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Captain Cooke

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Injuries to senior players Tim Whitehead and Steven Sykes will see centre Ronnie Cooke take over the captaincy when the EP Kings play their final Absa Currie Cup Premier Division rugby match against Western Province in Cape Town this Friday.

Cooke also replaces Whitehead at centre, although he will operate from the outside position, with JP du Plessis moving to inside centre.

There are injury concerns over Stefan Willemse, who replaces Sykes at lock, and wing Luther Obi, but Kings coach Brent Janse van Rensburg said they were fairly confident the pair would be ready for the Friday encounter.

“Both Stefan and Luther have the sort of minor niggles which we feel can clear up in the next 48 hours and that’s why we have included them in the squad to help maintain some consistency with selection,” Janse van Rensburg said.

“But we have put Tazz Fuzani (for Willemse) and Siviwe Soyizwapi (for Obi) on standby, and they will be travelling with us in case the players selected are not cleared by the medical staff at a late stage.”

Acknowledging he was disappointed with the second half performance against the Blue Bulls after they led 20-17 at the break, Janse van Rensburg called for a consistent performance throughout the match against WP. The Kings lost 49-27 to the Bulls last weekend.

“We want to end on a high note,” Janse van Rensburg said, “and I want the team to put in a good performance, to be competitive and to aim for a consistent display for the full 80 minutes.

“The players owe it to their fans and to themselves to end off strongly.”

The EP Kings team is (1-15): Lizo Gqoboka, Edgar Marutlulle (vice-captain), Simon Kerrod, Stefan Willemse/Tazz Fuzani, Cornell Hess, Thembelani Bholi, Jacques Engelbrecht, Tim Agaba, Enrico Acker, Elgar Watts, Luther Obi/Siviwe Soyizwapi,  JP du Plessis, Ronnie Cooke (capain), Sylvian Mahuza, Scott van Breda.
Replacements (16-22): Martin Ferreira, Schalk Ferreira, Basil Short, David Bulbring, Paul Schoeman, Dwayne Kelly, Karlo Aspeling.

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Alan Straton

Chief Cook, Bottle Washer and Broom Mechanic at MyPE
Passionate about Port Elizabeth and definitely NOT packing for Perth. Alan's ethos is epitomised in the words of Nelson Mandela; "I have fought against white domination and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the idea of a democratic and free society. If need be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die." See more articles by Alan.