by Lutho Mtongana | Apr 17, 2014 | Sport
Monash and SHA tackle on the field for the ball. Photo: Lutho Mtongana
Monash University won its internal rugby league match against Steinhoff South African Hellenic Association (SHA) on Wednesday, 31 to 25, but left many of its fans frustrated with their poor defense.
Steinhoff was racing for the goal line but while Monash players surrounded the ball-handler, none made an attempt to tackle, giving away an easy try.
“Do they play touch rugby when they practise?” one Monash fan said with frustration.
Steinhoff SHA’s strong tackling helped them keep up with Monash and with the score staying neck and neck throughout the match. After the first half, Monash led with 15 points while SHA was behind with only 10.
Despite the frustration from Monash supporters during the match, they were filled with enthusiasm and delight when their team ended with a victory against SHA.
Monash player Chris Ndanga said his team had one with several new players, with only four or five senior members on the field.
“They [SHA] tackled high which made them easy to defend off considering most of the guys in our team are smaller,” said Ndanga.
Ndanga acknowledged that the margin of victory could have been greater if they had given away fewer errors.
“I feel we could have won by a bigger margin if it wasn’t for a few defensive and handling errors,” Ndanga said.
The Monash match was one of three played on Wednesday night. In the other matches, Commerce took on the Midrand Graduate Institute (MGI) Tigers and Masakhane faced Men’s Residence.
MGI Tigers, who are newcomers to the internal rugby league, got off to a bad start and wound up losing to Commerce with a score of 7 to 16.
Widely considered to be one of the best teams in the internal league, Masakhane won with a score of 26 to 0 against Men’s Residence, even after three of their players were injured and had to be replaced.
Another two matches were scheduled for the evening, Engineers versus Knockando and the Medics versus SAUJS, but were cancelled because one of the fields was closed.
Despite the cold weather, the crowd sang songs and roared with energy throughout the night. Monash received the greatest support as family, friends and schoolmates came out to watch them leave Wits rugby grounds victoriously.
by Luca Kotton | Apr 17, 2014 | Sport
Bidvest Wits stole a late victory over Moroko Swallows last night, as the league leaders, Mamelodi Sundowns, kept their lead at the top of the table.
The Clever Boys finished 2-1 in their crucial PSL (Premier Soccer League) match against the Swallows on their home turf at Bidvest Stadium.
Despite the win, time is running out for the Wits team as they remain eight points behind the table toppers with five games left to play, despite them having two games in hand over Sundowns.
The Clever Boys will have to win their remaining fixtures and rely on other teams to get results against Sundowns in their remaining three games, if they are to lift the PSL trophy for the first time in the modern era.
GRINDING IT OUT : The clever boys celebrate after a late winner from captain, Sibusiso Vilakazi, which gave his team the crucial three points needed to remain on track with the league leaders Sundowns. Photo: Luca Kotton
On loan Sundowns midfielder, Jabulani Shongwe, who plans to ink a permanent deal at Bidvest Wits next season, told Wits Vuvuzela, “We still have hope of winning the league, we don’t know what will happen in the remaining games but we will try our best to win all our games.”
In the face of rivalry with his parent club, Sundowns, for the league title, Shongwe added, “Sundowns can slip up and we can win our remaining games to win the league … I think they will slip up. “
Wits hungry for victory
Their 2-1 victory over Moroko Swallows left the Clever Boys still in contention for this year’s hotly contested title. The performance showed a side hungry for the three points as they spent most of their time in the Dube Birds half, creating multiple goal scoring opportunities.
The deadlock was finally broken after 83 minutes as Ethiopion striker, Getaneh Gibeto, tapped in from close range after some exciting play from the captain, Sibusiso Vilakazi.
With the game looking finished, Moroko Swallows equalized with their first attempt on goal in the second half with captain, Lefa Tsutsulupa, netting for the visitors in stoppage time.
With time running out, Vilakazi netted the winner to out-do his Swallows counter-part. This sent the crowd into a frenzy as a Vilakazi’s goal gave the team and their fans new hope for the league title.
Other match results
Chiefs won their game against Polokwane 2-0 to keep the pressure on Sundowns, who were 1-0 winners against the in-form, Mpumulanga Black Aces.
by Nqobile Dludla | Apr 16, 2014 | Sport
SHOOTING MACHINE: (L-R) Goal scorer Miya Mathapelo from Medhurst and Jubilee’s goal keeper Zamokuhle Buthelezi. The fast paced match left Jubilee struggling to keep up as Medhurst dominated the last three quarters with solid goal shootings earning them a 25-9 victory over Jubilee
Medhurst Hall beat Jubilee 25-9 in the second round of the Wits internal netball league last night.
After a victorious start to the season, Medhurst finally appear to be finding some consistency, backing up last week’s thrilling win over Sunnyside with another meticulous performance against Jubilee.
Stand-in Jubilee captain, Naledi Maubane said the team played well and showed consistency despite a few errors.
“Considering the fact that some of our players are sick and couldn’t pitch, we had to make do with what we have. People were playing positions they had never played before. We played pretty well. Generally I don’t think that we’re that bad. Just the small mistakes like stepping and throw away balls is an issue,”
The fast paced match left Jubilee struggling to keep up as Medhurst dominated the last three quarters with solid goal shooting. Jubilee, as usual, produced their strongest and most consistent performance, frustrating Medhurst with their strategically high and long passes.
Locked in a goal-for-goal battle in the first quarter, Jubilee did not allow the frustration of being unable to stop Medhurst shooting machine, Miya Mathapelo, to affect their own attacking game. The first quarter ended with both teams at three all.
Heading into the second quarter, Jubilee and Medhurst proved equal to the task working the ball around the circle while waiting for spaces to open up. When they did, the results from Medhurst were spectacular, with the shooting pairing of Mathapelo and Jessica Mathekgane combining beautifully. Despite Medhurst’s dominance, Jubilee made solid advances to their goal posts attempting to score. The second quarter left Medhurst with 10 and Jubilee 5.
A couple of clumsy passes in the shooting circle between Jubilee’s goal shooter and goal attack started to decline as Jubilee continued to show strong resolve early on in the third quarter, stretching their goal attempts out to three goals. But as they tired later in the quarter, their intensity began to drop off witnessing Medhurst stretching their lead to five goals heading into the final quarter.
Medhurst continued to challenge Jubilee into making errors early in the fourth spell, quickly opening a 10 goal advantage to prompt some desperate changes to the Jubilee defence. The final quarter witnessed Medhurst emerging victorious leaving the score 25-9 in their favour.
Despite the victory, acting Medhurst captain, Merriam Maila, said “We definitely need to improve in the centre, I think when we play in the centre we’re not calm. When we’re playing we get too excited and lose focus. So we have to work on that.”
by Zelmarie Goosen | Apr 12, 2014 | Sport
by Lameez Omarjee | Apr 11, 2014 | Sport
EYE OF THE TIGER: Wits University Tang Soo Do get ready for the South African
Championships this weekend. From Left to right: Lushan Sundram, Robert Makoloane, Master Gregory Hart (trainer), Kim Lucas (Chairperson) and Ngwato Kekana
Photo: Luke Matthews
Members of the Wits Korean martial art, Tang Soo Do, are slaving away in preparation for the South African Championships to be held tomorrow, Saturday, at Old Mutual Sports Hall.
The Tang Soo Do South African Championships is the main event of the year for this martial art, and competitors come from across the country to participate. There are three national tournaments a year, one at Wits and others are held later in the year in Bloemfontein and Nelspruit, according to Titus Masike, vice-chairperson of the club.
Traditional martial art
Tang Soo Do combines traditional Korean martial arts and modern techniques of self-defence such kicking and boxing.
Last year the Wits team excelled, collecting 24 medals in total. Three members qualified for the World Championships and returned with eight medals. Masike said: “[Tang Soo Do] is the best performing martial art club at Wits probably. It is not well-known so we don’t get as much funding as we would like to.” Last weekend the team won 10 medals at the All-styles championships where they competed against Karate and Taekwando style teams.
[pullquote] “Use your mind to push through the limits of your body, to push through the pain and carry on”. [/pullquote]
Masike emphasised the importance of practising forms and stances, working on fitness, cardio and sparring (fighting). He said Tang Soo Do was strategic, “You need to think. It’s not just about overpowering [your opponent].” He said martial arts involved teaching the mind. “Use your mind to push through the limits of your body, to push through the pain and carry on”.
Practice makes perfect
Fitness is one of the key things the members are working on for Saturday. Member of the team, Shakira Minty, an Accounting student, said she was making sure that her fitness was at an acceptable level and that she was physically ready.
To handle the stress of the approaching competition, Kim Lucas, the chairperson of the club said: “A lot of us have been competing for a while so we know what to expect, but for the new people we help them a lot; we make sure they train properly and help them with anything they need”.
Nerves of steel
As for pre-competition nerves, Masike said: “At first, when you are about to get punched, you flinch. It takes a long time to get use to it before you stop [flinching].” Minty said: “Turn nervousness into excitement. Take the nervous energy and tell yourself you are excited. Nerves are normal, they are good.”
The team is positive about the competition. Ngwato Kekana, a Wits graduate has been part of the club the longest. He said: “It’s like any other tournament, just get ready for it.” Lushan Sandrum started competing this year and said: “I’m nervous but excited. There’s nothing not to be excited about.” Robert Makoloane, who use to do Karate before joining Tang Soo Do six months ago said, “I am confident, especially because I got a gold medal in my first Tang Soo Do contest [last weekend].” Their confidence is not unfounded, as proven in the past, the Wits team generally performs well, according to Lucas.
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by Luca Kotton | Apr 11, 2014 | Sport
SUPER SUBS: Erwin Issacs talks tactics with the Bidvest Wits assistant coach before him and Asive Langwe went on to change the complexion of the game.
A 1-0 VICTORY over Platinum Stars on Wednesday night have left the Clever Boys in good position going into the title finale.
The win for Bidvest Wits have put them in touch with league leaders Sundowns and Kaizer Chiefs with six games remaining for the Clever Boys.
Title Hopes
Anything can happen in an eagerly anticipated finish to the Premier Soccer League season, which sees Wits eight points off the leaders, Sundowns, with two games in hand.
The title hopes this season are shouldered upon the experienced players for Bidvest Wit. Substitute player Erwin Issacs said the Clever Boys had a chance because they were underestimated by bigger teams.
[pullquote]”…We are all about the fight, team spirit and the three points.”[/pullquote]
“People are looking at the top teams like Sundowns and Chiefs, they don’t worry about us. We will come from behind, we need to win our two games in hand and we know we only two points behind. We are all about the fight, team spirit and the three points,” Issacs said.
Bidvest Wits vs Platinum Stars
The first half of Wednesday’s match was a tactician’s dream, with both teams held to a goalless stalemate.
The second half seemed to be heading the same way, until Bivest Wits coach Gavin Hunt made a match-changing substitute in a last ditch effort to win the game.
The substitute, left-wing Asive Langwe, scored 82 minutes into the match in what would be the decisive blow as the Clever Boys held out for the win.
Next fixture
Bidvest Wits next fixture is against Moroko Swallows on April 16. The Clever Boys will have the home ground advantage and will be looking for another win.
by Tendai Dube | Apr 11, 2014 | Sport
Men’s Residence team in celebration after beating Monash 24 – 18, in the first set of Wits internal rugby league on Wednesday. Photo: Tendai Dube
The Wits internal rugby league got off to a trying start on Wednesday.
Knockando and Humanities supporters left after both of their teams didn’t pitch up for their matches.
“Knockando thought their game only started at 8.30pm and Humanities said they didn’t know they were starting this week,” said Masakhane player Junior Mnisi.
Despite the delayed kick-off, Masakhane thrashed the Engineers in a 38 – 0 win. The SA Union of Jewish Students team and Commerce wound up playing each other after their opponents didn’t pitch up. Commerce won that match 36 -24.
Despite the confusion, the cool night and the 90 minute delay in starting the match, the fans who caught on took to the stands excitedly and not a little rowdy.
The loudest bunch were the fans from Men’s res, who cheered and stamped through their team’s victory, 24-18, over Monash.
As soon as Men’s res won, their fans emptied the bleachers and rushed onto the field with singing and cheering.
The Men’s residence fans formed up in a circle on the field and posed for pictures, bringing the first night of amateur rugby to a close.
The Humanities team won the Wits Internal League last season and competed in the Varsity Cup Koshuis tournament. A new season and the title are all up for grabs again.
by Luca Kotton | Apr 9, 2014 | Sport
This year’s Varsity Cup tournament ended with an unlikely finish when Ikeys came back from an 18-point deficit with six minutes remaining to claim the title.
University of Cape Town Ikeys took the match, 39-33, in the Monday match against NWU-Pukke, which left the hometown crowd in Potchefstroom disappointed.
The Pukke were left with a sour taste in their mouth after they threw away a guaranteed victory with a rash drop goal by flyhalf, Johnny Welthagen, after the final hooter which could have been kicked into touch for a victory.
Ikeys ran over the whitewash after 83 minutes to a thrilling victory, which left the UCT fans at their Cape Town fan park in delirium.
Two controversial tries were disallowed by the television match official. The decision left the 7 900 Potch fans at the stadium feeling hard done by, as it left Pukke without a trophy after topping the log all season.
Disappointment was nothing to new to fans of the Wits varsity rugby team, which lost all seven of their games this year and have been relegated to Varsity Shield.
NEXT YEAR:A full Wits rugby stadium shows their support while singing the South Africa national anthem. The Witsies will battle their way into the Varsity Cup next season after being relegated this year. Photo: Caro Malherbe
University of Johannesburg was in a danger of being relegated but were able to fight for their place in the Varsity Cup in a play-off match against the University of KwaZulu-Natal. UJ was able to keep their spot with a decisive 42-8 victory.
by Lameez Omarjee | Apr 8, 2014 | Sport
KICKING IT: Kim Lucas and Mlami Ncontsa train for the South African Championships taking place this coming weekend. Photo: Lameez Omarjee
The Wits Tang Soo Do came away with 10 medals at the national all-styles championships in Vanderbjilpark last weekend.
The outstanding performance of the team means that a few of them are now eligible for the world championships in September this year.
Kim Lucas, B.Com student and chairman of the club, explained that competitors who win a gold medal qualify for the world championships but the results are still be to be confirmed.
Ipeleng Malope, 4th year Chemical Engineering, won three medals, one of which was a silver for sparring (fighting). When Wits Vuvuzela asked him why he chose Tang Soo Do as a sport, Malope said, “Because I get to beat people up! Just kidding … It’s a martial art and I need discipline and the fitness [the training provides].”
[pullquote]”Tang Soo Do is a traditional Korean martial art, modified to incorporate modern techniques”[/pullquote]
Lucas won gold and silver medals. Team members Robert Makoloane received gold, Ngwato Kekana walked away with a silver and Lushan Sundram received two bronze medals. Team instructor, and one of the competitors, Tommie Strydom received silver.
Tang Soo Do is a traditional Korean martial art, modified to incorporate modern techniques like kicking, boxing pressure points and grappling. The group is trained by master Gregory Hart and Tommie Strydom, both black belts in the sport. The club is still quite small, and has about 40 active members.
The group is presently training for the South African Championships which takes place on Saturday, March 12 at Old Mutual Sports Hall from 7am to 5pm.
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by Luca Kotton | Mar 29, 2014 | Sport
by Lutho Mtongana | Mar 24, 2014 | News, Sport
An investigation into the newly-crowned Miss Wits Varsity Cup has been launched following accusations of cheating during the pageant.
Wits Vibe, the managers of the Miss Wits Varsity Cup competition, has confirmed that it is investigating the Facebook votes for Callie Shepherd, Miss Wits Varsity Cup 2014.
The Facebook voting was part of the social media category of the competition.
The winner was the contestant who received the most ‘likes’ on her photo album. Shepherd came in third in this category, contributing to her overall win as Miss Wits Varsity cup.
Lynette Sciolla, former Miss Wits Varsity Cup 2013 and the co-ordinator for the 2014 competition, said the investigation was launched on Thursday, March 20.
Shepherd was officially crowned during the UCT vs Wits rugby game
UNDER INVESTIGATION: Miss Wits Varsity Cup 2014, Callie Shepherd(left) smiles with Miss Joburg 2013 Anushka Kapp after her victory on Monday.
Photo: Luca Kotton
last Monday, March 17.
Facebook controversy
After a staggering increase in Shepherd’s Facebook likes over a 24-hour period, just two days before the crowning, accusations of cheating were posted to the competition’s official Facebook page.
[pullquote]“I know I’d never ever do anything to rig the votes. I spoke to everyone that I knew, I spoke to my aunt to phone radio stations.”[/pullquote]
“It [the rumour] started when Callie’s votes shot up, she had about 300 votes and all the other girls had 800 to 900 votes,” said Sciolla. “Then Callie’s votes shot up to about 800 more [than her competitors]”.
Shepherd’s response
Shepherd denied rigging her Facebook votes and said her late surge came after she began campaigning for votes at the urging of the contest’s organisers.
She said that while she had a large number of votes outside of South Africa, this was because of friends and supporters living abroad.
“I know I’d never ever do anything to rig the votes. I spoke to everyone that I knew, I spoke to my aunt to phone radio stations. I have a very close friend who just recently moved to Shanghai. I’ve got friends in Chicago, New Zealand, that explains some of the foreign accounts,” said Shepherd.
Shepherd said she didn’t have a problem with the investigation since she had not done anything wrong. She hopes to win over her detractors.
“I hope people would give me a chance because they don’t know me and once they get to know me they won’t have a problem with the fact that I won,” Shepherd said.
“I’m really disappointed that I did not get the support from people that I feel like I deserve.”
Sciolla said the social media component of the competition contributed to 35% of the overall points each contestant had.
The other points included interviews for 40%, photo shoots for 20% and voting for fellow contestants counted for 5%.
Sciollo said the controversy resulted in hostile comments directed at Shepherd on the Miss Wits Varsity Cup Facebook page, the worst of which have been deleted.
The investigation is still ongoing and a result will be reached soon. Sciollo said Shepherd would remain Miss Wits Varsity Cup unless hard evidence of cheating was discovered.
“If the winner does have a discrepancy with her votes then the first princess is the one who takes over [the title],” she said.
The Miss Wits Varsity Cup 2014 first princess was Nthabiseng Makgabo.
The competition received more than 80 applications which were narrowed down to five finalists, Shepherd, Makgabo, Nqobile Mahlambi, Lizar Madhomu and Jessica Tovey.
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by Tracey Ruff | Mar 24, 2014 | Sport
The Wits Men’s Water Polo club has climbed from league bottom dwellers only a few years ago to top of the log after winning the Gauteng 3rd Division Cup and finishing top of their league.
The team has seen dramatic improvement under new coach, Kelsey White, who took the reins in August last year.
“The guys needed a decent coach,” White told Wits Vuvuzela.
White, who has played water polo internationally, attributes the team’s success to “good spirit, dedication and hard work in training sessions.”
Team captain Bjorn Eggers, 3rd year MBBCh, feels that there is “great commitment” from the players.
“[There] is no hierarchy in the team [and] all the guys are really humble. Everyone just keeps each other motivated,” he said.
“The coach has been fantastic.”
When asked about how he balances studying medicine with playing water polo, Eggers said it was all a matter of balance.
“[It’s] really difficult to balance study and play,” he said. However, “[sport] is so important for mental and physical well-being.”
Player Richard Fisher, 4th year BSc Mechanical Engineering, hopes that the club will go from strength-to-strength and get more exposure. “Water polo is a relatively small sport [but] there has recently been a lot more interest from matric-leaving students,” said Fisher.
Although one should be fairly fit to play, there are no prerequisites for Witsies wanting to join the club.
Fisher said that even knowing how to swim was not a prerequisite though it would “help”.
The team played their last match of the season on March 16 and ended it off with a super splash of success.
Playing against Pretoria Old Boys in the final of the Gauteng 3rd Division Cup, Wits managed to take the match after four chukkas of 12 minutes, eight goals to six.
Wits experienced a late challenge after halftime when Pretoria changed tactics and managed to score several quick goals early in the third chukka.
“We luckily managed to halt and keep them at bay for the rest of the game,” said Fisher.
Wits goalkeeper and vice captain, Murray Dryden, had a superb game managing to save two penalties and several one-on-ones.
The team aims to capitalise on their success when the new season starts again.
A (GOAL)DEN MOMENT: It was a nail-biting match for the water polo Witsies held at Jeppe Boys High on March 15. Photo: Tracey Ruff
