Dobson wary of 'more structured' Griquas

Cape Town - Western Province coach John Dobson has warned his side that the Griquas are a much-improved outfit ahead of their Currie Cup clash in Kimberley on Friday.

Griquas, who surprisingly lead the standings with three victories from four outings, are coming off the back of a 37-15 victory over the Blue Bulls at Loftus Versfeld a fortnight ago, and will be refreshed coming off a bye last weekend.

WP are in fourth position with 12 points and must win their last two games if they are to secure a home semi-final.

But Dobson is fully aware that it will not be an easy task against Griquas.

"I think they're much more structured now," Dobson said.

"George Whitehead controls the game, they play for territory a lot and they've got good carriers in guys like Sias Koen and Zandre Jordaan. So it's a slightly different Griquas team. Last week I thought our defence was a bit tight, but that's been our main focus this week - to put them under pressure defensively, we need good line speed and we need to get off the line."

Captain Chris van Zyl says Tafel Lager Park has become a fortress for the men in green in recent times.

"One thing about going to Kimberley is that they always seem to get up more for it," Van Zyl said.

"We know that they're up for it big time, in comparison to maybe playing here. But I've got full confidence and I don't need to say much because I know the guys are fully aware of what's waiting for us up there."

Friday's clash is scheduled for 19:15.

Teams:

Griquas

15 Anthony Volmink, 14 Ederies Arendse, 13 Michal Haznar, 12 Andre Swarts, 11 Eduan Keyter, 10 George Whitehead (captain), 9 Zak Burger, 8 Neill Jordaan, 7 Sias Koen, 6 Zandre Jordaan, 5 Victor Sekekete, 4 Ian Groenewald, 3 Ewald van der Westhuizen, 2 AJ le Roux, 1 Khwezi Mona

Substitutes: 16 Wilmar Arnoldi, 17 Mox Mxoli, 18 Johan Momsen, 19 Gideon van der Merwe, 20 Chriswill September, 21 Chris Smit, 22 Bjorn Basson, 23 Ruan Kramer

Western Province

15 SP Marais, 14 Sergeal Petersen, 13 Ruhan Nel, 12 Dan Kriel, 11 Seabelo Senatla, 10 Josh Stander, 9 Justin Phillips, 8 Sikhumbuzo Notshe, 7 JD Schickerling, 6 Ernst van Rhyn, 5 Chris van Zyl, 4 Salmaan Moerat, 3 Carlu Sadie, 2 Chad Solomon, 1 Corne Fourie

Substitutes: 16 Schalk Erasmus, 17 Kwenzo Blose, 18 Neethling Fouche, 19 David Meihuizen, 20 Nama Xaba, 21 Paul de Wet, 22 Damian Willemse, 23 Edwill van der Merwe