(Redirected from Lions (rugby franchise))
The 'Lions', known as the 'Cats' through the
2006 season, are a
South African
rugby union team competing in the
Super 14 competition. They have not achieved great success in the Super 12 competition, finishing on the bottom of the table three times, with their best performances being in 2000 and 2001, when they reached the semi-finals. The current team captain is
Ernst Joubert, who replaced
André Pretorius early in the 2007 season.
The Lions play in a red and white strip. For a time, the team faced relegation from the Super 14 after the
Southern Spears won a court ruling that they be included in the competition in place of the lowest ranked South African team in the 2006 competition.
[1] However, the Spears and the country's national federation, the
South African Rugby Union, reached a settlement of their legal case. By the terms of the settlement, announced on
November 16,
2006, the financially troubled Spears abandoned their case, ensuring the Lions a place in the competition for the foreseeable future.
[1]
History
Transvaal/Lions
When the
Super 12 was launched in 1996, both Australia and New Zealand created franchise-based models for their teams in the new tournament. South Africa however, used the previous seasons
Currie Cup to determine what provinces would be promoted to the new international tournament. The
Transvaal Rugby Union were promoted in the
first ever season, winning three of their 11 fixtures, finishing in 10th position on the end of season ladder, above the
Canterbury Crusaders and the
Western Province.
Transvaal were again promoted to the Super 12 for the
1997 season, and played under the title of the Gauteng Lions. The Lions' season was a lot more successful than their results in the inaugural season. The Lions won and lost five matches, and drawing one, to finish in fifth place overall on the end of season table, two points behind the fourth-placed
Natal Sharks, narrowly missing out on a place in the finals.
Cats
For the
1998 season SA Rugby changed the Currie Cup qualfication process for the Super 12, following Australia and New Zealand by forming provincial franchises. The Cats, or Golden Cats were established as one of the four new franchises, and were centered around the
Golden Lions, as well as the Leopards and
Pumas, as well as drawing from the Free State, Griffons and Griquas. The Cats home ground was to be Ellis Park.
The Cats did not make the finals in their first two seasos.
2000 season. After defeating the Bulls in
Pretoria in the opening round, they went onto defeat the
Stormers at home in round two. However, the Cats' good fortunes soon went sour as they fell to four straight losses, even going down 64 to nil to the
Brumbies. The losing streak was snapped when the Cats pulled off a one point victory over the Sharks in
Durban. Following a bye, the Cats stormed through the remainder of the season undefeated to finish in fourth position, their best finish yet, as well as qualifying for a semi-final.
The semi-final was played at the Brumbies' home ground in
Canberra, with the homeside winning 28 points to three to knock the Cats out of the finals. The
2001 Super 12 season started off in a positive style for the Cats; defeating the Stormers 29 to 24, and then crushing the Highlanders 56 to 21, as well as narrowly losing a reply of last season's semi-final against the Brumbies, 17 to 19. The Cats qualified for the finals again, finishing in third place, another bettering last season's fourth. However they were again knocked out in the semi-finals, losing 30 to 12 to the Sharks. The Cats did not qualify for the finals the next few seasons. Then the Super 12 was expanded into the
Super 14 for the
2006 season, with the addition of two new teams; the
Central Cheetahs and the
Western Force. The Cats finished in 13th place overall.
Lions
On
8 September 2006, the Golden Lions Rugby Union, the company that operates both the Golden Lions and the Cats, announced that the team would be known in the future as the Lions, and unveiled a new logo.
[2][3]
Location
They are based in
Johannesburg, and have always been centred around the
Lions union (Johannesburg), drawing players from that union since the inception of the competition as Super 12 in
1996. Currently, they also draw players from the
Leopards (
North West) and
Pumas (
Mpumalanga) unions. Through
2005, the Cats drew from the two unions based in
Free State—the
Free State Cheetahs (
Bloemfontein) and
Griffons (
Welkom)—and the
Griquas (
Northern Cape), but that arrangement ended when the
Central Cheetahs became South Africa's new Super 14 franchise.
The Cheetahs now draw their players from Free State, Griffons and Griquas, while the Leopards and Pumas were moved from the franchise area of the
Bulls to that of the Cats. Prior to 1998, the Cats (more accurately, the Golden Lions) competed in the then-Super 12 as Transvaal, as South Africa then sent its top four unions to the Super 12 instead of franchises, and Transvaal qualified both years.
Stadium
The Lions' homeground is at the
Ellis Park Stadium, usually known as just Ellis Park. The stadium is in Johannesburg. Ellis Park hosted a number of matches at the
1995 Rugby World Cup, including the final, which was played out between the
All Blacks and
South Africa, which saw South Africa win the
William Webb Ellis Cup in an emotional final.
Current squad
Cats logo.
:''See also:
SARugby.net
2007 Super 14 table
Season standings
:
| Season | Pos | Pld | W | D | L | F | A | +/- | BP | Pts | Notes |
|---|
| 1996 | '10th' | 11 | 3 | 0 | 8 | 228 | 299 | -71 | 4 | '16' | As Transvaal |
| 1997 | '5th' | 11 | 5 | 1 | 5 | 302 | 346 | -44 | 6 | 28 | As Gauteng Lions (Transvaal) |
| 1998 | '12th' | 11 | 2 | 0 | 9 | 266 | 346 | -80 | 7 | '15' | |
| 1999 | '11th' | 11 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 312 | 341 | -29 | 6 | '22' | |
| 2000 | '4th' | 11 | 7 | 0 | 4 | 320 | 334 | -14 | 4 | '32' | Lost semi-final to ACT Brumbies |
| 2001 | '3rd' | 11 | 7 | 0 | 4 | 285 | 244 | +41 | 6 | '34' | Lost semi-final to Sharks |
| 2002 | '11th' | 11 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 217 | 370 | -153 | 2 | '6' | |
| 2003 | '12th' | 11 | 2 | 0 | 9 | 259 | 398 | -139 | 4 | '12' | |
| 2004 | '12th' | 11 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 294 | 459 | -165 | 7 | '11' | |
| 2005 | '11th' | 11 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 226 | 326 | -100 | 7 | '13' | |
| 2006 | '13th' | 13 | 2 | 1 | 10 | 220 | 405 | -185 | 5 | '15' | |
| 2007 | '12th' | 13 | 5 | 0 | 8 | 175 | 284 | -109 | 2 | '22' | |
References
1. Spears abandon their Super conquest
2. From Cats to Lions ... the new look
3. Golden Lions Rugby Union announces new Lions International Brand
External links
★
CatsRugby.co.za
★
lionsrugby.co.za
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