Johannesburg - The Sigma Lions have made no less than 13 changes to the matchday 23 that will face the Free State Cheetahs this weekend in a crunch Currie Cup encounter at Bloemfontein Stadium.
They are not the only ones, however, as their hosts – currently leading the Currie Cup - have also rung the changes – nine of them – as they prepare to face a Lions team that is rooted to the bottom of the tournament table with zero victories after three rounds of competition.
First the Lions, who have a new front-row combination; a second row pairing; a loose-trio; half-back pairing, centre and back-three combination than the one that lost 43-31 to the Sharks in mid-February.
The most noteworthy selection by head coach Mziwakhe Nkosi, however, is the reintroduction of full-back Tiaan Swanepoel and Emmanuel Tshituka from the senior squad. Sibusiso Sangweni, who played off the bench for the Emirates Lions against Leinster in a United Rugby Championship clash last weekend, will also don the No 6 jersey this weekend. Fred Zeilinga, meanwhile, starts at flyhalf in place of incumbent Vaughen Isaacs.
There is little doubt that the Lions will be desperate to claim a victory after a disastrous start to 2022, which has seen them lose nine matches in all competitions.
Said Nkosi in a statement released by the union: “It doesn't get easier at all visiting the competition favourites, but that's the nature of the competition. We're expecting a motivated Cheetahs team who will look to play an expansive game on their home pitch.
“Looking back at our last outing against the Sharks,” the Lions coach continued, “we felt costly errors let us down and we know a team like the Cheetahs will pounce if given the opportunity. If we can limit those little mistakes, we believe we’ll be in with a real chance of achieving a positive result,” he added.
Meanwhile, Cheetahs coach Hawies Fourie revealed via the union’s website that his changes were mostly part of the plan. It also sees a new front-row and loose-forward combination, while there will be a new back-three partnership in play. Overall, however, the Cheetahs look a far more settled side, especially with former Springbok Ruan Pienaar at the helm and veteran Frans Steyn in mid-field.
“Most of the changes are rotational,” Fourie explained.
“There are a lot of guys who train well and we want to keep the bigger group interested and give some guys game time. I want the guys to be sharp if we get injuries later on in the competition. Only Rosko is out due to injury.”
The match kicks off at 5pm on Saturday.
Cheetahs Starting XV: 15 Cohen Jasper, 14 Daniel Kasende, 13 Robert Ebersohn, 12 Frans Steyn, 11 Malcolm Jaer, 10 Siya Masuku, 9 Ruan Pienaar (C), 8 Mihlali Mosi, 7 Jeandré Rudolph, 6 Gideon van der Merwe, 5 Victor Sekekete, 4 Aidon Davis, 3 Marne Coetzee, 2 Wilmar Arnoldi, 1 Cameron Dawson; Replacements: 16 Louis van der Westhuizen, 17 Alulutho Tshakweni, 18 Conraad van Vuuren, 19 Ockie Barnard, 20 Andisa Ntsila, 21 Rewan Kruger, 22 Reinhardt Fortuin, 23 David Brits
Sigma Lions: 15 Tiaan Swanepoel, 14 Rabz Maxwane, 13 James Mollentze, 12 Tyler Bocks, 11 Divan Rossouw, 10 Fred Zeilinga, 9 Jurich Claasens, 8 Jarod Cairns, 7 Emmanuel Tshituka, 6 Sibusiso Sangweni, 5 Simon Dinisio, 4 Lunga Ncube, 3 Asenathi Ntlabakanye (capt), 2 PJ Botha, 1 JP Smith; Replacements: 16 Dameon Venter, 17 Banele Mthenjane, 18 Chergin Fillies, 19 Izan Esterhuizen, 20 MJ Pelser, 21 Ginter Smuts, 22 James Tedder, 23 Luke Rossouw