Free Football on the Big Screen

There's no doubt that the enormously successful IPL marketing campaign raised the bar for sport marketers in this country. With the Confed Cup in a few days' time, it's heartening to see Ster-Kinekor coming to the party in a significant way.

Compared to the hype surrounding the IPL, the marketing of the Confed Cup is a sad and disconcerting precursor to what our 2010 marketing campaign might be like. Seeing the void left by the IPL, Ster-Kinekor has stepped up to the plate and will be screening the 2009 Confederations Cup games live and free of charge at cinemas nationwide from Sunday 14 June.

Each cinema will be transformed into a festive soccer experience, the perfect venue for the family.

Tickets will be available to the public at participating cinemas five days prior to each match; limited to four tickets per person per game, on a "first come, first served" basis. Think of this as an indoor fan park for the Confed Cup where you will be able to bring and blow your vuvuzela while watching the match on the big screen with friends and family. To make the experience even more authentic, Ster-Kinekor is looking at having beer sales at selected venues (for over 18's only of course), although this is still to be confirmed.

"Ster-Kinekor Theatres is very excited about hosting free screenings for this monumental, international soccer event at our cinemas for this first time ever!" says Ster-Kinekor Theatres CEO Fiaz Mahomed.

All the matches will be screened on SKT's "big screens" in Johannesburg, Pretoria, Durban, Port Elizabeth, Bloemfontein and Cape Town at the following 16 cinemas:

Maponya, Soweto (Johannesburg)

The Zone (Johannesburg)

Sandton City (Johannesburg)

East Rand Mall (Johannesburg)

Fourways (Johannesburg)

Eastgate (Johannesburg)

Key West (Johannesburg)

Sterland (Pretoria)

Brooklyn Commercial (Pretoria)

Parow (Cape Town)

Cavendish Commercial (Cape Town)

Bayside (Cape Town)

The Bridge (Port Elizabeth)

The Wheel (Durban)

Gateway Commercial (Durban)

Mimosa Mall (Bloemfontein)

Below follows the schedule for the Confederations Cup matches being screened at SKT, including the semi-finals (24 & 25 June) and finals (28 June). All matches will be screened live at all the participating SKT cinemas according to the schedule below.

Day	Date	Time	Match
Sun	14-Jun	4pm	South Africa vs Iraq
Sun	14-Jun	8.30pm	New Zealand vs Spain
Mon	15-Jun	4pm	Brazil vs Egypt
Mon	15-Jun	8.30pm	USA vs Italy
Wed	17-Jun	4pm	Spain vs Iraq
Wed	17-Jun	8.30pm	South Africa vs New Zealand
Thur	18-Jun	4pm	USA vs Brazil
Thur	18-Jun	8.30pm	Egypt vs Italy
Sat	20-Jun	8.30pm	Spain vs South Africa
Sun	21-Jun	8.30pm	Italy vs Brazil
Wed	24-Jun	8.30pm	1st A vs 2nd B
Thur	25-Jun	8.30pm	1st B vs 2nd A
Sun	28-Jun	3pm	L13 vs L14
Sun	28-Jun	8.30pm	W13 vs W14

The free tickets for the matches can only be collected at SKT cinema box offices. Special screenings at some cinemas may be reserved EXCLUSIVELY for Ster-Kinekor Movie Club Members, and Edgars Club and Discovery Vitality members, who have activated their movie benefit. Visit www.sterkinekor.com for more information.

Pienaar Will Be Available For Selection

Bafana Bafana midfielder Steven Pienaar will be available for selection when Bafana Bafana take on Iraq on Sunday ( 14 June) in the opening match of the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup.

Pienaar underwent an MRI scan on Monday (08 June) which confirmed initial diagnosis of a mild ankle sprain - which is not as serious as initially thought. Pienaar will be monitored by the medical team throughout the week. In the morning he joined his teammates in the gymnasium before going for the scan.

The midfielder twisted his right ankle in the second half of Bafana Bafana’s one nil win over Poland on Saturday, 06 June 2009 at the Orlando Stadium. Also given a clean bill of health were Teko Modise and Tsepo Masilela who both missed the clash against Poland due to niggling injuries. The two players were also at training this morning.

British & Irish Lions Ready for Shark Tank Challenge

British & Irish Lions Tour Manager, Gerald Davies, and Head Coach Ian McGeechan, today announced the Lions team for the fourth match of the 2009 tour of South Africa. The selected team will play the Sharks in Durban on Wednesday and will be led by Captain Paul O'Connell.

Davies said, "We are now halfway through the provincial matches prior to the First Test and the important factor is that the Lions are unbeaten. The next challenge is the Sharks in Durban. The selected team will want to ensure that the one hundred percent playing record is maintained with a victory at ABSA Stadium which is also the venue of the First Test. "

Commenting on the team selection Head Coach Ian McGeechan said, "I am delighted that as we head into the fourth match we only have one player who is unavailable for selection. The players and the medical staff have managed the injuries that have been sustained in a very professional manner. This is crucial as we enter matches against two of South Africa's strongest provinces in the Sharks and Western Province in the space of four days."

"This is reflected by the fact that four starting players from the Cheetahs match will back up against the Sharks, while five players are starting their third match of the tour. Those players are captain Paul O'Connell, Lee Byrne, Shane Williams, Jamie Roberts and David Wallace. Paul will start with his third different second row partner in Alun-Wyn Jones, while we also have new starting partnerships in the back three, the halfbacks and in the front row."

"The next two matches are obviously critical in the development of the Test side. While we have these new starting partnerships for the Sharks match we also have a centre pairing in Jamie Roberts and Brian O'Driscoll, and a backrow of Jamie Heaslip, David Wallace and Tom Croft that have played together on tour in the Golden Lions match," added McGeechan.

Santana Announces Confed Squad

Bafana Bafana coach Joel Natalino Santana has announced his final 23-man squad that will represent South Africa at the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup. In selecting the team Santana says he observed the players over 21 days since camp started on 13 May 2009 – mainly focussing on their physical condition, technical and tactical awareness as well as on their medical and emotional condition.

“I decided to choose the 23 players who I believed had all those qualities, it was not an easy decision but because FIFA wants us to register 23 players, the decision had to be taken,” said Santana.

The Bafana Bafana mentor continued to say he initially chose 30 players because the South African season ended early in May – too close to the tournament – and he had to take into consideration that some players might pick up injuries, while others may be out of shape.

Explaining his philosophy in making his final choice, Santana says he tried to put two players per position except in the goalkeeping department where he has three goalkeepers.

“I hope that those in the team will now focus hundred percent, what is left for me is to try to find the best eleven to face Iraq and we will use the match against Poland on Saturday to find the combinations as we continue to prepare the team,” says Santana.

As for those who missed out, Santana said the door is not closed for them, adding that they are still in his plans for the Confederations Cup. “I have told them that if any replacement is needed they could be back in the team but in the meantime they must continue training by themselves and also prepare for the future,”.

On Sunday 14 June 2009, South Africa face Iraq in the opening match of the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup at the Ellis Park Stadium. They will also face New Zealand and Spain in their group.

Here is the final 23-man squad for the 2009 FIFA Confederations Squad:

Player Name	Team	Caps	D.O.B
.
BALOYI Brian	Mamelodi Sundowns F.C. (SA)	24	16-03-74
BOOTH Matthew	Mamelodi Sundowns F.C. (SA)	19	14-03-77
DAVIDS Lance	Supersport United F.C. (SA)	16	11-04-85
DIKGACOI Kagisho	Golden Arrows F.C (SA)	20	28-11-84
FANTENI Thembinkosi	Maccabi Haifa (Israel)	17	02-02-78
FERNANDEZ Rowen	Arminia Bielefeld F.C. (Germany)	19	28-02-78
GAXA Siboniso	Mamelodi Sundowns F.C. (SA)	19	06-04-84
GOULD Morgan	Supersport United F.C. (SA)	2	23-03-83
KHUMALO Bongani	Supersport United F.C. (SA)	5	06-01-87
KHUNE Itumeleng	Kaizer Chiefs F.C. (SA)	13	20-06-87
MASHEGO Katlego	Orlando Pirates F.C. (SA)	8	18-05-82
MASILELA Tsepo	Maccabi Haifa (Israel)	19	05-05-85
MDLEDLE Innocent	Orlando Pirates F.C. (SA)	6	11-12-85
MHLONGO Benson	Orlando Pirates F.C. (SA)	26	09-11-80
MODISE Teko	Orlando Pirates F.C. (SA)	33	22-12-82
MOKOENA Aaron	Portsmouths F.C. (England)	84	25-11-80
MOON Bryce	Panathinaikos (Greece)	16	06-04-86
MPHELA Katlego	Mamelodi Sundowns F.C. (SA)	12	29-11-84
PARKER Bernard	Red Star Belgrade (Serbia)	14	16-03-86
PIENAAR Steven	Everton F.C. (England)	38	17-03-82
SIBAYA MacBeth	Rubin Kazan F.C. (Russia)	47	25.11.77
TSHABALALA Siphiwe	Kaizer Chiefs F.C. (SA)	27	25-04-84
VAN HEERDEN Elrio	Blackburn Rovers F.C. (England)	29	11-07-83

The G9

My mate, Flusky, is not a fan of the IPL. I am also not a fan of the IPL. I am not sure what he thinks of T20 cricket in general but I can't stand the format. It is impossible to fight back from a poor start. As the saying goes, "it's just not cricket.

Flusky has some great views...

In 2012 a company is looking to launch a new golf tournament called "G9." A round will be over 9 holes, consisting solely of par 3s. Players will be part of teams, their "owners" keeping a beady eye at tee-box and green. Never mind the fairways, it just slows things down. G9 officials say that it will attract people to the game who have never really been interested.

Read the rest on his Blog, Don't Chase the Wide Ones...

BRIAN O'DRISCOLL TO CAPTAIN BRITISH & IRISH LIONS

British & Irish Lions Tour Manager, Gerald Davies, today announced the Lions team for the second match of the 2009 tour of South Africa. The selected team will play the Golden Lions in Johannesburg and will be led by Irish captain Brian O'Driscoll.

Davies said, "The starting XV to play the Golden Lions contains five players making their British & Irish Lions debuts while a further six debutants are on the bench. Everyone is also delighted that Brian O'Driscoll the Irish Grand Slam skipper will lead the team against the Golden Lions."

Commenting on the team selection Head Coach Ian McGeechan said, "The starting XV is very different to the one that played against the Royal XV on Saturday. There are only three players backing up from that match but six of the replacements have been promoted to Wednesday's starting XV for the Golden Lions match. This is in line with our intention that all players will play a full match in the first three matches on tour."

"The team has a very solid core with Brian O'Driscoll, Stephen Jones, David Wallace, Phil Vickery and Gethin Jenkins who are all very experienced internationals and previous Lions tourists."

"David Wallace now has the opportunity to play at openside flanker following his selection at No.8 against the Royal XV. Stephen Jones who was a replacement in the last match, but did not get a run, links up with his Welsh team-mate and scrumhalf Mike Phillips giving the team an experienced halfback combination."

"The team has trained well. We have worked on several key areas following the first match which has given us a base from which to keep developing our game," added McGeechan.

British & Irish Lions Team versus Golden Lions on Wednesday 3rd June

15. Rob Kearney (Leinster/Ireland)
14. Tommy Bowe (Ospreys/Ireland)
13. Brian O'Driscoll (Leinster/Ireland)
12. Jamie Roberts (Cardiff Blues/Wales)
11. Ugo Monye (Harlequins/England)
10. Stephen Jones (Scarlets/Wales)
9. Mike Phillips (Ospreys/Wales)
8. Jamie Heaslip (Leinster/Ireland)
7. David Wallace (Munster/Ireland)
6. Tom Croft (Leicester Tigers/England)
5. Alun-Wyn Jones (Ospreys/Wales)
4. Nathan Hines (Perpignan/Scotland)
3. Phil Vickery (London Wasps/England)
2. Lee Mears (Bath/England)
1. Gethin Jenkins (Cardiff Blues/Wales)

Replacements: 
16. Ross Ford (Edinburgh/Scotland) 
17. Euan Murray (Northampton Saints/Scotland)
18. Stephen Ferris (Ulster/Ireland)
19. Andy Powell (Cardiff Blues/Wales)
20. Harry Ellis (Leicester Tigers/England)
21. James Hook (Ospreys/Wales)
22. Shane Williams (Ospreys/Wales)

Bafana Update

Bafana Bafana coach Joel Natalino Santana is pleased with the performance of Bafana Bafana after they defeated Mauritius 2-nil in a training match at the Germiston Stadium on Saturday, 30 May 2009. No caps were awarded for this match. Two goals in each half were scored by midfielders Benson Mhlongo and Lance Davids. “I am happy with what I saw today (Saturday) and although we could have won by more goals, I have almost a clear indication of what do to going forward in the weeks leading to the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup,” said Santana.

But the coach was quick to point out that Poland will be a tougher opposition. Bafana Bafana face Poland at the Orlando Stadium on Saturday, 06 June 2009 in their last warm-up match before the start of the Confederations Cup. Said Santana, “We will have to improve a lot when we face Poland, they are more experienced and are more physical than Mauritius but it will be a good test for us.”

On Thursday, 04 June 2009, Santana will name his final 23-man squad that will represent South Africa in the Confederations Cup. There are 29 players on Santana’s list following the withdrawal of Surprise Moriri due to injury.

Bafana Bafana open their account in the tournament with a clash against Iraq on Sunday 14 June 2009 at the Ellis Park Stadium.

New Zealand and Spain are also in South Africa’s group.