Davids focuses on Super Rugby starting lineup
RESOLUTE Southern Kings head coach Deon Davids has started to get down to the nitty-gritty of moulding his best Super Rugby starting lineup from his training squad of 46 players.
Davids plans to select two distinct teams for the Border warm-up in East London on Saturday and the game against the SWD Eagles in Port Elizabeth on February 11.
It is expected that the Kings will name their team to face Border tomorrow and this will give some clarity on how Davids is thinking ahead of the opening Super Rugby match against the Jaguares on February 25.
“We are looking to select two teams for the Border and SWD Eagles games,” Davids said from his team’s training camp in Port Alfred.
“From now on, we will train in that format to build combinations and get clarity around our structures and systems we want to put in place.”
With only two warm-ups, game time will be a precious commodity for members of the Kings squad.
While rival teams like the Lions and Stormers will have three warm-ups, the Kings will have less time to identify their best combinations.
Last year, the Kings also said they would be playing a warm-up against the Stormers in Cape Town, but that game has fallen by the wayside.
Three games would certainly have given Davids a better chance of nailing down his best starting team for the Jaguares.
Last year, the Kings had warm-ups against the Cheetahs and SWD Eagles and a controlled contact session against the Madibaz.
There was no score recorded in the Madibaz match, and the Kings beat the Eagles 22-16 before going down 21-11 to the Cheetahs.
“It is fantastic to be here in Port Alfred and it is a great place to have a camp. It is a wonderful environment and we have been given a very warm welcome by the mayor and his council.
“We are looking forward to the week and we had an excellent day one of the camp.
“We have started to build our culture in terms of what we expect from one another and our vision. The Kings are also identifying our leaders for the rest of the campaign.
“From a rugby perspective, we are finalising some detail in terms of stuff we have covered so far and there is also some learning of new things we want to deal with before the Border game.”
Before leaving for Port Alfred, he said he had a well balanced group of players.
“I think we have a good balance, although there will always be one or two positions where you could think that we could still try and test things,” Davids said.
“But overall, I’m quite happy with where we are. Again, this time last year we did not have a squad and now we are in a fortunate position.
“In the best circumstances, we would have liked to have had some continuity – building from the Currie Cup into Super Rugby – but, unfortunately, we work under different situations,” he said.