PE may lose Test
20 Apr 2006
Another crisis looms in Eastern Cape rugby with the second Test against between the Springboks and Scotland in Port Elizabeth in jeopardy.
The final decision as to whether EP Rugby will host the Test match against Scotland has been postponed until Friday, after SA Rugby deputy president Mike Stofile said the SA Rugby directors had decided to give the EP Rugby Union until Friday to meet the requirements set out at the last board meeting.
If the EPRU does not meet them, the union will forfeit the right to host the Test match on June 17, the Herald Online reported.
“We do not want to appear as if we are not prepared to give EPRU a chance, or to be seen as having ulterior motives. We are willing to be lenient,” he said.
However, EPRU acting president Aldy Meyer said SA Rugby’s delay in making a final decision was putting extra pressure on the union in its final preparations for the Test match.
He said the tickets were ready to be printed, but had to be held back until it was certain that the EPRU would be hosting the game.
“This unnecessary delay is creating a lot of uncertainty among the general public as to whether the Test will be hosted in Port Elizabeth, and this will surely have a negative effect on our final ticket sales,” he said.
The conditions set by SA Rugby were that the EPRU provide a bank guarantee for the R4,65-million required to host the Scotland Test by April 13, and that EPRU repay an outstanding amount of R2-million from last year’s France Test. Meyer said the conditions had only been announced after the last directors’ meeting on March 29.
29 Comments
20 Apr 2006, 07:21 am
I find it hard to believe Aldy, surely you knew a looong time ago about the guarantee to be provided and how hard can it be to organise for such an upstanding organisation as the EPRU?
20 Apr 2006, 07:36 am
Hey,im taking a road trip to go see that game, dont **** with my plans!
20 Apr 2006, 07:46 am
You should have booked tickets for the Rustenburg game, EP are unreliable, ROYAL BOFEKENG here we came
20 Apr 2006, 07:53 am
So is the Rustenburg test still gonna happen??
20 Apr 2006, 07:55 am
Rustenburg has been approved, but this is the gap to give Harold Verster and his Bloem boys the test they didn’t get under Van Rooyen.
Not rocket science to have worked this one out.
20 Apr 2006, 07:59 am
So the SA Scotland game will be played in Bloem then.
Has that been confirmed yet?
20 Apr 2006, 08:07 am
Hey Gavin,
Any idea why the visiting teams and their supporters choose place like PE to prepare and not Rustenburg or Bloem?
Perhaps because they are shitholes!
20 Apr 2006, 08:08 am
Smaak my die wind waai nou erg in PE.
20 Apr 2006, 08:10 am
Went down to PE last year for the France Test,that was cool !
20 Apr 2006, 08:14 am
Is the 5 million the same for every union … irrespective of stadium capacity etc.
How does it work in a place like NZ? they have rather small stadiums.
The PE test last year was awesome with some very good after match entertainment (Prime Circle / Evolver etc.).
20 Apr 2006, 08:22 am
keo
why should pe be excempt from paying the guarantees? if they want to host tests, they should pay what any other union should. it’s incredible that there are still money outstanding from last year’s test and then they get another test allocated to them!
20 Apr 2006, 08:22 am
HOSKENS, needs to change the Rustenberg TEST TO DBN & I hope the AB dont like the venue & turn it down. They were due out soon to check the stadium etc — did they come?
How can SARU allow manipulation & bribery of this nature, to warrant a test match in RUSTENBERG — SHARKs & OFS go to the CCMA tongue in cheek]
20 Apr 2006, 08:23 am
keo
why should ep be exempt from paying the guarantees? if they want to host tests, they should pay what any other union should. it’s incredible that there are still money outstanding from last year’s test and then they get another test allocated to them!
20 Apr 2006, 08:33 am
kevin w, it is based on the capacity of the stadium and also the oppo. Ellispark must pay closer to 10mil to stage a test.
GCC keo is just stirring but probably right too! It is clearly the gap to pass the test to Bloem and although the ultimate motive to pass it to Bloem is iffy the reasons for taking it away, if they do, are also very much valid. Like you say, incredible that they still need to pay last years R2m!
20 Apr 2006, 08:35 am
The Bulls union have played a blinder on the test venues for 2006.
As they hosted a 3N game in 2005, they should only have a June incoming international this year but everyone is so busy complaining about Rustenburg and PE that they have overlooked the fact that it is actually the Bulls who have taken Durban’s AB test from them.
Good politics.
20 Apr 2006, 08:50 am
EP stadium is not up to standard.
Rustenburg game is another BvR politcal move.
We should only host at the big 5 stadiums. They are the only one’s up to standard.
20 Apr 2006, 08:55 am
Bloem here we come!!!!
20 Apr 2006, 09:06 am
would not mind for the test to be in Bloem.
20 Apr 2006, 10:15 am
Man, I’m glad that Van Ruin is gone…
20 Apr 2006, 10:19 am
Another crisis…and another…and another ..and..
20 Apr 2006, 10:24 am
This all sounds like money is ruling over a rugby decision again. when we have professionals in the admin roles of a profesional sport!
20 Apr 2006, 10:55 am
keo you beaut.
anyhow, if money is due money must be paid.
has rustenburg paid the guarrantee though?
and how much was it?
20 Apr 2006, 12:01 pm
8 mill for the rustenburg test and apparently the province, through the King, put up the cash.
20 Apr 2006, 12:12 pm
fair enough.
all hail the king i suppose.
20 Apr 2006, 12:56 pm
So EP still owe 2 mil on the last test they hosted? surely enough reason to make sure they do not get the test until they deal with their dept?
Give the test to somebody else.
20 Apr 2006, 17:03 pm
Is the dif in size from the PE stadium to Rustenburg really R4.6 to R8. Is this price dif realistic, in spite of the stadium size what could the possible spectator base be, surely PE’s is larger. PE only to pay 57% of what Rustenburg is required to pay could not be fair and then they have a backlog and cannot even come up with it or the backlog which combined is less than Rustenburg?
I think a hosting a test should be earned i.e. in a scored proposal.
Do Rustenburg really have enough rugby lovers in close prox to fill or partially fill the stadium?
Do they have an airport should you whish to fly there?
20 Apr 2006, 17:45 pm
Bollocks!
20 Apr 2006, 18:57 pm
yeah but Rustenburg is even higher up on the highveld lol, by 60 minutes the players will be puking ha ha
21 Apr 2006, 01:48 am
Wasn’t the last time a test was held in the Estern Cape the one in East London where there were live chickens running round on the turf at some point?
(Until the members of the crowd snaffled a free feathery meal…)
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