The Lions u/20s will host the Vodacom Bulls u/20s today at 15h00 in a curtain-raiser for the United Rugby Championship clash between the Emirates Lions and Ospreys.
The Vodacom Bulls u20s opponents this week have been one of the dominant sides in the SA Rugby u/20 Cup. After securing three wins from four matches, the Johannesburg-based side lies second on the log – one spot above the Vodacom Bulls u20s.
The Lions u/20s were the log leaders and had great wins against Eastern Province u/20s, Leopards u/20s and the DHL Western Province u/20s before a visit to Durban ended their unbeaten streak with a beating by their hosts the Cell C Sharks (30-61).
Several injuries to key players are currently threatening their title hopes and today could also prove to be very demanding for this talented team. The loss of Nico Steyn at scrumhalf not only will affect their chances of qualifying for the SARU u/20 Cup final, but also denied the fans the opportunity to watch his duel with the brilliant Neil le Roux.
The Vodacom Bulls u/20 has wins against the Leopards and Cell C Sharks while they lost to the DHL Western Province u/20s with 29-30. In all three games, the young Bulls lost their way in the second half. The loss against DHL Western Province u20s saw them conceding 14 points in the last 5 minutes of the game. The Vodacom Bulls u/20s comes off a bye
Injuries to several half-backs see Carlton Banies selected as the third flyhalf in so many games and although the brilliant Neil le Roux has seemingly recovered from an injury the exciting backline of the Vodacom Bulls u/20s could find it difficult to get going.
The winner of this game should secure second place on the SARU u/20 Cup log and be likely finalists in the Championship game on 16 April 2022.
The Lions u/20 made two changes, as well as positional changes, to the starting line-up that lost against the Cell C Sharks. At the Back K Smith and Kelly Mpeku change roles with T van Wyk replacing Nico Steyn at scrumhalf.
Upfront A Weideman is promoted from the bench at lock while Nathan Lianis is replaced with Henk Gouws who moves from lock to the side of the scrum. Lianis will move to the bench.
The Vodacom Bulls u/20 side will have a crucial challenge when they take on an in-form Lions u/20 side at Emirates Airline Park on Friday afternoon.
Vodacom Bulls u/20 head coach, Wessel du Plessis said ahead of the game: “This is a very important match for us, and we will have our work cut out for us against a quality Lions u/20 team that has shown what they are capable of.
“The fact that they occupy second place on the log and sit with the same number of log points as the top-ranked team so far, DHL Western Province u/20, says a lot about the quality and capabilities of this Lions u/20 team.
“We expect the usual physicality, coupled with good running rugby and intelligent play by a side that is well-coached and has exciting young talent. We hope that all the hard work we have been putting in in the build-up to this game will materialise on the day.”
Lions u/20: 15. Kelly Mpeku 14. S Dlamini 13. K Smith 12. Bronson Mills 11. L Maphisa 10. Sihlalo Benge 9. T van Wyk 8. Sisonke Vumazonke 7. Henk Gouws, 6. Joshua van Vreden ( c), 5. Justin Kalamer, 4. A Weideman, .3. John Kelly Okonkwo 2. Ricardo Fourie 1. Heiko Pohlmann. Replacements: 16. M Grobbelaar, 17. SJ Kotze 18. Stian de Bruyn 19. D Botha 20. N Lianis, 21. Brenwyn Bosch 22. Josh Herold 23. N Shabangu 24.Ndinovuyo Holiday, 25.T van Wijk 26. D Moss.
The Vodacom Bulls u/20: 15. Franco Knoetze, 14. Katlego Letebele, 13. Gert Steyn, 12. Sonwabo Sokoyi, 11. Quewin Nortje, 10. Carlton Banies, 9. Neil le Roux, 8. Abulele Ndabambi, 7. Eric Basson (c), 6. Rynard Mouton, 5. Marco de Witt, 4. Merwe Olivier, 3. Sebastian Lombard, 2. Tiaan Lange, 1. Corne Lavagna. Replacements: 16. Johan Lombard, 17. Juann Else, 18. Sivuyise Mabece, 19. Willie Potgieter,20. Cameron Hanekom, 21. Tiaan Fourie, 22. Moemagare Motlhodi, 23. Larry Nkonki, 24. Johan Louw, 25. Ruan Delport, 26. Rowan Cloete.