Double Springbok boost for Lions as Morne van den Berg, Asenathi Ntlabakanye start against Benetton

The Lions have a double Springbok boost for their URC encounter with Benetton in the form of scrumhalf Morne van den Berg and prop Asenathi Ntlabakanye.

The latter had a limited role off the bench in last week’s narrow loss to Zebre, while Van den Berg was with the Springboks in London for the Rugby Championship finale against Argentina.

Asenathi, who is dealing with a difficult issue off the field around a controversial allegation of a doping offence, will make a big difference as a starter in Treviso. The 150kg tighthead is a powerful scrummager, an aggressive tackler, and a strong ball carrier.

He was capped for the Springboks earlier this year, playing in the victory over Italy in Gqeberha and the loss to the Wallabies in Johannesburg, only to have his promising international career derailed by the allegation.

Van den Berg has scored three tries in four Tests for South Africa and is likely to be the spark the Lions need to arrest their poor start to the URC — they have lost their opening two matches.

Assistant coach Ricardo Loubscher said he is pleased to have the man they call Krappie back in the fold, especially with the leadership qualities he brings.

“It’s just nice to have him back — he brings a different energy and leadership. He’s hungry to perform and help us get a good result,” he commented.

“We had a proper look at the Zebre game. We’re creating the right pictures and opportunities, but it’s all about execution,” Loubscher explained. “It was pleasing to see the tries we scored, which speaks to our DNA. But you can’t just run from everywhere; it’s about being smart and building the right platform.

“The Italians are fresh from a home victory against former champions Glasgow Warriors last week, and in round one, they lost narrowly away to Connacht. They will look to build on the momentum of their victory over the Warriors.

“Benetton are a quality outfit with a lot of Italian internationals. Defensively, they bring huge fight — they try to hold you up, slow you down, and force mistakes. They play a Test-match style of rugby,” Loubscher warned.

“Our game management will be crucial; we have to make sure we get into the right areas and then take our chances,” he concluded.

Former Blitzbok JC Pretorius makes a welcome return at openside flank after being sidelined through injury. Among the impact players are front-rower Conraad van Vuuren and Jarod Cairns, with Manuel Rass in line for his first appearance of the international season.

Lions team for Benetton

15 Quan Horn, 14 Eduan Keyter, 13 Henco van Wyk, 12 Richard Kriel, 11 Angelo Davids, 10 Chris Smith, 9 Morne van den Berg, 8 Francke Horn (c), 7 Ruan Venter, 6 JC Pretorius, 5 Ruan Delport, 4 Etienne Oosthuizen, 3 Asenathi Ntlabakanye, 2 Franco Marais, 1 SJ Kotze.

Bench: 16 Morne Brandon, 17 RF Schoeman, 18 Conrad van Vuuren, 19 Darrien Landsberg, 20 Jarod Cairns, 21 Nico Steyn, 22 Sam Francis, 23 Manuel Rass.