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Falcons (rugby team)
Encyclopedia
The Falcons, or Valke in Afrikaans
, are a South Africa
n rugby union
team in Gauteng province that participates in the annual Currie Cup
and Vodacom Cup
tournament
s.
Their home ground is currently Barnard Stadium
in Kempton Park
, to which they have returned in 2009. The Falcons have operated out of both 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.
, 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 and are one of only fourteen Provincial Unions in the country.
They have a proud history of rugby in Eastern Gauteng and have produced numerous quality players spanning a period of over 60 years.
In 2006 the Falcons were the Vodacom Cup
Champions, the first Cup won in the history of the Union.
Afrikaans
Afrikaans is a West Germanic language, spoken natively in South Africa and Namibia. It is a daughter language of Dutch, originating in its 17th century dialects, collectively referred to as Cape Dutch .Afrikaans is a daughter language of Dutch; see , , , , , .Afrikaans was historically called Cape...
, are a South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
n rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
team in Gauteng province that participates in the annual Currie Cup
Currie Cup
The Currie Cup tournament is South Africa's premier domestic rugby union competition, played each winter and spring , featuring teams representing either entire provinces or substantial regions within provinces...
and Vodacom Cup
Vodacom Cup
The Vodacom Cup is an annual rugby union competition in South Africa which is contested between February and May. The cup is the third most prestigious competition in rugby union in South Africa, behind Super Rugby and the Currie Cup. It runs at roughly the same time as Super Rugby and serves as an...
tournament
Tournament
A tournament is a competition involving a relatively large number of competitors, all participating in a sport or game. More specifically, the term may be used in either of two overlapping senses:...
s.
Their home ground is currently Barnard Stadium
Barnard Stadium
Barnard Stadium is a sports stadium situated in Kempton Park, South Africa. It is the home of the Falcons Rugby Union team....
in Kempton Park
Kempton Park, Gauteng
Kempton Park is a city on the East Rand in the Gauteng province, South Africa. Formerly an independent municipality in the Transvaal, Kempton Park no longer has its own municipal government, and has been part of the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality since 2000...
, to which they have returned in 2009. The Falcons have operated out of both Bosman Stadium in Brakpan
Brakpan, Gauteng
Brakpan is a gold and uranium mining town with 346,735 inhabitants in the Gauteng province of South Africa. The name Brakpan was first used by the British in the 1880s because of a non-perennial lake that would annually dry to become a "brackish pan"....
and Pam Brink Stadium
PAM Brink Stadium
PAM Brink Stadium is a multi-use stadium in Springs, South Africa. It is currently used mostly for football matches and is the home ground of Benoni Premier United and has long been the lair of the Eastern Transvaal rugby team who plays in the Currie Cup first division. The stadium holds 25,000...
in Springs
Springs, Gauteng
Springs is a city on the East Rand in the Gauteng province of South Africa.It lies 50 km east of Johannesburg. The name of the city derives from the large number of springs in the area; it has a population of more than 200,000, and is situated at 5,340 ft a.s.l...
. 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 originally founded in 1947, and was previously known as the Eastern Transvaal Rugby Football Union. After the 1995 World Cup1995 Rugby World Cup
The 1995 Rugby World Cup was the third Rugby World Cup. It was hosted and won by South Africa, and was the first Rugby World Cup in which every match was held in one country....
, rugby was declared a professional sport in South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
, after which the Eastern Transvaal Rugby Football Union merged with the Vaal Triangle Rugby Union to form the Gauteng
Gauteng
Gauteng is one of the nine provinces of South Africa. It was formed from part of the old Transvaal Province after South Africa's first all-race elections on 27 April 1994...
Falcons Rugby Union and are one of only fourteen Provincial Unions in the country.
They have a proud history of rugby in Eastern Gauteng and have produced numerous quality players spanning a period of over 60 years.
In 2006 the Falcons were the Vodacom Cup
Vodacom Cup
The Vodacom Cup is an annual rugby union competition in South Africa which is contested between February and May. The cup is the third most prestigious competition in rugby union in South Africa, behind Super Rugby and the Currie Cup. It runs at roughly the same time as Super Rugby and serves as an...
Champions, 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:- Currie CupCurrie CupThe Currie Cup tournament is South Africa's premier domestic rugby union competition, played each winter and spring , featuring teams representing either entire provinces or substantial regions within provinces...
- Vodacom CupVodacom CupThe Vodacom Cup is an annual rugby union competition in South Africa which is contested between February and May. The cup is the third most prestigious competition in rugby union in South Africa, behind Super Rugby and the Currie Cup. It runs at roughly the same time as Super Rugby and serves as an...
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:- 18 Clubs (approximately 2,000 players)
- 54 High Schools
- 101 Primary Schools
- 80 registered referees
- and the structured development and transformation of Rugby in the region.