The Welsh teams are in South Africa for the first time this season and on Friday night the defending champions, the Stormers, will host the Scarlets at 19:00 in Cape Town.

On Saturday afternoon at 15:00 the Bulls will host the Ospreys at Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria.

The Bulls forwards coach, Russell Winter, confirmed that they have their South Africa 'A' players back from the tour to Ireland and England, but stressed the importance of simulating game situations in training.

"We try to simulate that in training. We try to make sure we have deliberate training in what we do and create scenarios that are as close to the game as possible," said Winter.

"That’s exactly what we need to do to make sure that we are up to speed with what’s happening on Saturday. The way we’ve been training for the last few weeks has been good for the guys, as we’ve maintained contact and fitness levels.

"So, hopefully there is not too much rust in Saturday’s performance, and we can get a rhythm, chemistry and cohesion going nice and early."

On Sunday at 16:00 the Lions host the Dragons at Ellis Park and at 18:10 the Sharks welcome Cardiff to Kings' Park.

Morgan Piek OFM Sport