Stormers' 'Bomb Squad' comes to the rescue against feisty Lions

MATCH REPORT: The Stormers’ unbeaten run in the United Rugby Championship has been extended after they edged the Lions 34-27 in an absorbing Round Seven encounter in Cape Town on Saturday.

Ivan van Rooyen’s side dominated the first half, and they had a 17-10 lead at the break after two tries by Springbok Ruan Venter.

However, the momentum swung in the second half as the home side went on to secure the bonus point.

A key moment of the match came in the 47th minute when John Dobson unleashed all of his replacement forwards, which brought an extra edge in the physical exchanges.

The Capetonians eventually outscored the Lions by three tries to one in that second 40.

It was a brilliant start for the Lions, and it all stemmed from Evan Roos’ failure to collect the ball from the kick-off.

The Lions sent the ball through the phases, and a brilliant offload from SJ Kotze sent Venter in to score the opening try in the first minute.

The visitors suffered a blow moments after that when Reinhard Nothnagel left the field on a medical cart after a collision with Stormers captain Salmaan Moerat.

After dominating possession and territory, the Lions extended their lead to 10 points in the 19th minute with a Chris Smith penalty goal.

A spark was needed in the Stormers’ side, and it finally came in the 27th when Warrick Gelant found Paul de Villiers with a great pass before the flank put Dylan Maart into space out wide to race away for a five-pointer.

The Lions were nearly in again in the 33rd minute after dominating the gain line. However, Kotze lost the ball forward while reaching for the tryline.

Instead, Jurie Matthee levelled the scores in the 38th minute with a three-pointer.

The Stormers were their own worst enemy again after that as they failed to secure possession from the restart, and it eventually led to Venter’s second try for the Lions.

Smith’s second conversion of the day made it a seven-point lead for the visitors at the break.

It was the perfect start for the home side in the second half, and it all stemmed from an unlucky bounce of the ball for the Lions. Scrumhalf Cobus Reinach collected the ball for the Stormers, and after a couple of passes, Wandisile Simelane went over for a try.

After some fresh legs off the bench, there was a big momentum shift, and the Stormers eventually took the lead in the 53rd minute when De Villiers found his way to the tryline from a maul.

The Lions reduced the deficit with another Smith penalty goal before Matthee cancelled it out with one of his own in the 60th minute.

The Stormers thought they had their bonus point when Ntuthuko Mchunu powered over for a try a few minutes later. However, it was ruled out due to some obstruction by Lukhanyo Vokozela.

It didn’t matter as Roos eventually went over in the 64th minute, and it all started with another powerful driving maul.

The visitors were not going to give up, with Kelly Mpeku chasing down the ball to score a try after a perfectly weighted kick from Quan Horn.

There were a few more nervy moments for the home side in the final minutes, but they kept the Lions out when it mattered.

Man of the match: The award goes to flank Paul de Villiers once again for his industrious effort in all facets of the game. He also scored a crucial try.

The scorers:

For Stormers:
Tries: Maart, Simelane, De Villiers, Roos
Cons: Matthee 4
Pen: Matthee 2

For Lions:
Try: Venter 2, Mpeku
Cons: Smith 3
Pens: Smith 2

Teams:

Stormers: 15 Warrick Gelant, 14 Dylan Maart, 13 Wandisile Simelane, 12 Jonathan Roche, 11 Leolin Zas, 10 Jurie Matthee, 9 Cobus Reinach, 8 Evan Roos, 7 Marcel Theunissen, 6 Paul de Villiers, 5 Ruben van Heerden, 4 Salmaan Moerat (captain), 3 Neethling Fouché, 2 André-Hugo Venter, 1 Vernon Matongo.
Replacements: 16 Lukhanyo Vokozela, 17 Ntuthuko Mchunu, 18 Sazi Sandi, 19 Adré Smith, 20 JD Schickerling, 21 Ben-Jason Dixon, 22 Stefan Ungerer, 23 Suleiman Hartzenberg.

Lions: 15 Quan Horn, 14 Kelly Mpeku, 13 Erich Cronje, 12 Bronson Mills, 11 Eduan Keyter, 10 Chris Smith, 9 Morne van den Berg, 8 Francke Horn (captain), 7 Ruan Venter, 6 Jarod Cairns, 5 Reinhard Nothnagel, 4 Etienne Oosthuizen, 3 Asenathi Ntlabakanye, 2 PJ Botha, 1 SJ Kotze.
Replacements: 16 Franco Marais, 17 Eddie Davids, 18 RF Schoeman, 19 Dylan Sjoblom, 20 Darrien Landsberg, 21 Siba Qoma, 22 Nico Steyn, 23 Richard Kriel.

Referee: Hanru van Rooyen (South Africa)
Assistant referees: Marius van der Westhuizen (South Africa), Stephan Geldenhuys (South Africa)
TMO: Quinton Immelman (South Africa)