Kings must dig deep
Beleaguered EP targeting Cheetahs to open their account in Currie Cup
AFTER five consecutive Currie Cup defeats, the winless EP Kings must dig deep to find a knockout punch when they face the Free State Cheetahs at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium tonight (7.10pm). The Kings appear to have targeted this game as a “must win” fixture, and they are likely to throw everything, including the proverbial kitchen sink, at the Free Staters as they chase an elusive first win.
They will also be counting on passionate home support to help them over the line against a formidable Free State outfit who are expected to give the ball plenty of air.
On several occasions this season the Kings have come close to pulling off a victory, but they have been left frustrated by costly missed chances.
Their inability to put the boot in when they have the chance to seal victories has left coach Brent Janse van Rensburg frustrated as he bids to find a winning recipe.
Kings flyhalf Karlo Aspeling will have a key role to play with the boot as the home team bid to neutralise a Cheetahs outfit brimful of attacking runners.
In the absence of injured skipper Luke Watson, centre Tim Whitehead will lead the Kings in one of their most important games of the season.
“Luke injured a quad in the Vodacom Cup and I think he has done really well to play through that. Then he got that bump to the leg in one of the previous games,” Janse van Rensburg said.
“He actually played the Sharks game with a quad that was not right because he wants to play and do well for the team. He pushed through it and he kept quiet.
“If you look at the stats he played well with a quad that has been bothering him. We just felt we needed to look after that quad. It is not a serious thing but there is a lump of hard cartilage in the quad and he has been playing through it.
“Behind the scenes, he certainly wants to be on the field. But I feel we have to protect our players’ welfare and manage them well.
“If we left it up to Luke he would be on the field. Unfortunately, I felt I had to make the decision in his best interest for the longterm plan for Super Rugby.
“As a result, we are doing the right thing regarding his management, but it should not be too long and Luke will be back again.”
Janse van Rensburg said the team were hungry for a first Currie Cup win.
“This is a home game for us and we want to get that win under the belt as quick as possible.
“Hopefully, we are accurate and consistent throughout the 80 minutes to ensure we pull the game through,” he said.
Teboho Mohoje, who failed to make the Springbok World Cup squad, will lead the Cheetahs.
He takes over from regular captain Francois Uys, who will play off the bench.
Other changes to the pack see Reniel Hugo starting at lock ahead of Uys. Jacques du Toit will start at hooker ahead of Elandre Hugget, who drops down to the replacement bench.
Tonight’s teams: EP Kings: Scott van Breda, Siyanda Grey, J P du Plessis, Tim Whitehead (capt), Luther Obi, Karlo Aspeling, Enrico Acker, Tim Agaba, Thembelani Bholi, Paul Schoeman, Steven Sykes, Stefan Willemse, Tom Botha, Martin Ferreira, Lizo Gqoboka. Replacements: Edgar Marutlulle, Schalk Ferreira, Simon Kerrod, Cornell Hess, Jacques Engelbrecht, Dwayne Kelly, Elgar Watts Free State Cheetahs: Clayton Blommetjies, Sergeal Petersen, Francois Venter, Rayno Benjamin, Cornal Hendricks, Fred Zeilinga, Shaun Venter, Niell Jordaan, Oupa Mohoje (capt), Gerhard Olivier, Reniel Hugo, Armandt Koster, Luan de Bruin, Jacques du Toit, B G Uys. Replacements: Elandre Huggett, Teunis Nieuwoudt, Francois Uys, Henco Venter, Freddie Ngoza, Ruan van Rensburg, Sias Ebersohn
‘ Behind the scenes, he [Luke Watson] certainly wants to be on the field