• Bok duo lauds Varsity Cup

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    Marco van Staden and Dillyn Leyds have credited the Varsity Cup tournament as the stepping stone for their rise into the Springbok set-up. 

    The inaugural Varsity Cup took place in 2008 and the tournament has since produced 45 Springboks, including the likes of Van Staden, Leyds, Handré Pollard, Eben Etzebeth and Aphiwe Dyantyi.

    With the 12th edition set to kick off on 4 February, Van Staden, who made his Test debut against Argentina last year, has attributed his meteoric rise to international rugby to the emergence of the Varsity Cup 11 years ago.

    ‘The Varsity Cup got me to where I am today by closing the gap between U21 rugby and senior rugby and that gave me the opportunity to perform at senior level,’ said Van Staden.

    ‘My greatest memory of the tournament is the celebrations with the whole university after every victory on a Monday, and my greatest moment was when Tuks won Varsity Cup in 2017.’

    Leyds, who played for the UCT Ikeys and made his Test debut against France in 2017, shared Van Staden’s sentiments.

    ‘The Varsity Cup helped me adjust between age-group rugby and making that step up to senior-level rugby. That’s where some guys get lost in the system, and that’s something that Varsity Cup has tried to fill.

    ‘And you can see it’s doing that by the number of Springboks the tournament has produced. Many can vouch that Varsity Cup is the stepping stone to the next level. It has produced so many talented players, for unions and for this country.’

    Varsity Cup Springboks:

    1. Juan de Jongh
    2. Coenie Oosthuizen
    3. Eben Etzebeth
    4. JJ Engelbrecht
    5. Jaco Taute
    6. Arno Botha
    7. Trevor Nyakane
    8. Lourens Adriaanse
    9. Lood de Jager
    10. Handré Pollard
    11. Marcel van der Merwe
    12. Oupa Mohojé
    13. Marnitz Boshoff
    14. Damian de Allende
    15. Nizaam Carr
    16. Vincent Koch
    17. Rudy Paige
    18. Ruan Combrinck
    19. Franco Mostert
    20. Jaco Kriel
    21. Bongi Mbonambi
    22. Malcolm Marx
    23. Rohan Janse van Rensburg
    24. Jamba Ulengo
    25. Uzair Cassiem
    26. Courtnall Skosan
    27. Andries Coetzee
    28. Raymond Rhule
    29. Dillyn Leyds
    30. Ruan Dreyer
    31. Curwin Bosch
    32. Wilco Louw
    33. Warrick Gelant
    34. Louis Schreuder
    35. Ox Nche
    36. Jason Jenkins
    37. Travis Ismaiel
    38. Akker van der Merwe
    39. Marvin Orie
    40. Rob du Preez
    41. Embrose Papier
    42. Aphiwe Dyantyi
    43. Sibusiso Nkosi
    44. Marco van Staden
    45. Ivan van Zyl

    Photo: Gallo Images

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    SA Rugby magazine