SA launches new franchise

South African Rugby has announced a new franchise will be launched in June this year with the eventual aim of lining up in the Super 14.

The new team will come from the South Eastern Cape province with the initiative emerging from a joint venture by the Eastern Province and Border Rugby Unions.

There will also be consultation and backing from the South African Rugby Union.

Speaking after the meeting, SARU deputy president Mark Alexander said: "It was an extremely positive meeting and there was broad agreement on the way forward.

"All parties see the proper placing and establishment of sound structures as a key priority to ensure the success of the South Eastern Cape franchise.

"All stakeholders will be consulted fully with a view to the franchise eventually being established in the Super Rugby structures.

"The meeting acknowledged that the establishment of the franchise is a process that needs careful preparation and a thorough business plan to ensure its future success."

Alexander also confirmed the team will not be called the Southern Spears, as previously predicted.

The new franchise will be launched in Port Elizabeth to coincide with the presence of the British & Irish Lions in the city for a match against a coastal XV, with the exact date yet to be confirmed.

Cheeky Watson, the president of Eastern Province rugby, said: "There is a desperate hunger for top-flight rugby in the South Eastern Cape and this is the first step to satisfying it.

"There is much work to be done but the region has the resources and the capacity to deliver."