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Hamilton - Chiefs coach Colin Cooper has named his team to tackle the Sharks in a Super Rugby clash at Stadium Waikato on Saturday.
Kick-off is at 09:35 (SA time).
Cooper has had to reshuffle his forward pack following injuries to Michael Allardice (ankle) and Lachlan Boshier (ribs) against the Highlanders last week.
Tyler Ardron will shift into the lock position, combining with Mitchell Brown. Jesse Parete moves from the bench to start at No 6, with Luke Jacobson moving to No 8. Mitch Karpik returns from a knee injury to start on the openside.
Cooper has named an unchanged backline from the side that took the field in Dunedin. Scrumhalf Brad Weber will captain the side in the absence of co-captains Brodie Retallick and Sam Cane.
The bench is largely unchanged with the exception of Pita Gus Sowakula named in jersey No 20 and utility back Alex Nankivell is named as the 23rd player.
"The Sharks are a powerful pack and are coming off a strong performance against the Crusaders. Again we will be challenged this week. In order for us to be successful we need to capitalise on our opportunities and remain focused on delivering our game for a full 80 minutes. We do this then we will continue the momentum from where we finished last week and deliver an improved performance," Cooper told the Chiefs' official website.
Teams:
Chiefs
15 Solomon Alaimalo, 14 Sean Wainui, 13 Tumua Manu, 12 Anton Lienert-Brown, 11 Etene Nanai-Seturo, 10 Marty McKenzie, 9 Brad Weber (captain), 8 Luke Jacobson, 7 Mitchell Karpik, 6 Jesse Parete, 5 Mitchell Brown, 4 Tyler Ardron, 3 Nepo Laulala, 2 Nathan Harris, 1 Atu Moli
Substitutes: 16 Liam Polwart, 17 Ryan Coxon, 18 Angus Ta'avao, 19 Taleni Seu, 20 Pita Gus Sowakula, 21 Te Toiroa Tahuriorangi, 22 Shaun Stevenson, 23 Alex Nankivell
Sharks
TBA
