Kings living it up on death row as they take on Bulls at Loftus

07 July 2017 - 11:06 By Khanyiso Tshwaku
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Ball carrier Mzamo Majola during the Southern Kings training session at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium on June 26, 2017 in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
Ball carrier Mzamo Majola during the Southern Kings training session at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium on June 26, 2017 in Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
Image: Richard Huggard/Gallo Images

At times‚ Super Rugby can be tedious business‚ especially when there is nothing to play for.

An example is this weekend’s South African fare where the Sharks‚ Lions and now-ejected Cheetahs are enjoying their break.

With this being the penultimate round‚ the Australian teams and their turgidity are back while New Zealand grapples with the British and Irish Lions one last time‚ and the Southern Kings‚ the Bulls and the Stormers will fly the South African flag.

The Southern Kings will probably be making their last visit to Loftus Versfeld as a Super Rugby outfit and will fancy a win.

With the way their season has surprisingly panned out‚ that shouldn't be ruled out.

However‚ the Bulls seemingly turned a new page with their evisceration of the Sharks at King’s Park.

They have found a spark that was missing all season but that often happens with teams who play with little pressure.

Saturday:

Bulls v Southern Kings – Loftus Versfeld – 5.15pm

The Kings have done the unthinkable by winning five matches out of 13 but it is the double effect of death row.

You either make the most of your existing life or wait solemnly for your life to be extinguished.

Unlike the Cheetahs‚ who stumbled to nine successive defeats‚ the Southern Kings didn’t only survive‚ but they thrived.

Wins over the Waratahs‚ Rebels and the Sharks have also been matched by game showings in defeat‚ but their 31-30 triumph against the Jaguares away on Friday spoke volumes of their improvement.

The Bulls stepped up many notches on Friday in their demolition of the Sharks and they will be a dangerous outfit once John Mitchell takes over.

The Kings will have their hands full keeping Jan Serfontein and Warrick Gelant quiet.

Bulls –15 Warrick Gelant‚ 14 Travis Ismaiel‚ 13 Jesse Kriel‚ 12 Jan Serfontein‚ 11 Duncan Matthews‚ 10 Tian Schoeman‚ 9 Rudy Paige‚ 8 Nic de Jager‚ 7 Jannes Kirsten‚ 6 Ruan Steenkamp‚ 5 RG Snyman‚ 4 Jason Jenkins‚ 3 Conraad van Vuuren‚ 2 Adriaan Strauss (c)‚ 1 Lizo Gqoboka.

Subs: 16 Jaco Visagie‚ 17 Pierre Schoeman‚ 18 John-Roy Jenkinson‚ 19 Ruben van Heerden‚ 20 Shaun Adendorff‚ 21 Andre Warner‚ 22 Tinus de Beer‚ 23 Burger Odendaal.

Kings – 15 Malcolm Jaer‚ 14 Wandile Mjekevu‚ 13 Berton Klaasen‚ 12 Luzuko Vulindlu‚ 11 Makazole Mapimpi‚ 10 Lionel Cronje (captain)‚ 9 Louis Schreuder‚ 8 Andisa Ntsila‚ 7 Tyler Paul‚ 6 Chris Cloete‚ 5 Lubabalo Mtyanda‚ 4 Irne Herbst‚ 3 Ross Geldenhuys‚ 2 Michael Willemse‚ 1 Mzamo Majola.

Subs: 16 Martin Bezuidenhout‚ 17 Schalk Ferreira‚ 18 Dayan van der Westhuizen‚ 19 Mzwanele Zito‚ 20 Thembelani Bholi‚ 21 Stefan Ungerer‚ 22 Masixole Banda‚ 23 Yaw Penxe.

Stormers v Sunwolves – Newlands – 7.30pm

With the playoff berth sealed‚ the Stormers have nothing more than a glorified televised hit-up against the struggling Japanese tourists.

Their Johannesburg experience was chastening and a certain radio station must have been happy with the scoreline that reflected their frequency.

All eyes will be on Juarno “Trokkie” Augustus‚ who will be making his Super Rugby debut.

The Under-20 star showed his value during the age group World Cup and the Sunwolves will be the perfect side for him to get his Super Rugby career going.

If the Stormers get less than 60‚ they should be disappointed in themselves.

Stormers –15 Dillyn Leyds‚ 14 Cheslin Kolbe‚ 13 EW Viljoen‚ 12 Damian de Allende‚ 11 Seabelo Senatla‚ 10 Damian Willemse‚ 9 Jano Vermaak‚ 8 Nizaam Carr‚ 7 Juarno Augustus‚ 6 Siya Kolisi (c)‚ 5 Pieter-Steph du Toit‚ 4 Eben Etzebeth‚ 3 Frans Malherbe‚ 2 Bongi Mbonambi‚ 1 JC Janse van Rensburg.

Subs: 16 Ramone Samuels‚ 17 Steven Kitshoff‚ 18 Wilco Louw‚ 19 Chris van Zyl‚ 20 JD Schickerling‚ 21 Justin Phillips‚ 22 Dan Kriel‚ 23 Bjorn Basson.

Sunwolves –15 Riaan Viljoen‚ 14 Kotaro Matsushima‚ 13 Ryohei Yamanaka‚ 12 Derek Carpenter‚ 11 Teruya Goto‚ 10 Yu Tamura‚ 9 Keisuke Uchida‚ 8 Willem Britz (c)‚ 7 Shuhei Matsuhashi‚ 6 Malgene Ilaua‚ 5 Uwe Helu‚ 4 Kotaro Yatabe‚ 3 Takuma Asahara‚ 2 Takeshi Hino‚ 1 Koki Yamamoto.

Subs: 16 Atsushi Sakate‚ 17 Masataka Mikami‚ 18 Koo Jiwon‚ 19 Yoshitaka Tokunaga‚ 20 Shokei Kin‚ 21 Kaito Shigeno‚ 22 Rikiya Matsuda‚ 23 Jumpei Ogura.

- TimesLIVE

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