| # | AGREEMENT | POS | NAME | SCHOOL | YOUTH WEEK |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Contract | 2 | Wilhelm Barnard | HJS Paarl BH | |
| 2 | Contract | 2 | Viaan Wolmarans | Framesby | EP CW |
| 3 | Contract | 2 | Janus Venter | EG Jansen | |
| 4 | Contract | 3 | Nyiko Ntlemo | Ben Vorster | Limpopo CW |
| 5 | Contract | 3 | Le Klue Stokes | Brandwag | EP CW |
| 6 | Contract | 4 | Elrigh Louw | Transvalia | Valke CW |
| 7 | Contract | 5 | Gideon Van Niekerk | Noord-Kaap | Griquas CW |
| 8 | Contract | 5 | Shama Manzini | Ben Vorster | Limpopo CW |
| 9 | Contract | 6 | Ruben Roodt | Garsfontein | |
| 10 | Contract | 7 | George Putter | Hilton | |
| 11 | Contract | 8 | Andre Hanekom | Stellenberg | |
| 12 | Contract | 8 | Ruwald van der Merwe | Rustenburg | Leopards CW |
| 13 | Contract | 9 | Jacques van Biljon | Stellenberg | |
| 14 | Contract | 9 | Eric Myburgh | HJS Paarl BH | |
| 15 | Contract | 10 | James Mollentze | Outeniqua | SWD CW |
| 16 | Contract | 10 | Charles Williams | Diamantveld | Griquas CW |
| 17 | Contract | 11 | PJ Krugell | Waterkloof | |
| 18 | Contract | 12 | Dwayne Fourie | EG Jansen | Valke CW |
| 19 | Contract | 12 | Mvuzo Nhlozi | John Ross | KZNCD AW |
| 20 | Contract | 13 | Aya Matroos | Grey HS | EP CW |
| 21 | Contract | 13 | Luke Hertz | Oakdale | SWD AW |
| 22 | Contract | 14 | Noko Malatji | Merensky | Limpopo CW |
| 23 | Contract | 14 | Jaundre Sabbat | Brandwag | EP CW |
| 24 | Contract | 15 | Cham Zondeki | DHS | KZN CW |
| 1 | Bursary | 3 | Barend Lombard | Merensky | Limpopo CW |
| 2 | Bursary | 1 | Alexander van Biljon | Outeniqua | SWD AW |
| 3 | Bursary | 1 | WS Coetzee | Diamantveld | Griquas CW |
| 4 | Bursary | 3 | John Henry Fincham | Grey College | Free State AW |
| 5 | Bursary | 15 | Willie Naude | Voortrekker (Beth) | |
| 6 | Bursary (u20) | 9 | Stefan Coetzee | St Andrew’s Sch | |
| 7 | Bursary | 2 | Mthokozisi Ngwenya | John Ross | KZNCD AW |
| 8 | Bursary | 1 | Cameron Dawson | Paul Roos | |
| 25 | Contract (u20) | 4 | Keanan Murray | Marlow | EPCD CW |
| 26 | Contract (u20) | 4 | Jeandre Ferreira | Menlopark | |
| 27 | Contract (u20) | 6 | Otsile Ranthako | Mangaung RC | |
| 28 | Contract (u21) | 8 | Zwivhuya Mulaudzi | Louis Trichardt | Limpopo AW |
@Veg: i do agree that it is weird, seing as that welkom gim and voortrekker very good was last year
@Smallies: So our boy from Lady Grey was bunking when the scouts came to Grey
But I still find this amazing that there are only 2 contracted players who went to school in the Free State.Forget about the Grey chaps what about other Bloem schools,Bethlehem schools,Kroonstad schools
@chief: ek oordeel geen seun nie, wat ek se is dat die vrystaat eerder n seun vir minder sal kontrakteur van n skool soos bv EG af, hulle sal nie maklik n bedrag soos 500 000 betaal vir n 0 19 speler nie…. Maar as hulle geslaap het terwyl die ander unies die Grey seuns onder hulle neuse geteken het dan is dit net eenvoudig swak beplanning van hulle af…. @Smallies: vrystaat se siening was nog altyd kontrakteur goedkoop en ontwikkel as wat dit koop die beste ten alle koste is soos bv die bulle en sharks
@chief: ek oordeel geen seun nie, wat ek se is dat die vrystaat eerder n seun vir minder sal kontrakteur van n skool soos bv EG af, hulle sal nie maklik n bedrag soos 500 000 betaal vir n 0 19 speler nie…. Maar as hulle geslaap het terwyl die ander unies die Grey seuns onder hulle neuse geteken het dan is dit net eenvoudig swak beplanning van hulle af….
@Smallies:
Jy sal moet deel met jou stelling van Vrystaat wat ‘n klompie geld het, ek aan die anderhand is glad nie seker oor dit nie. Nou die dag gehoor dat Vrystaat se finansies nie soveel beter lyk na die insluiting van die Pro14.
Daar was buitendien eers met sekere Grey College seuns gepraat na hulle al kontrakte geteken het. Jy kan dus nie ‘n seun oordeel omdat hy Sharks/Lions/WP gekies het nie.
@beet: you will be amazed at how much money the freestate actually have, the only province with a positive cash flow in 2016, they have plenty money but choose to use it just a little more frugally than the rest
@Rainier: jip as die wp 500 000 plus vir n skool seun kan aanbied terwyl hulle tegnies bankrot is dan gaan die vrystaat, wat altyd maar hulle sente omdraai nie by daai offers kom nie, vrystaat sal hulle nooit bankrot koop aan skool seuns nie.
@Playa: Thank you. So they have three players from the Free State then.
@Lat-Wiel: He has done outstandingly well. Played Free State u19 last year. They made it all the way to the final.
I put his club name there. I don’t know which school he went to but I assume it was in FS.
@Lat-Wiel: Mangaung is the name of the metro. Bloemfontein is a city in Mangaung. Mouthful I know.
Beet, Ranthako #27. Mangaung RC? Mangaung is Bloemfontein not so?
@Veg: Sorry Veg. I just found out Stefan Coetzee went to St Andrew’s in Bloem but he’s u20 this year so maybe he does not count towards the number of u19 players from FS.
Free State have recruited smartly for many years now and have a good relationship with Kovsies.
Great opportunity for youngsters down the line. Pro14 opens up a whole new spectrum and job market. Plus FS playing in the CC provides other squad players TV exposure which their peers at other unions don’t have.
@Veg: FS doesn’t have as much money that’s why they can never hold onto top senior players. But in this context they have been able to produce top seniors from their junior programme.
I do think that the school bursary syndrome influences a lot of decisions made by school leavers who see their worth measured by the value of the contract offered to them. The cream normally always rises to the top irrespective of where they go after school but below that top tier of players, there are a number of players who’s progress in rugby is subjected to extra hard work plus luck and lucky breaks. Certainly in latter cases the value of a junior contract ends up paling in comparison to the value of a true opportunity to advance to senior rugby. It’s hard to see that or understand that as an 18 year old but it’s the way the system works.
Some very talented players on that list. @Rainier: Agree very happy for Ruben Roodt.
Mollentze, Stokes, Barnard, Zondeki, Louw to name only a few all very talented players. Also gobsmacked about the lack of homegrown talent. Could it be because many of those boys (and I am not talking about those CW players specifically) opted to go to Kovsies in stead of the union, or could it be a Top 14 nursery strategy from the union perhaps?
It is amazing to see a FS /19 team with no GCB player under contract.
I am happy to see players like Roodt and Kruegel getting opportunities, even though they did not play CW – they are both very talented.
I see EP schools have become a major feeder area for FS.
This amazes me.There is only one person on that list that comes from a Free State school.Are the contracts offered by the Cheetahs so inferior to the other unions?I would of thought the fact that the Cheetahs in the past have brought talent through into their senior side would be a plus for a young guy.