Southern Kings v Sharks - Super Rugby match preview
Last year's runners-up the Sharks travel to Port Elizabeth for a South African derby against newcomers Southern Kings.
Last Updated: 09/03/13 2:07pm
Newcomers Kings stunned Western Force in their opening clash, but will need to lift their intensity if they wish to trouble the in-form visitors on Saturday.
The Sharks have made a solid start to their campaign with victories against the Cheetahs in Bloemfontein and the Stormers, despite failing to post a try in Durban.
The Kings have kept changes to a minimum with the abrasive Jacques Engelbrecht taking injured skipper Luke Watson's place while Darron Nel replaces David Bulbring at lock and assumes the captaincy.
The Sharks have named an unchanged line-up from the team that did the business against the Stormers.
They still have a long injury list but have plenty of depth and will be looking for a bonus point victory at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium.
Kings: 15 SP Marais, 14 Sergeal Petersen, 13 Ronnie Cooke, 12 Andries Strauss, 11 Marcello Sampson, 10 Demetri Catrakilis, 9 Shaun Venter, 8 Jacques Engelbrecht, 7 Wimpie van der Walt, 6 Cornell du Preez, 5 Steven Sykes, 4 Darron Nell (Capt), 3 Kevin Buys, 2 Bandise Maku, 1 Schalk Ferreira.
Replacements: 16 Edgar Marutlulle, 17 Jaco Engels, 18 David Bulbring, 19 Luke Watson, 20 Nicolas Vergallo, 21 George Whitehead, 22 Hadleigh Parkes.
Sharks: 15 Louis Ludik, 14 JP Pietersen, 13 Paul Jordaan, 12 Frans Steyn (capt), 11 Lwazi Mvovo, 10 Pat Lambie, 9 Cobus Reinach, 8 Ryan Kankowski, 7 Jean Deysel, 6 Marcell Coetzee, 5 Franco van der Merwe, 4 Anton Bresler, 3 Jannie du Plessis, 2 Craig Burden, 1 Tendai Mtawarira.
Replacements: 16 Kyle Cooper, 17 Wiehahn Herbst, 18 Pieter-Steph du Toit, 19 Jacques Botes, 20 Charl McLeod, 21 Meyer Bosman, 22 Odwa Ndungane.
What they said...
Sharks head coach John Plumtree
"We were not entirely happy with what we did on the weekend (against the Stormers) in terms of our attack.
"In saying that, looking at the Kings, their set-pieces and defence stats are right up there at Super Rugby standard. That just shows that they are certainly capable.
"I don't think the Force expected it and they got it, good on the Kings. If you look at their side, there are a lot of seasoned campaigners, some young guns who are pretty enthusiastic, they put it all together and came up with a good performance."