At lunch today, Rob Taylor from BayFM asked me if I was ready to come out of retirement and play Prop again – it has been a while and the last time that I was a ‘contender’ I chipped ny shoulder blade and was relegated to a lower team on my return….
Anyway – now I know why Rob asked as it seems that the Southern Kings are experiencing a dry spell when it comes to props. Although, maybe Rob has forgotten, my Jersey Number was 1 – loosehead.
The Southern Kings only announced their team this afternoon to play Leinster on Sunday:
New Isuzu Southern Kings recruit Stefan Ungerer will get a starting berth when the side takes on Guinness PRO14 defending champions, Leinster, in their Round 8 clash at the Nelson Mandela University’s Madibaz Stadium on Sunday, November 4. Kick-off is at 14h45 SA-time (13h45 UK-time).
Isuzu Southern Kings Head Coach, Deon Davids, has made six changes and one positional switch to the team that valiantly fought in Round 7’s close encounter with Scarlets last week.
Three changes to the backline will see the 24-year-old Ungerer starting in the No9 jersey to make his Guinness PRO14 debut and first appearance in Isuzu Southern Kings colours since the 2017 Vodacom Super Rugby season. Godlen Masimla will be on the bench to provide backup at scrumhalf.
A new centre pairing will see Tertius Kruger, who made a good impact from the bench on his debut last weekend, coming in at inside centre to partner with Harlon Klaasen. Berton Klaasen will be on the bench.
Winger Michael Makase will start at right wing, replacing Bjorn Basson, who is unavailable due to personal reasons. The change will see Yaw Penxe switching from the right to left wing for Sunday’s match.
Justin Forwood returns to the starting XV in the front row where he will don the No 3 jersey.
In another rotational switch, Stephan Greeff will pair up with captain John-Charles Astle in the second row as Schalk Oelofse is rested this week.
A new loose-trio combination sees Martinus Burger joining openside flanker Stephan de Wit and No8 Ruaan Lerm, following the injury to Andisa Ntsila last week.
New faces on the bench will be new recruit, prop Nicolaas “NJ” Oosthuizen, providing front row cover and the return of experienced and versatile second and back rower Andries van Schalkwyk. Cyril-John Velleman also returns to the team to provide back row cover.
“Our hand may have been forced by injuries in certain positions to make some changes, but we have also continued with our rotational system to give players an opportunity,” Head Coach Deon Davids explained.
“This match is an important one for us as we are playing one of the strongest sides in the Guinness PRO14. Squad depth is important in this championship and we are happy to be able to select a strong side despite some of the injury setbacks.
“I am looking forward to a hard and exciting match on Sunday, and eagerly await to see my players continuing to show the passion, skill and commitment that we are trying to build in this team.”
Tickets for the match are available at all TicketPro outlets and will be on sale at the gate at Madibaz Stadium on Sunday at only R20.
The Isuzu Southern Kings team is:
15 Masixole Banda
14 Michael Makase
13 Harlon Klassen
12 Tertius Kruger
11 Yaw Penxe
10 Martin Du Toit
9 Stephan Ungerer
1 Schalk Ferreira
2 Alandre Van Rooyen
3 Justin Forwood
4 Stephan Greeff
5 John-Charles Astle (C)
6 Stephan De Wit
7 Martinus Burger
8 Ruaan Lerm
Substitutes
16 Tango Balekile
17 Luphumlo Mguca
18 Nicolaas Oosthuizen
19 Dries Van Schalkwyk
20 CJ Velleman
21 Godlen Masimla
22 Berton Klassen
23 Meli Rokoua
Alan Straton
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