Falcons
Full nameFalcons / Valke
UnionFalcons Rugby Union
Emblem(s)Falcon
Founded1947
RegionEastern Gauteng
Ground(s)Barnard Stadium, Kempton Park (Capacity: 7,000)
Coach(es)JP Immelman
Captain(s)Dwayne Pienaar
League(s)Currie Cup First Division
2022Finals: DNQ
5th on log
Team kit
Official website
www.valke.co.za
Current season

The Falcons – better known by their Afrikaans name the Valke and now known as the Hino Valke for sponsorship reasons – are a South African rugby union team in Gauteng province that participates in the annual Currie Cup tournament.

Their home ground is Barnard Stadium in Kempton Park, to which they have returned in 2009.[1][2] The Falcons have operated from Bosman Stadium in Brakpan and Pam Brink Stadium in Springs. They occasionally still host matches at Bosman Stadium. The Falcons draw players from Ekurhuleni and other municipalities to the east and south of Johannesburg.

History

The Falcons Rugby Union was founded in 1947 as the Eastern Transvaal Rugby Football Union. After the 1995 World Cup, rugby was declared a professional sport in South Africa, after which the Eastern Transvaal Rugby Football Union merged with the Vaal Triangle Rugby Union to form the Gauteng Falcons Rugby Union. It is one of only fourteen Provincial Unions in the country.

Honours

In 2006 the Falcons were the Vodacom Cup champions,[3] the first cup won in the history of the union.

Falcons Professional Rugby

Falcons Rugby (Pty) Ltd is the arm responsible for the Falcons Brand and the operation of the Professional Rugby Team, which competes in two high-profile competitions in South African Rugby:

Amateur Union

The Community Rugby arm, known historically as the Amateur Union, maintains the structure and development of the amateur Rugby set-up for the region, and includes:

Current squad

The following players were included in the Falcons squad for the 2022 Currie Cup First Division:[5]

Falcons Currie Cup squad

Props

  • South Africa Njabulo Gumede
  • South Africa Ethan Jeffery
  • South Africa Thabo Ntunja
  • South Africa Hugo Pienaar
  • South Africa Bulelani Sali
  • South Africa Bheki Shongwe

Hookers

Locks

  • South Africa Reuben du Plooy
  • South Africa Eddie Evans
  • South Africa Stairs Mhlongo
  • South Africa Jordan van Dyk
  • South Africa Boela Venter
  • South Africa Andrew Volschenk

Loose forwards

  • South Africa Cody Basson
  • South Africa Khwezi Mafu
  • South Africa Spiec Magawu
  • South Africa Dwayne Pienaar (c)
  • South Africa Zander van der Merwe

Scrum-halves

  • South Africa Chris Booysen
  • South Africa Luciano Elias
  • South Africa Johan Pretorius

Fly-halves

  • South Africa Keagan Fortune
  • South Africa Ruben Liebenberg
  • South Africa Iusanda Xakwana

Centres

  • South Africa Jimmy Mpailane
  • South Africa Franco Pienaar
  • South Africa Lundi Ralarala
  • South Africa Sherwin Slater

Wingers

Fullbacks

  • South Africa Joshua Vermeulen
(c) Denotes team captain.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Falcons migrate again". Rugby365.com. 14 September 2008. Archived from the original on 16 June 2011.
  2. ^ "We can upset the Sharks". www.iol.co.za. 18 September 2008.
  3. ^ "Falcons soar over Wildebeest". iafrica.com. 21 May 2006. Archived from the original on 26 May 2011. Retrieved 23 March 2010.
  4. ^ Adams, Mariette (17 June 2023). "Good Fortune guides Valke to Mzansi glory". The South African. Retrieved 24 June 2023.
  5. ^ "Valke squad". SA Rugby. Retrieved 30 March 2022.

External links

Currie Cup
Rugby Challenge
Vodacom Cup (defunct)
Rugby union in South Africa
Falcons – current squad
Greater Johannesburg
Categories