Carling Currie Cup action resumes tonight when Tafel Lager Griquas will be eager to add the scalp of DHL Western Province to their win in the previous round when the two sides clash in Kimberley at 19h00.
After suffering a heartbreaking 24-23 loss to the Cell C Sharks on 19 January, Tafel Lager Griquas bounced back firmly for a 41-20 triumph over the Airlink Pumas two weeks ago, thanks to a masterclass kicking display by Zander du Plessis.
The Northern Cape outfit will no doubt be eager to keep that upward curve intact against a DHL WP side hoping to get back to winning ways following their 35-20 away loss to the KwaZulu-Natalians in the same round.
Last season, Tafel Lager Griquas achieved a rare double over DHL WP, outplaying them by 46-25 in Kimberley and edging the men from the Western Cape by 30-28 in Cape Town.
I expect a massive battle up front in the first forty minutes with the game opening up later on. Expect the Griquas to scrum and maul Western Province, forcing penalties with the immense pressure applied.
Tafel Lager Griquas made three changes to their starting line-up for tonight's battle.
They suffered a huge setback when their experienced skipper, Ruan Steenkamp, was sidelined for the next three months due to a serious knee injury. As a result, the captaincy will be taken over by 24-year-old loose forward Niel Otto, who joined Griquas from the Pumas in the off-season.
At the back outside centre Jonothan Francke replace Christopher Hollis while Stefan Ungerer is back at scrumhalf and replace Reegan Oranje who drops to the bench.
Siba Qoma replace injured captain Ruan Steenkamp with Michael Amiras promoted to fill Siba's place on the side of the scrum. Janco Uys is also promoted from the bench to replace Alandre van Rooyen at hooker.
DHL Western Province has been bolstered by the inclusion of a few key players for their Carling Currie Cup clash with Tafel Lager Griquas in Kimberley on Friday.
There are five players in the forward pack that did not feature in the DHL Western Province’s last match in Durban a fortnight ago.
Prop Neethling Fouche, hooker Andre-Hugo Venter, lock Ben-Jason Dixon and loose forwards Marcel Theunissen and Nama Xaba all come into the starting line-up for the match at Tafel Lager Park, which kicks off at 19h00 on Friday.
Fouche makes his return from injury, while Venter, Dixon, Theunissen and captain Xaba will all get some valuable game time having featured among the replacements for the DHL Stormers in recent weeks.
Loose forward Junior Pokomela will also make his DHL Western Province debut from the replacements bench, having recently recovered from injury.
The only change to the backline sees Kade Wolhuter make his first start of the season at fullback, with Sergeal Petersen shifting to the right-wing.
DHL Western Province Head Coach Jerome Paarwater said that the players coming in are all keen to make the most of this opportunity in what will be a challenging match away from home.
“Playing the Tafel Lager Griquas in Kimberley is never easy, so we will have to be as accurate as possible for the full 80 minutes up there.
“We have had two weeks to work on a few aspects of our game and have worked closely with the DHL Stormers squad, which has been good for us.
“The guys coming in are all hungry to show what they have to offer and we are looking forward to seeing how some of the new combinations go,” he said.
Weather: 23° Celsius, light clouds with 71% humidity but no rain or wind expected.
Prediction: Tafel Lager Griquas by 5.
Tafel Lager Griquas: 15. Rynhardt Jonker, 14. Munier Hartzenberg, 13. Jonathan Francke, 12. Zander du Plessis, 11. Luther Obi, 10. Fiela Boshoff, 9. Stefan Ungerer, 8. Siba Qoma, 7. Michael Amiras, 6. Niel Otto (c), 5. Derik Pretorius, 4. Mzwanele Zito, 3. Janu Botha, 2. Janco Uys, 1. Eddie Davids. Replacements: 16. Gustav du Randt, 17. Kudzwai Dube, 18. Andries Schutte, 19. Johan Retief, 20. Hanru Sirgel, 21. Reagan Oranje, 22. Andre Swarts, 23. Sango Xamlashe.
DHL Western Province: 15 Kade Wolhuter, 14 Sergeal Petersen, 13 Mnombo Zwelendaba, 12 Cornel Smit, 11 Leolin Zas, 10 Timothy Swiel, 9 Godlen Masimla, 8 Keke Morabe, 7 Marcel Theunissen, 6 Nama Xaba (captain), 5 David Meihuizen, 4 Ben-Jason Dixon, 3 Neethling Fouche, 2 Andre-Hugo Venter, 1 Ali Vermaak. Replacements: 16 Chad Solomon, 17 Leon Lyons, 18 Lee-Marvin Mazibuko, 19 Connor Evans, 20 Junior Pokomela, 21 Thomas Bursey, 22 Sacha Mngomezulu, 23 Ethan James.