Burton in WP hotseat
8 Aug 2012
Burton Francis will start at flyhalf when WP host the Sharks at Newlands this Saturday.
Francis was used sparingly as a substitute during the recent Super Rugby competition, as primary goal-kicker Peter Grant was favoured. With Grant having left Cape Town to play for another season in Japan, Francis has a chance to make the position his own for the duration of the Currie Cup.
Coach Allister Coetzee rates Gary van Aswegen highly, and when fit, he is considered the best alternative to Grant. However, Van Aswegen has struggled with injuries this past season which is why he wasn’t picked to start.
Meanwhile Coetzee has made a total of 11 changes to the side that started in the Super Rugby semi-final. Gerhard van den Heever comes into the starting line-up on the right wing, while Gio Aplon moves to the left to replace Bryan Habana, who is on national duty.
Marcel Brache and JP du Plessis are entrusted with the midfield responsibilities, while there is change to the back row. Deon Fourie shifts from No 8 to openside flank, Tyrone Holmes replaces the injured Rynhardt Elstadt at No 7, and Jebb Sinclair will pack down at the back of the scrum. Fourie will captain the side for the season.
Coetzee said that Elstadt’s groin injury is not serious but that the lock-come-flank would not be available for the first two matches of the season.
Don Armand, who was used primarily as a loose forward in the Super Rugby competition, will start at No 4 alongside De Kock Steenkamp. Frans Malherbe is favoured ahead of veteran tighthead Brok Harris. Deon Carstens comes into the starting team due to Steven Kitshoff’s knee injury.
Kitshoff is expected to be back in the mix next week.
WP – 15 Joe Pietersen, 14 Gerhard van den Heever, 13 JP du Plessis, 12 Marcel Brache, 11 Gio Aplon, 10 Burton Francis, 9 Dewaldt Duvenage, 8 Jebb Sinclair, 7 Tyrone Holmes, 6 Deon Fourie (c), 5 De Kock Steenkamp, 4 Don Armand, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Tiaan Liebenberg, 1 Deon Carstens.
Subs: 16 Siyabonga Ntubeni, 17 Brok Harris, 18 JC Kritzinger, 19 Wilhelm van der Sluys, 20 Louis Schreuder, 21 Gary van Aswegen, 22 Damian de Allende.
44 Comments
8 Aug 2012, 12:53 pm
yikes…!! not the best squad i’ve ever seen…
interesting…
if they’re gonna play deon at 6 i hope they’ve taught him to scrum effectively in that position and support his props…
don armand at 4…??
will be interesting to see how they go…
sharks may take this…
8 Aug 2012, 12:53 pm
holy moly.
from carthorse to donkey at flyhalf in the space of a fortnight.
8 Aug 2012, 12:56 pm
deon fourie is captain playing as opensider.
wow…versatile this oke.
versatile and pap.
8 Aug 2012, 13:08 pm
would rather play deon at 8, jeb at 5, don at 7 and tyrone at 6…
8 Aug 2012, 13:26 pm
@Brigadier Van Zyl-3:
You can say anything you like about Deon but one thing that you should never say is that he is ” pap”. If you want to call somebody “pap” i suggest you start with Spies.
@ufo-1:
Not a good team at all- i will not be surprised if the Sharks beat them.
Let’s just hope that Elstadt is really only going to miss 2 games- according to AC’s first “prognosis” Schalk was only going to miss 4 matches and look what is happening now.
Good to see Van Aswegen back and du Plessis getting a chance at outside centre.
8 Aug 2012, 13:30 pm
@Robzim-5:
JC Kritzinger on the bench is also a good one coming back. Very good, in fact, arguably the most talented prop in the WP.
8 Aug 2012, 13:33 pm
Brigadier?Why don’t you stand in the Q ready to suck Spies’ balls because that’s the only thing he is good for.
8 Aug 2012, 13:34 pm
A good laugh at the Stormers expense
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bw8C0HLq9xI
8 Aug 2012, 13:35 pm
Do you think anyone takes Currie Cup rugby seriously anymore?
After Super 15 it seems like it has become the platform to groom future players!
Surely there is a case of combining Super Rugby with the Currie Cup. Play the existing teams in the currie cup now!!! Doesn’t that make more sense?
8 Aug 2012, 13:38 pm
@Gumboots-9:
…should read – play the others teams in the Currie Cup now…
8 Aug 2012, 13:47 pm
The team could be worse I guess… At least almost everyone starting has some Super Rugby experience, WP can’t always say that… Armand played Lock for most of his career at UCT so he isn’t really out of position. Deon Fourie at 6 is a big call… We’ll see how it goes I guess.
8 Aug 2012, 13:50 pm
@Robzim-5:
yeah rob…
let’s hope elstadt is not another schalk-type injury…
good to see VanAs back and the others getting their chances…
but this team does not inspire much confidence i must be honest…
8 Aug 2012, 13:55 pm
@pillsbury27-8:
excellent stuff…
very funny…!!
8 Aug 2012, 14:04 pm
15 – Riaan Viljoen, 14 – Odwa Ndungane, 13 – Marius Joubert, 12 – Paul Jordaan, 11 – Louis Ludik, 10 – Meyer Bosman, 9 – Charl McLeod, 8 – Mtembu, 7 – Deysel, 6 – Botes, 5 – Bresler, 4 – Sykes, 3 – Herbst, 2 – Burden, 1 – Chadwick.
Not too bad. Decent bench as well.
8 Aug 2012, 14:40 pm
@Dusky-14: Looks like a much stronger side than WP can muster.
They need to get rid of Brache… he’s got 0 going for him. No pace, no size, no vision, fair hands at best. He’s just there… doesn’t even tackle well.
8 Aug 2012, 14:44 pm
wp clearly want to rest their squad after an exhausting super campaign.
problem is this team could get ‘another’ snotklap from the sharks.
8 Aug 2012, 15:00 pm
whatever happened to catrakilis?
8 Aug 2012, 15:17 pm
@Brigadier Van Zyl-3: not as pap as spies…
8 Aug 2012, 16:03 pm
@pillsbury27-8:
LOL for days.
Some out the box thinking needed indeed.
@Brigadier Van Zyl-3:
Spies is p03spap.
8 Aug 2012, 17:04 pm
Some unexpected changes. I for one did not see Fourie captaining the team and that from the side of the scrum nogals !! All these changes and the one area of concern stays the same and that is at scrumhalf !
Zero progress will be made.
8 Aug 2012, 17:14 pm
@pillsbury27-8: BWAA HAA HAA HAAA !! OMG thats flippen brilliant !!! I miss Rassie !!! classic !!!!!! BRilliant !! Made my day/week/year !!!!!
8 Aug 2012, 17:37 pm
@pillsbury27-8: Brilliant! Hahahahahahaha.
8 Aug 2012, 17:53 pm
Not a bad team.With Kitshoff and Elstad back in a few weeks the team will be more than good enough for the rigours of the CC.
8 Aug 2012, 18:51 pm
Oh well. The Currie Cup has just become Super Rugby’s ugly sister. Sad but true.
Nice to see some youngsters coming back. I’m sure the Bulls will be licking their lips.
8 Aug 2012, 18:53 pm
It was so cold in Pretoria yesterday that the boere were wearing short pant times two.
8 Aug 2012, 18:56 pm
@ post 23. First off rigors and CC don’t go together well and secondy what a utter k@’k ck u have. Insensitive given the current stats in South Africa to say the leastmom dd
8 Aug 2012, 19:07 pm
@IAAS-25:
8 Aug 2012, 19:45 pm
@pillsbury27-8:
farkenhell boet that was hilarious.
8 Aug 2012, 20:07 pm
@pillsbury27-8:
Stormers supporters do have a sense of humour.
Unlike Bulls and Sharks supporters who have little sensitivities.
8 Aug 2012, 22:58 pm
@IAAS-29:
little sensitivities..?..
i dont even know what that means.
8 Aug 2012, 23:11 pm
@wait for it, wait for it…-30:
Little sensitivities means……..
wait for it……
it’s coming………
The Bulls losing at fortress Loftus. hahahahahahaha
You did ask for details.
9 Aug 2012, 09:08 am
@IAAS-31:
oh ok
really?
9 Aug 2012, 10:33 am
@8
That was REAL genius I tell you
Laughing for DAYS
LFD
9 Aug 2012, 10:59 am
Why aren’t province blooding youngsters like Mbovane and Ledtys?
What happened to Yaya Hartzenberg?
Why did they buy Francis ahead of Boland 10 forgot his name
9 Aug 2012, 11:44 am
@mshiniwami-34:
I think Francis is only a stop gap measure until van Aswegen becomes fully match fit- he is not even contracted by WP as far as I know. The Bolander who you refer to is probably Elgar Watts- they tried him out in the beginning of the season but he did not impress.
Leyts is playing on the wing for the under 21′s against the Sharks this weekend – the flyhalf is Tim Swiel who played SA schools last year ahead of Pollard and he might leapfrog the whole lot of them before too long.
Hartzenberg was injured for most of the season and i am not sure whether he has started to play again- Mbovane is at the moment not in the under 21 team either, so he is perhaps also injured- he won’t make the senior team ahead of Aplon or Van den Heever in any event and is probably not versatile enough to play off the bench ahead of de Allende (who is also still under 21)
9 Aug 2012, 12:09 pm
@pillsbury27-8: Fantastic, well done! Someone’s got a great sense of humour!!!
9 Aug 2012, 14:44 pm
I just wish Groom could get a shot. Looking forward to watching this team play. Hopefully the u21 game will be broadcast so we can see how Swiel does.
Disappointed as always that Aplon isn’t playing at fullback…
10 Aug 2012, 05:44 am
Here we go again…??
Rob… seems Kritzinger is injured again…
Western Province, already decimated by injuries and national team call-ups, have lost another key player ahead of the opening round of Currie Cup action.
Prop JC Kritzinger, who has had to overcome two serious knee injuries in the last three years that severely limited his game time, has been ruled out of the encounter with the Sharks at Newlands on Saturday.
WP assistant coach Robbie Fleck confirmed to this website that Kritzinger, who was one of two props on the Province bench, injured his ankle at training and once again face a lay-off.
It is not certain if Province will name another prop on the bench, as they still have Brok Harris among the replacements. The additional replacement is expected to be named on Friday.
Fleck bemoaned the rash of injuries that have ripped the heart out of the Cape Town outfit.
“It is not ideal,” Fleck told this website, adding: “Steven Kitshoff, Rynhardt Elstadt, JC Kritzinger, Hilton Lobberts, Michael van der Spuy, Berton Klaasen are all players who were supposed to have been playing for us this weekend and got injured between the Super Rugby semifinal [on Saturday, July 28] and Wednesday [August 8].
“It is just one of those years where we are getting decimated.”
To say that WP are ‘thin’ in terms of depth would be an understatement.
“Last year we had a fair amount of players from Dobbo’s [John Dobson's WP] Under-21 team we could call on,” Fleck said, adding: “We ‘stole’ three of his centres within the space of two days.”
Loose forward and lock remain the WP coaching staff’s biggest headache – with Siya Kolisi on Bok duty, Nick Fenton-Wells having joined Saracens in England, while Rynhardt Elstadt, Nick Koster, Schalk Burger, Nizaam Carr and Duane Vermeulen all currently sidelined with injuries.
Burger and Carr will not feature in the Currie Cup at all.
“There is a huge amount of injuries and players lost through the season,” Fleck said, adding: “That is why retaining the services of [Canadian import] Jebb Sinclair was so massively important to us.
“We were facing real problems there [loose forward].
“We’ve already had to play a hooker at No.8 and No.6 and it looks like [hooker] Deon Fourie is going to have to play in that position for the Currie Cup.”
Lock is another issue for Province.
“Quinn Roux signing for Leinster [in Ireland] was a bog loss.
“It would have been the perfect opportunity to play him as a regular [starter] at No.4 with the view of a Super Rugby berth next year.
“Hilton Lobberts fractured his arm, he is a big loss. Now we are playing Don Armand out of position at lock.
“We had to call on the Under-21 captain Wilhelm van der Sluys to cover there.”
In terms of the front row WP didn’t loose anybody to Springbok call-ups and most of the guys have been around for a while.
In the backline, according to Fleck, they are also well covered – despite having lost four players to Springboks.
“There’s still good young talent coming through,” the WP assistant said.
“We’ve been absolutely hammered at loose forward and lock, but it is something we have to deal with.
“The [WP] camp has camp has moved on from a massively disappointing loss in the [Super Rugby] semifinal and is determined to make things work in the Currie Cup and play some good rugby and win a trophy – the desire and everything is there.”
By Jan de Koning – Rugby365
10 Aug 2012, 07:42 am
@ufo-38:
Ja, what a way to start. Kritzinger received an offer to go and play in France and AC convinced him to stay- might be all in vain. I wonder how long will Gary last this time?
They should never have “allowed” Quinn Roux to go even if it cost them a leg and an arm – imo he is the biggest loss in years, much more so than the losses of Sadie, Engelbrecht and Pollard.
This team is probably in for a hiding on Saturday and most likely next Saturday in Kimberley too. Sorry for the negativity but this does not look good.
10 Aug 2012, 08:22 am
@Robzim-39:
yeah rob… have to agree on all points…
i can’t believe they let a talent like quinn go either… great pity about kritzinger… as you said the other day… a quality prop… hope he’s not out for too long this time…
for his sake i hope gary does last… he’s a helluva talent… just not as robust as he should be… maybe he’s beefed up over the off season…
reckon we will get clapped tomorrow… but here’s hoping these youngster put up their hands like the young guys did against the bulls…
good to see them starting swiel at 10 this time… dylan leydts decision making was not good when i watched them play before the semi… and tim had only 10 minutes of so at flyhalf… we need to give this guy as much time at 10 as possible… and fast track him into the senior side if need be…
10 Aug 2012, 08:36 am
@pillsbury27-8:
Farken funny stuff.
And i think its the truth that makes it so flippen good.
Great stuff!!!
10 Aug 2012, 10:41 am
@pillsbury27-8:
hehehe
baie snaaks
10 Aug 2012, 10:52 am
I reckon Coetzee was channel hopping last weekend, stumbled on the last 20 minutes of the Super Rugby final and though fck me, so this is the Sharks first team? So he’s resting half a dozen players for the real tests. Sensible stuff.
10 Aug 2012, 13:01 pm
hartzenburg is not injured toet just doesnt rate him because his ancestors kicked the **** out of the little gnome on the track.the man can hold a grudge i tell u
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