The inclusion of the former Southern Kings loose forward is the only change to the side named by Tafel Lager Griquas head coach Scott Mathie.

Velleman replaces the injured Gideon van der Merwe, who was forced to leave the field last Saturday in their weather-affected match against Xerox Lions after a blow to the head and did not recover in time for the trip to the Mbombela Stadium.

The 25-year-old Velleman moved from the Eastern Cape earlier this season, having played all of his representative rugby for the Southern Kings after making his debut in 2014.

He was named on the bench for the Kimberley side when they faced Xerox Lions in Vodacom Super Rugby Unlocked a couple of weeks back, but now gets the opportunity to impress Mathie against a tough Phakisa Pumas pack.

Mathie also made two changes to his extended bench for the trip, with Zandre Jordaan (in for Bandisa Ndlovu) and Ashlon Davids (for Masixole Banda) making the trip to the Lowveld.

Tafel Lager Griquas: 15 James Verity-Amm, 14 Daniel Kasende, 13 Berton Klaasen, 12 Johnathan Francke, 11 Eduan Keyter, 10 Tinus de Beer, 9 Zak Burger (captain), 8 Johan Momsen, 7 Stefan Willemse, 6 CJ Velleman, 5 Cameron Lindsay, 4 Adre Smith, 3 Ewald van der Westhuizen, 2 HJ Luus, 1 Mox Mxoli. Replacements (from): 16 Monde Hadebe, 17 Andrew Beerwinkel, 18 John-Roy Jenkinson, 19 Mzwanele Zito, 20 Carl Els, 21 Theo Maree, 22 Andre Swarts, 23 Enver Brandt, 24 Zandre Jordaan, 25 Ewan Coetzee, 26 Ashlon Davids.

Match information – Phakisa Pumas v Tafel Lager Griquas
Date: Friday, 4 December 2020
Time: 19h00
Venue: Mbombela Stadium, Nelspruit
Referee: Stuart Berry
Assistant Referees: Paul Mente, Morne Ferreira
TMO: Willie Vos
TV: SuperSport Rugby and Grandstand