Ill-discipline cost the Stormers the game against the Lions yesterday after they surrendered a comfortable lead in a flurry of yellow and red cards to go down 26-23.
Centre JJ Engelbrecht and replacement flank Jaco Coetzee received yellow cards in the 37th and 59th minutes and wing Raymond Rhule was given a straight red in the 51st minute.
Once Rhule was red-carded for dangerous play when he felled Ruan Combrinck the complexion of the game changed.
That left the Stormers to play the final 30 minutes with 14 men minutes after they had only just returned to 15 following a yellow card to centre Engelbrecht in the first half.
Engelbrecht was lucky not to collect a second yellow for a neck roll immediately after Rhule's dismissal, but by then the damage was done with the Stormers soon surrendering a 10-point lead.
Coetzee then incurred the wrath of referee Nick Briant with the home team on a general warning for persistent infringements as they became increasingly desperate. His yellow card saw the Stormers down to 13 men.
From two of those penalties Lions hooker Corne Fourie scored off the back of rolling mauls to put the visitors in the lead.
But the home team hit the front again when flyhalf Jean-Luc du Plessis landed two late penalties to edge the Stormers ahead.
Lions wing Madosh Tambwe secured victory with a well taken snipe in the corner with three minutes to go.
Earlier the Stormers scrum and tactical kicking game had the Lions in trouble as they ran into a 17-7 half-time lead.
Scrumhalf Dewaldt Duvenage scored an early try after some quick phase play, and Rhule scored when he ran on to a clever kick from wing Craig Barry...