Even Kwagga can run out of steam
COACH BACKS MOSTERT IN THE NO 7 JERSEY Janse van Rensburg gets his first start of the season as Vorster given a breather in highly anticipated Juksei derby.
There’s no big secret behind flank Kwagga Smith’s omission from the Lions’ starting lineup for Saturday’s Super Rugby derby against the Bulls at Loftus, according to Lions coach Swys de Bruin.
Having cited compassionate reasons, De Bruin said Smith is actually in dire need of a rest.
“Kwagga has played a lot and he has a bit of a hand and ankle problem and while they’re not major injuries we felt he is in need of a break coming straight off the Sevens circuit into Super Rugby,” said De Bruin.
But the Lions coach doesn’t see the movement of lock Franco Mostert to blindside flank as a gamble.
“No, not at all, Franco is such a great ball player you can play him anywhere at any time,” De Bruin added.
The coach also shed some light on the decision to start inside centre Rohan Janse van Rensburg after playing him off the bench in the opening two matches.
“Rohan arrived back here with us from the Sale Sharks with a bit of an eye problem, but he is now completely over it so we decided to start him,” said De Bruin.
“Also it’s a good opportunity to give Harold Vorster a bit of a break on the bench, as it’s something we are going to do, to manage the players workload very well.”
De Bruin also said while he understands that there is major hype going into this weekend’s Loftus derby, they treat it no different to any another game.
“We honestly don’t want to make it a bigger game than it is already,” said De Bruin. “It’s going to be a tough ask, but for us it’s just another hurdle we would want to cross as we continue to make progress as a team and would aim to improve on all areas. It’s a long and tough competition after all.”