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Varsity Cup kicks off: UFS ready to shine

13 February 2025 | Story Onthatile Tikoe | Photo Supplied

Shimlas 2024 — The UFS Shimlas lifting the Varsity Cup on their home ground in Bloemfontein after their 2024 victory.

The highly anticipated Varsity Cup is finally here, and the University of the Free State (UFS) is buzzing with excitement! The tournament, which features the top university rugby teams in South Africa, promises to deliver thrilling matches and intense rivalries throughout the rugby season.

After an exhilarating 2024 season, the UFS Shimlas made history by lifting the Varsity Cup trophy on their home ground in Bloemfontein. The team’s impressive performance and dedication earned them a spot in the record books, and they are eager to repeat their success in 2025.

This year’s competition is scheduled to kick off on 17 February 2025 and will run for 7 weeks, with the UFS final game on 31 March 2025. The UFS Shimlas will be looking to defend their title and bring home the coveted trophy once again.

Previous winners

The Varsity Cup has a rich history, with previous winners including:

• UFS Shimlas (2015, 2024)

• Maties (Stellenbosch University, 2008-2010, 2019)

• Tuks (University of Pretoria, 2012, 2013, 2017, 2021, 2022)

• UCT Ikey Tigers (2011, 2014)

• FNB NWU (2016, 2023)

UFS ready to take on the best

The UFS Shimlas have been preparing tirelessly for the tournament, with a strong focus on teamwork, discipline, and strategy. Head Coach André Tredoux expressed his excitement about the team’s prospects: “Being the defending champions comes with a bit of pressure, but we don’t see it that way. Our motto is that we want to attack the Varsity Cup, hence the best form of defence is to attack. The boys are really excited. They played well against UJ and scored lots of tries, hence our mindset is to attack everything we put our minds to.”

UFS Shimlas Team Captain Nkoka Ngobe echoed his coach’s sentiments, reinforcing his dedication to leading the team to victory. “As the team captain, I have to lead by example and bring the culture of excellence. I will never ask my teammates to do something that I cannot do, so the important thing for me is doing what it takes so that the boys can do the same.”

Get ready for the action

The Varsity Cup promises to deliver seven weeks of non-stop rugby action, with the UFS Shimlas ready to take on the best university teams in the country. Don’t miss out on the excitement – follow the UFS Shimlas on social media to stay up to date and get ready to cheer them on to victory!

Let’s go, Shimlas!

News Archive

UFS strengthens EU cooperation

2010-04-22

Seen here are, from the left: Prof. Ezekiel Moraka, Prof. Alain Verschoren, Rector of the University of Antwerp (UA), Prof. Aldo Stroebel, and Prof. Luc D’Haese, UA Presidential Steering Committee on Internationalisation, and UFS International Advisory Board Member.
Photo: supplied

Prof. Ezekiel Moraka, Vice-Rector: External Relations, visited a number of institutions in Europe to strengthen collaboration and joint research activities. He was accompanied by Prof. Aldo Stroebel, Director: International Affairs. The Universities of Leuven and Ghent, both of which the UFS have longstanding and active agreements with, and both prominent research institutions, expressed their interest to expand and further support areas of collaboration in a number of disciplines.

The University of Antwerp, with whom the UFS has partnered in the pending Erasmus Mundus mobility partnership programme of the EU, was one of the main universities visited in the context of the Strategic Academic Clusters, long-standing collaboration in the areas of public health research and linguistics, and the exploration of international research funding opportunities.

Prof. Moraka was a special guest at the Going Global Conference in London hosted by the British Council in the session on Autonomy and Accountability: Achieving a balance between the needs of the State and tertiary education institutions. In addition, successful collaborative discussions were held at the Association for Commonwealth Universities (ACU) with Dr John Tarrant, Secretary-General, on funding opportunities for staff development and mobility support.

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