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Cape Town - The Reds have made two changes to their starting lineup for Saturday's Super Rugby clash with the Stormers in Cape Town.
Both alternations come in the pack that lost to the Bulls last weekend, with lock Rob Simmons returning from a shoulder injury and Curtis Browning replacing injured number eight Jake Schatz.
Simmons’ return has shifted Cadeyrn Neville to the bench.
There are two further changes to the reserves, with flanker Michael Gunn brought into the match-day 23 for the first time since Round 1 and centre Duncan Paia’aua in line to play his first game for the Reds since Round 1 2015.
"It’s great to have Rob Simmons back in the starting side for this weekend’s match," said Reds co-interim head coach Matt O’Connor.
"He’s an experienced campaigner and will add a bit of starch up front. We’ve also opted to retain Ben Matwijow in the starting side, after making his run-on debut last weekend – he stepped up, handled the extra responsibility well last weekend and deserves another opportunity.
"While it was unfortunate to lose Jake Schatz to injury last week, Curtis Browning is a very capable replacement, who has been doing good work for us all season. We also have Michael Gunn in the 23 this weekend who can provide us with a strong presence over the ball late in the game.
"Duncan Paia’aua has been training well this year and slowly working his way back into contention. He’s a talented footballer who offers us cover in a number of positions. We’re looking forward to seeing what he can do when he gets on to the field.
"There is no doubt in our minds how tough this match will be. The Stormers have been the most consistent South African team over the last couple of years and we know how good we’ll have to perform to get the result at Newlands on Saturday."
Teams:
Stormers
TBA
Reds
15 Karmichael Hunt, 14 Chris Feauai-Sautia, 13 Samu Kerevi, 12 Anthony Fainga'a, 11 Eto Nabuli, 10 Jake McIntyre, 9 Nick Frisby, 8 Curtis Browning, 7 Liam Gill, 6 Hendrik Tui, 5 Rob Simmons, 4 Ben Matwijow, 3 Greg Holmes, 2 Andrew Ready, 1 James Slipper (C).
Substitutes: 16 Saia Fainga'a, 17 Sef Fa'agase, 18 Sam Talakai, 19 Cadeyrn Neville, 20 Michael Gunn, 21 James Tuttle, 22 Duncan Paia’aua, 23 Ayumu Goromaru.
