Lions’ Mafura ready for Sharks’ bombs in URC derby

Lions fullback Tapiwa Mafura is ready for the bombs that the Sharks are going to send up to test him, when the two sides collide in their United Rugby Championship (URC) derby at Kings Park on Saturday afternoon.

Mafura had the massive task of stepping into regular fullback Quan Horn’s boots last weekend, after the rising Springbok talent was injured against the Bulls, and put in a strong showing during the 38-14 mauling of the visitors.

With Horn still unavailable, Mafura will get a second run in the 15 jersey, and he should be even better prepared this time round, as last weekend’s game was his first for the Lions since an EPCR clash in early January.

He admitted that he had been a bit rusty at the start of the match, but had grown into the game quickly thanks to the dominance of the home side.

“It was a bit tough at the start, the first 20 I felt a bit rusty and the weather didn’t make it easy for us, but it is always easy playing with these guys. They help so much with how they communicate. Everyone is on the same page and how we are gelling at the moment is amazing,” said Mafura.

“It was amazing how we showed up. We were hungrier than the Sharks and rightfully so. We needed to win to stay in the mix for the URC play-offs. It is the same for us this weekend. We must keep on earning log points, and we can’t be complacent.”

Contestable kicks

In the wet at Ellis Park Mafura was tested by the Sharks with a number of high balls, but was solid, and he is expecting another kicking barrage in tricky humid conditions at Kings Park.

“It will be the same, maybe even more. They will try and isolate us, the same way we did to them. It’s part of their game plan. They are big on (kicking) bombs and pride themselves on putting you under pressure with contestable kicks,” explained Mafura.

“We will be ready for it, we know that it’s coming and I think we have prepped well for it the whole week. So it is going to be interesting.”

After the hammering they received on the Highveld the Sharks will be coming out all guns blazing on their home turf, and Mafura thinks the Lions have to be even better than they were at home to walk away with another win.

“We have focused on improving in the small areas, we are looking at the detail on how we execute each play, and we want to up the accuracy by 20% in everything we do. We can’t expect the game to be the same as last week, so there is a big emphasis on being better,” said Mafura.