Rhyno Smith will start on the right wing in place of the injured William Small-Smith amongst the backs, and upfront Wilmar Arnoldi (hooker) is back from an injury and takes over from Marnus van der Merwe, who in turn moves to the replacements bench.

Van der Merwe’s inclusion on the bench is one of three changes among the impact players, with Chris Massyn (flank) and Erich de Jager (prop) also being drafted into the matchday squad.

The Free Staters are currently in fifth place on the log with 26 points – only two points behind the fourth placed Cell C Sharks – and while a victory would keep them in the running to defend their Carling Currie Cup title with only two pool matches remaining (including this encounter), a defeat could knock them out depending on the other results.

Toyota Cheetahs: 15 Clayton Blommetjies, 14 Rhyno Smith, 13 Dries Swanepoel, 12 Frans Steyn, 11 Rosko Specman, 10 Reinhardt Fortuin, 9 Ruben de Haas, 8 Jeandré Rudolph, 7 Oupa Mohoje, 6 Andisa Ntsila, 5 Reniel Hugo, 4 Carl Wegner (capt), 3 Khutha Mchunu, 2 Wilmar Arnoldi, 1 Boan Venter. Replacements: 16 Marnus van der Merwe, 17 Erich de Jager, 18 Conraad van Vuuren, 19 Victor Sekekete, 20 Chris Massyn, 21 George Cronje, 22 Howard Mnisi, 23 Tian Meyer.

Match Information – Toyota Cheetahs v DHL Western Province
Date: Saturday, 2 January 2021
Time: 16h30
Venue: Toyota Stadium, Bloemfontein
Referee: Stuart Berry
Assistant Referees: Griffin Colby and Egon Seconds
TMO: Marius van der Westhuizen
TV: SuperSport Grandstand and Rugby