Gold Cup Rugby

10/10/2026

🏈🏈❗❗❗🇿🇦🇿🇦🇿🇦

Thank you for the support everyone ✔️

04/10/2026

🏈 Result update

Gardens will travel to face College Rovers in the quarter-final

04/10/2026

❗❗ Club Rugby is Alive and well in Mzansi 🇿🇦🏈

This weekend we experienced one of the greatest weekends in club rugby we have seen in a while on our shores. If you were lucky enough to be at one of the games, you were blessed.

What an advertisement for our great game. Players, coaches, managers, admin staff, supporters, you guys all played your part.

From Naka Bulls Rugby Club edging Centurion Rugby Klub in the last play of the game, to Randfontein again getting a 1-point win, Rhinos eventually overpowering their arch-rivals Northam Wolves, Cape favourites Villager FC being outgunned by a resurgant Durbell, Gardens getting the better of a valiant Saldanha.

Congratulations on all the clubs going forward, being in the top 8 in the country is already a massive achievement. But the work only gets tougher from here on out.

Some mouthwatering clashes awaits us in the top 8. Naka Bulls hosts Randfontein, Rhinos travel to Brakpan in what should be a banger of a clash, Roses United has an almost impossible mission against Durbell, while Gardens awaits the winner of the Durban derby between College Rovers and Crusaders.

Goodluck to all the teams and keep entertaining ✔️❗🇿🇦🏈

29/09/2026

🏈🏈 Some interesting results in the Round of 32 for the PnP Gold Cup 2026....

Northam Rhinos, Villager, Gardens, College Rovers all had big impressive wins, not to mention Vereeninging who put 100 past Bethlehem. But Bloemfontein Police, Crusaders and Randfontein just scraped past in their victories.

Defending champions Naka Bulls Rugby Club narrowly edged past SK Walmer with a composed but uninspiring win at home.

Some interesting matchups in the Round of 16, not least of all, Naka vs Centurion, a team they've lost to home and away so far this season. Its the Northam derby down at Setaria, which should have the whole area buzzing. Villager hosts Durbell in a Cape derby and Gardens and Saldanha should have a packed stadium in their matchup.

26/09/2026

And we're back 🇿🇦🏈🏈❗

Apologies folks we've been away on Mars looking for a place to stay 🤣

The PnP Gold Cup kicks off today with a club rugby landscape that's very different from 12 months ago. Some teams enter the competition after a great season behind them, while some has seen their stock fall dramatically.

For the likes of Northam Rhinos, Villager FC, College Rovers it was business as usual as they dominated their respective leagues and walked away with league and cup honours, while teams like Naka Bulls Rugby Club enters the competition with no silverware to speak of, a rare feat for the 3-time defending champions.

Expect Naka to go all out to defend their title, but teams will know they are there for the taking.

We would not be surprised if we have a new champion at the end of the season based purely off the season the defending champions has had, but you don't become 3-time champs by not knowing how to stand up when it count most. So Naka will be daring anyone to come take that title off them, question is who will be taking the challenge up.

Enjoy the rugby folks and be safe out there 😁❗🏈🇿🇦

20/03/2026

‼️‼️ Rhinos of the North goes back to back in Sibanye-Stillwater Super League.......

Northam Rhinos put up a masterclass in control in the final of the Sibanye-Super League against arch-rivals and nemesis Naka Bulls Rugby Club. The history between the 2 best rugby clubs in South Africa is well documented but this one felt different.

The usual script was completely flipped on its head and it was the Rhinos who looked composed, measured and tactically more assured of themselves. Those words are usually associated with the men from the Moot but Rhinos clearly had other plans.

Naka looked flustered, rattled, rushed and their usual self-confidence was nowhere to be seen, perhaps complacency joined the team on the bus to Loftus. Their scrums was under constant pressure, even when they won a few penalties on occassions the call could have gone either way. Their lineous was a big problem, as it was in their semi-final clash against Sibanye-Stillwater Warriors. Their forwards kept getting caught behind the advantage line and their feared backs had to live off scraps.

Naka is still 2-6 in finals against Northam Rhinos but this victory was as convincing as any win they have had in those 4 previous wins.

The men from the Moot is too classy an outfit to be ringing alarm bells but they do have their work cut out for what promises to be a long and tough season ahead with 3 competitions still coming up, starting with the Saldanha Top 8 in just a couple of weeks. They seemed out of sorts, out of ideas and most alarmingly not hungry enough on the day.

For Rhinos this competition seems to bring out the best in them. It is and should rightfully be a massive confidence booster for their season ahead, it's only the start but this team should definitely be in the mix come the business end of the Gold Cup later this year pushing for the highest honours in club rugby in South Africa.

🏁🏁 Congratulations to the Northam Rhinos players and management on a well deserved victory.

27/10/2025

‼️‼️ Naka Bulls Rugby Club REIGNS SUPREME YET AGAIN

🏈🏈 What more is there to say about this championship side. Naka Bulls made it a hat-trick of wins in the Pick n Pay Gold Cup on Saturday, adding to their hat-trick of Carlron Cup titles they completed in August. They demolished Villager FC at home at Brookeside infront of a rowdy partisan crowd. Naka was unfazed, untroubled and seemingly unaware they are that they are playing the Western Cape champions as they completely outplayed a gallant but ultimately untested Villager side.

The Pretoria faithful back home must have been shocked when the first scrum of the match resulted in a penalty for Villager. But that was about the only real fright they got as Naka just went from strength to strength and won 3 penalties from the next 3 scrums. They absorbed the pressure like only a championship side can. And when it was Villager's turn to absorb that pressure they simply could not stay with Naka. Villager has a massive pack of forwards and they definitely pitched for the first 20minutes, but eventually ran out of steam, like most teams do against Naka. Naka let in a few soft tries towards the end that made the scoreboard look more competitive but there was really only ever one team in that title race.

In the end Naka did what they do best, and that is suffocate teams until they eventually give in. This current Naka Bulls team will go down as one of the greatest club rugby teams to ever take the field in South Africa. The scary part is they could still be doing this for the next 5 to 10 years to come.

Thank you to every single player, administrator, coach, manager, sponsor and to you guys the fans for making this season extra special and delivering on the expectations of the competition.

▶️▶️ Our team of the tournament: Naka Bulls
▶️▶️ Player of the tournament: Marco van Baalen (Naka Bulls)

21/10/2025

‼️‼️ Pnp Gold Cup Finals loading

Naka Gold Cup Squad will travel to Cape Town to defend their Status as Gold Cup Champs. Let's make History......!!!!!

18/10/2025

‼️‼️ PnP Gold Cup South Semi-Final

Halftime score
Villager FC 22 - 11 College Rovers

17/10/2025

‼️‼️ Gold Cup Semi-Finals Preview:

Villager FC vs College Rovers (South)

Villager came into the Gold Cup as the champions of the Western Province A league. A huge achievement in itself. But it's been the manner in which they've gone about their business that's impressed most. Hammering Swallows and then knocking over Hamilton SP RFC for the 4th time this season was no mean feat. They would have been wary of some lapses in concentration that led to them narrowly defeating Gardens a week ago by 5 points in a game they were well in control of but was never really allowed to run away with. College Rovers on the other hand has been efficiently going about their business with not much noise but getting the job done. They narrowly scraped past Robertson after the latter had a tough game the day before in the Sanlam Boland Top 12 (a situation that should have never happened). Who knows what would have happened had Robertson not taken the field the day before. Both sides are very experienced with Villager perhaps edging Rovers in the X-factor department. Where Rovers has the older, cooler heads Villager has the younger hungrier team perhaps. Rovers has been close to winning the title in the post-Covid era, having made the final against eventual winners Naka Bulls Rugby Club in 2023 and losing out to the Rhinos in the semis in 2024 in a close battle. Villager has come out nowhere this season and dominated everyone up until now. Expect nothing less than a battle of wits and big hits. Rovers will keep cool heads but can they outlast villager is the question on everyones's lips.

Our prediction: Villager to edge it by less than 7

Northam Rhinos vs Naka Bulls (North)

A battle of epic proportions awaits us all in Limpopo. Rhinos and Naka knows each other all too well to expect nothing less than 100% effort from the other. This is the final everyone expected. It's a repeat of last season's Carlton Cup final, a repeat of last season's Gold Cup final, a repeat of the 2025 Castle Super League final and we can go on and on. These 2 teams have set the bar in club rugby the last 5 years. Two absolute giants. Naka and Rhinos have played in 6 finals the last 5 years with Naka winning 5 and Rhinos claiming a sole win in the 2025 Castle Super League. That win might just be the cataclyst for Rhinos to turn things around. Rhinos has a huge following on social media and according to their supporters they already have the Gold Cup locked in their cabinet. Rhinos arguably has the biggest pack of forwards ever seen in club rugby but Naka has negated that threat over the years by relying on experience and good old fashioned stamina and technique. The backs are pretty evenly matched in terms of pace and can easily score from anywhere on the field. Mistakes will have to be limited. Chances will have to be taken 8 times out of 10 at least. Conversions will have to be at a bare miminum of 90%. Cool heads will be the order of the day. Naka is too experienced and they've been in these big games all too often to realise having 1 player lose his head might cost them, same can be said of the Rhinos. The 2 captains are some of the most decorated players in club rugby ever in South Africa. Rhinos lost coach Bevin Fortuin not too long ago and that pain will still be lingering with them and might just give them the edge over the Bulls. Expect nothing less than brutal hits, a breakdown you must be brave to enter, every little mistake feeling like the end of the world, every margin won or lost to have an impact, every chirp to be personal. This is what club rugby is all about. Rhinos has every reason to be confident (playing at home) but Naka has set the standards in this new era of club rugby. We can not wait !

Our prediction: Naka to edge it by less than 3