Heavy VC flavour in WP side

Fifteen players with Varsity Cup experience have been named in the Western Province Vodacom Cup team for Saturday's quarterfinal clash against the Blue Bulls in Pretoria.

Varsity Cup champions Maties, predictably, provide the bulk of the squad; with 11 players, whilst UCT have four representatives in the WP 22 - including a new face in stalwart Ikey Tigers loosehead prop Ash Wells (pictured, right).

WP backs Jurgen Visser (fullback), Danie Poolman (wing) and Conrad Hoffmann (scrumhalf) all played for the title-winning Maties this season, whilst inside centre Paul Bosch and left-wing Johann Sadie were part of the victorious 2009 squad - as was fit-again centre Morgan Newman.

Up front, lock Rynhardt Elstadt and props Buhle Mxunyelwa and Michael De Neuilly-Rice, along with replacement hooker Callie Visagie and back-up lock Hugo Kloppers, all starred for the 2010 Maties squad.

Starting forwards Yaya Hartzenberg and Martin Muller both started games for the Ikeys in the 2010 Varsity Cup, before their Vodacom Cup commitments took over, whilst replacement prop Ash Wells was a fixture in the No.1 shirt for the Blue & Whites throughout.

Utility back Tiger Bax - a star from 2009 - missed this year's Varsity Cup competition because of injury, but makes his return to top-level rugby via the WP bench; a huge boost, perhaps, to UCT's league aspirations this season.

Other UCT players in the mix include Nick Köster - who, interestingly, has been named at No.8 this week - hooker and captain Hanyani Shimange and replacement loose forward Jody Burch.

Köster, of course, was hoping to use the Varsity Cup as his comeback from a serious knee injury sustained during last year's Super 14, but he was unable to prove his fitness in time to be considered for the play-offs.

The Western Province team: 15 Jurgen Visser, 14 Danie Poolman, 13 Dylan des Fountain, 12 Paul Bosch, 11 Johann Sadie, 10 Lionel Cronjé, 9 Conrad Hoffmann, 8 Nick Köster, 7 Yaya Hartzenberg, 6 Pieter Myburgh, 5 Martin Muller, 4 Rynhardt Elstadt, 3 Buhle Mxunyelwa, 2 Hanyani Shimange (captain), 1 Michael De Neuilly-Rice.
Replacements: 16 Callie Visagie, 17 Ashley Wells, 18 Hugo Kloppers, 19 Jody Burch, 20 Dustin Jinka, 21 Morgan Newman, 22 Tiger Bax.

Kick-off: 12.30pm