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The South African
2 days ago
- Sport
- The South African
RWC 1995 anniversary: Remembering Joost van der Westhuizen
Next Tuesday will officially mark the 30th anniversary of the 1995 World Cup final, a match in which Joost van der Westhuizen pulled off one of the all-time great tackles on All Blacks superstar Jonah Lomu. That was just one special moment in a career littered with heroic acts from Van der Westhuizen, who is undoubtedly one of the greatest Springboks to have ever donned the green and gold. Tragically, Joost is one of five Springbok players from that RWC final who has passed away. In the second part of this remembrance series, we look back at the career of the legendary scrumhalf. You can find part one here Van der Westhuizen added a Tri-Nations and two Currie Cup titles to his honours roll in a career that lasted eight years beyond the 1995 World Cup. He went on to represent the Boks at the 1999 and 2003 World Cups before retiring as the then most-capped Springbok. Capped 89 times for the Springboks Joost became the country's first choice scrumhalf in the mid-to-late nineties to early 2000s retiring a rugby legend with a career test try tally of 38 earning him the record of being the scrum-half with the most tries in Test Rugby. Inducted in the International Rugby Hall of Fame in 2007 he represented South Africa in three Rugby World Cups in 1995, 1999 and 2003. Of course one of his most iconic moments came during the famous 1995 triumph when he completed an incredible tackle on Lomu. He is also the only Springbok to captain his country in both the Sevens and the 15-man games in World Cups. After retirement, stints in front of the cameras at SuperSport followed briefly before he moved into other avenues of business. Van der Westhuizen was diagnosed with motor neurone disease in 2011, an illness he fought until he passed away at the age of 45 in 2017. The J9 Foundation, founded in 2012, assists other MND sufferers, and Van der Westhuizen's family remains actively involved with this charity. *Keep an eye on TheSouthAfrican as the four remaining articles in this remembrance content series will be published over the next few days Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 0211. Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
The Irish Sun
02-06-2025
- Sport
- The Irish Sun
‘Hello June' – Peter O'Mahony's wife cheers him on during last game from afar in picturesque setting
PETER O'Mahony's wife Jessica roared him on from afar as his last Munster match ended in as heartbreaking of a fashion as possible. Durban, South Africa was the setting as the Reds were 6 Jessica and their kids said hello to June by visiting Barley Cove 6 Last month she said of the Cork beach that there's 'nowhere better when the sun shines' 6 Grandmother O'Mahony with her three grandchildren Indie, Theo and Ralph 6 Like many Munster fans, she was irritated by Jaden Hendrikse's conduct during the shoot-out Jessica was back home in their native Cork - roughly 13,500 km away. Nonetheless, that didn't stop her from She posted a snap of him supposedly being struck down with a calf cramp moments after converting one of his kicks - thus delaying Jack Crowley's attempt. Her caption of "This guy? Bad form" spoke for a large swathes of the province's fanbase. Read More On Irish Sport It is of course impossible for anyone other than the Sharks scrum-half to know definitively whether he did genuinely cramp up or whether it was an act of gamesmanship. Those of a South African persuasion have pointed to the manner with which his calf muscles were tensed up - although his wink to Crowley was definitely unnecessary no matter what. Even former Munster head honcho and current Springboks chief Rassie Erasmus The 52-year-old tweeted a zoomed in photo of Hendrikse's legs, seemingly showcasing that they did look to be genuinely tensed up due to a painful calf cramp. Most read in Rugby Union Alongside it, he added a caption merely containing an emoji of a man shrugging his shoulders. It's been taken as 'Jack Crowley he's coming for you' jokes Peter O'Mahony's wife Jess as son practices his rugby skills Among the replies, one person commented: "Irish, Scots and Welsh super pathetic cry babies." While Vince pointed out: "I thought this was classic. They didn't miss the kick at this interaction so no influence on the result. At least he didn't swear a book load of swear words at everyone…." Lastly, another Springbok follower added: "The Irish have to be the pettiest rugby fans on the planet. "Even when they lost against the All Blacks in the RWC there was some unsportsmanlike allegations against the ABs yet the entire rugby community had to put up with Johnny Sexton for a decade." 6 Peter, 35, watched the tail-end of the contest from the bench after being withdrawn early in the second half 6 He does still have one playing commitment left as he will line out for the Barbarians in an exhibition on June 29 Credit: @jeskaomahony Post-match, Premier Sports pundit Alan Quinlan accused the Irish side's opposition sideline of 'shocking behaviour'. He fumed: "It's shocking really, the way they're behaving, the people on the sideline there. They're obviously screaming and shouting stuff at the Munster players. "It's obviously not very sportsmanlike. Unlike Rory Scannell there to respond as well." Saturday's defeat was the final game in the Munster careers of O'Mahony, O'Mahony and Archer will be hanging up the boots for good at the end of the season, while Murray will be continuing his career abroad.
Extra.ie
17-05-2025
- Sport
- Extra.ie
Ireland star lases into 'disgraceful' IRFU as national Sevens programme is CUT
Ireland 7s star Terry Kennedy has launched a scathing criticism of the IRFU after seeing his sport's national programme cut. The Irish side competed in the Paris Olympics in 2024, where they had the help of rugby union star Hugo Keenan but ultimately finished seventh. Talismanic figure and long-serving Harry McNulty retired earlier tis year and now the curtain has come down in a more general and final sense as funding for the programme has been cut. Ireland 7s in action against Fiji in 2022. Pic: INPHO/Martin Seras Lima The news has angered Kennedy, who highlighted the other areas where the IRFU had allocated funds in recent years. He branded the official body of Irish rugby as 'disgraceful' in a wide-ranging rant unleashed off the back of the news of the sevens programme disbanding. 'Absolutely shocking from the IRFU,' he began in a post on Instagram. 'The way they've handled the whole situation is short of a disgrace. Humphreys and Potts not even having the integrity to announce this properly, instead getting a media person to put up a post, and only because their hand was forced as there was an article to be published separately. IRFU performance director David Humphreys. Pic: Brendan Moran/Sportsfile 'So disappointed for the current group of players as well as younger players coming through that they won't be afforded the same opportunities and experiences that myself and the lads have, because of the shortsightedness of a couple of old guys running the game here. 'The financial/cost-cutting excuse is complete smoke and mirrors, masquerading the fact that every RWC year Unions run at a major loss due to the lack of November international match revenue. Between funding from World Rugby for being on the World Series, Sport Ireland funding from the Olympic success and sponsorship funding, no other program outside the Men's 15s brings in anywhere near the revenue. 'No mention of the millions paid to bring foreign players over on short-term contracts and the budget to pay for committee members travelling to 6N games and tours with lunches and dinners – far more than the whole 7s budget The disrespect that the IRFU have shown to Sport Ireland and the Irish Olympic Committee after all their years of funding, utterly disgraceful.' '
Irish Daily Mirror
16-05-2025
- Politics
- Irish Daily Mirror
Men's Sevens axed: Connacht are next, Women's XV's in firing line too
So the Ireland Men's Sevens programme had to go, the IRFU saving circa €2.5m and not brooking any debate in the process - load, aim, fire, Women's international side and Connacht should be very, very relieved they dodged this bullet. It was going to be one of those three."Absolutely shocking from the IRFU," posted former Ireland Sevens player of the Year Terry Kennedy who represented Ireland at 40 different tournaments 2016-24, on Instagram. A view the legendary Brian O'Driscoll endorsed on X/twitter: "Incredibly disappointing to see the @IrishRugby mens 7's being discontinued. Have loved watching them on the @SVNSSeries over the past decade or so - more than holding their own against the best of the world's 7's teams. Understandably I'm sure there's a lot of anger & frustration within their camp."Kennedy was for going a bit further, blaming the cost of importing foreign players to play provincial rugby and overspending at committee level on food/travel to games. Continued Paris 2024 Olympian: "The way they've handled the whole situation is nothing short of a disgrace. Humphreys and Potts not even having the integrity to announce this properly, instead getting a media person to put up a post, and only because their hand was forced as there was an article about to be published separately."So disappointed for the current group of players as well as younger players coming through that they won't be afforded the same opportunities and experiences that myself and the lads have, because of the shortsightedness of a couple of old guys running the game here."The financial/cost-cutting excuse is complete smoke and mirrors, masquerading the fact that every RWC year Unions run at a major loss due to the lack of November international match revenue. "Between funding from World Rugby for being on the World Series, Sport Ireland funding from Olympic success and sponsorship funding, no other programme outside the Men's 15s brings in anywhere near the revenue."No mention of the millions paid to bring foreign players over on short-term contracts and the budget to pay for committee members travelling to 6N games and tours with lunches and dinners - far more than the whole 7s budget."The disrespect that the IRFU have shown to Sport Ireland and the Irish Olympic Committee after all their years of funding, utterly disgraceful." Strong stuff dinners and trips aside as unquantifiable, we do know there are 12 Non-Irish Eligible (NIE) players being paid a salary across the four comprise RG Snyman, Rabah Slimani, Jordie Barrett (a six-month 'short term' contract) at Leinster, Jean Kleyn, Thakir Abrahams, Alex Nankivell at Munster, Sean Reffell, Werner Kok, Aidan Morgan at Ulster, Santiago Cordero, Josh Ioane and John Porch (released mid-Feb to play Top 14 in France) at Connacht had a further five foreign players Piers O'Connor, Shamus Hurley-Langton, Bryan Ralston, Sean Jensen and Shayne Bolton who, by birth, are Irish eligible - indeed Jensen and Bolton played for Ireland 'A' last four provinces are intensely secretive about specific players wages with Leinster's three believed to have little change out of €1m, Munster's three costing circa €700k, Ulster's €700k and Connacht's three a few euros past € according to the IRFU, their men and women's Sevens programme cost €4.2m in 2023/24. Sport Ireland, who are responsible for aiding Olympic sports, can be relied upon for around €500/600k per annum. The Mens sponsorship deals with Tritonlake and Blackrock PM brings in a further € David Humphreys, current IRFU Performance Director, and the man tasked with making cutbacks following IRFU CEO Kevin Potts announcing the Union had made an €18.4m loss in 2023/ figure is real money but, as Kennedy rightly points out, it was an unusual year as a Rugby World Cup year. The IRFU don't make any money from the World Rugby-owned competition. World Rugby redistributes the profits to their 113 member of the World Cup though, the IRFU missed out on the Aviva-staged November Series games. International games are the IRFU main revenue driver with the Six Nations also coming with generous prize-money, a €6m bonus for a Grand Slam for instance. Tacitly, the loss of the three 2023 November series matches cost the IRFU circa €15m and the buck stopped with Humphreys, ordered to kill off something that was weren't many choices and, indeed, Humphreys first took a bite out of the provinces announcing last month he was raising their contribution to Central Contacts by from 30 to 40 percent from next season. This will cost Leinster €330k/Munster €500k. Of the target that could have been chosen, it is the international womens XVs programme that is losing the most money - and this is a Rugby World Cup Year for them. It was decided to pass on is a preferred target but resistance out west has stymied their being scrapped before, granting them a longer lease of life. Make no mistake, this will be back on the table in the near future, the westerners have no friends at the IRFU's big left Sevens sticking out like a sore thumb, the Mens section particularly as it is not a reliable feeder to the provinces or international XVs game - the one that makes the money. The Women's Sevens section, by contrast, backbones the XVs this completely, by the way, may come with potential Trumpian bluff benefits... If the IRFU ceases funding the Olympics sport, how much would Sport Ireland be prepared to pay to keep a discipline where Ireland are medal contenders on their roster? Maybe more than the current money they are chipping in and, after all, the IRFU could help them out, send them a few players when they are thinking of fielding a team in a competition. Hugo Keenan loves playing Sevens for fallout, and as placed squarely in the frame by Kennedy, about the financing of foreign imports' contracts continues and with Leinster attracting a lot of Cullen was, as it turned out, the visible face of Irish rugby yesterday and his Friday pre-match press conference for a game with Glasgow at the Aviva that had little or no relevance to the play-offs was always going to be a shooting gallery. And from which it is clear Leinster are frustrated with the narrative that it is all their fault. That somehow Snyman, Slimani and Barrett have been painted as modern day pirates, eye-patches, peg-legs and hooks, all cutlassas and swagbags at the ready."Every team (men's province) is self-funded here in Ireland, that is it important to understand," said an exasperated Cullen. "Sport is a business at a professional level and we want to get bums on seats. 'In terms of the foreign players that are in our 23 matchday squad this week, we want to make it exciting for fans."Because when you have moved from a few hundred people back in the day in Donnybrook to the RDS which is now being redeveloped and then, this year, to the Aviva, you need to get bums on seats. "We are running a business here. It's a self-funding business. There's 70 odd staff on the ground as well, getting rugby balls into young kids' hands. That's been funded by the professional team. "It's not like every €100 generated by the professional game goes back into the professional team. It might come back in time but it's what we call a virtuous circle. "It's not like we're looking for money from outside. We are self-funding."It's not like if Sevens have a surplus and we're looking for their money. That's not how it works. So that's what we're in control of." Get the latest sports headlines straight to your inbox by signing up for free email.
Sydney Morning Herald
16-05-2025
- Business
- Sydney Morning Herald
They thought they had bought land to build their dream homes. It all ended up in court
Purchasers of 154 blocks of land at Marsden Park in Sydney's north-west will receive $100,000 each in compensation, as well as have their deposits and stamp duty refunded, under a settlement offer in a multimillion-dollar class action. In 2020 and 2021, at the height of COVID-19, the buyers, predominantly families, signed contracts worth between $600,000 and $700,000 per block at Clydesdale Estate, nestled off Richmond Road. Each block was secured with a 10 per cent down payment, plus full stamp duty of about $30,000. Purchasers bought the blocks of land from Chinese-owned developer Boyuan Holdings Limited (BHL) and its sister company Cyan Stone, atop a web of holding companies. As the years passed, and property values boomed, the development was delayed and the lots were never handed over to the purchasers. Ownership passed to a company called Astro Fort, which then put the blocks back on the market without informing the contract holders, who found out they were for sale when real estate ads began appearing online. The settlement comes after an investigation by this masthead and A Current Affair last year revealed the complex series of dealings that left the families in limbo for five years. The deal to transfer the lots to Astro Fort in 2024 was funded by Ray White Capital (RWC), which was founded by Dan White. RWC said the project had been a disaster for 3½ years, citing weather, cost overruns, COVID-19 and 'the discovery of asbestos and waste contamination in the soil'.
