Lions' Mr Fantastic

28 April 2015 - 02:01 By Sbu Mjikeliso

Life is such a beach for Lions coach Johan Ackermann right now that he's punting his players - and he's even handed a selection tip to Springbok coach Heyneke Meyer. Ackermann said he would take outside centre Lionel Mapoe to the World Cup if he was in Meyer's shoes.Mapoe was at the weekend named by Meyer as one of the wide group of players invited to both Bok training camps - in Johannesburg and Cape Town - on May 3 and May 31 respectively.The 26-year-old has been one of the Lions' standout players and again showed what he wascapable of in the Lions' 34-29 win over the Cheetahs at Ellis Park on Saturday. In the eight-try slugfest, Mapoe seemed to possess superhero Mr Fantastic's unreal long arms when he set up Ruan Combrinck with a wonderful offload.He went on to score one of the tries of the weekend, bursting through tackles before sprinting 40m to dive in under the poles, his trademark shark-fin celebration on display on his way there."I would take him to the World Cup," said Ackermann."He can play No 13, left and right wing. He is very versatile and I'm sure even if you put him at No 12, he'd play well there too. I definitely think he can be great coming off the bench or even starting."Lionel is up there with the best No13s, if you're looking for a guy with X-factor. "Meyer has tried no fewer than seven different players in the position since taking over in 2012. After experimenting with specialists such as Juan de Jongh and Jaque Fourie, as well as part-timers JP Pietersen and Damian de Allende, it seems he has settled on Jan Serfontein.Meanwhile, Ackermann said promising young Lions centre Harold Vorster reminds him of former Sharks and Springbok flyhalf Henry Honiball, with a hint of Frans Steyn.This came after the 21-year-old put in another bright performance on Saturday.He made sterling midfield breaks, proving to be one of the best exponents of direct, powerful running. On form alone, he's second only to the Stormers' Damian de Allende, who is blessed with a dancer's feet."He is a really good mix," said Ackermann. "He runs and is built like a Henry Honiball but he has got the strength of a big, Frans Steyn kind of player."..

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