Captain Jon-Jon Smuts has pinpointed Saturday’s fixture against the Durban Heat as the start of a crucial juncture in the Nelson Mandela Bay Giants’ 2019 Mzansi Super League campaign.

The Giants are currently in second position in the tournament’s six-team standings. The clash with the Heat at Kingsmead will be followed by trips to St George’s Park, Newlands and Boland Park to face the Tshwane Spartans, Cape Town Blitz and Paarl Rocks, respectively.

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‘In tournaments like this you want to be peaking at the right time. And if we are honest with ourselves, we still haven’t played a really good game at 90 percent yet,’ said Smuts.

‘We’ve lost a few opening wickets early on and then there’s been other areas too where we need to improve. We’re constantly working on getting better.

‘Despite that, we’re still very much in control of our own destiny and we have four big games coming up starting with the trip to Durban.’

The Giants have lost Farhaan Behardien to injury for the rest of the tournament. He has been replaced by Netherlands all-rounder Ryan ten Doeschate. Ten Doeschate didn’t play against the Rocks earlier this week, but will likely debut in Kingsmead on Saturday.

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