The Lions and Stormers spiced up the home stretch of the United Rugby Championship (URC) this past weekend with excellent victories over the Sharks and Bulls in Gauteng.
It blew the race to the South African Shield wide open with the two coastal sides still in contention with one weekend of games to go. But, the wins also brought the Lions and Stormers back in the race for the URC knockouts. It created a massive logjam in the middle of the official standings with six rounds remaining.
The Emirates Lions and the DHL Stormers are fighting in the #VURC 😤 pic.twitter.com/GRQ6oB8A2v
— SuperSport Rugby (@SSRugby) March 3, 2025
Durban's Kings Park will host the final local derby of the regular season and following their impressive performance in Johannesburg, the Lions will look to pull off a stunning double win over the Sharks.
Their backline, minus two stars in Quan Horn and Henco van Wyk, ran the coastal side to pieces in the 38-14 victory, with only two late tries that saved their opponents from a blowout. Outside centre Manni Rass, flyhalf Gianni Lombard, and winger Edwill van der Merwe, put in some strong performances with the platform laid by the forwards in tough weather conditions.
Manni Rass delivered the goods! 🔥🏉 He takes home the Vodacom Player of the Match award after a stellar performance against the Hollywoodbets Sharks! 🦁👏#LIOvSHA@vodacom #URC | #HitsDifferent#LionsPride🦁 pic.twitter.com/30xAwwnk9S
— Lions (@LionsRugbyCo) March 2, 2025
Elsewhere in Pretoria, the Stormers took sweet revenge at Loftus Versfeld following the Bulls' first-ever URC victory in Cape Town in January's North vs South derby.
They bullied their more-fancied opponents in a game delayed by over an hour after inclement weather. From the first kick-off, eighth man Evan Roos, captain and lock Salmaan Moerat and prop Neethling Fouche led the physical charge. And the side went at it for the full 80 minutes.
The victory was enough for them to be top in the SA Shield. The Lions can do them a favour this weekend in Durban by beating the Sharks again. It will restore the Cape side as the No 1 team amongst the local franchises, although their season hasn't been the best.
Best Player: While there were a handful of players that could've taken the title, Mannie Rass' all-round performance for the Lions was brilliant. He looked comfortable against Lukhanyo Am and Jurenzo Julius and smashed them on defence a few times. Rass also had some brilliant runs with the ball in hand to gain territory for his side.
Honourable mentions: The Stormers' Evan Roos, Jurie Matthee, and Wandisile Simelane, all had a point to prove against the Bulls, while Nizaam Carr played his heart out in Pretoria, together with scrum ace Wilco Louw. Lions captain Francke Horn put in a shift, alongside loose forward replacement Siba Qoma and centre Marius Louw. The Sharks' side sparked when scrumhalf Grant Williams entered the fray, while flanker Tino Mavesere and fullback Jordan Hendrikse played their hearts out.
Team of the Week: 15 Jordan Hendrikse (Sharks), 14 Ben Loader (Stormers), 13 Manni Rass (Lions), 12 Marius Louw (Lions), 11 Edwill van der Merwe (Lions), 10 Jurie Matthee (Stormers), 9 Stefan Ungerer (Stormers), 8 Evan Roos (Stormers), 7 Siba Qoma (Lions), 6 Tino Mavesere (Sharks), 5 Jason Jenkins (Sharks), 4 Salmaan Moerat (Stormers), 3 Wilco Louw (Bulls), 2 PJ Botha (Lions), 1 Juan Schoeman (Lions)