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John Mitchell released from Force contract
September 2, 2010 - Coach John Mitchell was released from his Super 15 contract with the Western Force from Australia
and is now free to stay with the Lions after the end of the Currie Cup and coach the side in the Super 15 next year.
Mitchell had one year remaining on his contract in Perth taking him through until the end of the 2011 Super rugby campaign but had
indicated earlier this year he would not be seeking a further term at the club. Discussions have commenced with current Western Force
Assistant Coach Richard Graham, who had already been appointed to take up the head coaching role at the club in 2012, to assume the
position from next season. The Lions have indicated that Mitchell signed a three-year deal to coach at the Lions.
Lionsworld already reported on 17 July that this would happen and that Mitchell would coach the Lions in the Super 15 in 2011,
so thanks to the "insider" that provided the scoop!
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Two changes for Province clash
August 31, 2010 - Coach John Mitchell made two changes to the side that will play Western Province at
Ellis Park on Friday. Derick Minnie returns to the side at Flanker and replaces Renaldo Bothma, while George
Earl replaces Johan Snyman at Lock. Bothma and Snyman scored two tries each in the last match against the
Leopards, so it's rather confusing to see them relegated to the bench.
The two changes brings the total number of changes Mitchell has made in the Currie Cup season to 21, with only
five more sides to be named if the team doesn't qualify for the playoffs, which looks likely at this stage.
The Lions won this encounter last year in a very close match 27-25, and from the last five encounters between the
two sides, the Lions won two, both at Ellis Park so a victory is possible on Friday. Personally I think Western Province
is too strong for us at this stage, and will win by 15+
The team is:
15 Jaco Taute, 14 Jannie Boshoff, 13 Waylon Murray, 12 Doppies la Grange, 11 Michael Killian,
10 Elton Jantjies, 9 Jano Vermaak, 8 Warren Whiteley, 7 Joshua Strauss, 6 Derrick Minnie,
5 Franco van der Merwe(c), 4 George Earle, 3 Ross Geldenhuys, 2 Martin Bezuidenhout, 1 JC Janse van Rensburg.
Reserves: 16 Edgar Marutlulle, 17 Wayne Swart, 18 Johan Snyman, 19 Renaldo Bothma,
20 JP Joubert, 21 Burton Francis, 22 Marius Delport.
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Confidence-boosting win over Cheetahs
August 17, 2010 - The Lions recorded a confidence-boosting win over the Cheetahs at Ellis Park on Saturday
when Jannie Boshoff scored the winning try two minutes from full time to make the score 30-26 for the Lions.
The Lions were leading 13-9 at the break and it looked as if they might pull off a surprise victory, but then
the Cheetahs scored through Ashley Johnson shortly after the break and went further ahead when Kobus Calldo scored
with 12 minutes to go, making the score 26-16 for the Cheetahs and the match seeming to slip away from the
Lions.
Then Elton Jantjies scored a try in the right-hand corner with just 5 minutes to go, and kicked the conversion to
make the score 26-23 for the Cheetahs, and then havoc struck for the Cheetahs, a kick behind the Wing and Fullback
caught them out and while they were falling back the defenders lost their footing, and Jannie Boshoff, who was only
the fourth player to the ball, managed to gather it and score the winning try for the Lions.
The victory will no doubt boost the confidence of the Lions, which must have been a bit low after four losses, and
with fixtures against the Pumas and Leopards coming up, the Lions will hope to extend the run of wins to three,
something they last achieved in the 2008 season.
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Three changes for Cheetahs clash
August 12, 2010 - Coach John Mitchell announced three changes to the side that will play the Cheetahs at Ellis Park
on Saturday. Kevin Buys and Trevor Hall are out injured and their places are taken by Ross Geldenhuys and
Renaldo Bothma respectively. The other change sees Hooker Edgar Marutlulle getting a start ahead of
Martin Bezuidenhout, who drops to the bench. For those keeping count, Mitchell has now made thirteen changes for the season.
The big surprise however is the bench, all seven players on the bench are new, with the most notable the return
of Flyhalf Burton Francis after a long absence due to injury. So that makes ten changes in the match 22, something
that might be frowned upon by supporters looking for continuity.
The Lions are desperate for a win in this match, they won this same encounter last year, so another loss will see
us two wins behind last year already, and with the 7 wins from last year we finished 6th on the log. The two teams
have played each other 40 times since 1991, with 18 wins for the Lions, 20 for the Cheetahs, and 2 draws. From the
last 5 encounters the Lions could only manage one win
The team is:
15 Jaco Taute, 14 Deon van Rensburg, 13 Waylon Murray, 12 Doppies la Grange, 11 Michael Killian,
10 Elton Jantjies, 9 Jano Vermaak, 8 Warren Whiteley, 7 Renaldo Bothma, 6 Derrick Minnie,
5 Franco van der Merwe(c), 4 George Earle, 3 Ross Geldenhuys, 2 Edgar Marutlulle, 1 JC Janse van Rensburg.
Reserves: 16 Martin Bezuidenhout, 17 Wayne Swart, 18 Johan Snyman, 19 Joshua Strauss,
20 JP Joubert, 21 Burton Francis, 22 Jannie Boshoff.
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Big win for Sharks
August 7, 2010 - The Sharks handed the Lions their biggest Currie Cup defeat in recent history between the two
teams when they beat them 48-19 in Durban on Saturday. The losing margin of 29 points is the biggest since 1991,
when I started keeping track of the scores. It might even be the worst game ever against the Sharks,
but I am too scared to go check.
We have now lost 6 in a row against the Sharks, something else that I also don't have a record of happening before.
Unfortunately our team is getting used to setting these poor performance records, we have now played 18 matches this
season and lost 17 of them. To try and put a positive spin on such a shocking season is ridiculous and dishonest.
It was clear that a win wasn't on the cards for us in Durban, but I also didn't expect the hiding that we got.
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No changes for Sharks clash
August 7, 2010 - Coach John Mitchell made no changes to the side that will play the Sharks in Durban
on Saturday. The only possible change could be on the bench where young loose forward Jaco Kriel is bracketed with Renaldo Bothma.
It's not always a good sign if you lose by 14 points and then keep the same side, sometimes this means
that you believe this is your strongest side and even though they lost, there is nothing you can do to
strengthen the team. Unfortunately this seems to be the case for us this weekend. I think the Sharks
are slightly better than the Blue Bulls at this stage, so I expect us to lose this match by 10 to 20 points.
We have also lost the last five matches against the Sharks, so another loss will make it six in a row against them.
The other interesting fact is that no fewer than 5 ex-Lions are included in the Sharks match 22.
The team is:
15 Jaco Taute, 14 Deon van Rensburg, 13 Waylon Murray, 12 Doppies la Grange, 11 Michael Killian,
10 Elton Jantjies, 9 Jano Vermaak, 8 Warren Whiteley, 7 Trevor Hall, 6 Derrick Minnie,
5 Franco van der Merwe(c), 4 George Earle, 3 Kevin Buys, 2 Martin Bezuidenhout, 1 JC Janse van Rensburg.
Reserves: 16 Edgar Marutlulle, 17 Ross Geldenhuys, 18 David Bulbring, 19 Jaco Kriel/Renaldo Bothma,
20 Chris Jonck, 21 Carlos Spencer, 22 Marius Delport.
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Lions show improvement but still lose
July 31, 2010 - The Lions put up a spirited performance and played with guts against the Blue Bulls on Saturday,
but it wasn't enough and the Blue Bulls took the match 32-18.
The players and supporters will be fairly happy with the performance, as it was a huge improvement from the
effort against Griquas last weekend, but the sad fact is that it was a home game, and home games are supposed
to be won, and unfortunately we didn't even get a bonus point on Saturday. The loss also means that we have to
win 6 of the next 10 matches just to finish in the same position as last year.
Elton Jantjies had a great match at Flyhalf in his first start for the Lions senior side, but Jaco Taute
was excellent, and gets my nod as man of the match on our side. He was solid under the high ball and his
counter attacks from Fullback punched holes in the Blue Bulls defence and had them guessing throughout the match.
Both teams scored two tries, and in the end it was just the fact that the Lions conceded many more penalties that
cost us the match, as Jacques-Louis Potgieter was on song with the boot and contributed 27 points in the match
with 6 penalties, two conversion and a try to be the overall man of the match.
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Lions change seven for Bulls clash
July 30, 2010 - The Lions named no fewer than seven changes for their first home game of the season against
the Blue Bulls which takes place this Saturday.
Up to now John Mitchell has been fairly consistent with his team selections, and it is the first time that he has
made more than two changes, and for those keeping count, he has now made ten changes for the season. Earlier in the year
Dick Muir made no less than 56 changes during the Super 14 season, so let's see if Mitchell can stay below that.
The changes are: Waylon Murray moves to Outside Centre in the place of Marius Delport, with Doppies la Grange taking
Murray's place at Inside Centre. Elton Jantjies starts at Flyhalf in the place of Herkie Kruger. Franco van der Merwe
moves to Lock in the place of David Bulbring, with Trevor Hall taking Franco's place at Flanker. Kevin Buys moves
from Loosehead Prop to Tighthead Prop, with the fit again JC Janse van Rensburg back at Loosehead Prop.
The team is:
15 Jaco Taute, 14 Deon van Rensburg, 13 Waylon Murray, 12 Doppies la Grange, 11 Michael Killian,
10 Elton Jantjies, 9 Jano Vermaak, 8 Warren Whiteley, 7 Trevor Hall, 6 Derrick Minnie,
5 Franco van der Merwe(c), 4 George Earle, 3 Kevin Buys, 2 Martin Bezuidenhout, 1 JC Janse van Rensburg.
Reserves: 16 Edgar Marutlulle, 17 Ross Geldenhuys, 18 David Bulbring, 19 Jaco Kriel,
20 Chris Jonck, 21 Carlos Spencer, 22 Marius Delport.
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Lions slip up against Griquas
July 26, 2010 - The Lions suffered another humiliating defeat on Saturday at the hands of Griquas
when they lost 26-20 in Kimberley. The Lions lead 14-6 at the break but only managed another two
penalties in the second half while Griquas added 20 points to grab victory.
The Lions scored two five-pointers before the break thanks to scrumhalf Jano Vermaak and lock George Earle,
but then struggled to cross their opponents’ try line in the second half. Flyhalf Herkie Kruger converted both tries
and also kicked two penalties later during the game.
Griquas scored their two tries in the second half. The hosts threatened the Lions’ try line before the break but
struggled to convert their opportunities into points due to handling errors and ill-discipline at crucial stages in the game.
Prop Jacobie Adriaanse and winger Bjorn Basson added the Kimberley side’s tries while captain and flyhalf Naas Olivier
added the two conversions. Oliver also kicked two penalties. Adriaanse was named man of the match.
The result leaves the Lions in 6th place on the log, and facing the Blue Bulls in a tough encounter at Ellis Park on Saturday.
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Buys in for injured Janse van Rensburg
July 22, 2010 - The Lions travel to Kimberley to take on Griquas on Saturday, and the team shows
only one change from the side that went down 32-0 against Western Province last weekend. JC Janse van
Rensburg was injured in the match, and he is replaced by EG Jansen old-boy Kevin Buys.
Buys is a actually a Tighthead prop, and it is worrying to see the lack of depth as this means that
JC Janse van Rensburg is our only recognised Loosehead prop, this after Heinke van der Merwe decided to further
his career overseas. Buys is strong in the loose, and maybe his move to Loosehead is not such a bad one.
The Lions will be worried about this encounter, last year Griquas beat them in both Currie Cup matches, and
Griquas also already beat the Sharks in Kimberley this year. Most people on SuperBru, a score prediction site,
also seem to think that Griquas will take this one, as 87% of people playing in the Currie Cup section
is predicting a Griquas win.
The two teams have played each other 27 times since 1991, with 18 victories for the Lions and 9 for
Griquas and no draws. That is a 67% win ratio for the Lions since 1991, but I think Griquas are tough to beat
at home, so I will give them a win by 5.
The team is:
15 Jaco Taute, 14 Deon van Rensburg, 13 Marius Delport, 12 Waylon Murray, 11 Michael Killian,
10 Herkie Kruger, 9 Jano Vermaak, 8 Warren Whiteley, 7 Franco van der Merwe(c), 6 Derrick Minnie,
5 David Bulbring, 4 George Earle, 3 Ross Geldenhuys, 2 Martin Bezuidenhout, 1 Kevin Buys.
Reserves: 16 Edgar Marutlulle, 17 Wayne Swart, 18 Trevor Hall, 19 Jonathan Mokuena,
20 Chris Jonck, 21 Elton Jantjies, 22 Doppies la Grange.
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Another strange record for the Lions
July 19, 2010 - The Lions recorded their first loss of the 2010 Currie Cup season when they went down 32-0 to
Western Province on Saturday, after trailing 19-0 at the break. It's another strange record for the Lions, I went
back in history as far as 1995, and as far as I can tell it's the first time in the Currie Cup since then that
we have been kept scoreless.
We did record a 57-0 loss to Griquas in 1998, but that was in the Vodacom Cup, and also 23-0 against the
Crusaders in 1997, but that was in the Super 12. So for at least 15 years this is the first time in the Currie Cup
that we didn't trouble the scoreboard.
The only two plusses from the game: We prevented WP from scoring a fourth try for the bonus point, and at least
the score could have been bigger.
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Two changes for WP clash
July 15, 2010 - The Lions travel to Newlands to take on Western Province on Saturday, and the team for this
vital match was announced on Thursday. It includes only two changes from the side that recorded a comfortable
victory over the Leopards in Rustenburg, and it is nice to see that John Mitchell's selection policy favours
consistency over the chopping and changing that we experienced with Dick Muir in the Super 14, but then again,
we never won a match under Muir so it's not possible to say what he would have done after a victory.
Tonderai Chavhanga was injured against the Leopards and his place on the Right Wing is taken by Deon van Rensburg, while Jonathan Mokuena
falls out of the match 22 with Warren Whiteley starting in his place at Number Eight. On the bench we see four new faces,
Edgar Marutlulle replaces Francois du Toit, who was the only player on the bench not used last Friday, so one fails
to understand what he could have done wrong, as well as the return of Wikus van Heerden, who last played in the Currie Cup
for the Lions in 2006, and Trevor Hall, who last played for the Lions in 2005. Centre Pieter Engelbrecht is the last new
face on the bench.
Our last win against WP at Newlands in the Currie Cup was in September 2004, and if Wikus is used off the bench
on Saturday, he will be the only Lions player that also played that day. Other notable names from that match are
John Daniels, Schalk Brits, Cobus Grobbelaar, Enrico Januarie, Doppies la Grange, Bryan Habana, Jaque Fourie and
Conrad Jantjes, who was on the bench that day.
The two teams have played each other 39 times since 1991, with 19 victories each and one draw. I think WP
might just have the upper hand again on Saturday, so I will give them a win by 15.
The team is:
15 Jaco Taute, 14 Deon van Rensburg, 13 Marius Delport, 12 Waylon Murray, 11 Michael Killian,
10 Herkie Kruger, 9 Jano Vermaak, 8 Warren Whiteley, 7 Franco van der Merwe(c), 6 Derrick Minnie,
5 David Bulbring, 4 George Earle, 3 Ross Geldenhuys, 2 Martin Bezuidenhout, 1 JC Janse van Rensburg.
Reserves: 16 Edgar Marutlulle, 17 Kevin Buys, 18 Trevor Hall, 19 Wikus van Heerden,
20 Chris Jonck, 21 Elton Jantjies, 22 Pieter Engelbrecht.
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Lions start Currie Cup with a win
July 09, 2010 - The Lions started their Currie Cup campaign in promising fashion when they beat the Leopards
43-13 in Rustenburg on Friday after leading 20-3 at the break.
The match started very slow with the Leopards spurning the opportunity to take the early lead when they missed
two kicks at goal. After 32 minutes the Lions had a slender lead of 6-3, but then stretched it to 20-3 with
two quick tries in the next 8 minutes before half time by Jano Vermaak and Marius Delport.
The Lions scored three more tries after the break to earn the bonus point win, and will take heart from the fact
that at least they managed their first win of the season after the disaster in the Super 14.
Points:
Lions: Tries by Jano Vermaak(2), Marius Delport, Waylon Murray, Jaco Taute
Conversions: Herkie Kruger(3)
Penalties: Herkie Kruger(4)
Leopards: Tries by Deon Scholtz and Wilhelm Koch
Penalties: Cecil Dumond
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Lions announce team for Currie Cup opener
July 07, 2010 - The Lions start their Currie Cup campaign against the Leopards in Rustenburg this
Friday at 19:00, and the team was named earlier on Wednesday.
Seven players in the starting XV will make their Currie Cup debut for the Lions, they are Chavhanga,
Delport, Murray, Mokuena, Bulbring, Earle and Bezuidenhout, while three players on the bench, namely
Du Toit, Whiteley and Jantjies have not played Currie Cup rugby for the Lions.
Jano Vermaak was named at Scrumhalf, but it is still not sure if he has extended his stay with the Lions
or not. Franco van der Merwe gets to skipper the side for the first time in the absence of Cobus Grobbelaar
and Wikus van Heerden, who are both still out injured.
The Lions beat Boland 45-29 in a compulsory friendly last weekend in preparation for the Currie Cup, and
even though they scored seven tries, they leaked five, so it looks like the defence is still a bit
dodgy as it was in the Super 14, which ended in disaster for the Lions as they finished stone last after
failing to win a single match in the competition. Last year the Lions beat the Leopards 40-19 in Rustenburg,
but I've got a feeling this year it will be a much closer affair.
The team is:
15 Jaco Taute, 14 Tonderai Chavhanga, 13 Marius Delport, 12 Waylon Murray, 11 Michael Killian,
10 Herkie Kruger, 9 Jano Vermaak, 8 Jonathan Mokuena, 7 Franco van der Merwe(c), 6 Derrick Minnie,
5 David Bulbring, 4 George Earle, 3 Ross Geldenhuys, 2 Martin Bezuidenhout, 1 JC Janse van Rensburg.
Reserves: 16 Francois du Toit, 17 Kevin Buys, 18 Warren Whiteley, 19 Robert Kruger,
20 Chris Jonck, 21 Elton Jantjies, 22 Deon van Rensburg.
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Lions announce Currie Cup squad for 2010
July 01, 2010 - The Lions announced a squad of 34 players to represent us in the Currie Cup
of 2010, which kicks off against the Leopards in Rustenburg on 9 July.
A few players are listed as injured, and as they are likely to miss the entire Currie Cup,
they weren't included in the squad. They are Cobus Grobbelaar, Dusty Noble, Justin Wheeler,
Lawrence Sephaka, Nico Luus and Wigan Pekeur.
Some of the notable names that played for the Lions in this year's Super 14 or last year's Currie Cup,
that did not make the squad, are: Earl Rose, Henno Mentz, Jannie Boshoff, Willem Stoltz, Ruan Boshoff, Rouan Cloete,
Johan van Deventer, Earl Lewis, Torrie Meyer,
Derek Harwood, Jacques Lombard, Walter Venter, Wouter Moore, Bernado Botha and Johan Jackson.
Carlos Spencer is also not named in the squad, although it is understood that he might play in some of the matches.
The squad is:
Backs:
Alwyn Hollenbach, Burton Francis, Chris Jonck, Deon van Rensburg, Doppies la Grange, Elton Jantjies,
Herkie Kruger, Jaco Taute, Jano Vermaak, JP Joubert, Marius Delport, Michael Killian, Pieter Engelbrecht,
Tonderai Chavhanga, Wandile Mjekevu, Waylon Murray
Forwards:
Charles Emslie, David Bulbring, Derrick Minnie, Franco van der Merwe, George Earle, Hans van Dyk,
Jaco Kriel, JC Janse van Rensburg, Johan Snyman, Jonathan Mokuena, Kevin Buys, Martin Bezuidenhout, Robert Kruger,
Ross Geldenhuys, Ruan Vermeulen, Warren Whiteley, Wayne Swart, Wikus van Heerden
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