Rugby and Cricket News
Living With The Lions Sports Travel

Rugby fans in South Africa are more than delighted to see the South Africa 2009 Lions Series. The 70,000 tickets for the event have already gone on sale and are expected to sell out.

The tickets, which have been on sale since 23rd February 2009, were a part of the 2nd phase of the much awaited series. The tickets are available for seven out of the ten matches to be held.

It was a great chance for season ticket and suite ticket holders, as they got a preference in the 1st phase, as a reward for their loyalty. The tickets would be limited as they have already been committed to other stakeholders.

Nearly 30,000 tickets would be up for grabs for the Coastal XV match on 16 June in Port Elizabeth, after confirmation of the seating configuration at the Nelson Bay Mandela Stadium.

There are 2,500 test match tickets available for the 3rd test in Johannesburg at the Coca Cola Park, but the demand is so high, especially in smaller stadiums that only hospitality packages are available.

More than 50,000 Irish and British visitors are expected for the rugby tour, for which the Lions get only 11,000 tickets for every Test, leading to a further increase in demand.

The British and Irish Lions have named South African Breweries as title sponsors for their tour which will be held in South Africa after a record breaking deal of R25-million with SA rugby. This rugby tour of South Africa is to be known as the Castle SA 2009 Lion’s rugby series.

The South African Rugby Association was at the announcement. The President: Oregon Hoskins, Deputy: Mark Alexander, tour coordinator: Andre Homan, Chief Executive of SA rugby: Andy Marinos, former Bok captain: Gary Teichman, Springbok captain: John Smith and also the national coach: Peter de Villiers.

There will be around 50,000 spectators on the tour which would consist of people from Ireland and Britain visiting South Africa during the 3 test match. In addition, there will be a 10 match tour which will be held from May 30th and the projected visitor spend is said to exceed about R1- billion.
Oregon Hoskins said that this Lions rugby tour was like some kind of mini world cup. He also stated that it would probably be one of the best British and Irish Lions tours yet.

A cricket tour is expected to be cancelled by New Zealand which was supposed to be held in Zimbabwe in July. This will be a difficult decision for the Cricket Board of New Zealand as they will need to pay compensation for the potential loss to Zimbabwe. The reason for cancellation of the tour was due to health concerns in the country because of a recent breakout of cholera.

The debate over July’s cricket tour between New Zealand and Zimbabwe is ongoing; however the chances of the game to be held in Zimbabwe are growing slimmer. Prime Minister John Key spoke on local television yesterday saying that, he was ready to consider the fact that the New Zealand team shouldn’t play at this point in time. In addition, he also stated that he would be threatening the player’s personal security by sending them to play in Zimbabwe.

However, it is said that unless the government takes action the New Zealand cricket association might have to face the problem of paying a penalty to the Zimbabwe board. Nevertheless, the game being held in Zimbabwe is on the verge of being cancelled.

Despite the defeat to Grand Slam champions Wales, in Cardiff, the England rugby team have nothing to be ashamed of and should take pride in their performance.

When Martin Johnson was appointed as the manager of the national rugby team, most people in England greeted the decision with anxiety. However after the performance against Wales, people can rest much easier knowing that the manager has a rugby brain.

Unlike the messy Italian game, where the head coach was seen burying his head in his hands, against the Welsh, the world of rugby witnessed the birth of a new Martin Johnson. He rightly predicted where the Welsh attack would come from and neutralise Andy Powell by playing Joe Worsley to counteract him.

The coach of the Wales rugby team, Warren Gatland is considered to be one of the best rugby coaches in the world but the Kiwi definitely did not out think the head coach of the Lions in Cardiff.

The robust English defence was successfully in breaking wave after wave of attacks from the Welsh. The English attack was a real threat, scoring 2 tries to Wales 1, and had the Lions not conceded so many cheap penalties, the result would have been much different.

Andy Powell is all set for his first Six Nations encounter against England this weekend. He made an exceptional debut at Murrayfield and has turned himself into a strong candidate for the Lions tour. Five years back, Powell had spent six months in the family recycling business, turning his back on rugby.

Andy Powell’s assets for the Lions spot for the South African trip may be enhanced in Wales where he will play at No8 on Sunday, following the active performance that helped to defeat Scotland. Powell’s tackle on Chris Paterson at the end of the first half prevented a try which could have seen Wales’s interval lead as 16-10.

When Powell joined as a development player for Newport, he was just 18. Former Wales coach, Graham Henry, gave Powell a chance in the national squad and his play attracted several bright reviews.

He said that when he joined Newport, he was a young man who was easily led and would easily go along with the craic. There he was shown proper direction and also allowed to play his natural game.

If you are a huge rugby fan, then you simply cannot miss a rugby tour of Argentina, the land of rugby lovers. Several international rugby stars from Argentina have followers all over the world, which is why tourists take time to see them.

With a great ranking in the International Rugby Board World Rankings, Argentina boasts of talented players that can surprise the best.

Argentina has some real talented rugby players like Agustin Pichot and Felipe Contepomi, who have brought pride and passion to the national team. Argentina is a destination that every rugby follower and sports fanatic will love, which is why the number of rugby tours has only increased.

The destination is an absolute delight for tourists as there are plenty of activities to choose from. From the climate to the cuisine, everything about Argentina is interesting and different. The barbecue or asado is a lip smacking delicacy and is extremely popular in Argentina. In fact, barbecues are like a ritual and the residents take great pride in them.

Even the cost of living is quite affordable and trendy restaurants, leather goods and rugby games are all activities every tourist can enjoy easily. So kick your worries into touch and get yourself to Argentina next time there’s a tour.

India has just completed its series against Sri Lanka where they won without Harbhajan Singh. However, he is not in the mood to miss the upcoming cricket series against the Kiwis.

Harbhajan has had a hamstring injury which stopped him from boarding to Colombo. Instead he was sent to South Africa by the Indian Cricket Board to receive treatment for his injury. Following the treatment, Harbhajan Singh was quite happy and told reporters that he has finally recovered and is really looking forward to catching up with the rest of the team for the upcoming New Zealand tour.

The Indian spinner was suffering from groin pain over the last two years. The treatment break at Johannesburg kept the spinner away from international cricket commitments for quite a long time. Everyone is looking forward to seeing Harbhajan Singh taking charge of the bowling for India.

His injury had showed signs of swelling and the spinner was advised to carry on with his play while he received treatment. As the Pakistan cricket tour got cancelled, the Indian spinner got a much needed break. With the New Zealand cricket tour coming up, Harbhajan Singh is all set to make his comeback in the Indian cricket team.

The National Championships of the Under-20 rugby took place on the 4th of February. The match between East Midlands and Staffordshire was supposed to be held at Biggleswade, but was switched to Towcestrians.

The Langford Road pitch at Biggleswade had to undergo an inspection before the match, after which it was deemed unfit to play on. This decision led to the match being played in Towcestrians, an idea that was provided by East Midlands as part of their contingency plan.

Staffordshire hopes to make progress in this rugby tournament, trying to reach the finals, especially after they were beaten last season by the North Midlands at Burntwood.

The rugby match between the two teams during the National Under-20 Championship, like last time, will be looked over by a new referee, who was a nomination of the referee society of the region.

Certain referees have been segregated and identified as people who can do well due to their potential. One of these referees is Nicola Reynolds of East Midlands. Nicola will be in charge of the match that will take place between North Midlands and Warwickshire on the 8th of February at Dudley Kingswinford.

The new official captain of the England team, Andrew Strauss has asked his team to make use of the beginning of his reign as the first step towards achieving their goal of being ranked as the top test cricket team.

The four-test match series against the West Indies held at the Sabina Park, marks the beginning of England’s cricket tour to the West Indies. Strauss is all excited about this series as it is their first assignment in the New Year.

This cricket tour proved to be a springboard for the English five years ago as they beat Australia with a momentum that lasted for 18 months.

Talking about this team, Strauss said that they generally liked to think of themselves as a young team since they have a number of young players. He also added that these players are gaining more experience and hence can be considered young only in age.

The performance of the team led him to say that they needed to be among the top 11 teams in order to rise higher in their rankings. He added that success for him meant pushing each other to give a great performance and he believed that this cricket tour was the best place to start doing it.

Australia’s cricket tour of South Africa has been a much awaited event not only for both countries but for cricket fans all over the world. Although this cricket tour is getting everyone excited, there is one person who may be quite down in the dumps at the start of the tour and that is Australia’s fast bowler Stuart Clark. The bowler, who was in the New South Wales side while they were supposed to take on Tasmania, pulled out of the match due to a swelling in his elbow.

Even though Clark underwent surgery for the problem before Christmas, he will be unable to play on the South African cricket tour which will be held towards the end of February.

The Australians are looking forward to their tour of South Africa and are slowly building their momentum for the upcoming games, according to Australian vice captain, Michael Clarke. However the team is surely going to miss the fast bowler and is hopeful of a quick recovery, which will be well appreciated.