DHL Western Province prop Steven Kitshoff has statistically been one of the most consistent performers in the Carling Currie Cup this season.
The experienced loosehead has led from the front for DHL Western Province, standing in for regular captain Siya Kolisi when required and maintaining his usual high standards on the pitch.
While Kitshoff is well-known for his dominance at scrum-time and has won plenty of battles in the set-piece this season, his work-rate and efficiency in open play has also been of an incredibly high standard.
The burly front-rower has proven that he works hard both with and without the ball, topping the ball-carry list by taking the ball up 40 times, while he is also right up there in the tackle stats, with 55 crunching hits in the regular season.
But it is not just in maing and taking hits that Kitshoff has shown his value, he is also particularly effective once tackles have been made. Five breakdown turnovers and three ball-steals put him in the top five of both those lists as well, underlining that you can never rule Kitshoff out no matter the phase of play.
Kitshoff’s teammates Damian Willemse (offloads), Rikus Pretorius (offloads), Bongi Mbonambi (tries), Siya Kolisi (linebreaks) and Tim Swiel (points) are also among the top performance in the statistics for the league phase of the Carling Currie Cup.
As DHL Western Province prepare for a home semifinal against the Cell C Sharks next week, you can be sure that Kitshoff will be a massive presence throughout the 80 minutes at DHL Newlands as they look to secure a place in the final.
Carling Currie Cup stats summaries (provided by Stratus):
Most points
73: Frans Steyn (Toyota Cheetahs) – 15 pg, 14 conv
63: Tiaan Swanepoel (Xerox Lions) – 3 tries, 16 pg
56: Curwin Bosch (Cell C Sharks) – 10 pg, 13 conv
44: Tim Swiel (DHL Western Province) – 12 pg, 4 conv
40: Morné Steyn (Vodacom Bulls) – 10 pg, 5 conv
Kicking accuracy
Frans Steyn (Toyota Cheetahs) 93.55%
Morné Steyn (Vodacom Bulls) 88.24%
Tiaan Swanepoel (Xerox Lions) 84.21%
Curwin Bosch (Cell C Sharks) 82.14%
Ginter Smuts (Phakisa Pumas) 80.00%
Most tries
4: Eduan Keyter (Tafel Lager Griquas)
3: Tiaan Swanepoel (Xerox Lions)
3: Gideon van der Merwe (Tafel Lager Griquas)
3: Daniel Maartens (Phakisa Pumas)
3: Marco van Staden (Vodacom Bulls)
3: Willie Engelbrecht (Phakisa Pumas)
3: Bongi Mbonambi (DHL Western Province)
3: Yaw Penxe (Cell C Sharks)
3: Courtnall Skosan (Xerox Lions)
3: Marnus van der Merwe (Toyota Cheetahs)
Ball carries
40: Steven Kitshoff (DHL Western Province)
40: Willem Alberts (Xerox Lions)
40: Frans Steyn (Toyota Cheetahs)
39: Clayton Blommetjies (Toyota Cheetahs)
38: Tiaan Swanepoel (Xerox Lions)
35: Darrien Landsberg (Phakisa Pumas)
34: Marvin Orie (Xerox Lions)
Linebreaks
3: Ali Mgijima (Phakisa Pumas)
3: Berton Klaasen (Tafel Lager Griquas)
3: Siya Kolisi (DHL Western Province)
Offloads
8: Luther Obi (Phakisa Pumas)
7: Damian Willemse (DHL Western Province)
7: Rikus Pretorius (DHL Western Province)
7: Clayton Blommetjies (Toyota Cheetahs)
Most tackles made
62: Ali Mgijima (Phakisa Pumas)
62: Jeandre Rudolph (Toyota Cheetahs)
60: Daniel Maartens (Phakisa Pumas)
55: Steven Kitshoff (DHL Western Province)
53: Andisa Ntsila (Toyota Cheetahs)
Total ball steals
4: Jeandre Rudolph (Toyota Cheetahs)
3: Gideon van der Merwe (Tafel Lager Griquas)
3: Steven Kitshoff (DHL Western Province)
3: Daniel Maartens (Phakisa Pumas)
2: Ox Nche (Cell C Sharks)
Breakdown turnovers
9: Jeandre Rudolph (Toyota Cheetahs)
8: Gideon van der Merwe (Tafel Lager Griquas)
5: Steven Kitshoff (DHL Western Province)
4: Daniel Maartens (Phakisa Pumas)
4: Jaco Visagie (Xerox Lions)