It will be fast and furious when the Isuzu Southern Kings face the Cheetahs on Friday, Kings centre Tertius Kruger predicted.
Kruger is relishing the prospect of squaring up against his former Cheetahs teammates in the first South African Guinness PRO14 derby of the season at the Madibaz Stadium.
“I really enjoy it when people come up to me and say that I played well. I like to entertain people by stepping or by running over someone,” Kruger said as he looked ahead to the derby.
A no-holds barred encounter is on the cards when the Kings bid to win only their second game of the season and they will need players like Kruger to deliver a strong showing.
In their last game the Kings were blanked 38-0 by Edinburgh and they are facing another tough test against the men from Bloemfontein.
Adding spice to the derby is that several players will be facing former teammates. “We will see what happens, but it will definitely be a tough game,” Kruger said after an energy-sapping Kings training session on Tuesday.
The two teams have had some close encounters in previous meetings, with the Cheetahs holding the bragging rights from the most recent encounter after winning 29-20 at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium last season.
Since then the Kings have acquired two former Cheetahs players, Kruger and Sarel Pretorius, who joined another ex-Cheetahs player, Tienie Burger in Port Elizabeth.
This rivalry will be further fuelled by the presence of former Kings and Eastern Province players Malcolm Jaer, Sintu Manjezi and Junior Pokomela who will all add some excitement on the field of play.
Kruger who is line for selection after recovering from a hand injury, is relishing the prospect of squaring up to his former teammates. “When you come up against old mates it is always difficult because we know one another so well.
This is a very important game because the team that wins will get a big boost on the log. “There is no doubt that both teams will come out with all guns firing.” The Kings team doctor, Gershwin Kortje, passed fullback Masixole Banda and Kruger fit for Friday’s clash.
“Following assessments and scans last week, I am pleased to confirm that Masixole Banda and Tertius Kruger are fit to play as they have recovered from the knocks they sustained against Edinburgh,” Kortje said.
The Kings were given other injury scares when loose-forwards Martinus “Tienie” Burger (groin) and Ruaan Lerm (leg) sustained knocks during training.“Ruaan Lerm has recovered and is available for selection this week,” Kortje said.“We are still keeping a close eye on Tienie Burger with his groin injury. We can expect to make a call on his availability later in the week.”
Friday’s clash kicks off at 7pm.