The Varsity Cup and Varsity Shield members met at an Annual General Meeting and decided to introduce some new rules for the Cup, Shield and new Under 21 competition in 2012.
The following was agreed upon ahead of the 2012 Varsity Cup and Shield tournaments:
1. Any player that moves from one member university to another member university without an exceptional academic reason will not be allowed to play Varsity Cup or Shield rugby for one season. Post-graduates doing a post-graduate degree at another university will be exempted from this rule. (A sub-committee that will look at applications for exemption from this rule will hear appeals twice a year.)
2. If a player did not pass 30% of his subjects (in this current academic year), he will not be allowed to play Varsity Cup or Shield rugby as a bona fide student next year (2012).
3. If a player has played a minimum of four Super Rugby matches, or an International Test match for South Africa at senior level, he will not be allowed to play Varsity Cup/Shield rugby again
The rules are aimed at bringing a fairness to the competition, which had a few questionable players being called upon at opportune times to play in crunch matches.
I fully support the new rule changes! The Varsity Cup should be about bona fide students playing for their University! Good on them!
@SheldonK (Comment 1) :
I agree..
If this wasn’t changed, it would have failed..
Morne will be pleased. Where is he these days?
@vanmartin (Comment 3) : I think like all other rugby website owners, he’s running his ass off at the moment
Ahhhhhhhh shame, Lobberts won’t be allowed to play anymore.
30% of his subjects !?!?!?!?!?!?!? So if he has 6 subjects and only passes 2 of them, then he is academically acceptable.
Flip a dunce would be able to achieve that.
@KSA Shark © (Comment 5) :
I wonder if he is allowed to pass the same two subjects every year?
“3. If a player has played a minimum of four Super Rugby matches, or an International Test match for South Africa at senior level, he will not be allowed to play Varsity Cup/Shield rugby again”
so this excludes currie cup matches then ? if a guy have not yet played any super rugby or boks he qualifies ?
Good to see some people in SA rugby has some brains.
@robdylan (Comment 4) : He has a rugby site? Link please if you’d be so kind?
@Zibbie (Comment 7) : I think its right to exclude Currie Cup as the way things are structured now the Currie Cup is a 2nd tier comp with a lot of Varsity Cup guys getting a chance.