, Sanzar (South African, New Zealand and Australian Rugby Unions) met in a watershed meeting in Dublin to discuss the expansion of Super Rugby from 2011 to 2015 in the Southern Hemisphere and especially the broadcast agreement that needs to be tabled to the broadcasters (Newscorp and SuperSport) on or before June 30. […]

The Southern & Eastern Cape were awarded a Super 14 rugby franchise on June 8 2005 with a unanimous SA Rugby Union Presidents Council resolution, which allowed the South Eastern Cape franchise to prepare for the Super 14 by playing Currie Cup rugby in 2006 and be in the Super 14 in 2007 and 2008. […]

I don’t quite know how to put this but SA Rugby has just received a monster shove in the derriere by Australia with regards to the Super 15 plans announced on Tuesday. Of course this is the release trotted out by SA Rugby with the details of the Super 15 tournament starting in 2011 and […]

Stephen Jones is a Welsh journalist who has been the rugby union correspondent for The Times and The Sunday Times for more than 20 years. He was twice named sports correspondent of the year by the Sports Journalists’ Association. He is noted for his controversial and often provocative views, in particular his anti-Irish and anti-New […]

Rugby is barreling along at 100 miles an hour on and off the field. With so much critical stuff going on it can sometimes pass you by and the next 60 days are massive — Rugby World Cup bids for 2015 and 2019, the Sanzar expansion of Super Rugby and the Tri-Nations to Four Nations […]