Lions star suspended for crucial Ospreys clash

The Lions will be without influential prop Asenathi Ntlabakanye for their crucial clash against the Ospreys on Saturday in the URC.

Following his red card in the Lions stirring road win over Connacht, Ntlabakanye was handed a three-match suspension.

Lions star suspended

Conrad van Vuuren comes into the starting lineup at loosehead while Ruan Dreyer will provide cover from the bench.

The Lions have had good continuity in recent weeks and aside from the suspension, they retain that run.

Etienne Oosthuizen and Reinhard Nothnagel partner in the Lions’ second row. Darrien Landsberg is the lock cover on the bench for the Lions this weekend.

The Lions have hit on a winning loose trio with Francke Horn, Emmanuel Tshituka, and former sevens star JC Pretorius. Horn has been excellent at battering the ball up and making hard yards for the Lions. Tshituka and Pretorius have made their impact with big tackles and great work in the loose while both are also talented ball players when it comes to their running game.

The Lions have Izan Esterhuizen and Hanru Sirgel as loose forward cover on their bench this week.

Lions exciting backline

Erich Cronje starts in place of injured Henco van Wyk at 13. He evidently has big shoes to fill with van Wyk in red-hot form this term.

Sanele Nohamba stays at scrumhalf this week but with only Morne van den Berg and Stean Pienaar on the bench, he could be asked to fill in elsewhere if not withdrawn.

Jordan Hendrikse has worked well with Nohamba as a halfback pairing so far, and he has the steady influence of skipper Marius Louw just outside of him.

The back three of Quan Horn, Richard Kriel and record try scorer Edwill van der Merwe are also among the most exciting in the tournament.

Coming into this match the Lions occupy the final playoff spot on the table. The Ospreys are not far behind and will see this contest as a must-win if they are to keep themselves in the hunt.

Team

15 Quan Horn, 14 Richard Kriel, 13 Erich Cronje, 12, Marius Louw (c), 11 Edwill vd Merwe, 10 Jordan Hendrikse, 9 Sanele Nohamba, 8 Francke Horn, 7 Emmanuel Tshituka, 6 JC Pretorius, 5 Reinhard Nothnagel, 4 Etienne Oosthuizen, 3 Conraad van Vuuren, 2 PJ Botha, 1 JP Smith

Substitutes: 16 Jaco Visagie, 17 Morgan Naude, 18 Ruan Dreyer, 19 Darrien Landsberg, 20 Izan Esterhuizen, 21 Hanru Sirgel, 22 Morne van den Berg, 23 Stean Pienaar