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Elstadt out of Stormers tour

Cap Town -  Stormers coach Allister Coetzee has made four changes to his starting line-up for the Stormers' first match of their 2014 Super Rugby tour.

The Stormers will take on the Crusaders in Christchurch on Saturday without injured forwards, lock Rynhardt Elstadt and flank Siya Kolisi, with the fit-again De Kock Steenkamp and Schalk Burger replacing them up front.

Elstadt has been ruled out of the tour with a shoulder injury and will be out of action for four to six weeks, but Kolisi has been given this week off and will come back into the selection frame next weekend.

“Rynhardt will see his specialist when he returns back home to Cape Town,” Coetzee told www.iamastormer.com.

“It’s the same shoulder he had an operation on after last year, and the specialist here said it’s quite badly inflamed. He will be out of action for four to six weeks and, for that reason, we have called up Jurie van Vuuren, who was part of the  WP Under-21 last year and can, like Rynhardt, play at No.7 (flank) and No.4 (lock).

“We’re fortunate to be able to rest Siya (at loose forward), where we have more depth, so hopefully this week off will see his AC Joint in a better condition next week.”

Burger resumes the team vice-captaincy after missing last Friday’s nailbiting 19-18 win over the Hurricanes at  Newlands with a mild groin strain, whilst Steenkamp will make his first appearance of the season having also recovered from a groin injury of his own.

At scrumhalf, in an unforced change, Nic Groom will earn his first start of 2014, whilst the loss of Elstadt and Manuel Carizza - the latter with a wrist injury from the ‘Canes match - sees former WP Under-21 lock Ruan Botha earn a place on the bench on debut. Michael Rhodes, after two appearances from the bench this season, will start in place of Elstadt in the No.4 jersey.

Louis Schreuder will join Botha on the bench, along with experienced flyhalf Peter Grant - who joined the team from Japan this week - and new wing signing Sailosi Tagicakibau, who joined the Stormers from London Irish just a few days ago.

Teams:

Crusaders: TBC

Stormers: 15. Jaco Taute, 14. Kobus van Wyk, 13. Jean de Villiers (captain), 12. Damian de Allende, 11. Gio Aplon, 10. Demetri Catrakilis, 9. Nic Groom, 8. Duane Vermeulen, 7. Schalk Burger (vice-captain), 6. Deon Fourie, 5. De Kock Steenkamp, 4. Michael Rhodes, 3. Frans Malherbe, 2. Scarra Ntubeni, 1. Steven Kitshoff

Substitutes: 16. Tiaan Liebenberg, 17. Oliver Kebble, 18. Pat Cilliers , 9. Ruan Botha, 20. Nizaam Carr, 21. Louis Schreuder, 22. Peter Grant, 23. Sailosi Tagicakibau
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