EPRU Stadium

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EPRU Stadium
The Boet
EPRU Stadium
Full nameEastern Province Rugby Union Stadium
Former namesBoet Erasmus Stadium
LocationLa Roche Drive
Summerstrand
Port Elizabeth
South Africa
Coordinates 33°58′55″S25°38′22″E / 33.98194°S 25.63944°E / -33.98194; 25.63944
Owner Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Municipality
OperatorEastern Province Rugby Union
Capacity 33,852
Field size100m X 70m
SurfaceGrass
Construction
Built1958–1960
Opened1960
Closed2010
Demolished2019
Tenants
Mighty Elephants (Currie Cup) (1959 - 2010)
Bay United (PSL/NFD) (2008 - 2010)

EPRU Stadium, also known by its original name of Boet Erasmus Stadium, was a stadium in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. The letters "EPRU" in the name represent the Eastern Province Rugby Union, the stadium's historic primary tenants, whose team is now known as the Mighty Elephants. The original name Boet Erasmus Stadium was named after Boet Erasmus, a former mayor of Port Elizabeth. [1] It had a capacity of 33,852 people and served primarily as a venue for rugby union matches but also hosted a number of association football (soccer) fixtures.

Contents

The stadium closed in 2010 and was demolished in 2019.

Background

Music

On 6 March 2007, Irish vocal pop band Westlife held a concert during The Love Tour , in-support of their record, The Love Album .

French Canadian singer Céline Dion performed for over 17,000 people on 27 February 2008 during her Taking Chances World Tour .

Rugby

Boet Erasmus stadium was primarily used as the home of rugby in the Eastern Cape. Situated in the affluent suburb of Summerstrand, it hosted matches at Test, Super Rugby, Currie Cup, Vodacom Cup and club level. [2] It was regularly used by the Eastern Province Elephants under their previous names, the Mighty Elephants and the Eastern Province Kings and hosted their two home matches during the 1994 Super 10 season. The stadium was also the intended home of the Southern Spears, a team that was scheduled to play in the 2006 Currie Cup in preparation for its admission to the Super Rugby starting in 2007. However, the Spears were later denied entry into both competitions.

The stadium is credited for being the first stomping ground of a number of Springbok legends, included in which are Danie Gerber, Garth Wright, Frans Erasmus and Hannes Marias. [2]

The Battle of Boet Erasmus

In 1974, during the 1974 British Lions tour to South Africa, one of the most violent matches in rugby history [3] [4] was dubbed the "Battle of Boet Erasmus Stadium". [5] After a 99 call by Lions, there is famous video footage of J.P.R. Williams running over half of the pitch and launching himself at Moaner van Heerden, [6] something that Williams says he is not proud of. [7] Gordon Brown hit his opposite number, Johan de Bruyn, so hard that the Orange Free State man's glass eye flew out and landed in the mud. [8]

At the 1995 Rugby World Cup on 3 June 1995, South Africa took on Canada in a clash that has also sometimes been dubbed the Battle of Boet Erasmus. The match, which South Africa ultimately won 20–0, was marred by an on-field scuffle with four players involved in a brawl. South Africa hooker James Dalton, who had come to the aid of a teammate who had been struck on the back of the head, and winger Pieter Hendriks were suspended for the remainder of the tournament for their roles in the incident and could only watch from the sidelines as the nation went on to claim its first Rugby World Cup title. [9] [10]

Soccer

The stadium was used as the home ground for Port Elizabeth's, Bay United F.C. who moved to the stadium for their 2008/2009 season in the Premier Soccer League. The club used the stadium again at times during their 2009/2010 campaign in the National First Division. This was due to availability problems with their preferred home ground, the Westbourne Oval.

Closure and abandonment

Remnants of the EPRU Stadium in 2016 Boet Erasmus Stadium.jpg
Remnants of the EPRU Stadium in 2016

The stadium was officially closed in July 2010. The Eastern Province Rugby Union has moved all games to the new world class Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth. The last match to be played at the stadium was a friendly against the Blue Bulls on 3 July 2010. [1] The Boet hosted age-group, amateur and club rugby matches after being officially closed but has since been abandoned, with vagrants and thieves having slowly dismantled the stadium to such an extent that all that remains are the concrete structures. [1] The local municipality, who own the property, has asked for proposals from the private sector for the redevelopment of the land. [2]

The stadium was demolished in 2019.

International tournaments

1995 Rugby World Cup

The stadium was one of 9 venues throughout South Africa used for the Rugby World Cup. The stadium was used for group games in Group A. It hosted 3 games, including the match between South Africa and Canada:

DateTeam #1Res.Team #2RoundAttendance
1995-05-26Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada 34-3Flag of Romania.svg  Romania Group A 18,000
1995-05-31Flag of Australia (converted).svg  Australia 27-11Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada Group A 15,000
1995-06-03Flag of South Africa.svg  South Africa 20-0Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada Group A 31,000

1996 African Cup of Nations

When the tournament was moved to South Africa, the EPRU Stadium was chosen as one of 4 host stadiums. A total of 6 pool games were played at the stadium, as well as a quarter-final:

DateTeam #1Res.Team #2RoundAttendance
1996-01-14 Flag of Ghana.svg Ghana 2–0 Flag of Cote d'Ivoire.svg Ivory Coast Group D 8,000
1996-01-16 Flag of Tunisia.svg Tunisia 1–1 Flag of Mozambique.svg Mozambique Group D 1,000
1996-01-19 Flag of Ghana.svg Ghana 2–1 Flag of Tunisia.svg Tunisia Group D 1,000
1996-01-21 Flag of Cote d'Ivoire.svg Ivory Coast 1–0 Flag of Mozambique.svg Mozambique Group D 500
1996-01-24 Flag of Algeria.svg Algeria 2–1 Flag of Burkina Faso.svg Burkina Faso Group B 180
1996-01-25 Flag of Tunisia.svg Tunisia 3–1 Flag of Cote d'Ivoire.svg Ivory Coast Group D 1,000
1996-01-28 Flag of Ghana.svg Ghana 1–0 Flag of Zaire (1971-1997).svg Zaire Quarterfinals 8,000

2010 FIFA World Cup

During the 2010 FIFA World Cup, the stadium was used as a logistics point for Port Elizabeth, a host city.

International matches

Rugby

DateTeam #1ResultTeam #2RoundAttendance
1960-04-30 Flag of South Africa (1928-1982).svg South Africa 18-10Flag of Scotland.svg  Scotland Test match 24,000
1960-08-27 Flag of South Africa (1928-1982).svg South Africa 8-3 New Zealand Test match 53,000
1961-08-12 Flag of South Africa (1928-1982).svg South Africa 23-11 Australia Test match 26,000
1962-06-30 Eastern Province 6-21 British Lions Tour match
1963-09-07 Flag of South Africa (1928-1982).svg South Africa 22-6 Australia Test match 48,600
1968-05-29 Eastern Province 14-23 British Lions Tour match
1968-06-22 Flag of South Africa (1928-1982).svg South Africa 6-6 British Lions Test match 70,000
1970-08-29 Flag of South Africa (1928-1982).svg South Africa 14-3 New Zealand Test match 55,000
1974-05-25 Flag of South Africa (1928-1982).svg South Africa 9-26 British Lions Test match 55,000
1974-06-13 Eastern Province 14-28 British Lions Tour match
1980-05-10 Eastern Province 16-28 British Lions Tour match
1980-06-28 Flag of South Africa (1928-1982).svg South Africa 12-10 British Lions Test match 45,000
1984-06-02 Flag of South Africa (1928-1982).svg South Africa 33-15 England Test match 46,000
1994-10-08Flag of South Africa.svg  South Africa 42-22 Argentina Test match 28,000
1995-06-03Flag of South Africa.svg  South Africa 20-0 Canada Test match 31,000
1997-05-24 Eastern Province XV 11-39 British Lions Tour match
1999-06-12Flag of South Africa.svg  South Africa 74-3 Italy Test match 35,000
2001-06-30Flag of South Africa.svg  South Africa 60-14 Italy Test match 35,000
2003-06-28Flag of South Africa.svg  South Africa 26-25 Argentina Test match 25,000
2005-06-25Flag of South Africa.svg  South Africa 27-13 France Test match 35,000
2006-06-17Flag of South Africa.svg  South Africa 29-15Flag of Scotland.svg  Scotland Test match 25,844

Football

DateTeam #1Res.Team #2RoundAttendance
2000-07-29Flag of South Africa.svg  South Africa 0–1Flag of Zimbabwe.svg  Zimbabwe 2000 COSAFA Cup#Semi-Final
2003-06-14Flag of South Africa.svg  South Africa 2–1Flag of Trinidad and Tobago.svg  Trinidad and Tobago International Friendly 28,000
2006-11-12Flag of South Africa.svg  South Africa 2–3Flag of Senegal.svg  Senegal Nelson Mandela Challenge
2008-06-01Flag of South Africa.svg  South Africa 0–1Flag of Nigeria.svg  Nigeria 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifier 30,000

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 3 Lambley, Garrin (11 July 2013). "So sad. Boet Erasmus in Ruin". Sport24. Retrieved 11 May 2016.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  2. 1 2 3 Foster, Grant (15 November). "Former EP Rugby home in ruins". SA Promo. Archived from the original on 13 June 2018. Retrieved 11 May 2016.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  3. ↑ "Boet Erasmus Stadium, Port Elizabeth 13 July 1974". Official Website of the British and Irish Lions. Archived from the original on 22 October 2006.
  4. ↑ Byron, George (14 May 2005). "Recalling those legendary 'Battles of the Boet'". Weekend Post. Archived from the original on 3 August 2009.
  5. ↑ Staff (24 November 2002). "Sports File: Caught in Time: Lions in South Africa, 1974". The Sunday Times .[ dead link ]
  6. ↑ English, Tom. "Rampant Lions - South Africa 1974". Archived from the original on 27 October 2007. cites it is a copy an article in The Sunday Times , 20 May 2001.
  7. ↑ Doyle, Paul (6 October 2006). "Small talk: JPR Williams". The Guardian Unlimited. Archived from the original on 20 January 2008.
  8. ↑ Thomas, Clem; Thomas, Greg (2013). 125 Years of the British and Irish Lions: The Official History (illustrated ed.). Random House. p.  iv. ISBN   9781780577388.
  9. ↑ "'Battle of Boet Erasmus' remembered". News24. 3 June 2015. Retrieved 16 August 2016.
  10. ↑ "1995 RWC Battle of Boet Erasmus - South Africa vs Canada". Rugby Dump. 4 June 2015. Archived from the original on 8 May 2017. Retrieved 16 August 2016.
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