Rugby
Cheetahs mix youth and experience for Emerging Ireland─── MORGAN PIEK 12:18 Tue, 08 Oct 2024
“Prince Nkabinde did well, Skolie (Carel-Jan Coetzee) did well, and so did Sisonke Vumazonke. I thought Sisonke played really well, and so did Ulrich Stander and Neels Volschenk. There were a couple of guys who raised their hands.”
The Toyota Cheetahs are given some of their fringe players an opportunity on Wednesday when they face Emerging Ireland in Bloemfontein in their last game of the Toyota Challenge.
The wingers Prince Nkabinde and Asanda Kunene will each start against the Irish, Carel-Jan Coetzee will start at the inside centre. Ethan Wentzel and Rewan Kruger will once again form the halfback combination, while Jandré Nel moves to the bench.
The flanker, Sisonke Vumazonke, gets another start for the Free State, while Neels Volschenk will play off the bench. Vumazonke will play in the back row with Friedle Olivier and Gideon van der Merwe.
The Director of Rugby at the Cheetahs, Frans Steyn, told OFM Sport that the youngsters impressed against the Griffons.
“It was a good outing for us and it just shows how far we’ve come for us to be able to do stuff like this and walk away with a win against the Griffons.
“Prince Nkabinde did well, Skolie (Carel-Jan Coetzee) did well, and so did Sisonke Vumazonke. I thought Sisonke played really well, and so did Ulrich Stander and Neels Volschenk. There were a couple of guys who raised their hands.
Neels Volschenk. Photo: Morgan Piek
“Then it was also good to see Ruben de Haas back with us and being fit and ready to play. There were more positives than negatives that came out of the game against the Griffons.”
The American international De Haas will not be playing in the match against the team from the Emerald Isles on Wednesday.
Steyn added that losing the hooker Vernon Paulo to injury is a big blow for the game against the Irish and they are hoping he will be back for the EPCR Challenge Cup which kicks off in December.
Ruben de Haas. Photo: Morgan Piek
“It’s a big loss for us for Wednesday night’s game, but I’ve heard that luckily, it’s not as big as we thought. Hopefully, he will be good to return in the EPCR Challenge Cup.”
Wednesday night’s game at the Toyota Stadium kicks off at 19:00.
Cheetahs – 15 Michael Annies, 14 Prince Nkabinde, 13 Munier Hartzenberg, 12 Carel-Jan Coetzee, 11 Asanda Kunene, 10 Ethan Wentzel, 9 Rewan Kruger, 8 Friedle Olivier, 7 Sisonke Vumazonke, 6 Gideon van der Merwe, 5 Victor Sekekete (captain), 4 Carl Wegner, 3 Robert Hunt, 2 Corné Fourie, 1 Schalk Ferreira
Replacements – 16 Marko Janse van Rensburg, 17 Hencus van Wyk, 18 Laurens Victor, 19 Ulrich Stander, 20 Neels Volschenk, 21 Jandré Nel, 22 George Lourens, 23 Cohen Jasper
Emerging Ireland – 15 Ben O'Connor, 14 Andrew Osborne, 13 Hugh Cooney, 12 Hugh Gavin, 11 Zac Ward, 10 Sam Prendergast, 9 Cormac Foley, 8 James Culhane (captain), 7 Sean Edogbo, 6 Harry Sheridan, 5 Darragh Murray, 4 Evan O'Connell, 3 Jack Aungier, 2 Stephen Smyth, 1 Alex Usanov
Replacements - 16 Danny Sheahan, 17 George Hadden, 18 Scott Wilson, 19 Conor O’Tighearnaigh, 20 Alex Soroka, 21 Matthew Devine, 22 Jack Murphy, 23 Charlie Tector
