The FNB North-West University (NWU) Eagles booked their place in the 2026 Varsity Cup Final in emphatic fashion, dismantling FNB Maties 50 – 10 in a blockbuster semi-final fixture at the Fanie du Toit Sportsgrounds on Monday, 6 April. The dominant victory extends the Eagles’ unbeaten home run and avenges their 26 – 30 defeat to Maties in their round-six clash at the Danie Craven Stadium on 23 March.

FNB Maties drew first blood through a Janlu Basson try and a converted penalty by Christiaan van Heerden Smith in the ninth minute to hand the visitors a 7 – 0 lead in Potchefstroom. The Eagles responded through a composed MJ Mostert penalty kick that went straight under the posts, reducing the deficit to 7 – 3.

In the 24th minute, Maties were caught on the hop as Sean Roulston scored the first try for the Eagles, with Mostert slotting a conversion to edge NWU 10 -7 ahead. Maties levelled the score shortly after with penalty kick by Van Heerden Smith, leaving the sides deadlocked at 10 -10 halftime.

The second half belonged to the Eagles, as they pushed harder than ever, bringing the Purple House down. The Eagles ran in tries through Stephan Krugel, Logan Jeneke (2), Garry Otto, and Jamaine Dampies. Mostert played a key role with his kicking, successfully making five conversion to help secure a convincing win for the home side.  

Ricardo Fourie was named The FNB Player That Rocks, producing a standout performance that played a crucial role in guiding the Eagles to the final.

“Very fast game, very tough, but that’s how semifinals must be,” said Fourie. “Being named Man of the Match is an unbelievable honour for me. I could not have done it alone; credit to the team and the NWU community for their incredible support.”

The FNB NWU Eagles will now face FNB UP-Tuks in the Varsity Cup final on Monday 13 April at the Tuks Stadium in Pretoria, as they look to cap of their remarkable campaign.

Teams
FNB NWU Eagles: Alethwa Buthelezi, Jordan Mcloughlin, Jason Oosthuizen, Stephan Krugel, Rianel Turner, Ricardo Fourie, Guhan Du Bois, Sean Roulston, Zack Serfontein, MJ Mostert, Logan Janeke, Leejay Petersen, Matthew Fortuin, Luyolo Doyi, Luan van der Walt

Substitutes: Hanro Venter, Bradely Stanfliet, Jaco Du Toit, Schalk Du Plessis, Zihan Bensch, Gary Otto, Angelo Daniels, Jamain Dampies 

Ricardo Fourie was named the FNB Player the Rocks.