Challenge Cup, Round three - Teams and predictions
SATURDAY & SUNDAY PREVIEW: Lions will look to maintain their unbeaten European Challenge Cup record as they head to Stade Jean Bouin to take on Stade Français on Saturday.
The last time the two sides met the South Africans recorded a 30-12 win in December.
However, this weekend’s Round three fixture will be a very different challenge as it will be the Lions’ first match away match of the season.
To make things more complicated for the visitors. The Johannesburg team head into the match on the back of a three-match losing streak in the United Rugby Championship.
In contrast, Stade Français are high in spirits. The team have won their last three in the Top 14 and is currently second on the Top 14 table.
“Stade are on a high, they’re second in the Top 14 log, have three big wins in a row behind them, and they’re a different team at home,” Lions assistant coach Ricardo Loubscher said.
“They’re more passionate on their home ground and do their best to put on a spectacle for their fans.
“They look to entertain, so there will be that French flair to contend with, while they also kick a lot; they don’t like playing in their own half.
“But, this match is about us and getting our game right and executing our plan well.”
Lions head coach Ivan Van Rooyen has named Springboks trio Jaco Kriel, Willem Alberts and Andries Coetzee in the starting XV while, Blitzbok star JC Pretorius is on the bench for the clash against Stade Francais.
Kriel makes his return to the starting XV at openside flank. Alberts is added as the No 4 lock ahead of Ruan Venter, who sustained an injury during the URC clash against Munster.
Gianni Lombard will start at flyhalf due to the absence of Jordan Hendrikse, who suffered an ankle niggle during the same match against Munster last week
Andries Coetzee slots in at fullback with coach Van Rooyen opting to shift Quan Horn to the wing where he replaces Stean Pienaar.
BlitzBok recruit Pretorius is set to get his first taste of 15-man rugby for his franchise after being named on the Lions bench.
In the other fixtures, Bayonnais look for their first Challenge Cup points of the season as they travel to Benetton Rugby on Saturday.
Bath, coached by South African Johann van Graan, will host the unbeaten Toulon.
Connacht seek to maintain their 100 percent winning record as they take on CA Brive
Bristol Bears will hope to keep pace with the Challenge Cup Pool A frontrunners when they travel to Zebre, and Glasgow Warriors take on Perginan.
On Sunday there is one fixture as top meets bottom in Pool A as high-flying Cardiff prepare to host struggling Newcastle Falcons in Round 3.
Saturday, January 14:
Stade Francais v Lions
(Stade Jean Bouin, Paris – Kick-off: 14.00; 13.00 GMT; 15.00 SA Time)
Prediction
@rugby365com: Stade Francais by seven points.
Stade Francais: 15 Kylan Hamdaoui, 14 Nadir Megdoud, 13 Theo Dachary, 12 Alex Arrate, 11 Stephane Ahmed, 10 Joris Segonds, 9 James Hall, 8 Ryan Chapuis (captain), 7 Mathieu Hirigoyen, 6 Julien Ory, 5 Sitaleki Timani, 4 Nathan Huguen, 3 Vincent Koch, 2 Lucas Peyresblanques, 1 Moses Alo Emile.
Replacements: 16 Laurent Panis, 17 Vasil Kakovin, 18 Paul Alo Emile, 19 Marcos Kremer, 20 Juan Martin Scelzo, 21 Paolo Odogwu, 22 Arthur Coville, 23 Pienasi Dakuwaqa,
Lions 15 Andries Coetzee, 14 Quan Horn, 13 Henco van Wyk, 12 Marius Louw (captain), 11 Edwill van der Merwe, 10 Gianni Lombard, 9 Morné van den Berg, 8 Emmanuel Tshituka, 7 Emile van Heerden, 6 Jaco Kriel, 5 Darrien Landsberg, 4 Willem Alberts, 3 Asenathi Ntlabakanye, 2 PJ Botha, 1 JP Smith.
Replacements: 16 Michael van Vuuren, 17 Rhynardt Rijnsburger, 18 Ruan Smith, 19 Ruhan Straeulis 20 Sibusiso Sangweni, 21 JC Pretorius, 22 Andre Warner, 23 Manuel Rass.
Referee: Adam Jones (Wales)
Assistant referees: Simon Rees (Wales) & Tom Spurrier (Wales)
TMO: Sean Brickell (Wales)
Benetton v Bayonnais
(Stadio Comunale di Monigo, Treviso – Kick-off: 14.00; 13.00 GMT)
Prediction
@rugby365com: Bennetton by five points.
Bennetton: 15 Matteo Minozzi, 14 Ignacio Mendy, 13 Nacho Brex, 12 Tommaso Menoncello, 11 Onisi Ratave, 10 Tomas Albornoz, 9 Sam Hidalgo-Clyne, 8 Lorenzo Cannone, 7 Michele Lamaro (captain), 6 Giovanni Pettinelli, 5 Federico Ruzza, 4 Niccolò Cannone, 3 Simone Ferrari, 2 Siua Maile, 1 Federico Zani
Replacements: 16 Giacomo Nicotera, 17 Cherif Traore, 18 Tiziano Pasquali, 19 Riccardo Favretto, 20 Alessandro Izekor, 21 Manfredi Albanese, 22 Jacob Umaga, 23 Marco Zanon.
Bayonnais: 15 Yohan Orabe, 14 Arnaud Erbinartegaray, 13 Peyo Muscarditz, 12 Eneriko Buliruarua, 11 Bastien Pourailly, 10 Thomas Dolhagaray, 9 Maxime Machenaud (captain), 8 Aïtor Hourcade, 7 Geoffrey Cridge, 6 Jean Monribot, 5 Konstantine Mikautadze, 4 Manuel Leindekar, 3 Chris Talakai, 2 Thomas Acquier, 1 Pieter Scholtz.
Replacements: 16 Torsten van Jaarsveld, 17 Swan Cormenier, 18 Badri Tsikhistavi, 19 Denis Marchois, 20 Mateaki Kafatolu, 21 Michael Ruru, 22 Jason Robertson, 23 Guillaume Martocq.
Referee: Anthony Woodthorpe (England)
Assistant referees: George Selwood (England) & Jonathan Healy (England)
TMO: Dean Richards (England)
Bath v Toulon
(Recreation Ground, Bath – Kick-off: 15.15; 15.15 GMT; 16.15 French Time)
Prediction
@rugby365com: Bath by three points.
Bath: 15 Matt Gallagher, 14 Joe Cokanasiga, 13 Ollie Lawrence, 12 Cameron Redpath, 11 Ruaridh McConnochie, 10 Orlando Bailey, 9 Ben Spencer (captain), 8 Josh Bayliss, 7 Sam Underhill, 6 Ted Hill, 5 Fergus Lee-Warner, 4 Dave Attwood, 3 D’Arcy Rae, 2 Tom Dunn, 1 Valery Morozov
Replacements: 16 Niall Annett, 17 Lewis Boyce, 18 Johannes Jonker, 19 Will Spencer, 20 Miles Reid, 21 Louis Schreuder, 22 Piers Francis, 23 Chris Cloete.
Toulon: 15 Thomas Salles, 14 Cheslin Kolbe, 13 Duncan Paia’aua, 12 Maëlan Rabut, 11 Aymeric Luc, 10 Dan Biggar, 9 Baptiste Serin, 8 Jules Coulon, 7 Charles Ollivon (captain), 6 Raphael Lakafia, 5 Brian Alainu’uese, 4 Matthias Halagahu, 3 Beka Gigashvili, 2 Teddy Baubigny, 1 Dany Priso
Replacements: 16 Anthony Etrillard, 17 Bruce Devaux, 18 Kieran Brookes, 19 Adrien Warion, 20 Sergio Parisse, 21 Jules Danglot, 22 Ihaia West, 23 Jiuta Naqoli Wainiqolo.
Referee: Chris Busby (Ireland)
Assistant referees: Dan Carson (Ireland) & Aimee Barrett-Theron (South Africa)
TMO: Olly Hodges (Ireland)
Connacht v Brive
(The Sportsground, Connacht – Kick-off: 17.30; 17.30 GMT; 18.30 Frensh Time)
Prediction
@rugby365com: Connacht by 10 points.
Connacht: 15 Mack Hansen, 14 John Porch, 13 Byron Ralston, 12 Cathal Forde, 11 Alex Wootton, 10 Jack Carty (captain), 9 Colm Reilly, 8 Jarrad Butler, 7 Conor Oliver, 6 Cian Prendergast, 5 Niall Murray, 4 Josh Murphy, 3 Finlay Bealham, 2 David Heffernan, 1 Peter Dooley.
Replacements: 16 Dylan Tierney Martin, 17 Jordan Duggan, 18 Jack Aungier, 19 Leva Fifita, 20 Ciaran Booth, 21 Kieran Marmion, 22 Tom Daly, 23 Conor Fitzgerald,
Brive: 15 Maxence Biasotto, 14 Kevin Fabien, 13 Wesley Douglas, 12 Nico Lee (captain), 11 Valentin Tirefort, 10 Tom Raffy, 9 Vasil Lobzhanidze, 8 Abraham Papali’i, 7 Sacha Gue, 6 Matthieu Voisin, 5 Oskar Konstantin Rixen, 4 Andrés Zafra Tarazona, 3 Tietie Tuimauga, 2 Vano Karkadze, 1 Hayden Thompson-Stringer.
Replacements: 16 Aymeric Tronc, 17 Nathan Fraissenon, 18 Francisco Coria Marchetti, 19 Joeli Matalaweru, 20 Noé Bedou, 21 Léo Carbonneau, 22 Enzo Herve, 23 Tom Danovaro.
Referee: Gianluca Gnecchi (Italy)
Assistant referees: Franco Rosella (Italy) & Vinci Filippo (Italy)
TMO: Stefano Roscini (Italy)
Zebre v Bristol Bears
(Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi, Parma – Kick-off: 21.00; 20.00 GMT; 20.00 UK time)
Prediction
@rugby365com: Bristol Bears by 15 points.
Zebre: 15 Jacopo Trulla, 14 Pierre Bruno, 13 Tommaso Boni, 12 Enrico Lucchin (captain), 11 Simone Gesi, 10 Tiff Eden, 9 Alessandro Fusco, 8 Davide Ruggeri, 7 Matt Kvesic, 6 Guido Volpi, 5 Andrea Zambonin, 4 Josh Furno, 3 Matteo Nocera, 2 Luca Bigi, 1 Paolo Buonfiglio.
Replacements: 16 Marco Manfredi, 17 Luca Rizzoli, 18 Muhamed Hasa, 19 Gabriele Venditti, 20 Giovanni Licata, 21 Ratko Jelic, 22 Geronimo Prisciantelli, 23 Erich Cronjé.
Bristol Bears: 15 Henry Purdy, 14 Toby Fricker, 13 Semi Radradra, 12 Ioan Lloyd, 11 Ratu Naulago, 10 Callum Sheedy, 9 Harry Randall, 8 Fitz Harding, 7 Jake Heenan, 6 Magnus Bradbury, 5 Chris Vui, 4 Joe Joyce, 3 Kyle Sinckler, 2 Harry Thacker, 1 Ellis Genge (captain).
Replacements: 16 Fred Davies, 17 Yann Thomas, 18 Max Lahiff, 19 Joe Batley, 20 Daniel Thomas, 21 Andy Uren, 22 James Williams, 23 Jack Bates.
Referee: Luc Ramos (France)
Assistant referees: Evan Urruzmendi (France) & Christian Coussan (France)
TMO: Patrick Dellac (France)
Perpignan v Glasgow Warriors
(Stade Aimé Giral, Perpignan – Kick-off: 21.00; 20.00 GMT; 20.00 UK time)
Prediction
@rugby365com: Glasgow Warriors by 10 points.
Perginan: 15 Boris Goutard, 14 Nino Seguela, 13 Afusipa Taumoepeau, 12 Pato Fernandez, 11 Edward Sawaileau, 10 Matteo Rodor, 9 Tom Ecochard (captain), 8 Valentin Moro, 7 Ewan Bertheau, 6 Taniela Ramasibana, 5 Andrei Mahu, 4 Bastien Chinarro, 3 Akato Fakatika, 2 Victor Montgaillard, 1 Xavier Chiocci.
Replacements: 16 Mike Tadjer, 17 Giorgi Tetrashvili, 18 Vatang Jincharadze, 19 Posolo Tuilagi, 20 Antoine Bouthier, 21 Alexandre Perez, 22 Keanu Desrues, 23 Lilian Pichon.
Glasgow Warriors: 15 Josh McKay, 14 Cole Forbes, 13 Stafford McDowell (captain), 12 Samuel Johnson, 11 Oliver Smith, 10 Domingo Miotti, 9 Jamie Dobie, 8 Jack Dempsey, 7 Cameron Neild, 6 Euan Ferrie, 5 Richie Gray, 4 JP du Preez, 3 Lucio Sordoni, 2 Johnny Matthews, 1 Nathan McBeth.
Replacements: 16 Angus Fraser, 17 Jamie Bhatti, 18 Simon Berghan, 19 Lewis Bean, 20 Alex Samuel, 21 Tom Gordon, 22 Sean Kennedy, 23 Duncan Weir.
Referee: Craig Evans (Wales)
Assistant referees: Ben Breakspear (Wales) & Gwyn Morris (Wales)
TMO: Ian Davies (Wales)
Sunday, January 15
Cardiff v Newcastle Falcons (15.00)
(Cardiff Arms Park, Cardiff – Kick-off: 13.00; 13.00 GMT)
Prediction
@rugby365com: Cardiff by five points.
Cardiff: 15 Josh Adams , 14 Owen Lane, 13 Mason Grady, 12 Ben Thomas, 11 Jason Harries, 10 Rhys Priestland, 9 Lloyd Williams, 8 Taulupe Faletau, 7 Ellis Jenkins, 6 Josh Turnbull (captain), 5 Teddy Williams, 4 Seb Davies, 3 Kieron Assiratti, 2 Kirby Myhill, 1 Corey Domachowski,
Replacements: 16 Efan Daniel, 17 Rhys Carre, 18 Will Davies-King, 19 James Ratti, 20 James Botham, 21 Ellis Bevan, 22 Jarrod Evans, 23 Harri Millard,
Newcastle Falcons: 15 Elliott Obatoyinbo, 14 Adam Radwan, 13 Matias Orlando, 12 Peter Lucock, 11 Ben Stevenson, 10 Tian Schoeman, 9 Sam Stuart, 8 Carl Fearns, 7 Tom Marshall, 6 Gary Graham (captain), 5 Josh Peters, 4 Greg Peterson, 3 Richard Palframan, 2 Charlie Maddison,1 Adam Brocklebank.
Replacements: 16 Alun Walker, 17 Logovi’i Mulipola, 18 Mark Tampin, 19 Matty Dalton, 20 Pedro Rubiolo, 21 Micky Young, 22 Josh Thomas, 23 Iwan Stephens.
Referee: Vivien Praderie (France)
Assistant referees: Hervé Lasausa (France) & Thierry Mallet (France)
TMO: Aurélie Groizeleau (France)
Source: Challenge Cup
