There is a general mood of excitement in the Eastern Province Kings camp about taking on the Boland Cavaliers in Wellington this afternoon, as they look to claim their second successive Absa Currie Cup First Division title.
The Kings have lost only one game this season and that came at the hands of the Cavaliers in their final round robin match in Wellington two weeks ago when the Kings went down 49-15.
However, the Kings remain upbeat. According to captain Luke Watson there are a lot of young players in the side who will be feeling the nerves of their first big game, but there is still plenty of experience to rely in the Kings outfit especially in the tight five.
There is a general mood of excitement in the Eastern Province Kings camp about taking on the Boland Cavaliers in Wellington this afternoon, as they look to claim their second successive Absa Currie Cup First Division title.
The Kings have lost only one game this season and that came at the hands of the Cavaliers in their final round robin match in Wellington two weeks ago when the Kings went down 49-15.
However, the Kings remain upbeat. According to captain Luke Watson there are a lot of young players in the side who will be feeling the nerves of their first big game, but there is still plenty of experience to rely in the Kings outfit especially in the tight five.
Having eased passed the Valke in their semi final in Port Elizabeth last weekend; the Kings have focused all their attention on the Bolanders. “We have been focusing primarily on our physicality” said Watson, who believes that the Kings need to dominate the close-combat situations in order to nullify Boland’s pace out wide. The Kings dominant tight five has been lead by former Otago Highlander prop forward, Clint Newland, as the Eastern Province men have shunted all their opponents around the park in the set phases and tight exchanges this season.
Their last outing against Boland left the Kings annoyed and frustrated. “It was not a true reflection of who we are” said Watson. The three yellow cards handed to the Kings were due to a miscommunication in interpretation of the laws between the team and referee Marius Jonker. The sin-binning of three players stifled the Kings momentum as they simply ran out of steam. The scoreline of 49-15 was thus not a true reflection as it was in the last 15 minutes that Boland ran in four tries against an outnumbered Kings side.
A solid 48-17 semi final win over the Valke will give the Kings much confidence ahead of this afternoon’s all important clash. Speaking about last week’s performance Watson said “our discipline and ball retention were considerably better”. The latter has been an aspect the Kings have struggled with at times this season and possession will play a vital role against Boland who will be looking to unleash the likes of Springbok Sevens flyer, Danwell Demas.
Watson himself will not take to the field for the second week running due to a concussion he suffered. Last week’s stand-in skipper Darron Nell has also been ruled out with injury and it affords stalwart scrumhalf Falie Oelschig the opportunity to lead the team. “Other than Western Province, we have probably suffered the most injuries in the Currie Cup” said regular captain Watson, who firmly believes that his team has the skill and the character to succeed in the Boland clash.
The Kings strong tight five will set the tone up front and can allow the likes of Jacques Engelbrecht to wreak havoc with his strong ball carries off the back of the scrum. The Kings will also be looking to the experienced half back pairing of Oelschig and Louis Strydom for direction, whilst SP Marais has the ability to cut holes in almost any defence from the back.
When asked about having to play in Wellington, Watson remarked “it’s actually a really nice place, … and the guys have played there a few weeks back”. Nonetheless the Kings have a massive task ahead of them if they are to repeat last year’s heroics. They will need to maintain their discipline and tighten up their defences, as an open running game may favour the Bolanders more than it does the Kings. The mouth-watering final takes place at 4pm today and you can catch it live on SuperSport One.
EP Kings: 15 SP Marais, 14 Andile Witbooi, 13 Joe Breytenbach, 12 Jaco Bekker, 11 Norman Nelson, 10 Louis Strydom, 9 Falie Oelschig (captain), 8 Jacques Engelbrecht, 7 Mpho Mbiyozo, 6 Devin Oosthuizen, 5 Ross Kennedy, 4 Wayne van Heerden, 3 Clint Newland, 2 Hannes Franklin, 1 Jaco Engels.
Replacements: Ronnie Uys, Bobby Dyer, Barend Pieterse, Boetie Brits, Danie Faasen, George Whitehead, Tiger Mangweni.
