Cape Town - Rugby fans, there'll be a massacre come Saturday - guaranteed!
A Barbarians squad featuring no fewer than eight Springboks and eight All Blacks takes on a Fiji side ranked 11th in the world and who haven't beaten a Tier 1 nation since 2007!
The match will commemorate 100 years of the Fiji Rugby Union, but quite WHY such a star-studded BaaBaas teams has been selected is a complete mystery - and the IRB ought to be ashamed of the cricket-score result that will no doubt result.
The Bulls have withdrawn lock Flip van der Merwe and refused to give JJ Engelbrecht permission to play. The Sharks obvious don't feel Patrick Lambie, Bismarck du Plessis and Tendai Mtawarira have played too much this year, while the Stormers similarly feel Jean de Villiers and Duane Vermeulen have another match in them after a gruelling season.
The Barbarians, who have won one match in two years, will be coached by current All Blacks boss, Steve Hansen.
Fiji, who "boast" an awful disciplinary record - including no fewer than four yellow cards in eight minutes against Italy earlier this month - will be well advised to suggest playing the second half as a Sevens match - a format they are far better equipped at...
Kick-off at Twickenham is at 16:30 SA time.
Teams:
Barbarians:
15 Santiago Cordera, 14 Frank Halai, 13 Gavin Williams, 12 Jean de Villiers (captain), 11 Charles Piutau, 10 Patrick Lambie, 9 TJ Perenara, 8 Duane Vermeulen, 7 Schalk Burger, 6 Steven Luatua, 5 Dominic Bird, 4 Mick O'Driscoll, 3 Matias Diaz, 2 Bismarck du Plessis, 1 Tendai Mtawarira
Substitutes: 16 Keven Mealamu, 17 Guillermo Ruan, 18 Coenie Oosthuizen, 19 Manuel Carizza, 20 Luke Whitelock, 21 Martin Landajo, 22 Tom Taylor, 23 Willie le Roux
Fiji:
TBA
A Barbarians squad featuring no fewer than eight Springboks and eight All Blacks takes on a Fiji side ranked 11th in the world and who haven't beaten a Tier 1 nation since 2007!
The match will commemorate 100 years of the Fiji Rugby Union, but quite WHY such a star-studded BaaBaas teams has been selected is a complete mystery - and the IRB ought to be ashamed of the cricket-score result that will no doubt result.
The Bulls have withdrawn lock Flip van der Merwe and refused to give JJ Engelbrecht permission to play. The Sharks obvious don't feel Patrick Lambie, Bismarck du Plessis and Tendai Mtawarira have played too much this year, while the Stormers similarly feel Jean de Villiers and Duane Vermeulen have another match in them after a gruelling season.
The Barbarians, who have won one match in two years, will be coached by current All Blacks boss, Steve Hansen.
Fiji, who "boast" an awful disciplinary record - including no fewer than four yellow cards in eight minutes against Italy earlier this month - will be well advised to suggest playing the second half as a Sevens match - a format they are far better equipped at...
Kick-off at Twickenham is at 16:30 SA time.
Teams:
Barbarians:
15 Santiago Cordera, 14 Frank Halai, 13 Gavin Williams, 12 Jean de Villiers (captain), 11 Charles Piutau, 10 Patrick Lambie, 9 TJ Perenara, 8 Duane Vermeulen, 7 Schalk Burger, 6 Steven Luatua, 5 Dominic Bird, 4 Mick O'Driscoll, 3 Matias Diaz, 2 Bismarck du Plessis, 1 Tendai Mtawarira
Substitutes: 16 Keven Mealamu, 17 Guillermo Ruan, 18 Coenie Oosthuizen, 19 Manuel Carizza, 20 Luke Whitelock, 21 Martin Landajo, 22 Tom Taylor, 23 Willie le Roux
Fiji:
TBA