Scrum weapon to lead Western Province in Kimberley

Tighthead prop Neethling Fouche will captain DHL Western Province in a Currie Cup match against the Windhoek Draught Griquas in Kimberley on Friday afternoon.

With regular skipper Jean-Luc du Plessis still undergoing concussion protocols, Fouche takes the reins for the game at Windhoek Draught Park, which kicks off at 15h00 on Friday.

Western Province close to full strength

The skipper will be alongside Ali Vermaak and Scarra Ntubeni in the front row, with an all-new loose trio of Marcel Theunissen, Ben-Jason Dixon and Hacjivah Dayimani starting behind the lock pairing of Connor Evans and Adre Smith. Ruben van Heerden and Willie Engelbrecht are the new faces among the replacements.

Jurie Matthee makes his first start at flyhalf in place of Du Plessis and will have Paul de Wet as his halfback partner, with the experienced Juan de Jongh outside him in midfield.

Ruhan Nel, Leolin Zas, Angelo Davids and Clayton Blommetjies all come in to form a new outside back division.

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DHL Western Province Head Coach John Dobson said that his team understands the challenge that awaits them in Kimberley.

“It has never been easy to win in Kimberley and that is exactly what we need to do to stay in the play-off race, so it will take a big effort.

“We have a bit more experience available this week and it was fantastic to see the attitude of the DHL Stormers players who want to play in this match.

“We also have players who have already given a lot in this campaign and looking forward to seeing another committed performance in a crucial game,” he said.

Team

DHL Western Province: 15 Clayton Blommetjies, 14 Angelo Davids, 13 Ruhan Nel, 12 Juan de Jongh, 11 Leolin Zas, 10 Jurie Matthee, 9 Paul de Wet, 8 Hacjivah Dayimani, 7 Ben-Jason Dixon, 6 Marcel Theunissen, 5 Connor Evans, 4 Adre Smith, 3 Neethling Fouche (captain), 2 Scarra Ntubeni, 1 Ali Vermaak.

Replacements: 16 Andre-Hugo Venter, 17 Leon Lyons, 18 Lee-Marvin Mazibuko, 19 Ruben van Heerden, 20 Willie Engelbrecht, 21 Louw Nel, 22 Godlen Masimla, 23 Cornel Smit.