Battle of the speedsters when Welkom Gimnasium faces Noord-Kaap
Noord-Kaap and Welkom Gimnasium meet on Saturday after both teams started the term with strong performances last week.
Catch all the action on SuperSport Schools – Register now
Welkom Gimnasium have been exciting to watch all season, putting up scores of more than 40 points against seven of their last eight opponents.
Last week they comfortably beat Goudveld in Welkom by 41-17, with their star flyhalf, Renaldo Kiewiet, celebrating his return after the holiday break by scoring 19 points with two tries, three conversions and a penalty.
Kiewiet was the top points scorer at the Craven Week this year where he stood out for the Griffons.
Despite a challenging season, Noord-Kaap have shown their quality with some big wins this year, including an all-important 18-17 victory against Diamantveld in the Kimberley derby.
Eldridge Jack, who stood out for the Griquas at flyhalf at the Craven Week, has been central to the Northerns’ success and he will have an important role to play again this week when he starts at inside centre.
His outfield partners Jonaden Links (fullback), Junior Kettledas (winger) and Keante Pienaar (winger) have combined well all season, and it will be interesting to see how they perform against the Welkom Gimnasium backline who can match them for pace and flair.
The home team is bolstered by the return of the speedster twins, Naylen and Naven Goeda who have been providing a lot of the excitement for the Gimmies this season.
Their return allows Kiewiet to move back to his flyhalf position and Julian Samuels returns to the scrumhalf position where he is most comfortable.
The Northerns have shown that they have a massive fight in them already this year, so they should never be underestimated, but the Gimmies should be the favourites going into this game, judging by their recent form.
The teams are:
Welkom Gimnasium vs Noord-Kaap at 12:15:
Welkom Gimnasium: 15 Naylen Goeda, 14 Naven Goeda, 13 Taschon Meas, 12 Mojalefa Mathoka, 11 Kamohelo Mokoena, 10 Renaldo Kiewiet, 9 Julian Samuels, 8 Raylen Kirsten, 7 Aiden Bezuidenhout, 6 Ayanda Silwanyana 5 Jayden Auld, 4 Ruan Greyling, 3 Keanen August, 2 Danté Smith, 1 Buchle Mxhabai.
Noord-Kaap: 15 Jonaden Links, 14 Junior Kettledas, 13 Kim van der Horst, 12 Eldridge Jack, 11 Keante Pienaar, 10 Abdul Fischer, 9 Lwandle Maseko, 8 Shaw Lourens, 7 Ambijorn Vraagom, 6 Melvin Diedericks, 5 Thaylin Rose, 4 Wentzel Hibbert, 3 Moeketsi Lang, 2 Liam Harmse, 1 Eveton Hamat.
Other fixtures:
10:00 – Sand du Plessis vs Zastron; 10:30 – President Steyn vs Hoërskool Bloemfontein; 11:00 – Brandfort vs St Andrews (Bloemfontein); 11:10 – Hendrik Potgieter vs Brebner; 11:30 – Landboudal vs HTS Louis Botha.
