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Springboks star opens up on ‘one of the hardest’ four weeks of his career
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Wales duo and Bok start for new club in tricky Gallagher PREM opener
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Dewi Lake will captain Gloucester on his club debut this Saturday after being named to lead the Cherry & Whites in their Gallagher PREM season opener away to Exeter Chiefs at Sandy Park.
The Wales hooker is one of three high-profile summer arrivals set to make their Gloucester bows, with Springbok Jean Kleyn and British & Irish Lions star Jac Morgan also selected in George Skivington’s starting XV for the trip to Devon.
While Gloucester head into the new campaign with several fresh faces, Skivington believes making a strong start is crucial in a condensed PREM season.
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“A good start is really important,” said the Gloucester head coach. “There aren’t as many games in the PREM now and the blocks are compact.
“You want to get off to a good start and feel good heading into those breaks in the season. It’s a different challenge to what it used to be, but an exciting one.”
Lake will pack down between Val Rapava-Ruskin and Afo Fasogbon in the front row, while former Munster lock Kleyn partners Arthur Clark in the second row.
Morgan completes a new-look pack alongside Freddie Thomas and Will Trenholm in the back row.
Behind the scrum, Caolan Englefield and Charlie Atkinson form the half-back partnership, with Seb Atkinson and Phil Cokanasiga combining in midfield.
Ben Loader, Will Joseph and Ben Redshaw make up the back three.
Despite the buzz surrounding Gloucester’s new recruits, Skivington expects a stern examination against a Chiefs side that pushed hard at the top end of the table last season.
“The West Country games are always really exciting,” he said. “Exeter had a really good season last year and were very close to winning the league.
“We know it’ll be tough to go down to Sandy Park and play against them, but we’ve had a good pre-season, the group’s really tight and we’re looking forward to seeing what we can put on the field.”
Among the replacements, Jack Innard, Dian Bleuler and Ciaran Knight provide front-row cover, while experienced campaigners Jack Clement, Lewis Ludlow, Dan Robson and George Barton are also included. Junior Denny retains his place in the matchday 23 after catching the eye on his Gloucester debut earlier this month.
Gloucester:
15. Ben Redshaw
14. Will Joseph
13. Phil Cokanasiga
12. Seb Atkinson (vc)
11. Ben Loader
10. Charlie Atkinson
9. Caolan Englefield
1. Val Rapava-Ruskin
2. Dewi Lake (c)
3. Afo Fasogbon
4. Jean Kleyn
5. Arthur Clark
6. Freddie Thomas
7. Jac Morgan* (vc)
8. Will Trenholm
Replacements:
16. Jack Innard
17. Dian Bleuler
18. Ciaran Knight
19. Jack Clement
20. Lewis Ludlow
21. Dan Robson
22. Junior Denny
23. George Barton
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