United Rugby Championship: Five South Africans to watch in the final round including Steven Kitshoff and Grant Williams

The United Rugby Championship only has one more round left to play in the regular season before it heads into the knockouts as the search for this season’s winner continues.

The top eight is locked in and secured to advance with three South African teams in the mix. Looking ahead to this weekend’s action, Planet Rugby picks out five players to watch from the Rainbow Nation.

Manie Libbok

Much has been said about the Springbok fly-half after his poor kicking performance effectively cost the Stormers the game against Munster and opened the door for Ulster to charge into second on the table.

Whilst his kicks were the difference between the sides, it is still tough to put that all on one player, as the Stormers were matched up by a brilliant Munster on the night.

Nevertheless, Libbok has shown his resilience before. After the Clermont game in the Champions Cup, where his errors led to the Stormers’ demise, he quickly responded with a series of brilliant performances.

Expect the exciting star to look to dominate the game against Benetton this weekend and prove his worth yet again.

Steven Kitshoff

The great Stormers prop did everything in his power last weekend to yank the game back from Munster, but it was not to be.

Despite losing, Kitshoff was massive, his contributions in open play were solid, and he was strong in the set-piece as always even with the slippery surface at DHL Stadium.

This week he will be looking to inspire his side to a good win against Benetton, as the defending champions need to build their momentum from scratch again. No doubt Kitshoff will have been vocal during the week’s training in the build-up to the game.

With the improved grip underfoot at this weekend’s venue, Danie Craven Stadium in Stellenbosch, one can expect a massive scrummaging performance from the veteran.

Grant Williams

Talk about taking chances. Williams has been simply outstanding since the Sharks lost Jaden Hendrikse to injury. The door was left open, and the scrum-half certainly obliged.

Williams has been electric, showcasing his rapid pace and prolific try-scoring nature. He has been one of the drivers of the Sharks’ game with his fast play from the base of the ruck and his pace threat for defensive lines.

🕺 Fancy footwork.

⚡️ Grant Williams skins Seabelo Senatla to score. #URC #STOvSHA pic.twitter.com/FFriDzSom8

— Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) March 4, 2023

There has been criticism about his kicking game, but this has shown improvement over the last couple of games, and the star’s skill-set looks to be maturing – the dividends of the extended period in the Springboks set-up.

He will be important again for the Sharks against Munster and throughout the rest of the season. It is a big period for Williams and the chance to start trying to put his name on a World Cup spot.

Makazole Mapimpi

It has been a sensational couple of games recently for the Springbok superstar, who seems to have his feet again for the Sharks.

Mapimpi has been physical in the contact area and blistering when in space; it has been a pleasure to see him scoring tries again, and it comes at a very important time for the Durbanites.

Against Benetton, he carried over 100 metres, beat six defenders, had three clean breaks and scored a brace of tries. Those numbers are ridiculous, and if the Sharks are to make any charge at the business end of the season, they will need their star man scoring.

Elrigh Louw

The Bulls come off a resounding win against Zebre Parma last weekend, where they scored a whopping 11 tries and will be looking to claim another win against a weakened Leinster this weekend.

Louw will be at the centre of that. Whenever the number eight performs, so does his side, and whilst he did not score against Zebre, he still made the most carries for the Bulls.

The star has serious running power and is brilliant at winning the collision, something that will always be important for the Bulls’ style and structures. The Pretoria men need Louw to put together a string of strong performances if they are to find a way to go deep in the tournament this season.

READ MORE: United Rugby Championship: Last chance for the top-eight to improve position ahead of playoffs