DHL Stormers team v Boland
As promised, DHL Stormers coach Allister Coetzee has mixed up his selection this week – from last Saturday against the Cheetahs – with De Villiers, Deon Fourie and Andries Bekker all coming into the line-up.
In the absence of Juan de Jongh (hamstring), De Villiers will slot in alongside rookie Damian de Allende, whilst Bekker will form an imposing all-Springbok second row alongside Eben Etzebeth and Fourie will be propped up by Pat Cilliers and Steven Kitshoff in the front row.
Duane Vermeulen, who captained the team in Bloemfontein last weekend and will be the vice-captain this week, will continue at No.8 but he will have new flanks in the shape of Rynhardt Elstadt and Siya Kolisi, with Don Armand and Nizaam Carr starting on an enlarged bench.
There will be 11 players on the bench this week, with Brok Harris, Nic Groom and Joe Pietersen all in line to make their first appearances of 2013 after not travelling to Bloemfontein.
Both Groom and Louis Schreuder – the scrumhalves in the 2012 Currie Cup Final – will start from the bench, with Dewaldt Duvenage, who continues to make his way back to full fitness after suffering a leg injury last year, starting at No.9.
* The Regent Boland Cavaliers will host the DHL Stormers in a pre-season friendly at the Cape Town Stadium on Saturday, February 9 at 14h45. A curtain-raiser will take place between a Boland Invitational XV and a DHL WP Vodacom Cup XV at 12h30.
Tickets are priced at R50 and R75 and are available at Computicket, Shoprite and Shoprite
Checkers. No tickets will be sold at the stadium on the day.
** Saturday’s match will be televised live on SuperSport. The DHL Stormers will start their 2013 Vodacom Super Rugby campaign against the Bulls on Friday, February 22.
The DHL Stormers team to take on the Regent Boland Cavaliers is as follows:
15. Jaco Taute
14. Gio Aplon
13. Jean de Villiers (captain)
12. Damian de Allende
11. Bryan Habana
10. Kurt Coleman
9. Dewaldt Duvenage
8. Duane Vermeulen (vice-captain)
7. Rynhardt Elstadt
6. Siya Kolisi
5. Andries Bekker
4. Eben Etzebeth
3. Pat Cilliers
2. Deon Fourie
1. Steven Kitshoff
Replacements (from):
16. Martin Bezuidenhout
17. Frans Malherbe
18. Brok Harris
19. De Kock Steenkamp
20. Don Armand
21. Nizaam Carr
22. Nic Groom
23. Louis Schreuder
24. Pat Howard
25. Gerhard van den Heever
26. Joe Pietersen
Referee: Jonathan Kaplan