Southern Kings head coach Deon Davids included the returning Edgar Marutlulle and Sti Sithole in his 25-man touring squad for their trip to Argentina this weekend to face the Jaguares.

The presence of the front row duo is a welcome boost to team after both missed out on the match against the Emirates Lions last week due to injury.

Stefan Willemse, who has played at both lock and flank, is also part of the touring squad, along with No 8 Aidon Davis.

Davids also announced that backline players Elgar Watts and Jaco van Tonder would be part of the touring squad.

“At fullback we have Jaco van Tonder, we know he can play at No 15 and hasn’t had a chance to start there yet this year, and Leighton Eksteen, who can come in as a backup,” said Davids.

“We felt that, at this point of time, we want to give Jaco a chance and see how he is doing.”

Davids said Jurgen Visser had been training really well and would most likely return to the structures going forward.

He also said the loss of Malcolm Jaer and how it affected the squad selection showed what impact he had had on the team.

“We gave him an opportunity at fullback this past week, and he did some good things, but going forward, at this point of time, he has proven himself at wing,” Davids said.

“He has been good under the high ball and good with ball in hand, but he is now not available for 6 weeks so we have to look at other options.”

Davids said the team had discussed the poor performance against the Emirates Lions. The Port Elizabeth side lost 10 / 45 at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium.

“There’s an understanding that some of the things that happened are unacceptable. This is a high performance environment. It’s not all about the score, its about what you do on the field, how you hold yourself accountable for your role and responsibilities,” he said.

Southern Kings squad: Schalk Ferreira, Jacobie Adriaanse, Sti Sithole, Tom Botha, Justin Ackerman, Edgar Marutlulle, Martin Bezuidenhout, Martin Ferreira, Steven Sykes, JC Astle, Elgar Watts, Chris Cloete, CJ Velleman, Thembelani Bholi, Louis Fouché, Ntando Kebe, Leighton Eksteen, Stefan Willemse, Shane Gates, Stefan Watermeyer, Aidon Davis, Luzuko Vulindlu, Jaco van Tonder, James Hall, Lukhanyo Am.

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