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UFS is truly proud of our Springboks

30 October 2019 | Story Ruan Bruwer | Photo Sonia Small

Like the rest of the country, we are behind our Springboks all the way. This is what Prof Francis Petersen, Rector and Vice-Chancellor of the University of the Free State (UFS), told alumnus Rassie Erasmus in a letter this week.

Prof Petersen wrote the letter to Erasmus, the head coach of the Springboks, to wish him everything of the best in the team’s preparation and for the game on Saturday (2 November 2019) at which they face England in the Rugby World Cup final in Japan.

"On behalf of the staff and students of the University of the Free State, I would like to wish you and the Springbok team all the best with your preparations this week and for the final. I know that Saturday’s match will be played with vigour and determination,” Prof Petersen wrote.

Prof Petersen said the UFS community was extremely proud of the Springboks’ achievements during the 2019 Rugby World Cup – especially with Erasmus at the helm of the team. The Boks defeated Japan in the quarter-final and Wales in the semi-final to reach their first final since 2007.

“As a former Shimla player and Kovsie Alumnus of the Year 1998, we are truly proud of what you have achieved during your career in South African rugby, and especially during the World Cup tournament. We are also proud of our other alumni – Jacques Nienaber as defence coach, and referee Jaco Peyper.”

Peyper refereed one of the quarter-finals and will be an assistant referee in the bronze medal play-off between New Zealand and Wales on 1 November 2019.

Under Erasmus the Springboks won the Rugby Championship this year, the first time since 2010. Erasmus and Nienaber have a long relationship. They met in the army in 1991. Later Nienaber served as physiotherapist with the Shimlas and Erasmus captained the team. They worked together at the Cheetahs, Cats, Stormers, Munster and now the Springboks.

News Archive

Prof Moffett’s third book provides comprehensive guide to Basotho medicinal plants

2017-07-26

Prof Rodney Moffett’s three books documenting Basotho
plants, animals, and the history of the Free State and Lesotho.
Photo: Thabo Kessah

Prof Rodney Moffett has recently published his third book, Basotho Medicinal Plants – Meriana ya Dimela Tsa Basotho. This latest offering deals only with medicinal uses and is based on the data from his first book, Sesotho Plant and Animal Names and Plants Used by the Basotho.

“The latest book came about after a Sesotho language advisor in the Free State Department of Education suggested that there was a need for the medicinal uses of plants by the Basotho to be documented in the vernacular. In a situation where there is an almost total lack of scientific literature in the vernacular, the greatest value of this book therefore, is that it provides a comprehensive guide to the medicinal uses of plants in Sesotho,” said Prof Moffett, Honorary Research Associate in the Department of Plant Sciences on the Qwaqwa Campus.

Book lists names of plants in Sesotho
“It comprises two parts. Part one lists the medicinal categories and plants used, and part two lists the medicinal uses arranged according to the Sesotho names of the plants. It is easy to read, as the information is presented alphabetically with the Sesotho name first, followed by the scientific name and usage thereof. Because a plant often has more than one Sesotho name, the scientific name is included to identify it.”

Prof Chris Nhlapo, Deputy Vice-Chancellor of the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, and Prof Ntsamaeeng Moteetee from the University of Johannesburg are impressed with the book, respectively saying that it assists in documenting the deep indigenous knowledge of the “proud tradition of the Basotho Nation” and it is “an important contribution to the documentation of medicinal plant uses”.

The title of Prof Moffet’s second book was A Biographical Dictionary of Contributors to the Natural History of the Free State and Lesotho.

Prof Moffett was honoured with a Lifetime Researcher Award during the Academic and Research Awards on the Qwaqwa Campus in November.

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