Ken Borland

Eben Etzebeth

Physically imposing locks are common in South Africa, but there remains something special about Etzebeth. At 2.03m and 117kg he has the physical attributes needed for his set-piece roles, but the 23-year-old is also a formidable ball-carrier, a good linking man and a force at the breakdown. In his prime and with 37 caps to his name, the time is surely right for Etzebeth to explode on the world stage and prove himself a worthy successor to Bakkies Botha.

John Hardie

Dynamic openside flank John Hardie has proved his worth in SuperRugby for the Highlanders and now he needs to prove his commitment to the Scottish cause after controversially being parachuted into the squad, without being associated to a club in Scotland but having a Scottish grandmother. A consistent performer with a huge work-rate, he brings physicality and excellent skills and judgement to the crucial breakdown area.

Lelei Amanaki Mafi

Most Japanese rugby players are small and nippy, but eighthman Lelei Mafi weighs 111kg and is 6’2, which is sizeable for any back-rower. Strong, fast and athletic, Mafi is a marvellous support runner and a terrific force in the collisions that dominate rugby. The 25-year-old of Tongan heritage plays for NTT Shining Arcs.

Tim Nanai-Williams

The 26-year-old cousin of Sonny Bill Williams is a special talent with game-breaking skill who Samoa have mostly used at fullback, although he can play almost anywhere in the backline. Nanai-Williams has provided plenty of excitement in the colours of the pacy Chiefs side that won two Super Rugby titles, but gave up on his dream of playing for the All Blacks in favour of the land of his parents.

Takudzwa Ngwenya

The scorer of the 2007 try of the tournament when he skinned Bryan Habana (who would go on to be named IRB Player of the Year), is the USA’s star player and the first-choice wing of the Biarritz team which is trying to get out of the second division of French rugby. One of only three Americans to appear in the colours of the Barbarians, Ngwenya’s pace is still blistering and the 30-year-old will obviously be relishing a potential rematch with Habana along with the rest of us.

The Chiefs take on the Sharks in a crunch SuperRugby encounter at Kings Park on Saturday eager to show that they are still a winning outfit independent of midfield maestros Sonny Bill Williams and Tim Nanai-Williams.

Williams is recovering from concussion while Nanai-Williams has a finger injury, robbing the Chiefs of arguably the best centre combination in the competition. But with a hard-working, combative pack, two of the better loose forwards in Sam Cane and Liam Messam, the class of Aaron Cruden at flyhalf and still plenty of pace and power amongst the backs, the New Zealand side remain a formidable outfit.

The other important team news from the Chiefs camp is that experienced loosehead Jamie Mackintosh is back in the starting line-up to counter the presence of veteran tighthead Jannie du Plessis in the Sharks team.

The home side’s decision to keep playing their Springboks, Marcell Coetzee, Pat Lambie and Cobus Reinach all featuring in their sixth straight game, has dominated the news this week but it serves to illustrate the magnitude of the task ahead of them.

Coach Gary Gold is under no illusions and has given the Chiefs the favourites tag.

“The Chiefs are a championship outfit with outstanding strength and depth and they will go into this match as favourites. They have a strong pack of forwards and one of the most exciting backlines in the competition and are well-coached. We look forward to the challenge of measuring ourselves against one of the most dangerous sides. It’s going to be an exciting match-up,” Gold said.

The Sharks’ three defeats this season have come in matches where their game has been littered with errors and they simply cannot leave the ball lying around for the Chiefs to counter-attack.

“The thing about the Chiefs is that they are lethal off turnover ball so you just can’t make any mistakes or you get punished. Even kicking too much or kicking poorly, you just have to look at the statistics boasted by [wing] James Lowe to realise the folly of that.

“So far this season Lowe has run more than 500 metres and he has broken 15 tackles. Those are phenomenal stats and he is a big, explosive guy, and we are going to have to think very carefully before presenting him with an opportunity to run by kicking on to their back three,” Gold said.

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