It's a new chapter, says Naka

Naka Drotské feels that this week's Super 14 opening match against the Lions will be a very different encounter to the Currie Cup Final of 2007.

Naka Drotské feels that this week's Super 14 opening match against the Lions will be a very different encounter to the Currie Cup Final of 2007.

The Lions and the Free State Cheetahs clashed in the Final of SA's premier domestic competition in October last year, where the Cheetahs ran out victors after a narrow 20-18 win in Bloemfontein.

The Lions dominated much of that match, against expectations, but the Cheetahs were good enough to force home the victory in the dying minutes of the match.

Three months on, and the teams square up again this coming Saturday for the supreme stakes on offer in the Super 14 tournament.

Drotské spoke to rugby365 about the match, and dismissed the notion that Saturday's clash will follow a similar pattern to last year's Currie Cup Final.

If you look at our squad, we're missing quite a few players that played in that match.

“Guys like Corniel van Zyl, Jannie du Plessis and Willem de Waal have moved on, which has means that we have lost quite a bit of experience in the squad,” continued Drotské.

“But the Lions are in a similar position. They are without their experienced guys like André Pretorius.

“In that respect, I don't think you can compare the two matches.”

The Cheetahs will be testing out some of their youngbloods, with Jacques-Louis Potgieter the most high-profile inclusion in the team.

The young Potgieter will no doubt experience a baptism of fire, after coach Drotské decided to hand the former Bulls player his Super 14 debut in the number ten jersey.

Potgieter cracked the nod ahead of experienced pivot Conrad Barnard.

The Cheetahs and the Lions get their Super 14 campaigns underway in Bloemfontein on Saturday, 16 February.

By Phil Coetzer