2014 Vodacom Cup
The 2014 Vodacom Cup was played between 7 March and 16 May 2014 and was the 17th edition of this annual domestic cup competition. This edition of the Vodacom Cup was played between fourteen provincial rugby union teams in South Africa from the Currie Cup Premier and First Divisions, as well as the and from Kenya.
Competition
There were sixteen teams participating in the 2014 Vodacom Cup competition. These teams were geographically divided into two sections, with eight teams in each section. Teams played all the teams in their section once over the course of the season, either at home or away.Teams received four log points for a win and two points for a draw. Bonus log 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.
The top four teams in each section qualified for the title play-offs. In the quarter-finals, the teams that finished first in each section had home advantage against the teams that finished fourth in the other section and the teams that finished second in each section had home advantage against the teams that finished third in the other section. The winners of these quarter finals then played each other in the semi-finals, with the higher-placed team having home advantage. The two semi-final winners then met in the final.
Quotas
This competition saw the reintroduction of a quota system. Each match-day squad had to contain seven black players. Two of these had to be forwards and five of these had to be in the starting line-up.Teams
Changes from 2013
- The withdrew from the competition due to financial considerations.
- Despite not being included in the preliminary fixtures released by SARU, the Kenya Rugby Union confirmed that they would compete in the competition, where they will play in the Southern Section and be based in Cape Town. That announcement followed months of Kenyan media sources reporting that they would play in the competition pending clearance by the IRB, which was subsequently attained.