Southern Kings head-coach Deon Davids has made just one change to his starting line-up for Friday’s Super Rugby swansong against the Free State Cheetahs.
Both teams will exit the competition after Sanzar trimmed the number of teams from 18 to 15, but are now set to join the UK’s Pro12 competition.
On Wednesday, Davids said that he wanted to maintain consistency in his selections by making minimal changes to the team for the clash at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium.
Kick-off will be at 19h00.
The one change to the team sees lock Wilhelm van der Sluys returning to the side after missing out of action last weekend due to a concussion. He replaces Irne Herbst in the starting team after he suffered an injury in last week’s 31-30 win over the Bulls.
In a slight positional switch, Lubabalo “Giant” Mtyanda, who put in a man-of-the-match winning performance in Pretoria while playing in the No5 jersey will don the No4 jersey worn by Herbst last weekend.
The rest of the starting XV remains the same.
“We are happy to have Wilhelm van der Sluys back in the team in our last week of Super Rugby after he has been a standout performer throughout the season since joining us. He will pair up with Giant Mtyanda, another player who has come to the party whenever called upon – like he did against the Bulls last weekend,” Davids said on Wednesday.
“We are fortunate to have the rest of our starting XV fully fit and we will maintain consistency. We have also kept our bench more or less the same, but will make a final decision over the next day or two over two spots on the bench because of medical reasons.
“We are monitoring Irne Herbst closely and have bracketed him with Mzwanele Zito as back up locks, while we will also make a decision between Waylon Murray and Yaw Penxe as backline cover.
Davids lauded his charges for a great season which has seen the Southern Kings make history on a number of occasions this season, including six victories in the season ahead of Friday’s clash against the Toyota Cheetahs.
“I am really proud of how this team has performed this season,” an emotional Davids said.
“I said to the guys this morning that it was hard to believe that today would be our last day training together as this same squad. I am amazed at the amount of growth we as a management team have seen in this team from the time we first got together for our pre-season.
“From the start this side showed signs of self-belief and dedication, and although many others would not have given this side a chance, they continued to work hard to ensure that we played a good brand of rugby and produced the results.
“I am immensely proud of every one of the members of this entire squad that has been part of our setup this season. It is these special group that has proven that with dedication, belief, hard work and the great team culture that we have – anything is possible. It has been an absolute pleasure being at the helm of such a special group.”
