Bekker blow for Stormers and Boks

The Stormers have been dealt a cruel blow ahead of their Super Rugby crunch encounter with the Bulls in Pretoria on Saturday.

Veteran lock Andries Bekker has been withdrawn after failing to recover from a lower back injury and is replaced in the starting line-up by De Kock Steenkamp.

Bekker, who missed the World Cup last year because of lower back surgery and ankle problems, will be sidelined for at least five weeks - also ruling him out of the June Tests against England.

Coach Allister Coetzee made four changes in all to the starting XV that lost to the Sharks in Durban last week. Siya Kolisi returns in the No.6 jersey, after being withdrawn last week before the game.

Young Frans Malherbe gets a start at tighthead prop, with Brok Harris moving to the bench, and Deon Carstens packs down at loosehead in place of Steven Kitshoff - who is with the South African Under-20 team.

On the bench, Deon Fourie covers hooker, with Skara Ntubeni dropping out of the matchday 22. Quinn Roux will play in the No.18 jersey, with fellow WP Vodacom Cup stars, Don Armand and Nick Fenton-Wells, providing back row cover from the wood - as they did against the Sharks last weekend.

Stormers: 15 Gio Aplon, 14 Gerhard van den Heever, 13 Juan de Jongh, 12 Jean de Villiers (captain), 11 Bryan Habana, 10 Peter Grant, 9 Dewaldt Duvenage, 8 Jebb Sinclair, 7 Rynhardt Elstadt, 6 Siya Kolisi, 5 De Kock Steenkamp, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Tiaan Liebenberg, 1 Deon Carstens.

Replacements: 16 Deon Fourie, 17 Brok Harris, 18 Quinn Roux, 19 Don Armand, 20 Nick Fenton-Wells, 21 Louis Schreuder, 22 Burton Francis.

Date: Saturday, June 2

Venue: Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria, Kick-off: 19.10 (17.10 GMT)

Referee: Jonathan Kaplan (South Africa)

Assistant referees: Mark Lawrence (South Africa), Cobus Wessels (South Africa)

TMO: Shaun Veldsman (South Africa)