Shaun Venter returns to Cheetahs XV for Kings clash
Coach Franco Smith has made one change to the Cheetahs side which will face the Southern Kings in the second South African derby of the season.
Shaun Venter will be leading the team as the starting scrum-half with Rudy Paige providing cover on the bench.
There are no other alterations to the starting XV, although the two flankers, Junior Pokomela and Abongile Nonkontwana, will be switching jerseys.
On the bench, Justin Basson’s suspension means that Jasper Wiese is named among the replacements, while Ernst Stapelberg will be providing cover for Tian Schoeman.
Meanwhile, Fijian flyer, Meli Rokoua, will get a starting berth for the Southern Kings when the team takes on the Cheetahs in the PRO14 Round 12 encounter.
Rokoua, who was instrumental in the Kings’ fightback and win over Edinburgh last week when he came on from the bench, will start alongside former Cheetahs player, Tertius Kruger, in the midfield.
In the forward pack, Ruaan Lerm will make a return in the number eight jersey in place of Andisa Ntsila, who will be expected to make an impact from the bench this week.
Centre Berton Klaasen, who missed out on selection last week due to an eye injury, will be back in the team providing cover among the replacements.
The Kings will also have a debutant on the bench in the shape of Pumas stalwart De-Jay Terblanche, who joined the Port Elizabeth-based side on a loan agreement this week.
The teams:
Cheetahs: 15 Malcolm Jaer, 14 William Small-Smith, 13 Benhard Janse van Rensburg, 12 Nico Lee, 11 Rabz Maxwane, 10 Tian Schoeman, 9 Shaun Venter (c), 8 Gerhard Olivier, 7 Junior Pokomela, 6 Abongile Nonkontwana, 5 Walt Steenkamp, 4 Sintu Manjezi, 3 Aranos Coetzee, 2 Joseph Dweba, 1 Ox Nche
Replacements: 16 Reinach Venter, 17 Charles Marais, 18 Luan de Bruin, 19 JP du Preez, 20 Jasper Wiese, 21 Niell Jordaan, 22 Rudy Paige, 23 Ernst Stapelberg
Southern Kings: 15 Masixole Banda, 14 Yaw Penxe, 13 Meli Rokoua, 12 Tertius Kruger, 11 Bjorn Basson, 10 Ntabeni Dukisa, 9 Stefan Ungerer, 8 Ruaan Lerm, 7 Martinus Burger, 6 Cyril John Velleman, 5 John-Charles Astle (c), 4 Andries van Schalkwyk, 3 Luvuyo Pupuma, 2 Michael Willemse, 1 Schalk Ferreira
Replacements: 16 Alandre van Rooyen, 17 Alulutho Tshakweni, 18 De-Jay Terblanche, 19 Stephan Greeff, 20 Andisa Ntsila, 21 Sarel Pretorius, 22 Bader Pretorius, 23 Berton Klaasen
Date: Saturday, February 2
Venue: Free State Stadium
Kick-off: 16:00 local (14:00 GMT)
Referee: Stuart Berry (South Africa)
Assistant referees: Quinton Immelman (South Africa), AJ Jacobs (South Africa)
TMO: Marius Jonker (South Africa)