u19 Cup 2025 Database

12 Comments

1. 
   #12 Bungee

   Congrats to the Bulls u19s for taking the W

   Reply

   17 October, 2025 at 14:54
2. 
   #11 Vleis

   One problem with linking the VC YG tournament with an u20 provincial tournament is that some of the u20 students play in the main VC tournament….and I suspect that most of said players would rather feature in the much higher profile VC event than an u20 provincial tournament.

   Reply

   16 October, 2025 at 11:21
3. 
   #10 Bungee

   @beet (Comment #8)
   I checked now, in the Varsity Cup and Shield teams, WP has 4, Sharks 2, Border 2, Lions 2, Cheetahs 2, Bulls 1, Leopards 1, Griquas 1 and EP 1 each, but if we take only Varsity Cup, who have teams then entered for YG, then it is WP 2, Cheetahs 2, Sharks 1, Lions 1, Bulls 1 and Leopards 1.

   So maybe, a combined competition that has the current YG teams, with an extra team for the WP, Bulls, Lions, Sharks, Border, EP, Griquas and Boland.

   Tournament starts as a u19 qualifying tournament, where team play in groups of 4, home and away (so 6 fixtures). This limits travel and allows for the YG sides to complete their club league season commitments first.

   Then the top 2 of each group competing in a u20 Championship tournament, and bottom 2 in a corresponding tournament. Single fixture, with the 4 top-placers receiving the extra home fixtures. This allows for the top u19s joining in the mix as “live trials” for TRC/WC selection. Will be a total of 13 fixtures, plus playoffs.

   Reply

   15 October, 2025 at 12:39
4. 
   #9 Bungee

   @beet (Comment #8)
   Monday nights and an excuse for students to drink

   Reply

   15 October, 2025 at 11:56
5. 
   #8 beet

   @Bungee (Comment #7)
   I think trying to run a separate tournament during the same period as the YG’s would be asking for trouble. The competition either needs to co-exist with the YG or be scheduled in a different window that doesn’t overlap.

   There are several reasons for this — the universities co-sponsor many of the players, as you mentioned, which creates mutual benefits. In addition, the YG varsity teams already have travel budgets allocated for this period.

   The Free State and Leopards might be better served by entering just one team each, while the Big Four provinces should aim to field provincially branded teams made up of non-student players to compete against the varsity sides within a single unified competition.

   So maybe the idea solution is a single round u19 compo in the latter part of year 1 with an u20 compo in the first part of the year ahead of the JWC.

   Also perhaps a change in heart about trying to give junior rugby better exposure in the hopes of attracting new sponsors would assist. I think there have been deliberate reasons for keeping it low profile but the unions have never tried to go the opposite route of a branded competition played on specific week night to lock in an audience with no rugby alternatives to distract them. I think Monday night exclusivity has contributed to the success of the Varsity Cup

   Reply

   15 October, 2025 at 10:48
6. 
   #7 Bungee

   @beet (Comment #6)
   I agree that 5 games is not enough. I think a system that would work nicely is to have it integrated with the u20 system in that they start playing like they are now in August-time, giving the players a couple months to experience the post-school intensity of training, and then they take part in a u20’s tournament that is played over the new year (half in the later half of the groups u19 year, half in the first half of their u20 year). You brand is as the u20’s tournament, but it is only players that would qualify for the next u20’s world championship. This way, if there is talented schoolboys finishing up who can immediately slot in, they get good exposure as well before the u20’s TRC selection.

   I like the u21’s as a contest as well, especially as it is run with more games and is a nice bridge between youth and Currie Cup level. Would be nice if it could somehow be expanded more, but I struggle to see where the finances are to do that.

   The suggestion made to make the Varsity Cup Young Guns a part of the u20 contest also seems like a fun idea, but those Young Guns teams make up a big portion of the Unions junior teams as well, so I don’t think that would work well. Maybe if there is squad size restrictions in place? (30 man squad for the first half, allowed 10 replacements/additions in the new year)

   Reply

   15 October, 2025 at 00:36
7. 
   #6 beet

   @agter_die_pale_pa (Comment #5)
   The focus on young players via competitive matches is a good idea. The financial challenges facing the unions are the restrictive factor. I mean players cannot train for a whole year in an HP environment to only play 5 higher level matches. They need a lot more game time.

   Reply

   13 October, 2025 at 22:41
8. 
   #5 agter_die_pale_pa

   @beet (Comment #4)
   I recon the challenge is to run both 19 and 21 whilst it seems as if the world moved to a single u20 bridge between school and seniors. You have the u20 Rugby Championship, the u20 6-Nations and then the u20 JWC that replaced the 19/21 many years ago. If memory serves correct the Young Guns is also u20? Whilst I am no expert in the physical compatibility of u19’s playing against u20s, the difference could not be much bigger than having u17s playing against u19s in SBR?
   It just makes sense to align our local setup with a single u20-focus. The way the Currie Cup has gone, it is providing a great platform for younger players once they pass u20.
   But the other side of the coin is that an u19 comp allows you to keep your “later-developers” longer in a controlled and have a bigger pool in a dedicated “talent ID”-system. Same for the u21s, there is the risk of losing 20-year old’s if they don’t get a early crack at something like the Varsity Cup or Currie Cup.
   Maybe there is an opportunity for a broader u23 comp, using the Varsity Cup as a launchpad and getting junior club-sides involved. Could be interesting to see how competitive some of our bigger clubs can be against the Varsity Cub/Shield sides if they put some energy into building an u23/”youth” squad. The benefit to the clubs will obviously be depth in their senior squads over time.
   With the Boks doing so well, and our SBR being the best in the world, surely the next frontier is between 19 and 23, both to compete globally but also to tap into rugby’s recreational value within a community.
   Anyway, again thanks for the post. As I have said before, there are so much opportunity to ride the highs of many SBR players post-matric, but it seems as if they disappear into a void and you only take note of the few that eventually make it to the u20 JWC or break into an URC-team at an early age.

   Reply

   13 October, 2025 at 14:02
9. 
   #4 beet

   @agter_die_pale_pa (Comment #3)
   They’re currently running both U19 and U21 competitions. It’s difficult to fault the system when things are going well — as reflected in us being U20 world champions.

   When Kevin Foote first took charge and the U20 Rugby Championship campaign went poorly, it looked like he might be the next in a long line of Baby Bok coaches who couldn’t get it right. But he turned it around in a big way at the JWC. While the extreme heat in Italy probably worked in our favour, the attacking brand of rugby also suited the type of players in that group.

   The key now is to gather all the intel from both tournaments and ask: how can the U20 Rugby Championship performance be improved, and how can the 2026 side mirror the same kind of growth this year’s team showed between the RC and the Junior World Championship?

   Although it’s now largely a post-mortem exercise, part of that review should include assessing whether the timing of the U19 Cup is strategically right to maximise its value.

   Personally, I’ve always felt that an early-season U20 competition would provide an ideal build-up to selecting the Baby Bok squad. Since that window would overlap with the low-key Varsity Cup Young Guns tournament, perhaps SA Rugby should explore a way to merge the two into a national U20 Cup.

   Reply

   13 October, 2025 at 12:51
10. 
    #3 agter_die_pale_pa

    Which provincial comps are currently in place.. u19, u20, u21?
    Any idea on the thinking going forward? Seems as if the powers that be chopped and changed a lot over the years?

    Reply

    13 October, 2025 at 10:29
11. 
    #2 beet

    @agter_die_pale_pa (Comment #1)
    WP used Yaqeen Ahmed from Wynberg and Alutha Wesi from Rondebosch. Both are u19 so it makes sense.
    Also KES headboy Sam Bruwer in the mix

    Reply

    13 October, 2025 at 10:05
12. 
    #1 agter_die_pale_pa

    Thanks for this Beet, nice to see where last year’s names are popping up and getting the bulk of the gametime..
    I assume Ty Axe with the Lions is the same as Helpmekaar’s captain this year? Putting in a massive rugby stint in his matric year with 5 games for the u19s already. Also Andre Poulton from Jeppe, Lions the only union using matrics?

    Reply

    13 October, 2025 at 09:53