Key derby game for DHL WP Under-19s

Sep 16 • General News • 1973 Views • Comments Off on Key derby game for DHL WP Under-19s

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A DHL Western Province v Vodacom Blue Bulls game is always a big clash – at any level. On Friday, however, the DHL WP U19s will go head to head with the Bulls U19s with an eye on a potential home semifinal.

The EP Kings have built quite a handy lead in first position on the 2015 Absa Provincial U19 log – with 41 points from nine matches – leaving Province (32) and the Bulls (34) involved in a straight shootout for second place.

“It’s not the be-all and end-all in terms of the semifinals, but it would certainly be a step in the right direction in terms of securing that home semifinal,” said DHL WP U19 head coach Nazeem Adams ahead of Friday’s North-South Derby at DHL Newlands (kick-off 14h45).

“Last year we managed to win our semifinal away from home, with the final of course being played at a neutral venue, but if we can prevent the Bulls from scoring any points it would be a good result for us to move back into second place.”

Prop Jerome Korf and hard-working loose forward Mitchell Carstens are injury victims from last weekend’s 21-8 win over the Sharks U21s in Durban, as Adams and fellow coaches Chris October and Rito Hlungwani target further improvement from their charges.

Adams told the www.wprugby.com website: “We showed plenty (of) improvement against the Sharks. Like I said last week, I will always focus on the positives and it’s a week-by-week thing for us as we improve certain facets of our game one step at a time.”

The last time DHL WP and the Bulls met at U19 level, the Men from Pretoria won a high-scoring thriller by 41-32, having led by 20-0 after 22 minutes, before Province staged a brilliant comeback either side of half-time which was eventually thwarted in the end by the hosts.

“We had to chase the game after our slow start, but I was very proud of our comeback the last time out,” said Adams of the Loftus Versfeld clash in late August.

“We’re not looking too much at that game. Like I always say, if we get it right we can beat anyone, which is why we will continue to focus on our own game and ensure we get our own house in order before worrying about the opposition.”

Match tickets are available for Friday’s three provincial North-South clashes at DHL Newlands. Starting at just R20 for standing room, with seats ranging between R30, R35, R40 and R50, tickets for ALL THREE GAMES can be bought at Computicket – either online (see our ticketing page, http://wprugby.computicket.com) or in-store – and also from Shoprite/Checkers stores and the DHL Newlands Box Office.

* The 2015 Rugby World Cup gets underway in the United Kingdom on Friday evening, with the opening match taking place between hosts England and Fiji at 21h00 (SA time). The DHL Newlands stadium bar, the 100s Bar, will remain open after Friday’s main match for fans to take in the RWC action!

The DHL WP Under-19 team for Friday (v Blue Bulls, home) is as follows:

15. Tiaan Swanepoel
14. Duncan Saal
13. Eduan Keyter
12. Edrich Venter (vice-captain)
11. Edwill van der Merwe
10. Aidynn Cupido
9. Paul de Wet
8. Jaco Coetzee (captain)
7. Daniel Maree
6. Saud Abrahams
5. Eduard Zandberg
4. Jaco Willemse
3. Michael Kumbirai
2. Jacques van Zyl
1. Ruben Terblanche
Replacements:
16. Brenton Greaves
17. Derrick Marais
18. Nathan Meilhon
19. Gary Porter
20. Charl-Francois du Toit
21. Herschel Jantjies
22. Justin Heunis
23. Gerard Pieterse