2023 Varsity Cup

2023 Varsity Cup
2023 Varsity Cup
Countries	South Africa
Date	20 February – 17 April 2023
Champions	NWU Eagles (2nd title)
Runners-up	UCT Ikey Tigers
Relegated	UP Tuks
Matches played	59
Top point scorer	Ntokozo Makhaza; (127 - UCT Ikey Tigers)
Top try scorer	Vernon Paulo; (11 - NWU Eagles)
	← 2022 2024 →

Last updated February 18, 2026

The 2023 Varsity Cup was the 16th season of the Varsity Cup, the top competition in the annual Varsity Rugby series in men's rugby union. It was played between 20 February and 27 April 2023 and featured eight university teams.^[1]

The 2023 season included notable upsets and intense competition, such as UJ securing a home victory over defending champions UCT Ikey Tigers in March.^[2] In the championship match, NWU Eagles edged out the UCT Ikey Tigers 27‑25 to claim their second Varsity Cup title.^[3] The tournament also marked the return of full‑capacity crowds at campus stadiums and the ongoing growth of varsity rugby following COVID‑19 disruptions.^[4]

Competition rules and information

There were eight participating university teams in the 2023 Varsity Cup. They played each other once during the pool stage, either at home or away. Teams received four points for a win and two points for a draw. Bonus points were awarded to teams that scored four or more tries in a game, as well as to teams that lost a match by seven points or less. Teams were ranked by log points, then points difference (points scored less points conceded).

The top four teams after the pool stage qualified for the semifinals, which were followed by a final.

Teams

Location of teams in the 2023 Varsity Cup
CUT Ixias NWU Eagles UFS Shimlas UJ UP Tuks Wits Western Cape
Western Cape
Maties UCT Ikey Tigers UWC

The teams that played in the 2023 Varsity Cup are:

2023 Varsity Cup teams
Team name	University	Stadium
CUT Ixias	Central University of Technology	CUT Stadium , Bloemfontein
Maties	Stellenbosch University	Danie Craven Stadium , Stellenbosch
NWU Eagles	North-West University	Fanie du Toit Sport Ground , Potchefstroom
UCT Ikey Tigers	University of Cape Town	UCT Rugby Fields , Cape Town
UFS Shimlas	University of the Free State	Shimla Park , Bloemfontein
UJ	University of Johannesburg	UJ Stadium , Johannesburg
UP Tuks	University of Pretoria	LC de Villiers Stadium , Pretoria
Wits	University of the Witwatersrand	Wits Rugby Stadium, Johannesburg

Standings

The final log for the 2023 Varsity Cup was:

2023 Varsity Cup log
Pos	Team	P	W	D	L	PF	PA	PD	TB	LB	Pts
1	NWU Eagles	7	6	0	1	281	154	+127	2	1	27
2	UFS Shimlas	7	5	0	2	223	220	+3	2	0	22
3	UCT Ikey Tigers	7	4	0	3	263	187	+76	4	1	21
4	Maties	7	4	0	3	223	250	−27	2	1	19
5	UJ	7	3	0	4	231	254	−23	3	2	17
6	Wits	7	3	0	4	228	267	−39	2	2	16
7	CUT Ixias	7	3	0	4	262	321	−59	3	0	15
8	UP Tuks	7	0	0	7	192	250	−58	1	4	5

Legend and competition rules

Legend:
	Qualified for the semifinals.	P = Games played, W = Games won, D = Games drawn, L = Games lost, PF = Points for, PA = Points against, PD = Points difference, TF = Tries for, TA = Tries against, TB = Try bonus points, LB = Losing bonus points, Pts = Log points

Competition rules:
Qualification: The top four teams qualified for the semifinals. Points breakdown: * 4 points for a win * 2 points for a draw * 1 bonus point for a loss by seven points or less * 1 bonus point for scoring four or more tries in a match

Pool stage

Matches

The following matches were played in the 2023 Varsity Cup:

Round one

	20 February 2023	CUT Ixias	49–59	Wits	CUT Stadium, Bloemfontein
	13:30		Report

	20 February 2023	UP Tuks	25–26	UFS Shimlas	LC de Villiers Stadium, Pretoria
	15:00		Report

	20 February 2023	Maties	21–19	UCT Ikey Tigers	Danie Craven Stadium, Stellenbosch
	17:00		Report

	20 February 2023	NWU Eagles	41–28	UJ	Fanie du Toit Sport Ground, Potchefstroom
	17:00		Report

Round two

	27 February 2023	NWU Eagles	63–16	UFS Shimlas	Fanie du Toit Sport Ground, Potchefstroom
	15:00		Report

	27 February 2023	Wits	35–33	UJ	Wits Rugby Stadium, Johannesburg
	17:00		Report

	27 February 2023	UCT Ikey Tigers	40–19	UP Tuks	UCT Rugby Fields, Cape Town
	17:00		Report

	27 February 2023	Maties	19–23	CUT Ixias	Danie Craven Stadium, Stellenbosch
	17:00		Report

Round three

	6 March 2023	CUT Ixias	41–39	UP Tuks	CUT Stadium, Bloemfontein
	13:30		Report

	6 March 2023	UJ	43–24	UCT Ikey Tigers	UJ Stadium, Johannesburg
	15:00		Report

	6 March 2023	NWU Eagles	28–31	Maties	Fanie du Toit Sport Ground, Potchefstroom
	17:00		Report

	6 March 2023	UFS Shimlas	26–25	Wits	Shimla Park, Bloemfontein
	17:00		Report

Round four

	13 March 2023	UJ	12–54	CUT Ixias	UJ Stadium, Johannesburg
	14:00		Report

	13 March 2023	UCT Ikey Tigers	29–12	UFS Shimlas	UCT Rugby Fields, Cape Town
	17:00		Report

	13 March 2023	Wits	54–56	Maties	Wits Rugby Stadium, Johannesburg
	17:00		Report

	13 March 2023	UP Tuks	22–26	NWU Eagles	LC de Villiers Stadium, Pretoria
	17:00		Report

Round five

	20 March 2023	UCT Ikey Tigers	46–19	Wits	UCT Rugby Fields, Cape Town
	14:00		Report

	20 March 2023	NWU Eagles	45–28	CUT Ixias	Fanie du Toit Sport Ground, Potchefstroom
	17:00		Report

	20 March 2023	UFS Shimlas	31–30	UJ	Shimla Park, Bloemfontein
	17:00		Report

	20 March 2023	Maties	46–35	UP Tuks	Danie Craven Stadium, Stellenbosch
	17:00		Report

Round six

	27 March 2023	UJ	47–38	Maties	UJ Stadium, Johannesburg
	14:00		Report

	27 March 2023	Wits	33–21	UP Tuks	Wits Rugby Stadium, Johannesburg
	15:00		Report

	27 March 2023	UCT Ikey Tigers	26–42	NWU Eagles	UCT Rugby Fields, Cape Town
	17:00		Report

	27 March 2023	UFS Shimlas	68–36	CUT Ixias	Shimla Park, Bloemfontein
	17:00		Report

Round seven

	3 April 2023	CUT Ixias	31–79	UCT Ikey Tigers	CUT Stadium, Bloemfontein
	13:30		Report

	3 April 2023	Wits	3–36	NWU Eagles	Wits Rugby Stadium, Johannesburg
	17:00		Report

	3 April 2023	UP Tuks	31–38	UJ	LC de Villiers Stadium, Pretoria
	17:00		Report

	3 April 2023	Maties	12–44	UFS Shimlas	Danie Craven Stadium, Stellenbosch
	17:00		Report

Play-offs

Semi-finals		Final

10 April 2023

UFS Shimlas	30
		17 April 2023
UCT Ikey Tigers	65
		NWU Eagles	27
10 April 2023
		UCT Ikey Tigers	25
NWU Eagles	19

Maties	10

Semi-finals

	10 April 2023	UFS Shimlas	30–65	UCT Ikey Tigers	Shimla Park, Bloemfontein
	15:00		Report

	10 April 2023	NWU Eagles	19-10	Maties	Fanie du Toit Sport Ground, Potchefstroom
	17:00		Report

Final

	17 April 2023	NWU Eagles	27–25	UCT Ikey Tigers	Fanie du Toit Sport Ground, Potchefstroom
	17:00		Report

References

↑ "Varsity Cup 2023". superbru.co.za.
↑ "UJ home crowd fires team to first win in 2023 FNB Varsity Cup" . Retrieved 17 February 2026.
↑ "NWU Eagles win the 2023 Varsity Cup" . Retrieved 17 February 2026.
↑ "Fixtures now available for FNB Varsity Cup 2023" . Retrieved 17 February 2026.

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[1] "Varsity Cup 2023". superbru.co.za.

[2] "UJ home crowd fires team to first win in 2023 FNB Varsity Cup" . Retrieved 17 February 2026.

[3] "NWU Eagles win the 2023 Varsity Cup" . Retrieved 17 February 2026.

[4] "Fixtures now available for FNB Varsity Cup 2023" . Retrieved 17 February 2026.

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