Lions target Cheetahs to turn season around

It’s been a winless year so far for the Lions, but they see this weekend’s Currie Cup match against the competition favourites as an opportunity to turn their season around.

The Lions are up against the Cheetahs in Bloemfontein on Saturday – and they’re desperate for a victory.

“It’s an opportunity to turn our season’s results around,” said coach Mziwakhe Nkosi on Thursday.

“It doesn’t get easier at all visiting the competition favorites, but that’s the nature of the competition. We’re expecting a motivated Cheetahs team who will look to play an expansive game on their home pitch.”

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Nkosi has named a strong match-23 which features the explosive centre combination of Tyler Bocks and James Mollentze. Experienced flyhalf Fred Zelinga has been tasked with spearheading the attack, as flyer Rabz Maxwane starts on the right wing against his former team. 

“We spoke extensively about implementing our plans and more importantly retaining our focus for longer periods of the game,” said Nkosi.

“Looking back at our last outing against the Sharks, we felt costly errors let us down and we know a team like the Cheetahs will pounce if given the opportunity.

“If we can limit those little mistakes, we believe we’ll be in with a real chance of achieving a positive result,” he added.

Lions: Tiaan Swanepoel, Rabz Maxwane, James Mollentze, Tyler Bocks, Divan Rossouw, Fred Zeilinga, Jurich Claasens, Jarod Cairns, Emmanuel Tshituka, Sibusiso Sangweni, Simon Dinisio, Lunga Ncube, Asenathi Ntlabakanye (capt), PJ Botha, JP Smith. Bench: Dameon Venter, Banele Mthenjane, Chergin Fillies, Izan Esterhuizen, MJ Pelser, Ginter Smuts, James Tedder, Luke Rossouw