Confident Lions set their sights on ailing Bulls

16 May 2017 - 14:25 By Liam Del Carme
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Lions' Madosh Tambwe (R) is tackled by Reds' James Tuttle (L) during the Super Rugby match at Ellis Park rugby stadium on March 18, 2017 in Johannesburg.
Lions' Madosh Tambwe (R) is tackled by Reds' James Tuttle (L) during the Super Rugby match at Ellis Park rugby stadium on March 18, 2017 in Johannesburg.
Image: STRINGER / AFP

They will still be without Springbok flank Jaco Kriel but the Lions have the luxury of assembling the squad that went undefeated in Australia for Saturday's Super Rugby clash against the Bulls at Ellis Park.

Kriel is doing agility training as part of the final stages of his recovery from the MCL injury he sustained against the Jaguares‚ but is highly unlikely to feature this weekend.

Winger Madosh Tambwe‚ who missed the tour of Australia due to SA Under-20 commitments‚ is available again after he sustained a side strain while playing for the Golden Lions in their SuperSport Rugby Challenge match against the Welwitschias two weekends ago.

  • Leyds set to start at flyhalf for Stormers against Blues Dillyn Leyds is set to start at flyhalf in Super Rugby for the first time when the Stormers meet the Blues at Newlands on Friday. 

Whether he will unseat the ever improving Sylvian Mahuza on the right wing remains to be seen. Mahuza's try against the Rebels will be a contender for try of the season.

Tambwe‚ however‚ showed glimpses of what he was capable of earlier in the campaign‚ but he is yet to hit his straps. The Lions will go into the match with their confidence sky-high.

They returned from Australia unbeaten and their only blemish abroad in this campaign came against the Jaguares in Buenos Aires.

  • New faces in Springbok training squadSouthern Kings captain Lionel Cronje and three teammates have been rewarded for their good form with call-ups to the third and final Springbok training camp next week. 

With several New Zealand derbies still to be played‚ the Lions now have a realistic chance of challenging for top spot on the Super Rugby points table.

That status holds inherent benefits for the knock-out stages of the competition.

They will have to remain unbeaten for the rest of the league stages if they want to achieve that.

First the Lions have to conquer a Bulls side still smarting from their recent defeats against the Crusaders and the Highlanders.

  • Kings show royal spirit in epic contestEmotional Southern Kings head coach Deon Davids said enduring spirit and guts had sparked his team to an epic 35-32 Super Rugby win over the Sharks at the weekend. 

The Bulls used to have an impeccable record against the Lions‚ but have not won at Ellis Park since 2012.

The Lions have won three of their last four matches against the Bulls‚ including last year's 56-20 thrashing they handed the hosts at Loftus last year.

Even more alarming for the Bulls‚ they are yet to win away from home this season.

- TMG Digital/TMG Sport

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