Fouche in for Malherbe
TEAM ANNOUNCEMENT: John Dobson, coach of the Stormers, made only one change to the Stormers starting line-up for the United Rugby Championship clash with the Lions at Cape Town Stadium on Saturday.
Neethling Fouche will start at tightead prop in place of the injured Frans Malherbe in the only change for the South African derby, which kicks off at 19h00 on New Year’s Eve.
Hooker Andre-Hugo Venter and props Brok Harris and Sazi Sandi have been included among the replacements for the encounter with the Johannesburg side.
Dobson said that it is fantastic to have such continuity in selection for what is a key match.
“We were obviously pleased with the result last week in front of what was an incredible crowd. We feel that with a bit more time together, these combinations can perform even better.
“We have challenged the players to end the year on a high and reward the fans who come out to watch us on New Year’s Eve.
“These derby games are so important for our standing in the South African Shield, so we want to make another step-up this weekend,” he said.
Stormers: 15 Damian Willemse, 14 Angelo Davids, 13 Suleiman Hartzenberg, 12 Dan du Plessis, 11 Leolin Zas, 10 Manie Libbok, 9 Paul de Wet, 8 Hacjivah Dayimani, 7 Willie Engelbrecht, 6 Deon Fourie, 5 Marvin Orie, 4 Ben-Jason Dixon, 3 Neethling Fouche, 2 Joseph Dweba, 1 Steven Kitshoff (captain).
Replacements: 16 Andre-Hugo Venter, 17 Brok Harris, 18 Sazi Sandi, 19 Connor Evans, 20 Junior Pokomela, 21 Marcel Theunissen, 22 Godlen Masimla, 23 Clayton Blommetjies.
Date: Saturday, December 31
Venue: Cape Town Stadium, Cape Town
Kick-off: 19.00 (17.00 GMT)
Referee: Morne Ferreira (South Africa)
Assistant referees: Aimee Barrett-Theron (South Africa), Stephan Geldenhuys (South Africa)
TMO: Ben Crous (South Africa)
