Tshituka back from injury as Lions beef up for Stormers’ visit

Vincent Tshituka is back in the Lions team for the United Rugby Championship match against the Stormers at Ellis Park on Saturday.

Joining Tshituka from injury is playmaker Jordan Hendrikse, who forms part of the match day 23 and could get an opportunity to feature from the replacements bench, while Burger Odendaal and Wandisile Simelane are also back in thee mix.

Lions mentor Ivan van Rooyen welcomed the return of the two squad members.

“We are pleased to have Vince and Jordan back in the URC setup. They’ve recovered and trained well over the past few weeks, so we look forward to their involvement once more,” said Van Rooyen.

The Lions boss lauded his side’s effort against the Bulls a week ago, which he believes bodes well for Saturday against an opposition they got the better of before the festive break.

“As a group we felt our overall attitude and intensity went up a notch against the Bulls. It’s the kind of momentum we’re eager to take into Saturday on the back of a positive week of training,” he concluded.

Seasoned prop forward JP Smith, who’s played for the Brumbies and Reds in Super Rugby, could get an opportunity to make his competition debut.

Kick-off is at 3pm.

Lions: EW Viljoen, Stean Pienaar, Manuel Rass, Burger Odendaal, Edwill van der Merwe, Tiaan Swanepoel, Andre Warner, Francke Horn, Vincent Tshituka, Jaco Kriel (capt), Ruben Schoeman, Ruhan Straeuli, Carlu Sadie, PJ Botha, Ruan Dreyer. Bench: Jaco Visagie, JP Smith, Jannie du Plessis, Ruan Venter, Emmanuel Tshituka, Morne van den Berg, Jordan Hendrikse, Wandisile Simelane.

Stormers: TBC