Kings call on Stalwarts
Experienced centre Tim Whitehead will lead the Kings as they chase their first Currie Cup win this season – at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, in Port Elizabeth.
Regular captain Luke Watson remains sidelined with a leg injury.
However, lock Steven Sykes is back from a rib problem to lead the pack.
Van Rensburg has made several changes to the team which went down to the Lions in Johannesburg last weekend.
He said he believed they had the best combination to combat the Cheetahs.
Whitehead returns after being sidelined for a period with concussion.
He replaces Ronnie Cooke at centre, who is out injured with a broken toe.
Sykes starts ahead of Cornell Hess, who is dropped to the bench.
"We have made quite a few changes, but most of these players have already played together in the Currie Cup this season, and have played well, so I don't believe we will have any problem with our rhythm or continuity," Van Rensburg said.
Watson is suffering with a leg injury and the Kings are managing his return.
Tthey are hopeful he would be back soon.
"We don't want to rush anything, especially in view of the bigger picture, even though Luke is desperately keen to play," the Kings coach said.
"We need to look after his quad problem and make sure that there are no problems when he does return, and it was my decision to leave him out at this stage."
Eastern Province Kings: 15 Scott van Breda, 14 Siyanda Grey, 13 JP du Plessis, 12 Tim Whitehead (captain), 11 Luther Obi, 10 Karlo Aspeling, 9 Enrico Acker, 8 Tim Agaba, 7 Thembelani Bholi, 6 Paul Schoeman, 5 Steven Sykes, 4 Stefan Willemse, 3 Tom Botha, 2 Martin Ferreira, 1 Lizo Gqoboka.
Replacements: 16 Edgar Marutlulle, 17 Schalk Ferreira, 18 Simon Kerrod, 19 Cornell Hess, 20 Jacques Engelbrecht, 21 Dwayne Kelly, 22 Elgar Watts.
Date: Friday, September 11
Venue: Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth
Kick-off: 19.10 (17.10 GMT)
Referee: Quinton Immelman
Assistant referees: Archie Sehlako, Jacques Nieuwenhuis
TMO: Christie du Preez
