Since its inception in 2008, Varsity Cup has become the premier, annual South African university rugby competition held annually in South Africa. It showcases top rugby talent from universities across the country, offering a platform for student-athletes to compete at a high level.
Many Varsity Cup top players have gone on to represent their provinces and the nation as Springboks – and Maties has contributed its fair share!
The competition, known for its “sport-tainment” and huge crowd turn-outs, has evolved over the years to include Young Guns, a second-tier Varsity Shield competition, and most recently, Women’s Rugby.
Attracting big sponsors and TV time, it is also renowned for its innovative rules to make the game more entertaining, faster and focused on attacks.
Maties Rugby remains a power team in the competition, taking the title 5 times and battling it out in a few more finals. This year Maties was the only university to have teams in all three semi-finals, with our Women’s team playing in their final.
Needless to say, Maties Rugby takes this competition very seriously. The pre-season runs from October to January, and consists of introducing new recruits to our High-Performance programme, and planning and preparation – player group identification, medical screening and assessments, strength and conditioning programmes, individual and team skill set development, team structure and game plan prep. Then there is the pre-season camp to focus on building culture and value structure before the competition kick off mid-February.
Every aspect of every game is analysed along with player performance, and game plans and strategies are amended accordingly. All the data from last season has already been scrutinised and our players, staff and coaches are geared for success in 2025. Take a look at some of the stats from the 2024 season…
SEASON PERFORMANC
PERFORMANCE DATA
COMPETITION GROWTH
