Currie Cup
Two RWC Boks start for Sharks
2011-10-13 18:16
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Durban - The Sharks have named just two of their returning Springboks, Pat Lambie and Odwa Ndungane, in the run-on team to face the Golden Lions in their crucial Currie Cup encounter in Durban on Saturday.
It was widely expected that more World Cup returnees would feature, especially up front, but coach John Plumtree has opted to keep faith with the youngsters who have done duty while the seniors were away.
The likes of Bismarck du Plessis, Jannie du Plessis, Willem Alberts and JP Pietersen were selected, but they will have to be content with places on the bench.
In total, the defending champions have made seven changes to the starting XV which ran out against the Platinum Leopards last week, with the inclusion of Ryan Kankowski the other major boost.
The Springbok number eight has been out for more than a month with a broken finger and comes in ahead of Jacques Botes.
A facial injury to Meyer Bosman means that Marius Joubert starts, while Adrian Jacobs (hamstring) is also out, giving Stefan Terblanche a start at centre.
In other changes at the back, Lambie and Ndungane replace Gouws Prinsloo and Sibusiso Sithole.
Meanwhile, at the front, Craig Burden is in ahead of Kyle Cooper, and Wiehahn Herbst takes the place of Dale Chadwick - Eugene van Staden moving to the other end of the scrum to accommodate Herbst.
The Sharks must win against their Gauteng rivals, who have already secured top spot on the log, to book a home semi-final.
Teams:
Sharks:
15 Pat Lambie, 14 Odwa Ndungane, 13 Stefan Terblanche, 12 Marius Joubert, 11 Lwazi Mvovo, 10 Frederic Michalak, 9 Conrad Hoffmann, 8 Ryan Kankowski, 7 Marcell Coetzee, 6 Keegan Daniel (captain), 5 Ross Skeate, 4 Jean Deysel, 3 Wiehahn Herbst, 2 Craig Burden, 1 Eugene van Staden.
Substitutes: Bismarck du Plessis, Jannie du Plessis, Willem Alberts, Jacques Botes, Ross Cronje, Jacques-Louis Potgieter, JP Pietersen.
Golden Lions:
15 Jaco Taute, 14 Deon van Rensburg, 13 Dylan des Fountain, 12 Doppies la Grange, 11 James Kamana, 10 Burton Francis, 9 Michael Bondesio, 8 Warren Whiteley, 7 Joshua Strauss (captain), 6 Jaco Kriel, 5 Michael Rhodes, 4 Wikus van Heerden, 3 Jacobie Adriaanse, 2 Martin Bezuidenhout, 1 JC Janse van Rensburg
Substitutes: 16 Bandise Maku, 17 Patric Cilliers, 18 Franco van der Merwe, 19 Derick Minnie, 20 Elton Jantjies, 21 Butch James, 22 Michael Killian