Lions surprise with choice at No 10 for URC clash against Dragons

Former Junior Springbok scrumhalf Nico Steyn has been handed the Lions’ No 10 jersey for their United Rugby Championship match against the Dragons in Newport on Saturday.

The 22-year-old Steyn, who captained his Glenwood High School first XV in 2020, has played mainly at No 9 for the Lions, with only a handful of outings at pivot, but this week comes into the starting team in place of the injured Kade Wolhuter, who is not on tour with the Lions.

The other man who has worn the Lions’ No 10 jersey in recent times, Sanele Nohamba, will play off the bench. Recent Springbok scrumhalf, Morne van den Berg, will be Steyn’s halfback partner.

Ntlabakanye hits 50

The change at flyhalf is one of two to the team that beat Edinburgh at Ellis Park last weekend; hooker Franco Marais replacing PJ Botha in the middle of the front row.

Meanwhile ever-improving and impressive tighthead prop Asenathi Ntlabakanye will make his 50th international appearance for the franchise on Saturday.

Speaking ahead of the round four meeting at the Rodney Parade in Newport, Lions assistant coach Barend Pieterse said they were pleased with the momentum the team had built ahead of the tour. The Lions also face Zebre and Leinster on this trip.

“We are really happy with where we are at the moment as a group. It’s always a nice feeling coming on tour with 10 points in the bag (following wins against Ulster and Edinburgh). We will however need to maintain that momentum as we really believe we can become a championship team,” said Pieterse.

The former Lions lock added picking up points on the road was the key to success in the URC.

“This is the tour we believe we can collect our points to make it easier towards the end of the season without relying on other teams to get us into a play-off position,” he said.

Lions: Quan Horn, Rabz Maxwane, Erich Cronje, Rynhardt Jonker, Edwill van der Merwe, Nico Steyn, Morne van den Berg, Francke Horn (capt), Jarod Cairns, JC Pretorius, Darrien Landsberg, Reinhard Nothnagel, Asenathi Ntlabakanye, Franco Marais, Juan Schoeman. Bench: PJ Botha, Heiko Pohlmann, Conraad van Vuuren, Ruben Schoeman, Renzo du Plessis, Sanele Nohamba, Marius Louw, Henco van Wyk