The 2014 Varsity Rugby competitions were contested from 27 January to 7 April 2014.[1] Varsity Rugby is the collective name of four rugby union competitions played between several university teams in South Africa, with the Varsity Cup being the premier competition. The 2014 season was the seventh edition of this tournament.
Rules
All four 2014 Varsity Rugby competitions used a different scoring system to the regular system. Tries were worth five points as usual, but conversions were worth three points, while penalties and drop goals were only worth two points.[2]
All Varsity Cup games also had two referees officiating each game,[3]props' jerseys featured a special gripping patch to ensure better binding, intended to reduce collapsing scrums[4] and the mark was extended to the entire field.[5]
TUT Vikings remain in the Varsity Shield for 2015.
Young Guns
Competition Rules
There were eight participating universities in the 2014 Young Guns competition. These teams were divided into two pools (the FNB pool and the Steinhoff pool) and played the other teams in the pool once over the course of the season, either home or away.
Teams received four points for a win and two points for a draw. Bonus points were awarded to teams that scored four or more tries in a game, as well as to teams that lost a match by seven points or less. Teams were ranked by log points, then points difference (points scored less points conceded).
The top two teams in each pool qualified for the title play-offs. In the semi-finals, the teams that finished first had home advantage against the teams that finished second in their respective pools. The winners of these semi-finals played each other in the final.[8]
Points breakdown: *4 points for a win *2 points for a draw *1 bonus point for a loss by seven points or less *1 bonus point for scoring four or more tries in a match
Fixtures and results
The 2014 Varsity Young Guns fixtures were as follows:[10]
There were eight participating teams in the 2014 Koshuis Rugby Championship competition, the winners of the internal leagues of each of the eight Varsity Cup teams. These teams were divided into two pools and each team played every team in their pool once over the course of the season, either home or away.
Teams received four points for a win and two points for a draw. Bonus points were awarded to teams that scored four or more tries in a game, as well as to teams that lost a match by seven points or less. Teams were ranked by log points, then points difference (points scored less points conceded).
The top two teams in each pool qualified for the semi-finals.
The league standings for the 2014 Koshuis Rugby Championship were:
2014 Koshuis Rugby Championship log
Pos
Team
Pl
W
D
L
PF
PA
PD
TF
TA
TB
LB
Pts
* Legend: Pos = Position, Pl = Played, W = Won, D = Drawn, L = Lost, PF = Points for, PA = Points against, PD = Points difference, TF = Tries for, TA = Tries against, TB = Try bonus points, LB = Losing bonus points, Pts = Log points
Mopanie and Vishuis qualified to the final.
Points breakdown: *4 points for a win *2 points for a draw *1 bonus point for a loss by seven points or less *1 bonus point for scoring four or more tries in a match
Fixtures and results
The 2014 Koshuis Rugby Championship fixtures were as follows:[citation needed]