The 2016 Varsity Shield was contested from 1 February to 18 April 2016. The tournament was the sixth season of the Varsity Shield, an annual second-tier inter-university rugby union competition featuring five South African universities. Following a disruption during the Varsity Cup Round Three match between and and general unrest on various university campuses, all fixtures scheduled for 29 February were postponed to 4 April, with the semi-finals and final also postponed by a week. On 1 March, it was also announced that the round of matches scheduled for 7 March would also be postponed, with the situation at various universities being monitored to determine when the competition will resume. After a meeting by the executive management of Varsity Rugby on 9 March, it was decided that all remaining matches in the competition would be played at neutral venues and that matches should resume on 14 March. The tournament was won by for the second time; they beat 39–2 in the final played on 18 April 2016. Wits was also promoted to the top-tier Varsity Cup competition for 2017.
Competition rules and information
There were five participating universities in the 2015 Varsity Shield. These teams played each other twice over the course of the season, once at home and once 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. The top two teams qualified for the title play-offs. These teams played each other in the final, at the home venue of the higher-placed team. The Varsity Shield winner was promoted to the 2017 Varsity Cup competition, while the bottom team in the Varsity Cup was relegated to the 2017 Varsity Shield. There was also a promotion/relegation match between the 7th-placed team in the Varsity Cup and the Varsity Shield runner-up at the end of the 2016 season. Three new universities will join the Varsity Shield in 2017. The Varsity Shield used a different scoring system to the regular system. Tries were worth five points as usual, but conversions were worth three points, while penalties and drop goals were only worth two points.
Teams
Standings
The final league standings for the 2016 Varsity Shield were:
Round-by-round
Matches
The following matches were played in the 2016 Varsity Shield:
Round One
Round Two
Round Three
Round Four
Round Five
Round Six
Round Seven
Round Eight
Round Nine
Round Ten
Final
Honours
The honour roll for the 2016 Varsity Shield was as follows:
Players
Player statistics
The following table contain points that were scored in the 2016 Varsity Shield:
Squads
The following squads were named for the 2016 Varsity Shield:
2016 TUT Vikings squad
2016 UFH Blues squad
2016 UKZN Impi squad
2016 UWC squad
2016 Wits squad
Discipline
The following table contains all the cards handed out during the tournament:
Referees
The following referees officiated matches in the 2016 Varsity Shield:
