The Steval Pumas put on a fantastic eighty minute display of fast paced, brutal and effective rugby to take the title of First Division Curry Cup Champions! From the start of the game they showed their intent by playing very direct and physical rugby. The EP Kings tried their best to stay in the game but the Pumas where just to pumped-up for the final and never allowed the visitors any breathing space. […]
Posts written by: Gerhard van der Westhuizen (G West)
1Million Cheers for R1million champions
12 Oct 13 11:34 by Gerhard van der Westhuizen (G West) | 4 Comments
Boks take first steps on Mbombela soil
12 Jun 13 09:19 by Gerhard van der Westhuizen (G West) | 17 Comments
Earlier today the Springboks had an open training session at the Mbombela Stadium, in preparation for their match against Scotland this coming Saturday. I was lucky enough to be on the pitch the whole time while they where doing their drills and even managed to capture a few nice photos. […]
A buzz in “The Spruit”
10 Jun 13 13:50 by Gerhard van der Westhuizen (G West) | 18 Comments
In 2007 when the first shovel broke the soil at the Mbombela Stadium’s building site, there was a feeling of good fortune and excitement in the air which was soon replaced with dust, smoke, chaos, politics and some poor management at times. But in the end a magnificent stadium was constructed for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. A few months after the world cup success, the first rugby game was played on the pitch between the Pumas and Blue Bulls, on the 27th of August 2010. […]
Looking for the right preseason magic
28 Jan 13 11:27 by Gerhard van der Westhuizen (G West) | 18 Comments
Soon we will see the Sharks take on the Leopards and the Pumas in pre-season friendlies. Now it’s probably reasonably safe to assume that John Plumtree will play his second string players against the men from Potch, and the big boys against the Pumas. For obvious reasons I am really looking forward to the Pumas match as I will be there to witness and report on what went on in the game. […]
We are young so let’s set the field on fire
28 Jan 13 09:35 by Gerhard van der Westhuizen (G West) | 8 Comments
Last year we all saw a lot of young players introduced to Super Rugby, either due to injury of other players or just because they are pure class. Some of them even went on to represent our nation’s pride by earning some Springbok caps. They have grown not just in size but also in stature, and this year they can really light up the Super Rugby stage! […]
Young Lions outpace physical Pumas
20 Feb 12 07:00 by Gerhard van der Westhuizen (G West) | 15 Comments
The Lions warm-up game against the Pumas at the Mbombela stadium turned out to be a better spectacle than most anticipated. It was a hot afternoon and humidity made things very hard for both teams when it came to handling with both teams struggling to keep the ball in hand. The Pumas especially struggled with their handling and twice lost the ball over the try line. […]
Physicality and defence will be the key
20 Jul 11 11:07 by Gerhard van der Westhuizen (G West) | 25 Comments
The Sharks head down to Nelspruit to take on the Pumas in my backyard, first of all I am obviously very excited to see the Sharks play live since I never had the opportunity apart from the Sharks XV game earlier this year. Looking back at the Sharks XV game earlier this year I get a little bit of a worried feeling in my gut since most of our current front row played that day against the Pumas. At the end of the night the Sharks XV held on to the death to win, but I am sure some of those guys will remember just how strong the Puma forward pack was. […]
Count the cards
29 Apr 11 11:36 by Gerhard van der Westhuizen (G West) | 12 Comments
Looking at the current statistics for discipline over the past few weeks one gets the feeling that just maybe the Sharks have either been drilled into not giving away match losing cards or they have just been holding back slightly not to force them into a position where they might be carded. For most of the Super Rugby tournament the Sharks have seemed to only really click and go full out in the last 20 minutes of their games and Saturday’s game against the Hurricanes is a prime example. […]
Never look back
22 Apr 11 08:11 by Gerhard van der Westhuizen (G West) | 19 Comments
Over the past few weeks there has been a lot of talk about John Smit, the national team and the Rugby World Cup in general. Obviously people are quick to jump on the “blame train” and point fingers at players, coaches and the media. […]