1996 Currie Cup

1996 Currie Cup
Countries	South Africa
Date	30 May – 24 October 1996
Champions	Natal (4th title)
Runners-up	Transvaal
Matches played	91
← 1995 1997 →

The 1996 Currie Cup was the 58th season of the Currie Cup, South Africa's premier domestic rugby union competition, since it started in 1889. The competition was known as the Bankfin Currie Cup for sponsorship reasons and was contested from 30 May to 24 October 1996. This was also the first season since the advent of professionalism in South African rugby union, which led to a major restructuring in several facets of the sport. The number of provincial unions were reduced from 22 to 14, all of which participated in a single Currie Cup tournament.

The competition was won by the Natal for the fourth time in their history; they beat the Transvaal 33–15 in the final played on 24 October 1996.

Competition rules and information

There were fourteen participating teams in the 1996 Currie Cup. These teams were divided into two sections, Section A and Section B. Teams played all the other teams in their section twice over the course of the season, once at home and once away.

Teams received two points for a win and one point for a draw. The top four teams in each section qualified for the title play-offs. In the quarter finals, the teams that finished first in each section had home advantage against the teams that finished fourth in the other section, while the teams that finished second in each section had home advantage against the teams that finished third in the other section. The winners of these quarter finals advanced to the semi-finals and semi-final winners advanced to the final, in both rounds at the home venue of the higher-placed team.

Teams

Team Listing

1996 Currie Cup teams
Team	Sponsored Name	Stadium/s	Sponsored Name
Boland	Boland	Boland Stadium, Wellington	Boland Stadium
Border	Border	Waverley Park, East London	Waverley Park
Eastern Province	Eastern Province	PE Stadium, Port Elizabeth	PE Stadium
Eastern Transvaal	Eastern Transvaal	Bosman Stadium, Brakpan	Bosman Stadium
Free State	Free State	Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein	Vodacom Park
Griqualand West	Griqualand West	Griqua Park, Kimberley	ABSA Park
Natal	Natal	University of Natal, Durban	University of Natal
Northern Free State	Northern Free State	North West Stadium, Welkom	North West Stadium
Northern Transvaal	Northern Transvaal	Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria	Minolta Loftus
South Eastern Transvaal	South Eastern Transvaal	Johann van Riebeeck Stadium, Witbank	Johann van Riebeeck Stadium
South Western Districts	South Western Districts	Outeniqua Park, George	Outeniqua Park
		REC Ground, Oudtshoorn	REC Ground
		Van Riebeeck Stadium, Mossel Bay	Van Riebeeck Stadium
Transvaal	Transvaal	Ellis Park Stadium, Johannesburg	Ellis Park Stadium
Western Province	Norwich Western Province	Newlands Stadium, Cape Town	Fedsure Park Newlands
Western Transvaal	Western Transvaal	Olën Park, Potchefstroom	Olën Park

Changes from 1995

Following the 1995 Rugby World Cup, rugby union was declared in a professional sport in South Africa. This caused a major restructuring in the rugby unions, which saw the total number of unions reduced from 22 to 14. All of these teams played in the 1996 Currie Cup, which was increased from 6 teams to 14.

Promoted teams:

• Boland
• Border
• Eastern Transvaal
• Griqualand West
• Western Transvaal
• Northern Free State
• South Eastern Transvaal
• South Western Districts

Dissolved teams:

• Eastern Free State (absorbed into Northern Free State)
• Far North (absorbed into Northern Transvaal)
• Lowveld (absorbed into South Eastern Transvaal)
• North Eastern Cape (absorbed into Border and Eastern Province)
• North Western Cape (absorbed into Griqualand West)
• Northern Natal (absorbed into Natal)
• Stellaland (absorbed into Western Transvaal)
• Vaal Triangle (absorbed into Eastern Transvaal)

Log

The final log of the round-robin stage of the 1996 Currie Cup:^{[1][2] [note 1]}

1996 Currie Cup log
Section A
Pos	Team	P	W	D	L	PF	PA	PD	TF	TA	Pts
1	Natal	12	12	0	0	673	212	+461	97	20	24
2	Transvaal	12	9	1	2	456	252	+204	53	25	19
3	South Eastern Transvaal	12	6	2	4	292	363	+71	30	42	14
4	Boland	12	6	0	6	250	308	−58	25	35	12
5	Eastern Province	12	3	1	8	245	341	−96	25	38	7
6	Border	12	2	2	8	244	422	−178	26	50	6
7	Western Transvaal	12	1	0	11	268	530	−262	22	68	2
Section B
Pos	Team	P	W	D	L	PF	PA	PD	TF	TA	Pts
1	Northern Transvaal	12	11	0	1	707	207	+500	93	23	22
2	Free State	12	9	1	2	558	280	+278	75	28	19
3	Western Province	12	8	0	4	537	249	+288	74	27	16
4	Griqualand West	12	7	1	4	437	322	+115	58	31	15
5	Eastern Transvaal	12	3	0	9	281	552	−271	34	77	6
6	Northern Free State	12	3	0	9	243	529	−286	24	73	6
7	South Western Districts	12	0	0	12	216	840	−624	23	122	0
Final standings.

Legend and Competition rules
Legend:
	Qualify to the quarter finals.		P = Games Played, W = Games Won, D = Games Drawn, L = Games Lost, PF = Points For, PA = Points Against, PD = Points Difference, TF = Tries For, TA = Tries Against, TB = Try Bonus Points, LB = Losing Bonus Points, Pts = Log Points
Competition rules:
Qualification: The top four teams in each section qualified to the quarter finals.
Points breakdown: * 2 points for a win * 1 point for a draw

Matches

The following matches were played in the 1996 Currie Cup:^{[3][note 2]}

Section A

Round One

	30 May 1996	Border	20–53	Transvaal	Waverley Park, East London
			Scoreboard[4]

	30 May 1996	South Eastern Transvaal	32–18	Eastern Province	Johann van Riebeeck Stadium, Witbank
			Scoreboard[5]

	30 May 1996	Western Transvaal	13–62	Natal	Olën Park, Potchefstroom
			Scoreboard[6]

Bye/s: Boland

Round Two

	6 June 1996	Boland	31–10	Border	Boland Stadium, Wellington
			Scoreboard[7]

	6 June 1996	Natal	90–9	South Eastern Transvaal	University of Natal, Durban
			Scoreboard[8]

	6 June 1996	Transvaal	98–12	Western Transvaal	Ellis Park Stadium, Johannesburg
			Scoreboard[9]

Bye/s: Eastern Province

Round Three

	13 June 1996	Eastern Province	36–23	Boland	PE Stadium, Port Elizabeth
			Scoreboard[10]

	13 June 1996	Natal	34–24	Transvaal	University of Natal, Durban
			Scoreboard[11]

	13 June 1996	South Eastern Transvaal	41–22	Border	Johann van Riebeeck Stadium, Witbank
			Scoreboard[12]

Bye/s: Western Transvaal

Round Four

	20 June 1996	Boland	23–13	South Eastern Transvaal	Boland Stadium, Wellington
			Scoreboard[13]

	20 June 1996	Border	43–37	Western Transvaal	Waverley Park, East London
			Scoreboard[14]

	20 June 1996	Transvaal	22–14	Eastern Province	Ellis Park Stadium, Johannesburg
			Scoreboard[15]

Bye/s: Natal

Round Five

	27 June 1996	Eastern Province	21–60	Natal	PE Stadium, Port Elizabeth
			Scoreboard[16]

	27 June 1996	South Eastern Transvaal	15–15	Transvaal	Johann van Riebeeck Stadium, Witbank
			Scoreboard[17]

	27 June 1996	Western Transvaal	22–32	Boland	Olën Park, Potchefstroom
			Scoreboard[18]

Bye/s: Border

Round Six

	4 July 1996	Boland	12–36	Natal	Boland Stadium, Wellington
			Scoreboard[19]

	4 July 1996	Border	19–19	Eastern Province	Waverley Park, East London
			Scoreboard[20]

	4 July 1996	Western Transvaal	31–40	South Eastern Transvaal	Olën Park, Potchefstroom
			Scoreboard[21]

Bye/s: Transvaal

Round Seven

	11 July 1996	Eastern Province	25–27	Western Transvaal	PE Stadium, Port Elizabeth
			Scoreboard[22]

	11 July 1996	Natal	64–17	Border	University of Natal, Durban
			Scoreboard[23]

	11 July 1996	Transvaal	41–10	Boland	Ellis Park Stadium, Johannesburg
			Scoreboard[24]

Bye/s: South Eastern Transvaal

Round Eight

	18 July 1996	Eastern Province	16–26	South Eastern Transvaal	PE Stadium, Port Elizabeth
			Scoreboard[25]

	18 July 1996	Natal	71–15	Western Transvaal	University of Natal, Durban
			Scoreboard[26]

	18 July 1996	Transvaal	32–12	Border	Ellis Park Stadium, Johannesburg
			Scoreboard[27]

Bye/s: Boland

Round Nine

	25 July 1996	Border	17–29	Boland	Waverley Park, East London
			Scoreboard[28]

	25 July 1996	South Eastern Transvaal	25–59	Natal	Johann van Riebeeck Stadium, Witbank
			Scoreboard[29]

	25 July 1996	Western Transvaal	28–53	Transvaal	Olën Park, Potchefstroom
			Scoreboard[30]

Bye/s: Eastern Province

Round Ten

	5 September 1996	Boland	16–11	Western Transvaal	Boland Stadium, Wellington
			Scoreboard[31]

	5 September 1996	Natal	53–9	Eastern Province	University of Natal, Durban
			Scoreboard[32]

	5 September 1996	Transvaal	29–26	South Eastern Transvaal	Ellis Park Stadium, Johannesburg
			Scoreboard[33]

Bye/s: Border

Round Eleven

	12 September 1996	Eastern Province	20–23	Transvaal	PE Stadium, Port Elizabeth
			Scoreboard[34]

	12 September 1996	South Eastern Transvaal	22–19	Boland	Johann van Riebeeck Stadium, Witbank
			Scoreboard[35]

	12 September 1996	Western Transvaal	26–33	Border	Olën Park, Potchefstroom
			Scoreboard[36]

Bye/s: Natal

Round Twelve

	19 September 1996	Boland	18–17	Eastern Province	Boland Stadium, Wellington
			Scoreboard[37]

	19 September 1996	Border	20–20	South Eastern Transvaal	Waverley Park, East London
			Scoreboard[38]

	19 September 1996	Transvaal	36–37	Natal	Ellis Park Stadium, Johannesburg
			Scoreboard[39]

Bye/s: Western Transvaal

Round Thirteen

	26 September 1996	Eastern Province	16–13	Border	PE Stadium, Port Elizabeth
			Scoreboard[40]

	26 September 1996	Natal	53–13	Boland	University of Natal, Durban
			Scoreboard[41]

	26 September 1996	South Eastern Transvaal	23–21	Western Transvaal	Johann van Riebeeck Stadium, Witbank
			Scoreboard[42]

Bye/s: Transvaal

Round Fourteen

	3 October 1996	Boland	24–30	Transvaal	Boland Stadium, Wellington
			Scoreboard[43]

	3 October 1996	Border	18–54	Natal	Waverley Park, East London
			Scoreboard[44]

	3 October 1996	Western Transvaal	25–34	Eastern Province	Olën Park, Potchefstroom
			Scoreboard[45]

Bye/s: South Eastern Transvaal

Section B

Round One

	30 May 1996	Free State	83–28	Eastern Transvaal	Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein
			Scoreboard[46]

	30 May 1996	Northern Transvaal	47–17	Griqualand West	Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
			Scoreboard[47]

	30 May 1996	Western Province	73–12	Northern Free State	Newlands Stadium, Cape Town
			Scoreboard[48]

Bye/s: South Western Districts

Round Two

	5 June 1996	Griqualand West	59–38	South Western Districts	Griqua Park, Kimberley
			Scoreboard[49]

	6 June 1996	Northern Free State	8–53	Northern Transvaal	North West Stadium, Welkom
			Scoreboard[50]

	6 June 1996	Western Province	13–24	Free State	Newlands Stadium, Cape Town
			Scoreboard[51]

Bye/s: Eastern Transvaal

Round Three

	13 June 1996	Griqualand West	60–29	Eastern Transvaal	Griqua Park, Kimberley
			Scoreboard[52]

	13 June 1996	Northern Transvaal	51–20	Western Province	Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
			Scoreboard[53]

	13 June 1996	South Western Districts	14–16	Northern Free State	Van Riebeeck Stadium, Mossel Bay
			Scoreboard[54]

Bye/s: Free State

Round Four

	19 June 1996	Northern Free State	22–32	Griqualand West	North West Stadium, Welkom
			Scoreboard[55]

	20 June 1996	Eastern Transvaal	65–17	South Western Districts	Bosman Stadium, Brakpan
			Scoreboard[56]

	20 June 1996	Free State	27–25	Northern Transvaal	Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein
			Scoreboard[57]

Bye/s: Western Province

Round Five

	27 June 1996	Northern Transvaal	80–22	Eastern Transvaal	Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
			Scoreboard[58]

	27 June 1996	South Western Districts	20–53	Free State	Van Riebeeck Stadium, Mossel Bay
			Scoreboard[59]

Bye/s: Griqualand West, Northern Free State, Western Province

Round Six

	4 July 1996	Eastern Transvaal	15–6	Northern Free State	Bosman Stadium, Brakpan
			Scoreboard[60]

	4 July 1996	Free State	12–25	Griqualand West	Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein
			Scoreboard[61]

	4 July 1996	Western Province	64–13	South Western Districts	Newlands Stadium, Cape Town
			Scoreboard[62]

Bye/s: Northern Transvaal

Round Seven

	11 July 1996	Griqualand West	17–33	Western Province	Griqua Park, Kimberley
			Scoreboard[63]

	11 July 1996	Northern Free State	25–65	Free State	North West Stadium, Welkom
			Scoreboard[64]

	11 July 1996	South Western Districts	13–56	Northern Transvaal	REC Ground, Oudtshoorn
			Scoreboard[65]

Bye/s: Eastern Transvaal

Round Eight

	18 July 1996	Eastern Transvaal	21–44	Free State	Bosman Stadium, Brakpan
			Scoreboard[66]

	18 July 1996	Griqualand West	15–42	Northern Transvaal	Griqua Park, Kimberley
			Scoreboard[67]

	18 July 1996	Northern Free State	20–56	Western Province	North West Stadium, Welkom
			Scoreboard[68]

Bye/s: South Western Districts

Round Nine

	25 July 1996	Northern Transvaal	56–7	Northern Free State	Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
			Scoreboard[69]

	25 July 1996	South Western Districts	20–62	Griqualand West	REC Ground, Oudtshoorn
			Scoreboard[70]

	25 July 1996	Western Province	58–7	Eastern Transvaal	Newlands Stadium, Cape Town
			Scoreboard[71]

Bye/s: Free State

Round Ten

	21 August 1996	Eastern Transvaal	14–51	Western Province	Bosman Stadium, Brakpan
			Scoreboard[72]

Bye/s: Northern Transvaal, Free State, Griqualand West, Northern Free State, South Western Districts

Round Eleven

	4 September 1996	Northern Free State	67–19	South Western Districts	North West Stadium, Welkom
			Scoreboard[73]

	5 September 1996	Eastern Transvaal	24–72	Northern Transvaal	Bosman Stadium, Brakpan
			Scoreboard[74]

	5 September 1996	Free State	25–16	Western Province	Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein
			Scoreboard[75]

Bye/s: Griqualand West

Round Twelve

	11 September 1996	Griqualand West	78–10	Northern Free State	Griqua Park, Kimberley
			Scoreboard[76]

	12 September 1996	Northern Transvaal	51–30	Free State	Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
			Scoreboard[77]

	12 September 1996	South Western Districts	20–31	Eastern Transvaal	Outeniqua Park, George
			Scoreboard[78]

Bye/s: Western Province

Round Thirteen

	19 September 1996	Eastern Transvaal	11–28	Griqualand West	Bosman Stadium, Brakpan
			Scoreboard[79]

	19 September 1996	Free State	113–11	South Western Districts	Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein
			Scoreboard[80]

	19 September 1996	Western Province	16–27	Northern Transvaal	Newlands Stadium, Cape Town
			Scoreboard[81]

Bye/s: Northern Free State

Round Fourteen

	25 September 1996	Northern Free State	33–14	Eastern Transvaal	North West Stadium, Welkom
			Scoreboard[82]

	26 September 1996	Griqualand West	28–28	Free State	Griqua Park, Kimberley
			Scoreboard[83]

	26 September 1996	South Western Districts	23–107	Western Province	Van Riebeeck Stadium, Mossel Bay
			Scoreboard[84]

Bye/s: Northern Transvaal

Round Fifteen

	3 October 1996	Free State	54–17	Northern Free State	Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein
			Scoreboard[85]

	3 October 1996	Northern Transvaal	147–8	South Western Districts	Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
			Scoreboard[86]

	3 October 1996	Western Province	30–16	Griqualand West	Newlands Stadium, Cape Town
			Scoreboard[87]

Bye/s: Eastern Transvaal

Title Play-Offs

Quarter Finals

	9 October 1996	Free State	21–3	South Eastern Transvaal	Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein
			Scoreboard[88]

	10 October 1996	Natal	51–3	Griqualand West	University of Natal, Durban
			Scoreboard[89]

	9 October 1996	Northern Transvaal	50–23	Boland	Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
			Scoreboard[90]

	10 October 1996	Transvaal	56–22	Western Province	Ellis Park Stadium, Johannesburg
			Scoreboard[91]

Semi-Finals

	17 October 1996	Natal	35–20	Free State	University of Natal, Durban
			Scoreboard[92]

	17 October 1996	Northern Transvaal	21–31	Transvaal	Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
			Scoreboard[93]

Final

	24 October 1996	Transvaal	15–33	Natal	Ellis Park Stadium, Johannesburg
			Scoreboard[94]

Honours

The honour roll for the 1996 Currie Cup was:

1996 Currie Cup Honours
Champions:	Natal (4th title)

Notes

References