DHL Western Province U21 and visitors Fidelity ADT Lions U21 have been boosted by the inclusion of several Junior Springbok players for their top-of-the-log encounter at DHL Stadium on Friday.
Action will get underway at 15h45 on Friday in a match that will be played as a curtain-raiser for the Vodacom United Rugby Championship clash between the DHL Stormers and Cardiff.
For the DHL Western Province, flyhalf Kyle Smith, props Oliver Reid and Herman Lubbe, and utility backs Gino Cupido and Dominic Malgas all make their first appearance of the season, having returned from Junior Springbok duty.
Zachary Porthen also features at tighthead prop, having made his DHL Stormers debut against Dragons RFC last week.
Head Coach Johnno van der Walt said that while it will be great to have the Junior Springboks back in the mix, his team are under no illusion about the task ahead of them as they face the table-topping side from Johannesburg.
“It is fantastic to have some of our top players back from national duty, and we would like to see them integrate as seamlessly as possible.
“The Fidelity ADT Lions U21 have made a strong start to their campaign, so we will have to be at our best to get the win.
“It is an awesome opportunity for our team to play at DHL Stadium, and we are all really looking forward to the experience,” he said.
Fidelity ADT Lions included Gilermo Mentoe, Shah-Jehaan de Jongh, Hassiem Pead, Thando Biyela and Henko-Ben Odendaal, who was part of the Junior Springboks squad in their starting line-up, while Neil Hansen was included on the bench.
In total, the Lions changed in total eight to their starting line-up that beat the Leopards 31-22 a week ago. Flyhalf Nicallen Gabrielsen and loosies Siba Mahashe (c), 7 Morne Venter are the new faces in the starting line-up.
Teams:
DHL Western Province U21: 15 Dylan Miller, 14 Joel Leotlela, 13 Grant de Jager, 12 Samuel Badenhorst, 11 Siyabonga Ndlosi, 10 Kyle Smith, 9 Ezekiel Ngobeni, 8 Max du Pisani, 7 Aden de Costa, 6 Torren February, 5 Patrick Kitete, 4 Danio Botha, 3 Zachary Porthen, 2 Luca Bakkes (c), 1 Matthew Beckett. Replacements: 16 Armand Combrinck, 17 Oliver Reid, 18 Herman Lubbe, 19 Andre Goedhals, 20 Xola Nyali, 21 Asad Moos, 22 Dominic Malgas, 23 Gino Cupido.
Fidelity ADT Lions U21:15 Gilermo Mentoe, 14 Michail Damon, 13 Shah-Jehaan de Jongh, 12 Likhona Finca, 11 Jason Hugo, 10 Nicallen Gabrielsen, 9 Hassiem Pead, 8 Siba Mahashe (c), 7 Morne Venter, 6 Thando Biyela, 5 Luan Taylor, 4 Chris Sjoblom, 3 Siya Dube, 2 Henko-Ben Odendaal, 1 Liyema Ntshanga. Replacements: 16 Mahle Sithole, 17 Ricardo Brandao, 18 Reno Hirst, 19 Neil Hansen, 20 Thomas Beling, 21 Zian Cilliers, 22 Matthew Coetzee, 23 Asemahle Nongogo.