Sports News 12:30

BULLETIN SPORTS NEWS 10 April 12:30 pm

Good day, let’s look at the latest sports news and scores:

# We kick off with rugby: The Bulls’ Springbok lock, Ruan Nortjé, will leave the club at the end of the season to take up an opportunity in Japan. The 27-year-old made his senior debut in 2018 and has captained the team 37 times, tenth on the all-time list. His contribution spans 146 matches to date. Nortjé’s departure follows that of utility back David Kriel, who will go to France, Bok prop Wilco Louw, who will join the Stormers, and Bok back player Kurt-Lee Arendse, who will return to Sagamihara DynaBoars in Japan.

# Cricket: Lions Cricket and all-rounder Beyers Swanepoel have agreed to part ways with immediate effect, after he controversially abandoned a domestic final mid-match to catch a flight to England. The 27-year-old left the field with seven overs remaining during the One-Day Cup final against the Titans at the Wanderers on March 29. His premature departure without approval left his team with only ten players in a match the Lions ultimately lost by three wickets. Swanepoel is playing for Worcestershire in the English County season.

# Soccer: South African referee Abongile Tom has been selected as one of the match officials for the upcoming World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada. He is joined by compatriot assistant referee Zakhele Siwela. A total of 52 referees, 88 assistant referees, and 30 video match officials have been selected. This will be Tom’s first World Cup and third for Siwela, having run the lines at the 2018 and 2022 editions. This year’s tournament will be the biggest in history, with a 48-team line-up and 104 matches.

# Road running: Paralympic medallist and world record holder Louizanne Coetzee is set to make her debut in the 56-kilometre Two Oceans Marathon tomorrow. She says she is excited but nervous as she takes on her first ultra-distance race while continuing to compete on the track. Coetzee says the event will help build experience ahead of the Los Angeles Paralympic Games. She adds shorter ultras are part of her preparation, strengthening her mentally for future marathon competitions.

# And motorsport: McLaren’s Australian driver, Oscar Piastri, regards the unexpected break in Formula One as a chance to close the gap on Mercedes. His British teammate, Lando Norris, won the world championship last year with Piastri third, but Mercedes is dominating so far this year, winning the first three races. The Middle Eastern conflict lead to the cancellation of the Bahrain and Saudi Arabian races, and the season will only resume in Miami early next month. Piastri says this gives McLaren more time to prepare.

Stay tuned for more news………….