The 2014 Currie Cup Premier Division was the 76th season in the competition since it started in 1889 and was contested from 9 August to 25 October 2014. The tournament (known as the Absa Currie Cup Premier Division for sponsorship reasons) is the top tier of South Africa's premier domestic rugby union competition.
Competition
There was eight participating teams in the 2014 Currie Cup Premier Division. A proposed expansion to eight teams was initially rejected, but was then subsequently approved on 13 February 2014.
Qualification
The six franchise 'anchor' teams plus the automatically qualified to the 2014 Currie Cup Premier Division, plus the winner of a qualifying tournament between the other seven teams.
Regular season and title playoffs
The eight teams were divided into two sections, based on their 2013 positions. Teams in each section played each other twice over the course of the season, once at home and once away. Teams also played cross-section matches, playing one match (either home or away) against the teams in the other sections.
Teams received four points for a win and two points for a draw. Bonus points were awarded to teams that scored 4 or more tries in a game, as well as to teams that lost a match by 7 points or less. Teams were ranked by points, then points difference (points scored less points conceded).
The top 4 teams qualified for the title play-offs. In the semi-finals, the team that finished first had home advantage against the team that finished fourth, while the team that finished second had home advantage against the team that finished third. The winners of these semi-finals played each other in the final, at the home venue of the higher-placed team.
Relegation playoffs
Non-franchise teams finishing in the bottom two would be included in the qualification rounds for the following season.
Teams
Team Listing
2014 Currie Cup Premier Division teams Section X Team Sponsored Name Stadium/s Sponsored Name Vodacom Blue Bulls Loftus Versfeld Eastern Province Kings Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium Xerox Lions Ellis Park Stadium DHL Western Province DHL Newlands Section Y Team Sponsored Name Stadium/s Sponsored Name Toyota Free State Cheetahs Free State Stadium GWK Griquas GWK Park Steval Pumas Mbombela Stadium Cell C Sharks Growthpoint Kings Park
Attendances
The following attendance figures were published at the end of the season:
2014 Currie Cup Premier Division attendances Team First Round Semi-Finals Final Total Average 79,029 29,857 44,505 153,391 21,913 57,432 35,558 92,990 15,498 57,417 57,417 11,483 53,570 53,570 10,714 47,135 47,135 9,427 37,764 37,764 7,553 24,924 24,924 4,985 11,200 11,200 2,240 Total 368,472 65,415 44,505 478,392 11,125
Log The final log of the round-robin stage of the 2014 Currie Cup Premier Division is:
Fixtures and results
The fixtures for the 2014 Currie Cup Premier Division were released on 11 March 2014:
Round one
Round two
Round three
Round four
Round Five
Round Six
Round Seven
Round Eight
Round Nine
Round Ten
Semi-finals
Final
Honours
2014 Absa Currie Cup Premier Division ChampionsWestern Province33rd title
Players
Player statistics
The following table contain points which have been scored in the 2014 Currie Cup Premier Division:
All point scorers No Player Team T C P DG Pts 1 Demetri Catrakilis Western Province 0 30 20 1 123 Jacques-Louis Potgieter Blue Bulls 0 15 31 0 123 3 Ruan Combrinck Golden Lions 6 20 12 0 106 4 Justin van Staden Pumas 3 11 21 0 100 5 Willie du Plessis Free State Cheetahs 2 15 18 1 97 6 Fred Zeilinga Sharks 1 6 24 0 89 7 Marnitz Boshoff Golden Lions 0 13 14 1 71 Lionel Cronjé Sharks 1 12 14 0 71 9 Gouws Prinsloo Griquas 0 3 15 0 51 10 Kurt Coleman Western Province 1 8 8 0 45 Jaco Kriel Golden Lions 9 0 0 0 45 12 Scott van Breda Eastern Province Kings 2 8 6 0 44 13 Sarel Pretorius Free State Cheetahs 7 0 0 0 35 Marnus Schoeman Griquas 7 0 0 0 35 15 Jaco van der Walt Golden Lions 1 7 3 1 31 16 Juan de Jongh Western Province 6 0 0 0 30 Gary van Aswegen Eastern Province Kings 0 9 4 0 30 18 Dean Grant Griquas 1 7 3 0 28 19 Cheslin Kolbe Western Province 5 1 0 0 27 JC Roos Pumas 0 6 5 0 27 21 Ederies Arendse Griquas 5 0 0 0 25 Shane Gates Eastern Province Kings 5 0 0 0 25 Kobus van Wyk Western Province 5 0 0 0 25 24 SP Marais Sharks 3 0 2 0 21 25 Bjorn Basson Blue Bulls 4 0 0 0 20 Rayno Benjamin Free State Cheetahs 4 0 0 0 20 Nizaam Carr Western Province 4 0 0 0 20 André Esterhuizen Sharks 4 0 0 0 20 Stokkies Hanekom Golden Lions 4 0 0 0 20 Sampie Mastriet Blue Bulls 4 0 0 0 20 Franco Mostert Golden Lions 4 0 0 0 20 S'bura Sithole Sharks 4 0 0 0 20 Deon Stegmann Blue Bulls 4 0 0 0 20 Stefan Watermeyer Pumas 4 0 0 0 20 35 Lourens Adriaanse Sharks 3 0 0 0 15 Renaldo Bothma Pumas 3 0 0 0 15 Andries Coetzee Golden Lions 3 0 0 0 15 Pieter-Steyn de Wet Free State Cheetahs 0 6 1 0 15 Paul Jordaan Sharks 3 0 0 0 15 Derick Minnie Golden Lions 3 0 0 0 15 Tera Mtembu Sharks 3 0 0 0 15 Akona Ndungane Blue Bulls 3 0 0 0 15 Sikhumbuzo Notshe Western Province 3 0 0 0 15 Raymond Rhule Free State Cheetahs 3 0 0 0 15 Paul Schoeman Eastern Province Kings 3 0 0 0 15 Seabelo Senatla Western Province 3 0 0 0 15 Kwagga Smith Golden Lions 3 0 0 0 15 Akker van der Merwe Golden Lions 3 0 0 0 15 PJ Vermeulen Griquas 3 0 0 0 15 50 Elgar Watts Free State Cheetahs 1 2 1 0 12 51 Handré Pollard Blue Bulls 1 3 0 0 11 Nico Scheepers Griquas 0 4 1 0 11 53 Martin Bezuidenhout Griquas 2 0 0 0 10 Clayton Blommetjies Free State Cheetahs 2 0 0 0 10 Tienie Burger Free State Cheetahs 2 0 0 0 10 Ronnie Cooke Eastern Province Kings 2 0 0 0 10 Ruan Dreyer Golden Lions 2 0 0 0 10 Jacques du Plessis Blue Bulls 2 0 0 0 10 Justin Geduld Western Province 2 0 0 0 10 Carel Greeff Griquas 2 0 0 0 10 Dean Greyling Blue Bulls 2 0 0 0 10 Grant Hattingh Blue Bulls 2 0 0 0 10 Patrick Howard Western Province 2 0 0 0 10 Tony Jantjies Blue Bulls 0 2 2 0 10 JW Jonker Pumas 2 0 0 0 10 Siya Kolisi Western Province 2 0 0 0 10 Howard Mnisi Golden Lions 2 0 0 0 10 Lwazi Mvovo Sharks 2 0 0 0 10 Trompie Pretorius Pumas 2 0 0 0 10 Michael Rhodes Western Province 2 0 0 0 10 Corné Steenkamp Pumas 2 0 0 0 10 Jaco Taute Western Province 2 0 0 0 10 Warwick Tecklenburg Golden Lions 2 0 0 0 10 Schalk van der Merwe Golden Lions 2 0 0 0 10 Michael van der Spuy Western Province 2 0 0 0 10 Francois Venter Free State Cheetahs 2 0 0 0 10 Tim Whitehead Eastern Province Kings 2 0 0 0 10 78 Tian Schoeman Blue Bulls 0 1 2 0 8 79 Tobie Botes Eastern Province Kings 1 1 0 0 7 80 Patrick Lambie Sharks 0 3 0 0 6 81 JW Bell Pumas 1 0 0 0 5 Ulrich Beyers Blue Bulls 1 0 0 0 5 Jacques Botes Sharks 1 0 0 0 5 Willie Britz Golden Lions 1 0 0 0 5 Tonderai Chavhanga Sharks 1 0 0 0 5 Pat Cilliers Western Province 1 0 0 0 5 Robbie Coetzee Golden Lions 1 0 0 0 5 Marius Coetzer Pumas 1 0 0 0 5 Jean Cook Free State Cheetahs 1 0 0 0 5 Ross Cronjé Golden Lions 1 0 0 0 5 Aidon Davis Eastern Province Kings 1 0 0 0 5 Ntabeni Dukisa Eastern Province Kings 1 0 0 0 5 JP du Plessis Free State Cheetahs 1 0 0 0 5 Thomas du Toit Sharks 1 0 0 0 5 Rynhardt Elstadt Western Province 1 0 0 0 5 Joubert Engelbrecht Free State Cheetahs 1 0 0 0 5 Lizo Gqoboka Eastern Province Kings 1 0 0 0 5 Abrie Griesel Griquas 1 0 0 0 5 Siyanda Grey Eastern Province Kings 1 0 0 0 5 Nic Groom Western Province 1 0 0 0 5 Monde Hadebe Sharks 1 0 0 0 5 Brok Harris Western Province 1 0 0 0 5 Frank Herne Pumas 1 0 0 0 5 Dwayne Jenner Eastern Province Kings 1 0 0 0 5 Vincent Koch Pumas 1 0 0 0 5 Jesse Kriel Blue Bulls 1 0 0 0 5 Lappies Labuschagné Free State Cheetahs 1 0 0 0 5 Ruaan Lerm Griquas 1 0 0 0 5 Stephan Lewies Sharks 1 0 0 0 5 Kevin Luiters Eastern Province Kings 1 0 0 0 5 Lionel Mapoe Golden Lions 1 0 0 0 5 Bongi Mbonambi Blue Bulls 1 0 0 0 5 Tian Meyer Griquas 1 0 0 0 5 Giant Mtyanda Pumas 1 0 0 0 5 Martin Muller Golden Lions 1 0 0 0 5 Darron Nell Eastern Province Kings 1 0 0 0 5 Scarra Ntubeni Western Province 1 0 0 0 5 Burger Odendaal Blue Bulls 1 0 0 0 5 Marais Schmidt Griquas 0 1 1 0 5 Hennie Skorbinski Pumas 1 0 0 0 5 Courtnall Skosan Golden Lions 1 0 0 0 5 William Small-Smith Blue Bulls 1 0 0 0 5 Siviwe Soyizwapi Eastern Province Kings 1 0 0 0 5 Roscko Speckman Pumas 1 0 0 0 5 Frikkie Spies Pumas 1 0 0 0 5 Wayne Stevens Griquas 1 0 0 0 5 Francois Uys Free State Cheetahs 1 0 0 0 5 Janro van Niekerk Griquas 1 0 0 0 5 Reynier van Rooyen Pumas 1 0 0 0 5 Michael van Vuuren Eastern Province Kings 1 0 0 0 5 Piet van Zyl Blue Bulls 1 0 0 0 5 Callie Visagie Blue Bulls 1 0 0 0 5 Luke Watson Eastern Province Kings 1 0 0 0 5 George Whitehead Eastern Province Kings 0 1 0 1 5 Warren Whiteley Golden Lions 1 0 0 0 5 136 Francois Brummer Griquas 0 0 0 1 3 137 Jacquin Jansen Griquas 0 1 0 0 2 Joshua Stander Blue Bulls 0 1 0 0 2 – penalty try Eastern Province Kings 2 0 0 0 10 * Legend: T = Tries, C = Conversions, P = Penalties, DG = Drop Goals, Pts = Points.
Squad Lists
The following players have been named in the squads for the 2014 Currie Cup Premier Division:
Forwards
Jacques du Plessis Jacques Engelbrecht Dean Greyling Grant Hattingh Nico Janse van Rensburg Werner Kruger Wiaan Liebenberg Bandise Maku Bongi Mbonambi Morné Mellett Jono Ross Basil Short Deon Stegmann Marcel van der Merwe Hencus van Wyk Callie Visagie Paul Willemse Did not play: Arno Botha Irné Herbst Frik Kirsten Victor Matfield Marvin Orie Juan Schoeman Roelof Smit Pierre Spies Flip van der Merwe Nardus van der Walt Jaco Visagie Backs
Bjorn Basson Ulrich Beyers JJ Engelbrecht Tony Jantjies Jesse Kriel Sampie Mastriet Akona Ndungane Ryan Nell Burger Odendaal Rudy Paige Handré Pollard Jacques-Louis Potgieter Tian Schoeman William Small-Smith Joshua Stander Jamba Ulengo Piet van Zyl Jurgen Visser Did not play: Francois Hougaard Travis Ismaiel Lohan Jacobs Jan Serfontein Dries Swanepoel Coach
Frans Ludeke
Forwards
Tim Agaba Thembelani Bholi Tom Botha David Bulbring Steve Cummins Aidon Davis Albé de Swardt Charl du Plessis Martin Ferreira Lizo Gqoboka Simon Kerrod Cameron Lindsay Charles Marais Edgar Marutlulle Shaun McDonald Darron Nell Devin Oosthuizen Paul Schoeman Steven Sykes BG Uys CJ van der Linde Michael van Vuuren Luke Watson Stefan Willemse Did not play: Brenden Olivier Dane van der Westhuyzen Backs
Tobie Botes Ronnie Cooke Ntabeni Dukisa Shane Gates Siyanda Grey Jaco Grobler Dwayne Jenner Kevin Luiters Siviwe Soyizwapi Gary van Aswegen Scott van Breda George Whitehead Tim Whitehead Did not play: Enrico Acker Eben Barnard Hansie Graaff Paul Perez Sergeal Petersen Marlou van Niekerk Coach
Carlos Spencer
Forwards
Dolph Botha Tienie Burger Neil Claassen Jean Cook Luan de Bruin Lood de Jager Brendon Groenewald Vince Jobo Lappies Labuschagné AJ le Roux Hercú Liebenberg Werner Lourens George Marich Oupa Mohojé Trevor Nyakane Caylib Oosthuizen Coenie Oosthuizen Boom Prinsloo Bees Roux Kevin Stevens Francois Uys Torsten van Jaarsveld Henco Venter Waltie Vermeulen Carl Wegner Did not play: Peet Coetzee Jacques du Toit Freddy Ngoza Adriaan Strauss Backs
Rayno Benjamin Clayton Blommetjies AJ Coertzen Pieter-Steyn de Wet Maphutha Dolo JP du Plessis Willie du Plessis Joubert Engelbrecht Sarel Pretorius Raymond Rhule Francois Venter Shaun Venter Elgar Watts Did not play: Renier Botha Cornal Hendricks Verner Horn Henry Immelman Cameron Jacobs Tertius Kruger Willie le Roux Nico Lee Marco Mason Coach
Rory Duncan
Forwards
Willie Britz Robbie Coetzee Ruan Dreyer Jaco Kriel MB Lusaseni Malcolm Marx Derick Minnie Franco Mostert Martin Muller Julian Redelinghuys Kwagga Smith Warwick Tecklenburg Akker van der Merwe Schalk van der Merwe Jacques van Rooyen Chris van Zyl Willie Wepener Warren Whiteley Did not play: Fabian Booysen Cyle Brink Stephan de Wit Lambert Groenewald Ruaan Lerm Tyson Mulamba Mark Pretorius Dylan Smith Schalk van Heerden Backs
Marnitz Boshoff