Preview: Lions v Jaguares
SUPER RUGBY QUARTERFINAL: History will be made at Ellis Park on Saturday afternoon.
The Jaguares will become the first team outside of the original SANZAR (South Africa, New Zealand and Australia) triumvirate to reach a Super Rugby play-off match.
They achieved this success in only their third year in the competition – having finished seventh on the overall standings, after their 13th (2016) and 10th (2017) positions in previous years.
This year, the Lions and their Argentine opponents have met twice – with each side winning at home.
The Highveld side won their Round Two tie, on February 24, by 47-27 in Johannesburg.
The South American franchise triumphed 49-35 one month later, on March 24, in a Round Six fixture staged in Buenos Aires.
The Jaguares received a timely boost with the news that skipper Pablo Matera has been cleared to play.
Matera was in danger of missing out, after being cited for a shoulder charge during last week’s loss to the Sharks.
But the SANZAAR judiciary granted the flank a reprieve, when it found his actions amounted to foul play, but did not warrant a suspension.
A relieved Matera will now lead his team against the Lions.
While the Argentines have enjoyed a breakthrough season under coach Mario Ledesma, their record in South Africa is poor, with 11 losses in 12 matches, including three to the Lions.
They also face an opponent determined to shake off indifferent form and regain the edge that took them to the competition final last year.
Lions captain Warren Whiteley sounded a cautionary note, saying the Lions will have to be on top of their game for the full 80 minutes.
“They [Jaguares] do have a different attack, compare to other teams – who mostly like to play off No.9 and No.10,” Whiteley said.
“They mostly like to play off No.10,” the Lions skipper said, adding: “They do it effectively and they have various options off the flyhalf, which makes it difficult defensively.”
Whiteley also spoke of the need to improve on their start to the game, with their habit of being lethargic in the opening quarter having been very costly.
“We have to start better. We can’t afford to have the start we had the past weekend [going behind 0-12 against the Bulls].”
Retaining possession and denying the Jaguares opportunities with ball in hand are high on the Lions’ priority list.
At least the Lions have the advantage of having played in the Final the last two years.
“The experience is golden, knowing how to approach the match.
“We have a lot of [play-off] experience in our group and that is also an advantage .
“However, we still have to do the job on the day.”
Previous results:
2018: Jaguares won 49-35, Buenos Aires
2018: Lions won 47-27, Johannesburg
2017: Lions won 24-21, Johannesburg
2017: Jaguares won 36-24, Buenos Aires
2016: Jaguares won 34-22, Buenos Aires
2016: Lions won 52-24, Johannesburg
Prediction: Each of the last six games between the Lions and Jaguares has been won by the home team on the day, with the ledger split at three wins apiece. The Lions have won four of their previous five finals games on home turf, scoring 40+ points on three occasions in that time. The Jaguares have lost their last eight games in succession in South Africa, but have won four of their last six away games overall. The Lions (27) and Jaguares (26) have beaten more defenders per game than any other team this campaign. Javier Ortega Desio has made an average gain of 4.6 metres per carry this season, the second most of any forward to have made a total of at least 100 carries. This could get brutal and will be close, but the Lions should have enough gas in the tank to take control in the last quarter and win by nine points.
Teams:
Lions: 15 Andries Coetzee, 14 Ruan Combrinck, 13 Lionel Mapoe, 12 Harold Vorster, 11 Aphiwe Dyantyi, 10 Elton Jantjies, 9 Ross Cronje, 8 Warren Whiteley (captain), 7 Cyle Brink, 6 Albertus Smith, 5 Francois Mostert, 4 Marvin Orie, 3 Ruan Dreyer, 2 Malcolm Marx, 1 Jacques Van Rooyen.
Replacements: 16 Corne Fourie, 17 Dylan Smith, 18 Johannes Jonker, 19 Lourens Erasmus, 20 Marnus Schoeman, 21 Dillon Smit, 22 Courtnall Skosan, 23 Howard Mnisi.
Jaguares: 15 Emiliano Boffelli, 14 Bautista Delguy, 13 Matias Orlando, 12 Jeronimo de la Fuente, 11 Matia Moroni, 10 Nicolas Sanchez, 9 Gonzalo Bertranou, 8 Javier Ortega Desio, 7 Tomans Lezana, 6 Pablo Matera (captain), 5 Marcos Kremer, 4 Guido Petti, 3 Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro, 2 Agustin Creevy, 1 Santiago Garcia Botta.
Replacements: 16 Julian Montoya, 17 Juan Pablo Zeiss, 18 Santiago Medrano, 19 Matias Alemanno, 20 Tomas Lavanini, 21 Juan Manual Leguizamon, 22 Martin Landajo, 23 Sebastian Cancelliere.
Date: Saturday, July 21
Venue: Ellis Park, Johannesburg
Kick-off: 15.05 (10.05 Argentina time; 13.05 GMT)
Expected weather: Plenty of sunshine, but a crisp day – a high of 17°C and a low of 3°C
Referee: Jaco Peyper (South Africa)
Assistant referees: Marius van der Westhuizen (South Africa), Egon Seconds (South Africa)
TMO: Marius Jonker (South Africa)
Compiled by Jan de Koning, additional reporting AFP
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* Statistics provided by Opta Sports
