Following their thrilling draw with the Lions u/20 in Johannesburg last week, DHL Western Province u/20 will host the Cell C Sharks this afternoon at 12h00 at Newlands in a must-win for both teams.
DHL Western Province is currently 4 points behind the log leaders, the Vodacom Bulls, however, a win against the Cell C Sharks will secure them a place in the playoffs of the SARU u/20 Championship.
The Cell C Sharks comes off a win against the Toyota Free State u/20 (46-18) in Round 5 which kept their playoff hopes alive, however, a loss today will make a win against the Leopards in Round 7 non-negotiable.
There are seven changes and two positional shifts in the DHL Western Province u/20.
Upfront hooker Lukhanyo Vokozela comes into the front row, while lock Connor Evans makes his first start of the season.
In the loose trio, Simon Miller is on the flank, with Jarrod Taylor shifting to the back of the scrum at No.8.
There is a new halfback pairing of Liam Kloosman and Cade Croy, with Bobby Alexander and Sacha Mngomezulu set to make an impact from the replacement bench.
Pascal Ekeji is back in the team on the left wing, with Rethabile Louw moving across to the right-wing, while in midfield Mayr Retief is back in the starting line-up and Jacque Rossouw starts at fullback.
DHL Western Province U20 Head Coach Jerome Paarwater said that with the knock-out phase of the competition fast approaching, it is important that all the players get some game-time.
“We have to ensure that we have exposed the entire squad so that we can head into the business end of this competition with confidence.
“We are excited to see what the players coming in can add this week in what will be a tough match against a quality Cell C Sharks U20 side,” he said.
The Cell C Sharks Under 20s will be looking for more of the same when they travel to Cape Town to take on their Western Province counterparts in a fifth round SA Rugby Under 20 Championship clash at DHL Newlands on Friday at midday.
Coming off the back of a well-constructed 46-18 victory over Free State at Jonsson Kings Park last Friday, motivation will be high, but they will have a tough ask against a perennial age group top side.
“We were very pleased to get back to winning ways last week, we’d spoken a lot about turning the competition around at the halfway mark and we played well,” explains head coach Mike Vowles.
“We knew that if we stuck to the plan, it would open up for us in the last quarter – which it did – and we’re very proud of the effort the guys put in, it really was a good performance.”
Vowles and assistant coach JP Pietersen have been fortunate with continuity, the only change coming at fullback where Matthew Jacobs comes in for Katlego Thinyane.
“This game against Western Province is going to be a massive challenge, they’re a good side who have played well in the competition,” Vowles points out.
“They offer a massive physical challenge and playing in Cape Town is never easy, but we have a couple of plans up our sleeve, we have players back from injury which is a boost and we’re looking forward to the challenge.
“Hopefully we can build on the success of last week’s performance, keep the confidence going and finish the competition well.”
DHL Western Province u/20: 15 Jacque Rossouw, 14 Rethabile Louw, 13 Ethan James, 12 Meyr Retief, 11 Pascal Ekeji, 10 Cade Croy, 9 Liam Kloosman, 8 Jarrod Taylor, 7 Simon Miller, 6 Romuald Ntumba, 5 Dylan De Leeuw (captain), 4 Connor Evans, 3 Corne Weilbach, 2 Lukhanyo Vokozela, 1 Rhynardt Rijnsburger. Replacements (from): 16 Keagan Blanckenberg, 17 Christian Lamprecht, 18 Vernon Matongo, 19 Marco van Rhyn, 20 Taarique Kruger, 21 Bobby Alexander, 22 Sacha Mngomezulu, 23 Ruben Labuschagne, 24 Javier Farmer, 25 Duran Koevort, 26 Luke Burger.
Cell C Sharks u/20: 15. Matthew Jacobs, 14. Curwin Gertse, 13. Lloyd Koster, 12. Brandon Wilkie, 11. Siviwe Zondani, 10. Kian Meadon, 9. Bradley Davids, 8. Siya Ningiza, 7. Enos Ndiao, 6. Damon Royle, 5. Ockie Barnard, 4. Andrew Beyrooti, 3. Munashe Mhere, 2. Jacques Goosen, 1. Charles Gamhiwa. Replacements: 16. Jordan Mcloughlin, 17. Henko Smuts, 18. Blaine Golden, 19. Tiaan Jonker, 20. Jaques Marais, 21. Daimon O’Connell, 22. Mambo Mkhize, 23. Katlego Thinyane, 24. Renzo du Plessis, 25. Odwa Moletsane.