Free State Cheetahs centre Francois Venter and Golden Lions midfield brute Rohan Janse van Rensburg could be auditioning for a Springbok role when they clash in Saturday’s Currie Cup semi-final in Bloemfontein. The two have been influential performers for their respective sides during the pool phase of the Currie Cup and both are within touching distance of Test selection.Although Venter is an outside centre and Janse van Rensburg an inside centre‚ they are likely to pummel into each other’s channels during the afternoon‚ and the winner of that micro skirmish could go a long way to determining the winner of the overall contest. Venter brings guile and defensive organisation to the position while Van Rensburg is more of a blunt instrument. The Lions centre believes the shortest way to the tryline is a straight line and anything in his way suffers when trying to stop him.The contrast in styles between the two centres will be intriguing but all around them there are little battles‚ which will add up to an abrasive war on the field.Cheetahs loosehead Ox Nche looks for all the world like a future Bok‚ but he will be up against current Bok tighthead Julian Redelinghuys in another key battle.Nche is a good scrummager but at this stage of his career‚ what marks him out is his ability to operate as an effective ball carrier. Nche’s ability to burst away on the break is a rare strength for such a big man‚ but against the Lions he will have to do his primary tasks well.The Cheetahs go into the game with a 100 per cent winning record after eight victories in eight starts in the pool phase. Confidence is high in Bloemfontein but the Lions – the defending champions – are hitting form at precisely the right time.“We must have confidence. I do believe the guys realise we still a good team‚” Lions coach Johan Ackermann said.“I don’t want to say it again but as the tournament progressed the team got better as we didn't have the preparation time.” Free State are a team who thrive on playing from turnovers. They only ranked seventh for ball carries (522)‚ yet scored the most points (356) and second-most tries with 47 touchdowns‚ which indicates they are a team ready to pounce on opposition mistakes.And the Lions make plenty of mistakes because they play plenty of rugby. The Lions have made the most carries (881)‚ the most metres run (6 969)‚ made the most passes (1 185) and scored the most tries (48). The Lions‚ unsurprisingly kicked the least in the tournament to date as well.But the Joburg side have also made the most handling errors (87)‚ which is an area the Cheetahs will look to target for their turnover-based attacking game.The Lions are the clear underdogs in this one and unlike in 2015‚ when they had a Super Rugby strength team for the entire Currie Cup campaign‚ they are shorn of key players.No 8 Warren Whiteley‚ lock Franco Mostert‚ flank Jaco Kriel‚ flyhalf Elton Jantjies‚ centre Lionel Mapoe and wing Ruan Combrinck are not available due to Japanese club commitments and injury. That strips them of the core of the team that won the title in 2015‚ but in their place are some worthy replacements such as flank Kwagga Smith and wing Anthony Volmink.It’s a tough game to call but one thing is certain‚ in warm‚ dry conditions the tournament’s two leading try scorers are not going to die wondering when it comes to all out attacking rugby.Free State Cheetahs: 15 Clayton Blommetjies‚ 14 Sergeal Petersen‚ 13 Francios Venter (captain)‚ 12 Nico Lee‚ 11 Raymond Rhule‚ 10 Niel Marais‚ 9 Shaun Venter‚ 8 Niell Jordaan‚ 7 Uzair Cassiem‚ 6 Paul Schoeman‚ 5 Reniel Hugo ‚ 4 Justin Basson‚ 3 Johan Coetzee‚ 2 Torsten van Jaarsveld‚ 1 Ox Nche.Replacement: 16 Jacques Du Toit‚ 17 Charles Marais‚ 18 Armandt Koster‚ 19 Henco Venter‚ 20 Tian Meyer‚ 21 Fred Zeilinga‚ 22 Ryno Benjamin‚ 23 Conrad Van Vuuren.Golden Lions: 15 Andries Coetzee‚ 14 Koch Marx‚ 13 Jacques Nel‚ 12 Rohan Janse van Rensburg‚ 11 Anthony Volmink‚ 10 Jaco van der Walt‚ 9 Ross Cronje‚ 8 Fabian Booysen‚ 7 Cyle Brink‚ 6 Albertus ‘Kwagga’ Smith (captain)‚ 5 Bobby de Wee‚ 4 Ruan Ackermann‚ 3 Julian Redelinghuys‚ 2 Malcolm Marx‚ 1 Jacques van Rooyen.Replacements: 16 Armand van der Merwe‚ 17 Corné Fourie‚ 18 Ruan Dreyer‚ 19 Lourens Erasmus‚ 20 Ruaan Lerm‚ 21 Francois de Klerk‚ 22 Nicolaas Hanekom‚ 23 Sylvian Mahuza. - TMG Digital ..