The Hollywoodbets Sharks are set to play the Sale Sharks in the Investec Champions Cup at the Corpacq Stadium in Manchester on Saturday at 19:30 (SA Time).
Both teams have one win and one loss in Pool 1 of the Champions Cup. Sale is currently ahead by one point in the standings.
The Hollywoodbets Sharks have opted to rest most of their first-choice players, fielding a younger, less experienced team for this away fixture. The Hollywoodbets Sharks have made 13 changes from their last match, keeping several key Springboks back in Durban.
Nick Hatton once again leads the team in their away leg pool match overseas, having captained a similar-looking team in their first-round match against Toulouse just over a month ago.
Lee-Marvin Mazibuko and Eduan Swart remain from that fixture, with Springbok Vincent Koch returning to action, adding his vast experience to the young front row, while Corne’ Rahl partners up with Emile van Heerden in the second row, having made his return to action off the bench last week against the Lions.
Hatton partners up with Tinotenda Mavesere and Emmanuel Tshituka in the back row, completing an exciting forward pack.
The backline is completely changed from last week, but reminiscent of the team that travelled to France to play Toulouse in round one, with Ross Braude again at scrumhalf, where he partners Siya Masuku as the halfback pairing, Le Roux Malan is on the wing, having previously played at outside centre, with Jurenzo Julius paired with Francois Venter in the midfield and Yaw Penxe and Hakeem Kunene completing the back three alongside Malan.
The Hollywoodbets Sharks' decision to field a second-string team, while potentially a risk, offers a chance for their promising young players to gain valuable experience.
The Sale Sharks will rely on their core experienced players, including fly-half George Ford and flanker Tom Curry, in their starting lineup.
Winger Obi Ene will make his first Champions Cup start on Saturday, while George Ford will play his 50th Sharks game as Alex Sanderson makes three changes to his team following the Gallagher Premiership defeat at Bristol.
Obi has impressed on loan at Caldy in recent weeks, and he gets his chance on the biggest stage as the Sale Sharks welcome a star-studded Hollywoodbets Sharks team.
Elsewhere, scrum-half Gus Warr returns to the XV and Nathan Jibulu replaces Luke Cowan-Dickie at hooker.
Alex has made just one change in the front row as Jibulu returns to start between loosehead Bevan Rodd and tighthead James Harper.
Ben Bamber and skipper Ernst van Rhyn combine in an unchanged second row, while Alex has gone for the same back row that started against Bristol, with Jacques Vermeulen and Sam Dugdale on the flanks and Tom Curry at number 8.
Scotland scrum-half Warr returns to the XV after Raffi Quirke picked up an injury against the Bears and alongside him he’ll have England fly-half George Ford, who is making his 50th appearance for the club.
Rekeiti Ma’asi-White will start again at 12 with Rob du Preez in his familiar outside centre slot. And in the back three, Ene starts on the right wing with Tom O’Flaherty on the left and Joe Carpenter at full-back.
Ethan Caine is the replacement hooker, and he’s joined on the bench by props Si McIntyre and WillGriff John. Tom Burrow and Hyron Andrews are the other forwards in reserve.
Dom Hanson, Marius Louw and Gurswin Wehr are the backs on the bench.
Sale Sharks are considered the favourites for this match, expected to win by a significant margin given the Hollywoodbets Sharks' understrength squad and the different weather conditions in Manchester.
Teams:
Sale Sharks: 15 Joe Carpenter, 14 Obi Ene, 13 Rob du Preez, 12 Rekeiti Ma’asi-White, 11 Tom O’Flaherty, 10 George Ford, 9 Gus Warr, 8 Tom Curry, 7 Sam Dugdale, 6 Jacques Vermeulen, 5 Ernst van Rhyn (captain), 4 Ben Bamber, 3 James Harper, 2 Nathan Jibulu, 1 Bevan Rodd. Replacements: 16 Ethan Caine, 17 Si McIntyre, 18 Willgriff John, 19 Tom Burrow, 20 Hyron Andrews, 21 Dom Hanson, 22 Marius Louw, 23 Gurshwin Wehr.
Hollywoodbets Sharks: 15 Hakeem Kunene, 14 Yaw Penxe, 13 Francois Venter, 12 Jurenzo Julius, 11 Le Roux Malan, 10 Siya Masuku, 9 Ross Braude, 8 Nick Hatton (c), 7 Emmanuel Tshituka, 6 Tinotenda Mavesere, 5 Emile van Heerden, 4 Corne Rahl, 3 Vincent Koch, 2 Eduan Swart, 1 Lee-Marvin Mazibuko. Replacements: 16 Ethan Bester, 17 Phatu Ganyane, 18 Mawande Mdanda, 19 Vincent Tshituka, 20 Matt Romao, 21 Ceano Everson, 22 Jean Smith, 23 Marnus Potgieter.
