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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

New SRC Sport talks about campus pride
2014-10-21

Media Studies and Journalism student, Dominique de Gouveia, can attest to the fact that you need to take all the small steps before you make the giant leap.

As Residence Committee member for Sport since her first year, Dominique found the transition to the Student Representative Council (SRC) merely a case of now putting on the striped blazer. Having worked closely with Lourika Hugo, previous SRC Sport, there was not really much that she had to take grasp of.

“Our varsity has almost the same sport fixtures every year, so once you understand it, it should not be that difficult to follow through,” says Dominique confidently.

“You need to set goals in order to achieve them. I quickly realised that this is what I want to do. Sport is very big on our campus among the students and in my term I want other channels to realise the importance of sport.”

“The motto of previous SRC Sport, Tshepo Moli, was ‘transformation in sport’, which can indeed make a social impact on our varsity.”

“Through sport, our varsity can take pride in showing diversity.”

The variety of sports Dominique enjoys playing and watching, shows just how much she really loves what she is doing.

“My favourite sports have to be soccer and squash. But after watching the Varsity Netball this season, it made me wish that I had learnt how to play netball as far back as high school.”

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