Lions thump Pumas at Ellis Park

MATCH REPORT: The Lions outplayed the Pumas on their way to a 52-29 bonus-point win in a Currie Cup Round Two clash at Ellis Park on Saturday

It was a great response for the Johannesburg side after they started their campaign with a defeat to the Cheetahs in Bloemfontein in Round One.

They scored seven tries on their way to victory, with Jarod Cairns getting a brace.

Centre Rynhardt Jonker produced a man-of-the-match performance with a couple of try assists. He also scored one as well.

For the Pumas, it was their second defeat in a row in the tournament.

The opening minutes belonged to the visiting team. They were on the board in the eighth minute with a Danrich Visagie penalty goal.

However, shortly after that the Lions found some rhythm on attack and it was Likhona Finca who went through a gap to score the first try of the game.

Some great interplay a few minutes later resulted in a try for Cairns and a second conversion from Sam Francis made it an 11-point lead after 16 minutes.

That lead was cut in the 26th minute when JJ Scheepers powered his way over for a try after some sustained pressure by the visitors.

However, the Pumas suffered a double blow soon after that with Dalvon Blood getting a yellow card for a deliberate knock-on before the Lions were awarded a penalty try for that indiscretion.

The Lions also had a player in the bin moments later with Morgan Naude getting his marching orders for his team’s repeated offside infringements.

That was when De Wet Marais scored the Pumas’ second try, and after Visagie’s conversion it was only a four-point ballgame at the break.

It was a fantastic start to the second half for the Lions after some great counterattacking play saw Cairns running in for his second try.

Things got even better for the home side a few minutes later with Jonker handing Latica Nela an easy score after beating key defenders.

With the Pumas under constant pressure, Jonker got a try of his own after he intercepted a pass near the visitors’ tryline.

There was some hope for the Pumas when replacement scrumhalf Conor van Eden went over for his team’s third try.

However, they were reduced to 14 men again in the 66th minute after some silly play by Thabo Ndimande at a breakdown. Francis added three points for the Lions with the penalty goal.

Despite being down a man, the Pumas went over for their bonus point try via Blood on the blindside after a powerful scrum.

With time running down, the Lions found another gear again, and after some powerful runs in the midfield, Nela was on hand to get the ball and sprint away for his second try.

The Pumas received their third yellow card in the 78th minute when Troy Delport was pinged for a cheap shot in a ruck, which rubbed salt in their wounds before the final whistle.

Man of the match: The award goes to Lions centre Rynhardt Jonker, who was brilliant on attack. He had a hand in a couple of tries and he scored one as well.

The scorers:

For Lions:
Tries: Finca, Cairns 2, Penalty try, Nela 2, Jonker
Cons: Francis 6
Pen: Francis

For Pumas:
Try: Scheepers, Marais, Van Eden, Blood
Cons: Visagie 3
Pens: Visagie

Yellow cards: Dalvon Blood (Pumas, 30′ – cynical play, deliberate knock-on); Morgan Naude (Lions, 33′ – repeated infringements, offside); Thabo Ndimande (Pumas, 66′ – cynical play at the breakdown); Troy Delport (Pumas, 78′ – foul play, shoulder charge in a ruck)

Teams:

Lions: 15 Latica Nela, 14 Keagan Smith, 13 Likhona Finca, 12 Rynhardt Jonker, 11 Rabz Maxwane, 10 Sam Francis, 9 Zian Cilliers, 8 Morne Venter, 7 Jarod Cairns, 6 Thando Biyela, 5 Ruan Delport (captain), 4 Dylan Sjoblom, 3 Conraad van Vuuren, 2 Mahle Sithole, 1 Morgan Naude.
Replacements: 16 Ruan Welman, 17 Cecil Parsons, 18 Ruan Swart, 19 Marco Ferreira, 20 Renzo du Plessis, 21 Asad Moos, 22 Matthew Coetzee, 23 Exauce Kevani.

Pumas: 15 Jaycee Nel, 14 Alfondso Isaacs, 13 Sango Xamlashe, 12 Troy Delport, 11 Dalvon Blood, 10 Danrich Visagie, 9 Thomas Bursey, 8 Marvelous Mashimbyi, 7 Willie Engelbrecht (captain), 6 De Wet Marais, 5 JJ Scheepers, 4 Stephan Krugel, 3 Junior Banda, 2 Chyle van Zyl, 1 Etienne Janeke.
Replacements: 16 Jan-Henning Campher, 17 Kudzwai Dube, 18 Bryan le Roux, 19 Andre Goedhals, 20 Thabo Ndimande, 21 Conor van Eden, 22 Nevaldo Fleurs, 23 Valentino Wellman.

Referee: Griffin Colby
Assistant referees: Stephan Geldenhuys, Hernas Coetzee
TMO: Archie Moko