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14 April 2022 | Story Jóhann Thormählen
Shimlas
Jooste Nel was one of the Shimla stars in 2022. The centre was chosen as the Player That Rocks against the Madibaz this week. Photo: ASEM Engage, Ian Fairley

It was their aim to entertain, and now the University of the Free State (UFS) Shimlas want to continue in the same vein in front of their home fans in the Varsity Cup semi-final that will be played on Shimla Park on the Bloemfontein Campus on Monday 18 April 2022 at 19:00.

According to Thabang Mahlasi, the Shimla captain, his side is excited to have a home advantage against the University of Pretoria (UP) Tuks and would like to reward their supporters by scoring more tries.

The Shimlas also got their faithful involved this week by launching an ‘Every Fellow’ campaign on social media to encourage supporters to stand together and sing the Shimla song.

One of the Shimlas’ biggest fans, Prof Francis Petersen, Rector and Vice-Chancellor of the UFS, says he will cheer on the team, wishing for another Varsity Cup trophy if the UFS reaches the final. “The UFS is home to top sports stars and winning the Varsity Rugby Cup – following our triumph in the Varsity Netball competition – will be great. Good luck to the team and know that every fellow Kovsie is behind you.”  

Big turnaround
The UFS defeated the Nelson Mandela University 72-24 in Gqeberha in its last league match this week to end first on the log. It was the fourth time in 2022 that the Shimlas scored 50 points or more.

This means they will host UP Tuks, who finished fourth, at Shimla Park on Monday, while the University of Cape Town and Stellenbosch University will play in Cape Town in the other semi-final.

The UFS play against the defending champions in the semi-final in what will be a tight affair. In a previous encounter with UP Tuks this month, Shimlas won 26-15.

It was quite a turnaround for the Shimlas, who finished seventh last year. It will be the first time since 2019 that they play in a semi-final.

“What a big confidence booster to play in front of our own supporters,” says Mahlasi.

“Apart from that, we don’t have to travel, which means our bodies will be fresh come Monday.”

He thanked the fans for their continued support and says, “they will be in for quite a show on Monday”.

Sign of unity
The Shimlas got their supporters behind them with a campaign on their Instagram page (@shimlasrugby). Fans can win money if they sing the Shimla song, ‘Every Fellow’, in a video, or use the audio with their favourite Shimla memory.

Mahlasi says the idea is to get fans to sing the song to motivate the team while playing.

“And also, after the game it would be nice if we could all stand and sing together. As a sign of unity.”

“Our main focus is scoring tries,” says Mahlasi.

“For us, it’s not about the semi-final. For us, it’s just another opportunity to score as many tries as we can.”

News Archive

Team on the way to SIFE world cup
2007-07-16

 

A team of students from the University of the Free State (UFS) has won a national competition in business skills and entrepreneurship, and will be representing South Africa at the Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE) World Cup in New York later this year.

The SIFE World Cup will be held in New York from 10 to 12 October, and will feature student teams from 40 countries.

Antonia Gumede, a UFS student, says the competition involves students developing sustainable business models based in the community, which are evaluated in terms of entrepreneurship, financial literacy, business ethics, market economics and success skills.

Gumede says the UFS entry won first prize in all five categories at this year’s national competition.

The UFS team consisted of seven students and two faculty advisers, and included a diverse group of students studying in fields such as accounting, psychology, social science and actuarial science.

The UFS won the national SIFE competition for three years in a row – 2002, 2003 and 2004. This year (2007), the UFS team emerged as the winner for the fourth time.

The Co-ordinator of Community Service in the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences, Tessa Ndlovu, attributes the success of the team to the university’s policy of community service learning, which she says motivates students to get involved in academically grounded projects that contribute to the well-being of the community.

“The financial, academic and emotional support from the Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences, as well as the faculty’s contribution to community service learning on the campus, contributes to the success of the team,” added Ndlovu.

The UFS SIFE team has been sweeping the board nationally. They first won the competition in 2002 and went on to represent the country at the SIFE World Cup in Amsterdam (the Netherlands), where they came fourth out of 33 countries.

In the following year (2003), the SIFE UFS team was once again crowned the national champion and went on to represent South Africa internationally, coming second in Mainz, Germany.

SIFE teams spend the academic year conducting projects that specifically meet the communities’ unique needs. These efforts assist aspiring entrepreneurs, struggling business owners, low-income families and children by teaching them how to succeed in a global market economy.

“Teams have the tremendous asset of learning from business experts who serve on their Business Advisory Boards. These people not only provide mentorship and guidance to them in terms of their projects, but also introduce them to other leaders in the community and give them access to needed resources,” said Nldovu.

“It is an unparalleled feeling to know that the contribution we as students make in our communities actually matters,” added Gumede.

Media release
Issued by: Mangaliso Radebe
Assistant Director: Media Liaison
Tel: 051 401 2828
Cell: 078 460 3320
E-mail: radebemt.stg@mail.ufs.ac.za  
16 July 2007
 

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