New King on the throne
Veteran Steven Sykes will captain a new-look Southern Kings team against the Stormers in Port Elizabeth on Friday.
Caretaker coach Robbie Kempson was forced into the changes, with Sykes taking over the captain from the injured Darron Nell – who is sidelined with an elbow problem.
"Brendon Olivier comes up to replace BG Uys, who won't be playing as he is getting married, while Dane van der Westhuysen has dislocated his elbow, so Albé [de Swardt] comes back in after recovering from his rib injury," Kempson said.
The Kings coach said it was not clear how serious Van Der Westhuysen's injury was, or how long he would be out for, as they were still waiting for feedback from the specialist.
Kempson added that Stephan Zaayman would come up from the bench to take Nell's place at flank.
"Carlos [Spencer] has decided to go with a different variation in the backline, as he wants to see what he has out there," the coach said.
As a result there are a number of rotations – with Sonwabo Majola in at scrumhalf in place of Jaco Grobler, Eben Barnard came up in place of Michael Killian on wing, and Dwayne Jenner replaced Ronnie Cooke at outside centre.
Kempson said Sergeal Petersen, who had taken a slight knock to the knee during the Lions game, was ready and would remain in the starting 15 at wing, with Siviwe Soyizwapi once again taking up position at fullback.
The Kings would again be playing with an extended team of 26 players, to allow more players to get game time, including youngsters such as Kevin Kaba and Tyler Paul.
It is the Kings' third big match in a row and the loss of some players to injury will contribute to the challenge for the Port Elizabeth-based franchise.
"I think the Stormers are a different kettle of fish completely," Kempson said.
"They're a thoroughly professional outfit and they have a strength and depth that most provinces don't have, so I think that, for us, it is going to be a very competitive game," he said.
"The team is looking to go out and give them a very good go and a run for their money, we're not here to just make up the numbers," he added.
Southern Kings: 15 Siviwe Soyizwapi, 14 Sergeal Petersen, 13 Dwayne Jenner, 12 Shane Gates, 11 Eben Barnard, 10 George Whitehead, 9 Sonwabo Majola, 8 Devon Oosthuizen, 7 Stephan Zaayman, 6 Paul Schoeman, 5 Rynier Bernardo, 4 Steven Sykes (captain), 3 Charl du Plessis, 2 Albé de Swardt, 1 Brendon Olivier.
Replacements – from: JC Oberholzer, Lizo Gqoboka, Pieter Stemmet, Stephan Greeff, Thembelani Bholi, Kevin Kaba, Tyler Paul, Jaco Grobler, Ronnie Cooke, Michael Killian, Brian Skosana.
Date: Friday, February 7
Venue: Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium, Port Elizabeth
Kick-off: 19.00 (17.00 GMT)
Referee: Stuart Berry
