DHL Western Province will play their first Vodacom Cup game at DHL Newlands this season, when they take on the Tusker Simba XV at 16h30 on Saturday as a curtain-raiser to the DHL Stormers v Waratahs Super Rugby fixture.
DHL WP are in third place on the log in the South Section of the 2014 Vodacom Cup competition, with three wins and just one defeat, and they will be hoping to add another victory come the weekend. SA Under-20 players, Michael Willemse (hooker) and Sti Sithole (prop) are back from injury and will sit on the bench, along with DHL Stormers squad member Kurt Coleman, but star No.8 Rayn Smid is out of action
with a broken hand. Carel du Preez will slot into the No.8 position in Smid’s absence, whilst Maties forwards Lungelo Chonco and Jan de Klerk come into the starting line-up at flank and lock, respectively. UWC star Freddie Muller will make his first start of the season at scrumhalf, whilst Maties halfback Jean Nel is also set for his first appearance of 2014 after being named on the bench. Coach John Dobson told www.wprugby.com: “We’ve had a few more disruptions this week, especially with Rayn’s untimely injury, but this is a resilient group of players and they will take it in their stride. “The loss of Rayn is a big blow, as a line-out forward and a try-scorer for us, but Carel du Preez, a player for the future, gets a fair chance to start at No.8 – which we believe is his best position. “We’re also expecting big things from Jan de Klerk,” added Dobson. “I have coached him at Under-21 level, when he joined us from the club ranks, and I believe he has a real future as a professional rugby player.” Dobson is hoping to give Kurt Coleman a good run in the second half, with Gary van Aswegen having started all the games in the No.10 jersey thus far in 2014, whilst the Province coach is excited about the return from injury of Willemse, Sithole and starting tighthead prop Entienne Swanepoel. “It’s basically our cup-winning Under-21 front row from last year,” said the WP Vodacom Cup boss.
“Mike and Sti both need game time, as they haven’t played in a while, but it’s great having them back and we look forward to seeing them back in the mix this weekend.”
Province are back at DHL Newlands this weekend and Dobson concluded: “Of course, we’re playing at DHL Newlands on Saturday, which is a thrill – and a first time – for some of our players and for all the Kenyan guys. “We’re expecting a direct and physical onslaught, but we all know how dangerous Kenyan teams are if a game gets loose. We’re backing our set-piece and maul and believe we can win what will no doubt be an entertaining fixture.” * Tickets for this weekend can be bought online at TicketPros, or from selected Spar stores or PostNet outlets. Ticket prices start at R50 for standing and R80 for seating. The DHL Western Province team for Saturday (v Tusker Simba XV) is as follows: 15. Tiger Bax 14. JP Lewis 13. Johnny Kotze 12. Kyle Lombard 11. Devon Williams 10. Gary van Aswegen 9. Freddie Muller 8. Carel du Preez 7. Lungelo Chonco 6. Rohan Kitshoff (captain) 5. Jan Uys 4. Jan de Klerk 3. Entienne Swanepoel 2. Michael Kennedy 1. Alistair Vermaak Replacements: 16. Michael Willemse 17. Christo van Wyk 18. Sti Sithole 19. Ian Groenewald 20. Eital Bredenkamp 21. Jean Nel 22. Kurt Coleman Referee: Tahla Ntshakaza