Kavaliers change seven for massive clash with Pumas

Hawies Fourie, head coach of the Sanlam Boland Kavaliers, made seven changes and four positional shifts to his side that beat the Leopards, 33-12, last week, ahead of the penultimate round-robin SA Cup match against the Airlink Pumas on Sunday.

Tried and tested combinations will be relied on when the men from Wellington travel to Mbombela to face the current SA Cup Champions in their backyard.

The top try and point scorer in this year’s competition, Xavier Mitchell, moves from outside centre to the left wing, the latter being a position where he scored nine of his 13 tries. Jurick Lewis is named at inside centre and reunites with his CPUT midfield partner, Lunathi Nxele, at outside centre. The duo have been a familiar pairing for CPUT since 2019, winning the competition with the Bellville side in 2019 and then again in 2021.

Jade Stighling (hamstring) and James Tedder (concussion) have been ruled out for selection, with Mitchell and Chris Smit replacing them at left wing and flyhalf, respectively.

Louis Schreuder teams up with Smit to form the halfback pairing. Jayden Bantom, fullback and Duren Hoffman, right wing, complete the back three with Mitchell.

Up front, Sidney Tobias has been named in the starting lineup since Round 5, with Joshua Eras making way for the seasoned front-rower. Dewald Maritz and Doctor Booysen will pack down next to Tobias. Marlyn Williams and Jeandre Leonard will once again form the second-row combination, albeit the 90-cap Bolander Williams will don the No 5 jumper and Leonard will wear No 4.

Thurlow Marsh leads the side from the No 8 with Sibusiso Sangweni, openside and Sauliegh Arendse, blindside, combining as the loose trio.

Last week’s props, Mthokozisi Gumede and Dayan van der Westhuizen, will provide cover from the bench while Kwanda Dimaza and Taine Booysen complete the forwards among the replacements. Chriswill September provides scrumhalf cover while young Thurlon Williams and prolific Domenic Smit complete the 5-3 split on the bench.

Sanlam Boland Kavaliers starting XV: 15 Jayden Bantom, 14 Duren Hoffman, 13 Lunathi Nxele, 12 Jurick Lewis, 11 Xavier Mitchell; 10 Chris Smit, 9 Louis Schreuder; 8 Thurlow Marsh (capt), 7 Sibusiso Sangweni, 6 Sauliegh Arendse; 5 Marlyn Williams, 4 Jeandre Leonard; 3 Doctor Booysen, 2 Sidney Tobias, 1 Dewald Maritz. Replacements: 16 Joshua Eras, 17 Mthokozisi Gumede, 18 Dayan van der Westhuizen, 19 Kwanda Dimaza, 20 Taine Booysen, 21 Chriswill September, 22 Thurlon Williams, 23 Domenic Smit

Airlink Pumas v Sanlam Boland Kavaliers - Sunday @ Mbombela Stadium, Nelspruit (3pm)

Referee: Stephan Geldenhuys

Broadcast: SuperSport Variety 4