# 2017 Varsity Shield

The 2017 Varsity Shield was the 2017 edition of the Varsity Shield, an annual second-tier inter-university rugby union competition featuring university sides in South Africa. The tournament – known as the FNB Varsity Shield presented by Steinhoff International for sponsorship reasons – was the seventh season of the Varsity Shield and was contested from 9 February to 10 April 2017.

## Competition rules and information

There were seven participating universities in the 2017 Varsity Shield. These teams played each other once over the course of the season, either 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 qualified for the title play-offs. In the semi-finals, the team that finished first had home advantage against the team that received fourth, while the team that finished second had home advantage against the team that finished third. The winners of these semi-finals played each other in the final, at the home venue of the higher-placed team.

## Teams

The following teams took part in the 2017 Varsity Shield competition:
2017 Varsity Shield teams :
| Team name | University | Stadium |
| CPUT | Cape Peninsula University of Technology | CPUT Sports Stadium, Cape Town |
| Rhodes | Rhodes University | Rhodes Great Field, Grahamstown |
| TUT Vikings | Tshwane University of Technology | TUT Stadium, Pretoria |
| UFH Blues | University of Fort Hare | Davidson Rugby Field, Alice |
| UKZN Impi | University of KwaZulu-Natal | Howard College Rugby Stadium, Durban |
| UKZN Impi | University of KwaZulu-Natal | Peter Booysen Sports Park, Pietermaritzburg |
| UWC | University of the Western Cape | UWC Sport Stadium, Cape Town |
| WSU All Blacks | Walter Sisulu University | Buffalo City Stadium, East London |

## Standings

The final standings for the 2017 Varsity Shield were:
| 2017 Varsity Shield standings |
| Pos | Team | P | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | TF | TA | TB | LB | Pts |
| 1 | UWC | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 274 | 102 | +172 | | | 6 | 1 | 27 |
| 2 | UFH Blues | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 144 | 102 | +42 | | | 3 | 1 | 20 |
| 3 | UKZN Impi | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 132 | 97 | +35 | | | 3 | 1 | 20 |
| 4 | WSU All Blacks | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 118 | 138 | −20 | | | 2 | 0 | 14 |
| 5 | CPUT | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 91 | 152 | −61 | | | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| 6 | TUT Vikings | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 94 | 142 | −48 | | | 0 | 1 | 9 |
| 7 | Rhodes | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 90 | 210 | −120 | | | 1 | 1 | 6 |
| Legend and competition rules |
| Legend: |
| | Top four teams; qualified to the semi-finals. | 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: |
| Play-offs: The top four teams qualified to the semi-finals. The first-placed team hosted the fourth-placed team and the second-placed team hosted the third-placed team. The higher-ranked semi-final winner then hosted the lower-ranked semi-final winner in the final. 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 |

### Round-by-round

The table below shows each team's progression throughout the season. For each round, their cumulative points total is shown with the overall log position in brackets:
| Team Progression – 2017 Varsity Shield |
| Team | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | R5 | R6 | R7 | Semi | Final |
| UWC | 5 (2nd) | 7 (2nd) | 12 (1st) | 17 (1st) | 22 (1st) | 22 (1st) | 27 (1st) | Won | |
| UFH Blues | 5 (1st) | 10 (1st) | 11 (2nd) | 16 (2nd) | 20 (2nd) | 20 (2nd) | 20 (2nd) | Won | |
| UKZN Impi | 0 (6th) | 5 (4th) | 9 (3rd) | 14 (3rd) | 14 (3rd) | 15 (3rd) | 20 (3rd) | Lost | — |
| WSU All Blacks | 0 (7th) | 0 (7th) | 4 (6th) | 4 (6th) | 9 (4th) | 14 (4th) | 14 (4th) | Lost | — |
| CPUT | 1 (4th) | 1 (6th) | 1 (7th) | 1 (7th) | 1 (7th) | 5 (6th) | 10 (5th) | — | — |
| TUT Vikings | 4 (3rd) | 4 (5th) | 5 (5th) | 5 (5th) | 5 (6th) | 9 (5th) | 9 (6th) | — | — |
| Rhodes | 1 (5th) | 6 (3rd) | 6 (4th) | 6 (4th) | 6 (5th) | 6 (6th) | 6 (7th) | — | — |
| Key: | win | draw | loss | bye | |

## Matches

The following matches were played in the 2017 Varsity Shield:

### Round one

* Bye/s: UKZN Impi

### Round two

* Bye/s: TUT Vikings

### Round three

* Bye/s: CPUT

### Round four

* Bye/s: WSU All Blacks

### Round five

* Bye/s: Rhodes

### Round six

* Bye/s: UWC

### Round seven

* Bye/s: UFH Blues