1996 Currie Cup
| 1996 Currie Cup | |
|---|---|
| Champions | Natal Sharks |
| Runners-up | Gauteng Lions |
|
← 1995 1997 → | |
The 1996 Currie Cup (known as the Bankfin Currie Cup for sponsorship reasons) was the 58th season in the competition since it started in 1889.
Competition
Regular season and title play offs
There were 14 participating teams in the 1996 Currie Cup, divided into two sections - Section A and Section B. These teams played each other twice over the course of the season, once at home and once away.
Teams received two points for a win and one points for a draw.
The top 4 teams in each section qualified for the title play-offs. In the quarter finals, the team that finished first in each section had home advantage against the team that finished fourth in the other section, while the team that finished second in each section had home advantage against the team that finished third in each section. The winners of these quarter finals will advance to the semi-finals (where the first placed team in each section will have home advantage over the second placed team in the other section if the quarter final ties went according to form). The semi-finalist winners will advance to the final, at the home venue of the higher-placed team.
Teams
Section A
Section B
Changes from 1995
Following the 1995 Rugby World Cup, rugby union was declared in a professional sport in South Africa. This caused a major restructuring in the rugby unions, which saw the total number of unions reduced from 22 to 14. All of these teams played in the 1996 Currie Cup, which was increased from 6 teams to 14. There were also several name changes to reflect the professional era:
Name changes:
- Blue Bulls (formerly Northern Transvaal)
- Free State Cheetahs (formerly Free State)
- Gauteng Lions (formerly Transvaal)
- Mighty Elephants (formerly Eastern Province)
- Natal Sharks (formerly Natal)
Promoted teams:
- Boland Cavaliers (formerly Boland)
- Border Bulldogs (formerly Border)
- Falcons (formerly South Eastern Transvaal)
- Griquas (formerly Griqualand West)
- Griffons (formerly Northern Free State)
- Leopards (formerly Western Transvaal)
- Pumas (formerly Eastern Transvaal)
- SWD Eagles (formerly South Western Districts)
Dissolved teams:
- Eastern Free State (absorbed into Griffons)
- Far North (absorbed into Blue Bulls)
- Lowveld (absorbed into Pumas)
- North Eastern Cape (absorbed into Border Bulldogs and Mighty Elephants)
- North Western Cape (absorbed into Griquas)
- Northern Natal (absorbed into Natal Sharks)
- Stellaland (absorbed into Leopards)
- Vaal Triangle (absorbed into Falcons)
Team Listing
Log
| ||||||||||||
| Team | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Points For | Points Against | Points Difference | Tries For | Tries Against | Points | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Natal Sharks | 12 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 673 | 212 | +461 | 97 | 20 | 24 | |
| 2 | Gauteng Lions | 12 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 456 | 252 | +204 | 53 | 25 | 19 | |
| 3 | Falcons | 12 | 6 | 2 | 4 | 292 | 363 | +71 | 30 | 42 | 14 | |
| 4 | Boland Cavaliers | 12 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 250 | 308 | -58 | 25 | 35 | 12 | |
| 5 | Mighty Elephants | 12 | 3 | 1 | 8 | 245 | 341 | -96 | 25 | 38 | 7 | |
| 6 | Border Bulldogs | 12 | 2 | 2 | 8 | 244 | 422 | -178 | 26 | 50 | 6 | |
| 7 | Leopards | 12 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 268 | 530 | -262 | 22 | 68 | 2 | |
| ||||||||||||
| Team | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Points For | Points Against | Points Difference | Tries For | Tries Against | Points | ||
| 1 | Blue Bulls | 12 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 707 | 207 | +500 | 93 | 23 | 22 | |
| 2 | Free State Cheetahs | 12 | 9 | 1 | 2 | 558 | 280 | +278 | 75 | 28 | 19 | |
| 3 | Western Province | 12 | 8 | 0 | 4 | 537 | 249 | +288 | 74 | 27 | 16 | |
| 4 | Griquas | 12 | 7 | 1 | 4 | 437 | 322 | +115 | 58 | 31 | 15 | |
| 5 | Pumas | 12 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 281 | 552 | -271 | 34 | 77 | 6 | |
| 6 | Griffons | 12 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 243 | 529 | -286 | 24 | 73 | 6 | |
| 7 | SWD Eagles | 12 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 216 | 840 | -624 | 23 | 122 | 0 | |
| The top 4 teams in each section qualified for the Title Play-Off Quarter Final games. Points breakdown: *2 points for a win *1 point for a draw | ||||||||||||
Results
- Griquas 15 - 42 Blue Bulls ()
- Griquas 17 - 47 Blue Bulls
- Cheetahs 27 – 25 Blue Bulls ()
- Cheetahs 30 – 51 Blue Bulls ()
- Falcons 22 – 80 Blue Bulls ()
- Falcons 24 – 72 Blue Bulls ()
- WP 20 – 51 Blue Bulls ()
- WP 16 – 27 Blue Bulls ()
- Griffons 7 – 56 Blue Bulls ()
- Griffons 8 – 53 Blue Bulls ()
- SWD 8 – 147 Blue Bulls ()
- SWD 13 – 56 Blue Bulls ()
Title Play-Off Games
Quarter Finals
Semi-Finals
Final
External links
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