Junior Bok world champions run out for Stormers XXIII and Sharks in Currie Cup clash

The 19-year-old midfielder is at outside centre in one of eight changes to the starting line-up, while his fellow U20 Junior World Champion Danie Kruger and hooker Altus Rabie are also set to make their first appearance in the oldest domestic rugby competition in the world.

Muller links up with Josh Boulle in midfield, with Kyle Smith at flyhalf for the first time this season and the experienced Suleiman Hartzenberg making his return on the wing.

In the forward pack, Louw Nel is back from long-term injury to take his place on the side of the scrum, with Gary Porter joining a fit-again Tom Barnard in the second row.

Hencus van Wyk starts at loosehead prop this week, with Kruger and Rabie on a replacements bench that also features scrumhalf Ezekiel Ngobeni, who returns from injury.

Coach Tom Dawson-Squibb said that preparations have been intense given the short turnaround between matches this week.

"This team is determined to put in a performance that all of us and our fans can be proud of at home this weekend.

"We have been boosted by the inclusion of some players returning to our squad, and we are really looking forward to seeing how the new combinations go out there.

"There is a real desire to make a significant step-up in all departments, and we have packed a lot into a short space of time, so we are excited for what should be a great day out at DHL Stadium on Saturday."

Meanwhile, Sharks XV head coach Mike Vowles has bolstered his side with returning victorious SA Under 20 Baby Bok stars in his quest to inject extra excitement into his side.

"We're a team that speaks about being process-driven and we want to build on our performances from week-to-week, so our expectation going into this match is that we have to be better than we were in the last two games," he explained as his side prepare for their third away match in a row.

"There are certain things we did exceptionally well in the previous games that we want to build on, and to fix the stuff we didn't quite execute as well as we should have, so the idea would be to improve and most importantly, put in a good performance for 80 minutes because I think in both games, we've fallen away in that back quarter, so we want to make sure we put in an 80-minute performance on Saturday."

In that regard, Vowles has made some adjustments to the group, including four Under 20s that have come back into the system.

"They come with massive potential, they're exciting rugby players and we feel that including them will give us some punch in the final quarter of the game and that they have a really positive influence on our performance," he explained.

Vowles has selected Luan Gilliomee at fullback with Khuthi Rasivhaga, Liam van Wyk and Rambo Kubheka playing off the bench.

"We know the Stormers XXIII have come off a big loss [going down 41-3 to the Boland Kavaliers] and there will be a response from them, they'll come out fighting, so we anticipate a really high tempo, very physical match," he added.

"But we've had a good week of prep and we've made some changes to the team, which speaks to how we want to play and how we want to finish the game."

Stormers XXIII - 15 Dylan Miller, 14 Suleiman Hartzenberg, 13 Markus Muller, 12 Josh Boulle, 11 Mfundo Ndhlovu, 10 Kyle Smith, 9 Stefan Ungerer (c), 8 Wandile Mlaba, 7 Louw Nel, 6 Keke Morabe, 5 Gary Porter, 4 Tom Barnard, 3 Herman Lubbe, 2 Vernon Paulo, 1 Hencus van Wyk.

Replacements: 16 Altus Rabe, 17 Mhleli Khuzwayo, 18 Danie Kruger, 19 Gerbrandt Grobler, 20 Xola Nyali, 21 Ezekiel Ngobeni, 22 Gino Cupido, 23 Kian Davis.

Sharks XV - 15 Luan Gilliomee, 14 Christie Grobbelaar, 13 Marnus Potgieter, 12 Janco Purchase, 11 Lyle Matthews, 10 Tim Swiel, 9 Ross Braude, 8 Thomas Dyer (c), 7 Danio Botha, 6 Luaan Olivier, 5 Deon Slabbert, 4 Johan Momsen, 3 Simphiwe Ngobese, 2 Bryce Calvert, 1 Cameron Dawson.

Replacements: 16 Liam van Wyk, 17 Phiwayinkosi 'Rambo' Kubheka, 18 Lee-Marvin Mazibuko, 19 Hanu Pieterse, 20 Jean-Henri Smit, 21 Juan Loots, 22 Albie Bester, 23 Khuthi Rasivhaga.

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