Steven Kitshoff will make his return from injury in the blue and white hoops of DHL Western Province at Emirates Airline Park on Saturday.
DHL Western Province take on the Fidelity ADT Lions in a Carling Currie Cup clash that kicks off at 15h00 on Saturday in Johannesburg.
Kitshoff is joined in the front row by hooker and captain Scarra Ntubeni, who he played alongside in the 2012 Carling Currie Cup Final, and Junior Springbok skipper Zachary Porthen who makes his first start for the senior side.
The other changes to the forward pack see Andre Goedhals start in the second row in place of the injured Gary Porter, while there is also an all-new loose trio of CJ Velleman, a fit-again Louw Nel and Divan Fuller at No.8.
Dewaldt Duvenage will partner Jurie Matthee at halfback, with Wandisile Simelane at outside centre in the only change to the backline.
Springbok hooker Andre-Hugo Venter is on a replacements bench which also features Maties scrumhalf Ezekiel Ngobeni, who is in line to make his debut.
Director of Rugby John Dobson said that the addition of two Springbok front-row forwards is a big boost ahead of the trip to Johannesburg.
“Steven and Andre-Hugo are top players who will add a lot, while the return of players such as Louw Nel, CJ Velleman and Wandisile Simelane also strengthens our team.
“It will be a big challenge up in Johannesburg and we are sure to see further growth from the players in this group, which is very exciting,” he said.
DHL Western Province: 15 Luke Burger, 14 JC Mars, 13 Wandisile Simelane, 12 Damian Markus, 11 Angelo Davids, 10 Jurie Matthee, 9 Dewaldt Duvenage, 8 Divan Fuller, 7 Louw Nel, 6 CJ Velleman, 5 Handre Stassen, 4 Andre Goedhals, 3 Zachary Porthen, 2 Scarra Ntubeni (captain), 1 Steven Kitshoff.
Replacements: 16 Andre-Hugo Venter, 17 Vernon Matongo, 18 Corne Weilbach, 19 Enos Ndiao, 20 Paul de Villiers, 21 Sibusiso Sangweni, 22 Ezekiel Ngobeni, 23 Joshua Boulle.
Pusher
Sport Trivia: At the Summer Youth Olympics in 2010, one particular sport was restricted to one boys and one girls team from each participating continent. Ghana\’s boys team won the African qualifying tournament and were thus able to contest which event? Answer: Field hockey. The African girl\’s hockey place was won by the South African team. At the actual Games, Ghana placed fourth, and South Africa placed sixth. The sixth team in the competition, outside the five winning qualifiers, was the host country Singapore.
Trash
The first rugby team to perform the Haka did so 1888 – The Haka, a traditional dance of Maori People, was first performed by New Zealand Rugby Team The Natives in 1888 to demonstrate their pride, strength, and unity. It has been performed before games ever since and has become a symbol of rugby for New Zealand. Whether you’re a Kiwi or not, it’s one of those spine-tingling moments when you know a big game is about to be played. The Haka is one of the most iconic moments in rugby