Little to choose between Lions and Sharks in URC showdown at Ellis Park

The Lions host the Sharks in a rescheduled United Rugby Championship game in Johannesburg on Saturday at 2 pm.

While the rest of the URC continues the break provided by the Six Nations in Europe, the Lions and Sharks have an opportunity to move into the top eight. From a South African perspective, it will be good to see a third team join the Bulls and Stormers in playoff territory.

However, it is difficult to predict which side it will be, as the teams seem equally matched. The Sharks have form on their side following their dismantling of the Stormers in Cape Town and Durban, but they have lost some key players to Springbok resting protocols.

It has been a busy week for the Durbanites, with a host of structural changes made at Kings Park — notably the confirmation of JP Pietersen as permanent head coach after a two-month apprenticeship.

The Lions are at full strength, at home, acclimatised to the altitude, and used to the customary early kick-offs at Ellis Park as the organisers try to dodge the late-afternoon thunderstorms on the Highveld in summer. The Lions will also be highly motivated to prove that their 50-point hiding from the Bulls in their last game was an aberration.

The Lions have a URC record of four wins, one draw, and five defeats. With 24 points, they have slipped down to 10th position — level on points with the Sharks and just one point behind the Bulls. The Stormers remain the top South African side in third spot with 36 points. Crucially, the Lions have this game in hand over several other European play-off contenders.

The Sharks have an identical record to the Lions and are also 10th on the log with 24 points. This puts them just one point behind the two sides directly above them, although there is a significant gap to bridge to reach the top six.

Teams

Lions: 15 Quan Horn, 14 Kelly Mpeku, 13 Henco van Wyk, 12 Bronson Mills, 11 Angelo Davids, 10 Chris Smith, 9 Morné van den Berg, 8 Francke Horn (captain), 7 Ruan Venter, 6 Siba Mahashe, 5 Darrien Landsberg, 4 Etienne Oosthuizen, 3 Asenathi Ntlabakanye, 2 PJ Botha, 1 SJ Kotze.

Bench: 16 Franco Marais, 17 RF Schoeman, 18 Eddie Davids, 19 Reinhard Nothnagel, 20 Batho Hlekani, 21 Renzo du Plessis, 22 Haashim Pead, 23 Erich Cronjé.

Sharks:15 Aphelele Fassi, 14 Edwill van der Merwe, 13 Francois Venter, 12 Jurenzo Julius, 11 Jaco Williams, 10 Siya Masuku, 9 Jaden Hendrikse, 8 Thomas Dyer, 7 Vincent Tshituka (captain), 6 Tino Mavesere, 5 Jason Jenkins, 4 Corne Rahl, 3 Hanro Jacobs, 2 Fez Mbatha, 1 Phatu Ganyane

Bench: 16, Eduan Swart, 17 Cameron Dawson, 18 Vincent Koch, 19 Emile van Heerden, 20 Phepsi Buthelezi, 21 Ross Braude, 22 Jordan Hendrikse, 23 Yaw Penxe

Date: Saturday, February 21

Venue: Ellis Park, Johannesburg

Kick-off: 2pm

Referee: Griffin Colby (South Africa)

Assistant referees: Aimee Barrett-Theron (South Africa), Zoe Naude (South Africa)

TMO: Quinton Immelman (South Africa)