Eastern Province Kings coach Brent Janse van Rensburg has kept the changes to a minimum as his team prepare for their second Currie Cup game against the Cell C Sharks in Durban on Saturday.
The EP Kings went down 51 / 14 to the Lions in Port Elizabeth on Saturday but Janse van Rensburg said on Tuesday he did not think it would be appropriate to make wholesale changes at this stage.
The only change in the team sees Siyanda Grey, who was on the bench last week, replacing Sylvian Mahuza. Janse van Rensburg has also included prop Lizo Gqoboka on the bench in going for a five-two split.
“We have a selected a similar combination because we feel we need to maintain a sense of continuity rather than making wholesale changes at this stage,” Janse van Rensburg said.
“We have brought Siyanda into the team as we believe he has what it takes to curb the type of rugby the Sharks will bring to the game.”
With the scrum being an issue for the Kings last weekend, Janse van Rensburg was happier with the five-two split and felt they could benefit from an extra front row player on the bench.
“We have focused on our scrums to make sure we fix what the problems were and we know we have to focus on the scrum as a united effort,” Janse van Rensburg said.
Skipper Luke Watson acknowledged the Sharks were a good side, but said they were looking forward to the opportunity to give an improved performance this week.
“The Sharks are a very good side, with a strong set piece and big backs, so it will be a tough match,” Watson said.
“The Lions game was a bit of a wake-up call, but we know what areas we have had to work on and hopefully we will come back a bit more polished this week.”
EP Kings: 15 Scott van Breda, 14 Siyanda Grey, 13 JP du Plessis, 12 Tim Whitehead, 11 Luther Obi, 10 George Whitehead, 9 Enrico Acker, 8 Tim Agaba, 7 Stefan Willemse, 6 Luke Watson (Captain), 5 Cornell Hess, 4 Steven Sykes, 3 Tom Botha, 2 Martin Ferreira, 1 Schalk Ferreira
Replacements: 16 Edgar Marutlulle, 17 Lizo Gqoboka, 18 Simon Kerrod, 19 Paul Schoeman, 20 Jacques Engelbrecht, 21 Kevin Luiters, 22 Karlo Aspeling.
Date: Saturday 15 August
Venue: Kings Park, Durban
Kick-off: 17:10 SA Time (15:10 GMT)
Referee: Marius van der Westhuizen
Assistant Referees: Cwengile Jadezweni, Tahla Ntshakaza
TMO: Christie du Preez
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