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Another Coenie for Cheetahs?

Hendrik Cronjé

Bloemfontein - Os du Randt is just as excited about Marcel van der Merwe as he was about Coenie Oosthuizen.

"His strength base is very good, but I want him to get his general play up to standard. As was the case with Coenie, I have a lot of hope for Marcel," said Du Randt, who is Free State's forwards coach.

Van der Merwe will on Friday be the loosehead prop for an Emerging Free State team playing a compulsory friendly match against the Eastern Province Kings in Port Elizabeth.

It was Du Randt who moved Van der Merwe from tighthead to loosehead prop - the former Bok prop initiated exactly the same move for Oosthuizen.

"Marcel has struggled at tighthead for the past year or two. I want him to play (at loosehead) and I believe he could make it."

The 20-year-old Van der Merwe, who weighs 121 kg and is 1.89m tall, showed as player for teams like Grey College, the Baby Boks and the Free State under-19 side that he is a strong ball-carrier.

He also represented Free State in this year's Vodacom Cup.

There will be a lot of interest in the form of Van der Merwe and hooker Michael van Vuuren in Port Elizabeth as Oosthuizen and Adriaan Strauss are expected to play more prominent roles in the Tri-Nations than Free State had initially anticipated.

It now looks as if Oosthuizen and Strauss, as well as flanks Ashley Johnson and Heinrich Brüssow, will miss the start of the Currie Cup due to Springbok commitments.

On Friday, Van der Merwe will scrum against former Leinster prop Clint Newland. Du Randt will probably be more interested in that scrum battle than the outcome of the game.

Van Vuuren, who recently still represented the Baby Boks at the Junior World Championship in Italy, will pack down against the experienced Hannes Franklin, who has played Super Rugby for the Lions.

Van Vuuren and the likes of PW van Vuuren will have to compete for a starting berth at hooker if Strauss misses the start of the Currie Cup.

Du Randt said that the other props that will play against the Kings on Friday - Trevor Nyakane and Schalk van der Merwe - also give him hope for the future.

"It's particularly nice to work with the props because they look to absorb as much knowledge as possible. They are also willing to listen and will go far," said Du Randt.

WP Nel is one of 18 players who will get a rest and will pack down at tighthead prop in next Saturday's home Currie Cup game against the Leopards.

Teams:

EP Kings: 15 Mzwandile Stick, 14 Joe Breytenbach, 13 Siyanda Grey, 12 Wayne Stevens, 11 Norman Nelson, 10 Louis Strydom, 9 Falie Oelschig, 8 Luke Watson (capt), 7 Devin Oosthuizen, 6 Jacques Potgieter, 5 Ross Kennedy, 4 Barend Pieterse, 3 Clint Newland, 2 Hannes Franklin, 1 Jaco Engels. Substitutes: 16 Frank Herne, 17 Riaan Vermeulen, 18 Wayne van Heerden, 19 Jacques Engelbrecht, 20 Danie Faasen, 21 Shane Gates, 22 Jaco Bekker.
 
Free State: 15 Philip Burger, 14 Nico Scheepers, 13 Philip Snyman, 12 Johan Goosen, 11 Cameron Jacobs, 10 Riaan Smit, 9 Tewis de Bruyn, 8 Boom Prinsloo, 7 Pieter Labuschagné, 6 Pieter Myburgh, 5 Izak van der Westhuizen, 4 Francois Uys, 3 Trevor Nyakane, 2 Michael van Vuuren, 1 Marcel van der Merwe. Substitutes: 16 Hercu Liebenberg, 17 Schalk van der Merwe, 18 JC Astle, 19 Willie Britz, 20 Piet van Zyl, 21 Robbie van Schalkwyk, 22 Rayno Benjamin.
 
Referee: Lesego Legoete.
 
Kick-off: 19:00.
 
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