Blue Bulls
The Vodacom Blue Bulls is a South African rugby union team that participates in the annual Currie Cup tournament. They are governed by the Blue Bulls Rugby Union and are based at Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria, Gauteng province.
The team as we know it today has it's beginnings in 1938 when the then Northern Transvaal Rugby Union broke away from the Transvaal Rugby Football Union to gain status as an independant rugby union. The new team were simply named Northern Transvaal and donned light blue jersey's with a red Barberton daisy emblem.
From their first year of existence Northern Transvaal were a formidable force in South African rugby, with many Springboks rising through their ranks. Despite their impressive lineups however it took them 8 years to win the competition for the first time, and they first lifted the cup in 1946. Eventually the side was nickamed the Blue Bulls, a name that has sticked with them ever since.
In later years, because of political changes in South Africa, many of the provinces in the country were renamed. As the result the Northern Transvaal Rugby Union became the Blue Bulls Rugby Union, and Northern Transvaal became known only by their original nickname: the Blue Bulls. When Vodacom became the teams biggest sponsor their name was also added.
The Blue Bulls / Northern Transvaal have won the Currie Cup in the following years: 1946, 1956, 1968, 1969, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1977, 1978, 1980, 1981, 1988, 1991, 1998, 2002, 2003 and 2004. They also shared the trophy with Transvaal in 1971, and Western Province in 1979 and 1989.
Through the years the rivalry between the Blue Bulls and Western Province has become legendary, and a clash between these two sides is always a showcase event in the tournament.
Famous players that played for the Blue Bulls include Danie Craven, Naas Botha, Frik du Preez, Victor Matfield, Bakkies Botha, Joost van der Westhuizen and Uli Schmidt.