Experienced centre Tim Whitehead will lead the EP Kings rugby team as they chase their first win in the Absa Currie Cup Premier Division when they meet the Free State Cheetahs at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium in Port Elizabeth on Friday (September 11).
Regular captain Luke Watson remains sidelined with a leg injury, which means lock Steven Sykes is back from a rib problem to lead the pack.
Kings coach Brent Janse van Rensburg has made several changes to the team which went down to the Lions in Johannesburg last weekend and said he believed they
had the best combination to combat the Cheetahs challenge.
Whitehead, who was sidelined for a period with concussion, replaces Ronnie Cooke (broken toe) at centre, while Sykes starts ahead of Cornell Hess, who is on the bench.
“We have made quite a few changes but most of these players have already played together in the Currie Cup this seaon, and have played well, so I don’t believe we will have any problem with our rhythm or continuity,” Janse van Rensburg said.
Janse van Rensburg said Watson was suffering from a leg injury and they were managing his return, and were hopeful he would be back soon.
“We don’t want to rush anything, especially in view of the bigger picture, even though Luke is desperately keen to play,” the Kings coach said. “We need to look after his quad problem and make sure that there are no problems when he does return, and it was my decision to leave him out at this stage.”
Despite five straight defeats, Janse van Rensburg said the team were still fully motivated as they strove for that first win this season.
“Obviously this is a home game for us and we will go in with full intensity and application, and try to be as accurate as we can for the full 80 minutes,” Janse van Rensburg said. “In every game you have your chances, but we have had some soft moments this season, forcing us to play catch-up rugby at times, so we will be looking to change that.”
Teams
EP Kings:
- 15 Scott van Breda, 14 Siyanda Grey, 13 JP du Plessis, 12 Tim Whitehead, 11 Luther Obi, 10 Karlo Aspeling, 9 Enrico Acker, 8 Tim Agaba, 7 Thembelani Bholi, 6 Paul Schoeman, 5 Steven Sykes, 4 Stefan Willemse, 3 Tom Botha, 2 Martin Ferreira, 1 Lizo Gqoboka
- Substitutes: 16 Edgar Marutlulle, 17 Schalk Ferreira, 18 Simon Kerrod, 19 Cornell Hess, 20 Jacques Engelbrecht, 21 Dwayne Kelly, 22 Elgar Watts
Free State Cheetahs:
- 15 Clayton Blommetjies, 14 Sergeal Petersen, 13 Francois Venter, 12 Rayno Benjamin, 11 Cornal Hendricks, 10 Fred Zeilinga, 9 Shaun Venter, 8 Niell Jordaan, 7 Oupa Mohoje (captain), 6 Gerhard Olivier, 5 Reniel Hugo, 4 Armandt Koster, 3 Luan de Bruin, 2 Jacques du Toit, 1 BG Uys
- Substitutes: 16 Elandre Huggett, 17 Teunis Nieuwoudt, 18 Francois Uys, 19 Henco Venter, 20 Freddy Ngoza, 21 Ruan de Bruin, 22 Sias Ebersohn
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