URC, Round 11 - Teams and Predictions

SATURDAY PREVIEW: Round 11’s South African derbies land at a critical point in the URC, with the log finely balanced and momentum up for grabs.

For the Bulls and Sharks, the clash presents an opportunity to reignite their campaigns and push upward.

For the Lions and Stormers, the focus is on holding ground and reinforcing their place among the contenders.

These fixtures go well beyond local pride. With the season edging toward its decisive phase, the outcomes could shape how South Africa’s challenge unfolds in the weeks ahead.

The Lions head into this weekend’s Ellis Park showdown with a rare opportunity in their sights: a first-ever United Rugby Championship season sweep over the Bulls.

Their confidence is rooted in November’s 43–33 upset at Loftus Versfeld, where the Johannesburg side outplayed their more fancied neighbours in a statement win. Repeating that feat would mark uncharted territory for the Lions in the URC era.

History, however, still favours the Bulls. Pretoria’s outfit has won seven of the nine league meetings between the sides, underlining their long-standing dominance in the competition. That record ensures they will arrive fully alert to the threat across the Jukskei.

Yet the Lions have shown this season that when momentum is on their side, they can trouble any opponent. With form and belief growing, Saturday’s derby offers them a chance not just to challenge the balance of power, but to reset it.

Under Johan Ackermann, resilience is beginning to re-emerge after a stuttering start to the campaign.

With just four points separating the teams on the log, the stakes are high. The Lions will look to impose themselves early and harness home advantage, while the Bulls’ strengthening bench and renewed defensive resolve point to a derby likely settled in the closing exchanges.

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The last time we crossed the Jukskei and handled business. 🦁
Now it’s time to do it again.
Get your tickets now https://t.co/LlgQkDMpSh@Vodacom #URC | #ForOurCity | #LIOvBUL#LionsPride🦁 pic.twitter.com/AkWAt92OGg

— Lions (@LionsRugbyCo) January 29, 2026

The Durban coastal derby comes at an unusual moment, staged just a week after the Sharks snapped the Stormers’ unbeaten league run in Cape Town.

Both camps expect a very different Stormers showing in the return clash, with the Cape side determined to respond after a rare off day against the Sharks last weekend.

The Stormers’ 19-30 home defeat to a Sharks outfit missing most of their Springbok contingent was a major upset, snapping an eight-match URC winning streak and knocking John Dobson’s men off the top of the standings.

For the Sharks, the victory was a timely boost. It lifted them from 14th to 11th on the log and strengthened their push for a play-off place, with clear progress evident under interim coach JP Pietersen.

Alongside new captain André Esterhuizen, Pietersen has overseen a noticeable shift in attitude, backed by a more demanding training environment.

Talking to reporters on Friday after the team announcement, Pietersen said they are starting a clean slate again this weekend, indicating he would have told his players not to dwell too much on the victory last weekend.

“We are desperate for wins, but we don’t see that as pressure. It’s a clean slate on Saturday, and the only difference is we’re playing at home, and they’re playing away.”

He added that, due to the humidity and heat in Durban, he expects scrums, lineouts, and mauls to play a central role in deciding the outcome.

“With the humidity, there will be some errors with the slippery ball, so it’ll be a scrum battle, lineouts, mauling, and high-ball contesting.”

“The Stormers pride themselves on set-piece, scrums and mauls, and that’s why Fez [Mbatha] is in the team,” Pietersen said.

History suggests the Stormers will fancy their chances in Durban. They hold a slight advantage at Kings Park, with two wins from four URC meetings, compared to one Sharks victory and a draw – fuel for a response as they look to reassert themselves in the rematch.

Stormers captain Schasa Feinberg-Mngomesulu says his team would ideally want to go into the break with a win over the Sharks under their belts.

“I don’t think anybody wants to do that [lose ahead of the break], especially after the way we started this competition. There are some sore bodies, but we know there is one big push this weekend, and we are psychologically and physically ready for it.

“Hopefully, we go into the break with a smile on our face,” the No.10 said.

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#TeamAnnouncement: Stormers make big changes for Sharks clash in Durban 👇#URC #Sharks #Durban #SHAvSTO https://t.co/L4nBPS9uab

— Rugby365 (@rugby365com) January 30, 2026

*The Edinburgh vs Leinster match will be a mouthwatering encounter.

Scotland trio Duhan van der Merwe, Freddy Douglas, and Magnus Bradbury are all released from Six Nations training camp for the match-up in Dublin as Edinburgh make six changes to their starting XV.

Winger Malelili Satala starts in place of Darcy Graham – who remains with the national squad – while the tight-five sees a reshuffle.

Props Boan Venter and Paul Hill, academy hooker Jerry Blyth-Lafferty, and lock Callum Hunter-Hill all get the nod, with Pierre Schoeman, Ewan Ashman, D’arcy Rae, and Grant Gilchrist retained by Scotland.

In the back row, Ben Muncaster replaces the injured Liam McConnell, who is set for a spell on the sidelines after sustaining a rib injury against the Bulls last weekend.

Ahead of the clash, coach Sean Everitt said: “Going away to Leinster is one of the toughest tests in the URC, but it’s a challenge we’re ready to embrace – we’re going over there to have a real crack at it.

“Magnus [Bradbury] resumes the captaincy, and his experience in these big away fixtures is invaluable for the group.

“We know exactly what we are capable of when we put it all together. The key for us this week is consistency; we need a complete 80-minute performance to get the result we want.”

Lions v Bulls
(Ellis Park, Johannesburg – Kick-off: 14.30 SAST; 12.30 GMT)

Prediction: 

@rugby365: Bulls by five points

Teams:

Lions: 15 Quan Horn, 14 Angelo Davids, 13 Henco van Wyk, 12 Bronson Mills, 11 Richard Kriel, 10 Chris Smith, 9 Morne van den Berg, 8 Francke Horn (8), 7 Batho Hlekani, 6 Jarod Cairns, 5 Reinnhard Nothnagel, 4 Ruben Scheoman, 3 Asenathi Ntlabakanye, 2 PJ Botha, 1 SJ Kotze
Replacements: 16 Morne Brandon, 17 RF Schoeman, 18 Conraad van Vuuren, 19 Etienne Oosthuizen, 20 Darrien Landsberg, 21 Renzo du Plessis, 22 Haashim Pead, 23 Erich Cronje

Bulls: 15 Devon Williams, 14 Stravino Jacobs, 13 Stedman Gans, 12 Harold Vorster, 11 Kurt-Lee Arendse, 10 Handre Pollard, 9 Embrose Papier, 8 Jeandre Rudolph, 7 Elrigh Louw, 6 Marcell Coetzee (captain), 5 Reinhardt Ludwig, 4 Ruan Vermaak, 3 Wilco Louw, 2 Johan Grobbelaar, 1 Jan-Hendrik Wessels.
Replacements: 16 Marco van Staden, 17 Alu Tshakweni, 18 Mornay Smith, 19 Cobus Wiese, 20 Mpilo Gumede, 21 Nizaam Carr, 22 Keagan Johannes, 23 David Kriel

Referee: Morne Ferreira (South Africa)
Assistant referees: Aimee Barrett-Theron (South Africa), Hanru van Rooyen (South Africa)
TMO: Egon Seconds (South Africa)

Sharks v Stormers
(Hollywoodbets Kings Park, Durban – Kick-off: 17.00; 15.00 GMT)

Prediction:

@rugby365: Sharks by four points

Teams:

Sharks: 15 Aphelele Fassi, 14 Edwill van der Merwe, 13 Ethan Hooker, 12 Andre Esterhuizen (captain), 11 Jaco Williams, 10 Jordan Hendrikse, 9 Grant Williams, 8 Phepsi Buthelezi, 7 Vincent Tshituka, 6 Siya Kolisi, 5 Emile van Heerden, 4 Corne Rahl, 3 Hanro Jacobs, 2 Fez Mbatha, 1 Ox Nche.
Replacements: 16 Eduan Swart, 17 Phatu Ganyane, 18 Vincent Koch, 19 Jason Jenkins, 20 Nick Hatton, 21 Jaden Hendrikse, 22 Siya Masuku, 23 Jurenzo Julius.

Stormers: 15 Damian Willemse, 14 Dylan Maart, 13 Wandisile Simelane, 12 Jonathan Roche, 11 Leolin Zas, 10 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu (captain), 9 Cobus Reinach, 8 Evan Roos, 7 Ben-Jason Dixon, 6 Paul de Villiers, 5 Ruben van Heerden, 4 Adré Smith, 3 Neethling Fouché, 2 André-Hugo Venter, 1 Oli Kebble.
Replacements: 16 JJ Kotzé, 17 Ntuthuko Mchunu, 18 Zachary Porthen, 19 JD Schickerling, 20 Marcel Theunissen, 21 Stefan Ungerer, 22 Jurie Matthee, 23 Warrick Gelant.

Referee: Christopher Allison (South Africa)
Assistant referees: Griffin Colby (South Africa), Jonathan Lottering (South Africa)
TMO: Quinton Immelman (South Africa)

Zebre Parma v Connacht
(Stadio Lanfranchi, Parma – Kick-off: 16.00; 15.00 GMT)

Prediction:

@rugby365: Connacht by 10 points

Teams:

Zebre:15 Giovanni Montemauri, 14 Mirko Belloni, 13 Giulio Bertaccini, 12 Marco Zanon, 11 Simone Gesi, 10 Martin Roger Farias, 9 Gonzalo Garcia, 8 Davide Ruggeri, 7 Iacopo Bianchi, 6 Giacomo Ferrari, 5 Leonard Krumov (captain), 4 Matteo Canali, 3 Enrique Pieretto, 2 Giampietro Ribaldi, 1 Paolo Buonfiglio,
Replacements: 16 Shilo Klein, 17 Luca Franceschetto, 18 Juan Pitinari, 19 Franco Carrera, 20 Alessandro Ortombina, 21 Thomas Dominguez, 22 Enrico Lucchin, 23 Bautista Stavile

Connacht: 15 Sam Gilbert, 14 Shane Jennings, 13 Harry West, 12 Cathal Forde, 11 Chay Mullins, 10 Josh Ioane, 9 Caolin Blade, 8 Sean Jansen, 7 Sean O’Brien, 6 Paul Boyle (captain), 5 Joe Joyce, 4 Josh Murphy, 3 Jack Aungier, 2 Dylan Tierney-Martin, 1 Jordan Duggan.
Replacements: 16 Matthew Victory, 17 Peter Dooley, 18 Fiachna Barrett, 19 David O’Connor, 20 Niall Murray, 21 Ben Murphy, 22 Sean Naughton, 23 Oisín McCormack.

Leinster v Edinburgh
(Aviva Stadium, Dublin – Kick-off: 17.30 GMT)

Prediction:

@rugby365: Edinburgh by 15 points

Teams:

Leinster: 15 Andrew Osborne, 14 Joshua Kenny, 13 Rieko Ioane, 12 Ciarán Mangan, 11 Ruben Moloney, 10 Charlie Tector, 9 Luke McGrath (captain), 8 Diarmuid Mangan, 7 Scott Penny, 6 Max Deegan, 5 Brian Deeny, 4 RG Snyman, 3 Andrew Sparrow, 2 John McKee, 1 Jerry Cahir.
Replacements: 16 Gus McCarthy, 17 Alex Usanov, 18 Niall Smyth, 19 Conor O’Tighearnaigh, 20 Josh Ericson, 21 Will Connors, 22 Fintan Gunne, 23 Hugo McLaughlin.

Edinburgh: 15 Harry Paterson, 14 Malelili Satala, 13 Wes Goosen, 12 James Lang, 11 Duhan van der Merwe, 10 Ross Thompson, 9 Ben Vellacott, 8 Magnus Bradbury (captain), 7 Freddy Douglas, 6 Ben Muncaster, 5 Glen Young, 4 Callum Hunter-Hill, 3 Paul Hill, 2 Jerry Blyth-Lafferty, 1 Boan Venter.
Replacements: 16 Harri Morris, 17 Mikey Jones, 18 Ollie Blyth-Lafferty, 19 Tom Dodd, 20 Connor Boyle, 21 Charlie Shiel, 22 Cammy Scott, 23 Piers O’Connor

Ospreys v Dragons RFC
(Electric Brewery Field, Bridgend – Kick-off 19.45 GMT)

Prediction:

@rugby365: Ospreys by five points

Teams:

Ospreys: 15 Iestyn Hopkins, 14 Dan Kasende, 13 Phil Cokanasiga, 12 Keiran Williams, 11 Keelan Giles, 10 Jack Walsh, 9 Reuben Morgan-Williams, 8 Morgan Morse, 7 Ross Moriarty, 6 James Ratti, 5 Ryan Smith, 4 James Fender, 3 Tom Botha, 2 Sam Parry (captain), 1 Gareth Thomas
Replacements: 16 Lewis Lloyd, 17 Steffan Thomas, 18 Rhys Henry, 19 Marco de Witt, 20 Gwilym Evans, 21 Cormac Foley, 22 Max Nagy, 23 Harri Houston

Dragons: 15 Angus Obrien (captain), 14 David Richards, 13 Fine Inisi, 12 Aneurin Owen, 11 Rio Dyer, 10 Tinus de Beer, 9 Che Hope, 8 Harri Keddie, 7 Harry Beddall, 6 Ryan Woodman, 5 Seb Davies, 4 Levi Douglas, 3 Robert Hunt, 2 Brodie Coghlan, 1 Wyn Jones
Replacements: 16 Oli Burrows, 17 Jordan Morris, 18 Debo Dlamini, 19 Shane Lewis-Hughes, 20 Evan Minto, 21 Rhodri Williams, 22 Fetului Paea, 23 Cai Evans

Ulster v Cardiff
(Affidea Stadium, Belfast – Kick-off: 19.45 GMT)

Prediction:

@rugby365: Ulster by seven points

Teams:

Ulster: 15 Ethan McIlroy, 14 Werner Kok, 13 James Hume, 12 Ben Carson, 11 Zac Ward, 10 Jack Murphy, 9 Conor McKee, 8 David McCann, 7 Marcus Rea, 6 Matthew Dalton, 5 Charlie Irvine, 4 Iain Henderson (captain), 3 Scott Wilson, 2 Rob Herring, 1 Angus Bell.
Replacements: 16 James McCormick, 17 Sam Crean, 18 Bryan O’Connor, 19 Harry Sheridan, 20 Lorcan McLoughlin, 21 David Shanahan, 22 Jake Flannery, 23 Ben Moxham.

Cardiff: 15 Cam Winnett, 14 Ioan Lloyd, 13 Harri Millard, 12 Steffan Emanuel, 11 Tom Bowen, 10 Callum Sheedy, 9 Johan Mulder, 8 Taine Basham, 7 Dan thomas, 6 Alun Lawrence, 5 George Nott, 4 Josh Mcnally, 3 Javan Sebastian, 2 Evan Lloyd, 1 Thys Barratt
Replacements: 16 Daf Hughes, 17 Danny Southworth, 18 Joe Cowell, 19 Rory Thornton, 20 Lucas de la Rua, 21 Aled Davies, 22 Aligjah Evans, 23 Leigh Halfpenny