Van Straaten: Kings need to learn to close games out
Isuzu Southern Kings defence coach Braam van Straaten believes his side have the ability to make a big impact in this year’s Guinness PRO14 , but they will need to learn to close out games first.

Sleepless in Shizuoka for Nienaber
Springbok defence coach Jacques Nienaber admitted the Italian coaching brains trust had been causing him to lose sleep as he looked forward to Friday night’s potential Pool B decider.

North/South showdown in U19 Provincial Final
The South African domestic season will conclude in Cape Town on Saturday with a massive North/South showdown in the final of the SA Rugby Under-19 Championship.

Rasivhenge on Guinness PRO14 debut with the whistle
South African referee Rasta Rasivhenge will take charge of his first Guinness PRO14 match in Galway on Saturday, when Connacht and Benetton will go head-to-head in round two of the northern hemisphere showpiece.

Myners: Springbok Women determined to improve
Springbok Women’s assistant coach Eddie Myners said on Wednesday the team learned valuable lessons in their first Test against Scotland and were determined to deliver a much better performance when the sides meet again at the City Park Stadium in Cape Town on Saturday.

Pack trio wins starting call-up for Boks’ must-win clash
Front rowers Tendai Mtawarira and Bongi Mbonambi, as well as Lood de Jager (lock) have been promoted to the Springboks’ ‘senior’ starting pack for Friday’s must-win Rugby World Cup clash with Italy in Shizuoka.

Erasmus: Boks can expect “major forward battle”
Rassie Erasmus, SA Rugby’s director of rugby, has warned the Springboks to expect a massive challenge from the Italian pack when they clash in a Rugby World Cup Pool B match in Shizuoka on Friday.

Facts and Stats: Springboks v Italy
Friday’s Test match between South Africa and Italy will be the 15th, but the first in a Rugby World Cup. The first Test match between Italy, also known as the Azzurri, and South Africa took place on the two-match year-end tour in 1995.

Willemse replaces injured Kriel in Springbok RWC squad
Damian Willemse, the DHL Stormers utility back, will fly out to Japan to join the Springbok Rugby World Cup squad following the injury withdrawal of Jesse Kriel.

Proudfoot: Brains will decide the battle of the brawn
Muscle + intelligence = victory (or will put the Boks a long way down the road to it), believes Springbok forwards coach Matt Proudfoot.