Free State Cheetahs coach Naka Drotske wasted no time in recalling hooker Adriaan Strauss to lead the team in Saturday's Currie Cup Final against the Blue Bulls in Pretoria.

Strauss, who takes over the captaincy from lock Nico Breedt, returns after having recovered from a fractured thumb.

The return of the Springbok hooker, both as captain and as a front row forward, will be an enormous boost for the Cheetahs - who are hoping to emulate their 2005 upset of the Bulls in the Currie Cup Final at Loftus Versfeld.

Strauss was named captain as the result of string of injuries that sidelined players like Juan Smith, Hendro Scholtz and Meyer Bosman. However, he helped the Cheetahs recover from a shocking start to the season - four consecutive defeats in the opening month - to record six consecutive wins.

In his absence Breedt has done an admirable job of keeping the Cheetahs on track and qualifying for the play-offs, where they upstaged the Sharks in the semifinals, but Drotske did not hesitate to bring back the inspirational hooker.

While Strauss returns, pushing his cousin Richardt Strauss down to the replacement bench, two other Boks have failed to make the matchday 22 for the Final.

Flank Hendro Scholtz and wing Jongi Nokwe are both surplus to requirements.

Drotske retained Sevens specialist Danwel Demas in the starting XV and named another Sevens star, Fabian Juries, as back-up on the bench - leaving Nokwe, who has recovered from a hamstring injury, out in the cold.

Demas got the nod as a result of his superior out-of-hand kicking and defensive abilities.

The more versatile Juries, who can play wing or fullback, was preferred for his game-breaking ability.

Free State Cheetahs: 15 Hennie Daniller, 14 Lionel Mapoe, 13 Corne Uys, 12 Meyer Bosman, 11 Danwel Demas, 10 Jacques-Louis Potgieter, 9 JP Joubert, 8 Ashley Johnson, 7 Frans Viljoen, 6 Heinrich Brussow, 5 David de Villiers, 4 Nico Breedt, 3 WP Nel, 2 Adriaan Strauss (captain), 1 Wian du Preez.
Replacements: 16 Richardt Strauss, 17 Coenie Oosthuizen, 18 Izak van der Westhuizen, 19 Lukas Floors, 20 Tewis de Bruyn, 21 Louis Strydom, 22 Fabian Juries.

Date: Saturday, October 31
Venue: Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
Kick-off: 17.00 (15.00 GMT)
Referee: Jonathan Kaplan
Assistant referees: Pro Legoete, Cobus Wessels
TMO: Shaun Veldsman