Louw notches up fiftieth cap, Kirsten makes tournament debut for the herd

Louw shifts to open-side flank with Cameron Hanekom moving to eight-man duties and Nizaam Carr returning to the matchday fold at blind-side flank. In front of the back row will be the lock duo of Ruan Vermaak and Reinhardt Ludwig with an unchanged front row of Gerhard Steenekamp, Johan Grobbelaar and Wilco Louw.

Scrum-half, Embrose Papier will combine with Chris Smith (fly half) with Johann Goosen serving a three-week ban. Behind the halfbacks will be Kurt-Lee Arendse at left wing with Harold Vorster (inside) and David Kriel (outside) at centre while Canan Moodie shifts to right wing. Willie Le Roux will run out at fullback.

Kirsten, who has been sidelined by injury since signing for the herd, will form part of a 5-3 split impact squad which also has the likes of Akker van der Merwe, Simphiwe Matanzima, Mornay Smith, Janko Swanepoel, Zak Burger, Jaco van der Valt and Devon Williams all on standby for duty as the side chases more points in the race to the final eight.

The Ospreys are six points behind their hosts and a win in the highveld would be their second on tour and a major boost to their playoff ambitions. For the South Africans, a victory would help keep fate in their own hands and director of rugby, Jake White says their focus is on exactly that.

“We still have our destiny in our own hands, we still have three games at home until the end of this campaign. Every game has to be like a final in a competition that is as competitive as this league where everyone is still in it with a chance,”

“There are so many permutations that can happen and while we can control winning at Loftus and still have a chance of getting the final game, then we still have our destiny in our own control and that is important.”

On Jannes Kirsten making his long-awaited debut, White remarked: “He is one of those guys who has won the European Cup and the English Premiership and there aren’t many guys who have done that. So, he brings to the team, at the back end of a competition where it is now like knockout rugby, an incredible amount of knowledge, understanding and calmness,”

“He is another guy who might not be captain but definitely has some leadership qualities to help the youngsters on the field as well. He is a very detailed guy and incredibly bright. I can only think for the youngsters that if he can instil what he knows and what he has learnt then he is already then he will already have had an impact even off the field.”

VODACOM BULLS v OSPREYS STARTING XV: 1. Gerhard Steenekamp, 2. Johan Grobbelaar, 3. Wilco Louw, 4. Ruan Vermaak, 5. Reinhardt Ludwig, 6. Nizaam Carr, 7. Elrigh Louw (c), 8. Cameron Hanekom, 9. Embrose Papier, 10. Chris Smith, 11. Kurt-Lee Arendse, 12. Harold Vorster, 13. David Kriel, 14. Canan Moodie, 15. Willie Le Roux

VODACOM BULLS IMPACT SQUAD: 16. Akker van der Merwe, 17. Simphiwe Matanzima, 18. Mornay Smith, 19. Janko Swanepoel, 20. Jannes Kirsten, 21. Zak Burger, 22. Jaco van der Valt, 23. Devon Williams

MANAGEMENT: Jake White - Director of Rugby, Chris Rossouw - Assistant Coach, Werner Kruger - Assistant Coach, Gary Gold - Assistant Coach, Andries Bekker - Assistant Coach, Jean Tiedt - Assistant Coach, Kennedy Tsimba - Assistant Coach, Phiwe Nomlomo - Assistant Coach, John-William Meyer - Technical Analyst, Dr. Herman Rossouw - Team Doctor, Lance Lammetjies - Physiotherapist, Darryn Berry - Physiotherapist, Andre Volsteedt - Strength & Conditioning, Yusuf Vahed - Sport Scientist, Elias Bennett - Team Manager, Simon Dyidi - Logistics Manager