A clash between DHL Western Province and the Airlink Pumas in Cape Town @ 15h00 is the first in the midweek fixture list of the 2022 Carling Currie Cup.
DHL WP will be determined to land a second win after falling to four losses in their previous five outings while Airlink Pumas will be as determined to do the same. With only the Sigma Lions lower than these two sides on the Carling Currie Cup log, the loser of this critical game could find them sooner than later at the bottom of the log before the end of the season.
After spending some time on the road, the Capetonians now have three back-to-back home matches and will be hoping that home ground advantage will lead to better results, starting with the Airlink Pumas on Wednesday afternoon.
In their two meetings last season, the Cape side beat the Lowvelders 37-23 in Nelspruit, while the sides played out to an exciting 40-40 draw in the Mother City.
There is just one change to the DHL Western Province starting line-up.
After three consecutive away matches, DHL Western Province is back on home turf, in a match that kicks off at 15h00 on Wednesday.
Godlen Masimla starts at scrumhalf in the only change to the team that claimed a bonus-point against the table-topping Toyota Cheetahs in Bloemfontein last week.
There are a few changes to the forwards on the replacements bench, with props Ali Vermaak and Sazi Sandi set to make an impact in the second half, along with young loose forward Jarrod Taylor.
DHL Western Province Head Coach Jerome Paarwater said that his team are keen to make the most of being back at home.
“It is great for us to be back at DHL Stadium for what is an important game in our campaign.
“We have got some continuity in the team and hopefully we will see some good cohesion in the combinations as we play in front of our crowd again on Wednesday,” he said.
Airlink Pumas has made five changes to their starting line-up.
Only one change was made to the backline where Chriswill September replaces Lucky Dlepu at scrumhalf. Dlepu drops to the bench.
Upfront four changes were made with Darrien Lansberg set to make his return at lock together with a brand new front row selected. (#3) IG Prinsloo, (#2) Eduan Swart and (#1) Corne Fourie will return as a combination to face the might of the DHL Western Province front-row.
DHL Western Province: 15. Tristan Leyds, 14. Sergeal Petersen, 13. Mnombo Zwelendaba, 12. Cornel Smit, 11. Angelo Davids, 10. Kade Wolhuter, 9. Godlen Masimla, 8. Keke Morabe, 7. Marcel Theunissen, 6. Nama Xaba (c), 5. Ben-Jason Dixon, 4. Connor Evans, 3. Lee-Marvin Mazibuko, 2. JJ Kotze, 1. Kwenzo Blose. Replacements: 16. Lukhanyo Vokozela, 17. Ali Vermaak, 18. Sazi Sandi, 19. Simon Miller, 20. Jarrod Taylor, 21. Thomas Bursey, 22. Timothy Swiel, 23. Rikus Pretorius.
Airlink Pumas: 15. Tapiwa Mafura, 14. Sebastian de Klerk, 13. Alwayno Visagie, 12. Eddie Fouche, 11. Jade Stighling, 10. Tinus de Beer, 9. Chriswill September, 8. Willie Engelbrecht (c), 7. Anele Lungisa, 6. Daniel Maartens, 5. Shane Kirkwood, 4. Darrien Landsberg, 3. IG Prinsloo, 2. Eduan Swart, 1. Corne Fourie. Replacements: 16. Llewellyn Classen, 17. Dewald Maritz, 18. Etienne Janeke, 19. Malembe Mpofu, 20. Phumzile Maqondwana, 21. Lucky Dlepu, 22. Ali Mgijima, 23. Devon Williams.
