After the disappointment of being knocked out in the first round of SA’s biggest club competition, the Gold Cup, in 2024, Border rugby’s Swallows from Mdantsane and East London Police have vowed to make amends when the tournament starts next week.
EL Police will welcome the Western Cape’s Hamilton at the Police Park grounds and Swallows will travel to the Western Cape to face Villager on Saturday next week.
Hamilton and Villager are heavyweights and form part of arguably one of the strongest line-ups in the history of the Gold Cup.
Hamilton, who celebrate their 150th anniversary in 2025, and Villager, who reach the same milestone in 2026, booked their place in the “FA Cup” of South African club rugby when they reached the grand final of the Western Province Super League A on Saturday with semifinal wins over Durbanville-Bellville and SK Walmers, respectively.
Police and Swallows qualified for the Gold Cup after finishing as the top two seeded teams in the Border Super League in 2024.
Both teams were put to the sword in the first round of the national knockout competition in 2024.
Police were beaten 57-30 by Northwood Crusaders. For Swallows, it was Kimberley Rugby Club who orchestrated their exit with a 38-29 defeat.
Police head coach Yongama Mkaza said they were prepared for the Western Cape outfit and were going all out.
“We have been winning the league for the past four years; our holy grail is to be competitive as one of the best teams in SA.
“Hamilton have a history in the competition but when they come to East London, they must be prepared as we are not in the competition just to add numbers,” he said.
SA Rugby chief executive Rian Oberholzer said: “Knockout rugby is baked into South African rugby players’ DNA and it is something that also resonates deeply with fans at all levels.
“You only need to look at our four Rugby World Cup titles to know that South African teams are at their very best in do-or-die matches and the Gold Cup is set to deliver that in spades, with 31 matches to be played over five weekends without any safety nets or second chances.
“Community rugby is showing unprecedented growth on the back of the success of the Springbok men’s and women’s teams, and we hope to ... elevate the grassroots game even further.”
The 32 teams are divided geographically into North and South sections of 16 sides each, with the last team standing from each section contesting the grand final in October.
Round of 32 Fixtures:
North section: Naka Bulls (1) vs Safcol Utd (16), Northam Rhinos (2) vs Welkom Rovers (15), Pretoria Harlequins (3) vs Nelspruit (14), Raiders (4) vs Brakpan (13), Northam Wolves (5) vs Sibanye (12), Vereeniging (6) vs Pirates (11), White River (7) vs Centurion (10), Welkom Rugby Club (8) vs Louis Trichardt (9)
South section:College Rovers (1) v Bloemfontein Collegians (16) Villager (2) v Swallows (15) Groot Brakrivier (3) v Gardens (14) Robertson (4) v Kimberley (13) Sishen (5) v Villagers Worcester (12) Kruisfontein Utd (6) v Heidelberg (11) East London Police (7) v Hamilton (10) Bloemfontein Police (8) v Durban Crusaders (9)
Daily Dispatch
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