McInnes Wilson Lawyers Brisbane City have named their side for Round 8 of the National Rugby Championship as they prepare to take on the Greater Sydney Rams at Ballymore Stadium on Saturday.
Brisbane City head coach Mick Heenan has made seven changes to the starting XV who came away with a 51-24 win over the Melbourne Rising last weekend.
City catapulted into the top four with that bonus-point win and are looking for their third-straight victory this weekend.
Sunnybank’s Jake Strachan will claim his first start of the 2017 season at fullback in a backline which will also see Nick Frisby return at scrumhalf and Dylan Riley at outside centre.
In the forward pack, Feao Fotuaika will start at loosehead while Dan Gorman comes back into the starting side at lock with Lukhan Tui named on the Wallabies bench for Saturday’s Bledisloe Cup match.
Wests Bulldogs product Jeremiah Lynch has been named at blindside flanker for his Brisbane City run-on debut alongside GPS’ Michael Richards at Number 8.
Karmichael Hunt has spent the week on the Gold Coast in Wallabies’ camp but will return to start at inside centre for his third match since making his comeback from syndesmosis.
Heenan has named Wests Bulldogs forward Tevita Ratuva for his potential NRC debut from the bench with Jack de Guingand also selected for the first time this year.
Brisbane city head coach Heenan said: “The boys have trained well recently and I think we saw the result of their efforts against the Rising last weekend. To run in eight tries in those conditions was an exceptional effort but it’s important we build on that this weekend at Ballymore,” Heenan said.
"Jake has been working really hard over the last few weeks and deserves his opportunity at fullback.
He obviously has a really good kicking game and he’ll offer another playmaking option given his history at flyhalf.
"Quade and Nick Frisby have an established combination at nine and 10 and I think our attack will benefit having Frisby’s communication from the start of the match.
"Throughout the year I’ve been impressed with how the club players have performed. Dan (Gorman), Jeremiah (Lynch) and Michael (Richards) have all taken their opportunities when they’ve been handed to them and they’ll get another chance this Saturday.
“I’m looking forward to seeing how Tevita goes from the bench. We’ve also named Jack de Guingand on the bench for the first time this year after his shoulder injury but he’s been involved in the Brisbane City setup before,” Heenan said.
The match kicks off at 2:00pm AEST on Saturday October 21.
Entry to the ground is FREE and fans are encouraged to wear gold ahead of the Bledisloe Cup.
Brisbane City side to face Greater Sydney Rams
1. Feao Fotuaika – Sunnybank
2. Andrew Ready – Reds Easts
3. Sam Talakai – Reds/Brothers
4. Dan Gorman – GPS
5. Kane Douglas – Reds/Norths
6. Jeremiah Lynch - Wests (Brisbane City run-on debut)
7. Michael Gunn – Reds/Easts
8. Michael Richards – GPS
9. Nick Frisby – Reds/GPS
10. Quade Cooper – Reds/Souths
11. Ed Fidow – Wests
12. Karmichael Hunt – Reds/Norths
13. Dylan Riley – Bond University
14. Chris Kuridrani – Reds/GPS
15. Jake Strachan – Sunnybank
16. Ryan Freney – GPS
17. Markus Vanzati – Reds/Souths
18. Salesi Manu – Bond University
19. Tevita Ratuva – Wests (Potential NRC debut)
20. Pat Morrey – University of Queensland
21. Jack de Guingand – University of Queensland
22. Moses Sorovi – Reds/University of Queensland
23. Jayden Ngamanu – Reds/Souths
Fans can watch this game LIVE Fans can LIVE stream this game via www.foxsports.com.au/rugby/nrc/live-stream or download the FOX SPORTS App.
FOX SPORTS digital subscription can be purchased via www.foxsports.com.au/fox-sports-subscriptionIt costs $1 for the first month then $4.99 every month and includes:
• NRC LIVE AND UNINTERRUPTED: Watch two NRC matches live each round, exclusive to your subscription
• FULL REPLAYS OF EVERY GAME: Relive every NRC match, available only 12 hours after the final whistle
