Stormers shuffle pack for Munster battle

There are four changes to the DHL Stormers starting forward pack for their Vodacom United Rugby Championship encounter with Munster at DHL Stadium on Saturday.

The Stormers' first home game of the season will see them host the Irish side, with kick-off at 6pm on Saturday at DHL Stadium.

Prop Sti Sithole and hooker Joseph Dweba come back into the starting line-up, while lock Adre Smith will make his first start of the season with JD Schickerling in the No 5 jersey and Ruben van Heerden set to make an impact in the second half in a rotational switch.

Marcel Theunissen will start at openside flank, with loose forwards Dave Ewers and Louw Nel both among the replacements.

The only change to the backline sees Suleiman Hartzenberg back on the right wing, while Springbok flyhalf Herschel Jantjies will make his return from injury on a replacements bench which also features flyhalf Jurie Matthee.

Director of Rugby John Dobson said that his team is looking forward to playing in front of their supporters for the first time this season.

"We were disappointed with the way our tour ended last week, so this is a great opportunity to respond with a big performance at home.

There are some rotational changes and it is fantastic to welcome Herschel back into the mix. We are back in front of our fans at DHL Stadium and it is vital that we make the most of the support we know we will get here," he said.

DHL Stormers starting XV: 15 Warrick Gelant, 14 Suleiman Hartzenberg, 13 Ruhan Nel, 12 Dan du Plessis (capt), 11 Leolin Zas; 10 Damian Willemse, 9 Paul de Wet; 8 Keke Morabe, 7 Ben-Jason Dixon, 6 Marcel Theunissen; 5 JD Schickerling, 4 Adre Smith; 3 Neethling Fouche, 2 Joseph Dweba, 1 Sti Sithole. Replacements: 16 Andre-Hugo Venter, 17 Brok Harris, 18 Sazi Sandi, 19 Ruben van Heerden, 20 Dave Ewers, 21 Louw Nel, 22 Herschel Jantjies, 23 Jurie Matthee.

Munster starting XV: 15 Mike Haley, 14 Calvin Nash, 13 Tom Farrell, 12 Alex Nankivell, 11 Shane Daly; 10 Jack Crowley, 9 Conor Murray; 8 Jack O’Donoghue, 7 Alex Kendellen, 6 Tom Ahern; 5 Tadhg Beirne (capt), 4 Jean Kleyn; 3 John Ryan, 2 Niall Scannell, 1 Jeremy Loughman. Replacements: 16 Eoghan Clarke, 17 Kieran Ryan, 18 Stephen Archer, 19 Fineen Wycherley, 20 Ruadhán Quinn, 21 Ethan Coughlan, 22 Billy Burns, 23 Seán O’Brien.