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With the 2009 Currie Cup competition only one week away, teams will be using Friday’s compulsory friendlies to fine-tune their preparations ahead of South Africa’s premier domestic competition.

The Pumas will be hosting the Sharks in Witbank while in Welkom, the Lions take on the Griffons at the North-West Stadium.
 
The Sharks will be without many first-choice players such as John Smit, Ruan Pienaar, Steven Sykes, Ryan Kankowski, Frans Steyn and Bismarck du Plessis, who are currently on duty with the Springboks.

However Pumas coach Jimmy Stonehouse insists that his team will have to be at their best to remain competitive against the Sharks.

"We’re looking forward to the game against the Sharks especially if you consider that many of the players selected in the Sharks team played against the British & Irish Lions," said Stonehouse.

"The newspapers are saying that the Sharks are fielding a young side. But irrespective which team runs onto the field on Friday, they will test us. That’s exactly what I am looking before ahead of the Currie Cup. We will not be playing in the Premier Division, but we hope to gain valuable lessons from our match against them." 

Lions coach Hans Coetzee will also use their compulsory friendly against the Griffons to evaluate the readiness of his team ahead of the Absa Currie Cup. 

The Johannesburg team selected for the Welkom match includes many players with Super 14 experience such as Willem Alberts, Franco van der Merwe and captain Cobus Grobbelaar.

"We want to use this game to see where we are in terms of our preparation. We are looking forward to the game and to see how we have progressed. The team is positive and are excited about the competition that lies ahead," said Coetzee.

Teams:

Griffons: 15 Tertius Maarman; 14 Darryl Coeries, 13 Eddie Fredericks, 12 Werner Griesel, 11 Fabian Juries; 10 Kennedy Tsimba, 9 Clayton Gawie;  8 Nicky  Steyn (captain), 7 Bioplus van der Merwe, 6 Marnus Briedenhann, 5 Isak van der Merwe, 4 Windpomp, 3 Sewes Oosthuizen, 2 Ashley Johnson, 1 Petros Methula.
Replacements: 16 Herschol Johnson, 17 Gert Greyling, 18 Kevin Stevens, 19 Albert Parsons, 20 Henrico Schultz, 21 Tiaan van Wyk, 22 Shane Hancke.      

Lions: 15 Michael Killian, 14 Dusty Noble, 13 Rouan Cloete, 12 Walter Venter, 11 Johan Jackson, 10 Herkie Kruger, 9 Chris Jonck, 8 Willem Alberts, 7 Franco van der Merwe, 6 Cobus Grobbelaar (captain), 5 Willem Stoltz, 4 Nico Luus, 3 Kevin Buys, 2 Hans van Dyk,1 JC Janse van Rensburg
Replacements: 16 Derek Harwood, 17 Wayne Swart, 18 Johan Snyman, 19 Robert Kruger, 20 Jano Vermaak, 21 Barry Goodes, 22 Pieter Engelbrecht

Pumas: 15 Shaun Venter; 14 Braam Pretorius, 13 Juan Visser, 12 Hyron Thysse, 11 Allister Ketteldas; 10 Valentine van Wyk, 9 Jacques Coetzee; 8 Doppies le Roux, 7 Jaco Bouwer, 6 Corné Steenkamp (captain),5 Marius Coetzer, 4 Luhan Velthuizen, 3 Ashley Buys, Hannes Franklin, 1 Dawie Steyn.
Replacements: 16 Torsten van Jaarsveld, 17 Deejay Terblanche, 18 Eduaan van der Walt, 19 Francois van Wijk, 20 Hendrik van der Nest, 21 Tiaan Marx, 22 Jiffy Lamprecht.

The Sharks: 15. Chris Jordaan, 14. Rocco Jansen,13. Luzuko Vulindlu,12. Andries Strauss,11. Lwazi Mvovo, 10. Guy Cronje, 9. Rory Kockott, 8. Keegan Daniel (captain), 7. Jean Deysel, 6. Jacques Botes, 5. Albert van den Berg, 4. Jan Andre Marais, 3. Wiehahn Herbst, 2. Craig Burden, 1. Patric Cilliers,
Replacements:16. Skipper Badenhorst, 17. Dale Chadwick, 18. Nqubeko Zulu, 19. Justin Downey, 20. Charl McLeod, 21. Patrick Lambie, 22. Ian Adendorff