Absa Currie Cup players Michael Willemse and Gerbrandt Grobler will turn out for the table-topping DHL Western Province Under-21 team against the Golden Lions Under-21s at DHL Newlands on Saturday (kick-off 11h45).
Hooker Willemse and lock Grobler will bolster the WP Under-21 pack after a few weeks in the DHL WP Currie Cup team, whilst they are joined in the starting line-up by No.8 Rayn Smid, who returns from a brief spell of Currie Cup duty to take over the captaincy.
Regular captain – and No.6 flank – Josh Katzen is still part of the Absa Currie Cup mix, but WP Under-21 coach John Dobson said: “It's great to have both GG (Gerbrandt Grobler) and Willie (Michael Willemse) back.
“It's a bit tough on those guys who are missing out. Jean Kleyn and Jurie van Vuuren have done a fantastic job for us at lock this season and that we can field Ruan Botha and GG just reflects on the depth we have which you don't often get at lock.
“Jean has carried a massive workload this season and been fantastic, as has Jurie who is just coming back from an injury. Once everyone is fit and fresh it's going to be a selection headache come the play-offs… but I guess, as a coach, it's one of those problems you'd rather have than not have.
“We are also very blessed at hooker with Willie, Beefy (Stephan Coetzee) and Freddie Kirsten,” added Dobson. “Mikey is one for the future and we want to give him a lot of rugby to get him really match sharp.”
WP have already booked a home semifinal this season, despite still having two league matches to play. In fact, as things stand now, the Western Province Under-21s need just two more points to guarantee first pace on the log, the Men from the Cape boasting a massive 44 log points from ten matches – scoring 388 points and conceding just 164 in the process.
But despite their impressive record thus far in 2013, a determined Dobson told www.wprugby.com: “We obviously have half an eye on the play-offs and are pleased to have already secured a home semifinal, which is the most important goal of the Under-21 league season, but we also really want to finish top (of the log) and keep our momentum.
“We play two of the other probable semifinalists in our last two games, in the Lions and the Sharks, so we have to keep our focus to ensure that we keep the right behaviour and culture going into the play-offs.”
The WP U19s will face the Lions at 09h45 on Saturday, followed by the WP-Lions Under-21 match at 11h45 – both early kicks-offs at DHL Newlands, ahead of the WP-Lions Absa Currie Cup tussle at 14h00.
“For us it's a privilege to play at DHL Newlands and we don't take it for granted. We see it as a responsibility too. We have not lost there this year and would like to keep that record intact on Saturday,” said Dobson.
“We played at 13h00 last week in East London and there were no problems. In an odd way it's nice as the day is not a long drag of nerves. I have no doubt that we will be awake and sharp come 11h45!”
The DHL Western Province Under-21 team to take on the Lions is as follows:
15. Dillyn Leyds
14. Craig Barry
13. Pat Howard
12. Kobus van Wyk
11. Devon Williams
10. Tim Swiel
9. Godlen Masimla
8. Rayn Smid (captain)
7. Sikhumbuzo Notshe
6. Justin Benn
5. Gerbrandt Grobler
4. Ruan Botha
3. Entienne Swanepoel
2. Michael Willemse
1. Oliver Kebble
Replacements:
16. Stephan Coetzee
17. Justin Ackerman
18. Jean Kleyn
19. Jurie van Vuuren
20. Jean Nel
21. Johnny Kotze
22. JP Lewis
Referee: Jaco van Heerden
