URC, Round Six - Teams and Predictions
SATURDAY PREVIEW: As Round Six of the United Rugby Championship gets underway this weekend all the South African teams are looking at getting back to winning ways.
The statistics show that 20 out of the 40 games played so far this season have been decided by 7 points or less – and a staggering 214 tries have been scored.
The Lions are back from a tour which saw them contest some close matches and their next assignment in the United Rugby Championship is a clash with Zebre Parma in Johannesburg on Saturday
After a dismal performance last season, Zebre is making a much better start this time round and they are in tenth spot with one win, one draw and three defeats and they have 11 log points against their name.
Zebre head coach Fabio Roselli indicated that the altitude in Johannesburg will be their biggest hurdle when facing the Lions.
“Playing in a country like South Africa is always a difficult and at the same time very exciting challenge; the toughest obstacle in Johannesburg is being able to sustain the pace that started at an altitude of almost 1800 meters with very hot temperatures,” Roselli said.
“We have studied how the Lions play at home, we know their physicality well and we are ready to implement our strategy. They will want to win maximum points but, like all the other teams we have met this year, they will have to deal with hungry Zebras who know how to hit their opponent.”
Captain Marius Louw, chats about the Emirates Lions start this season! #LionsPride🦁 pic.twitter.com/Qpt3Q1qrrg
— Lions (@LionsRugbyCo) November 23, 2023
After tumbling down the standings last weekend, the Bulls are back on home turf for a clash with Connacht at Loftus.
As can be expected, Bulls director of rugby Jake White was ecstatic to have the likes of Willie le Roux in the mix for this weekend.
“I have never coached him but I watched him play back in the day in Boland as an under-19 and never realised he would end up being what he is now. I read on social media what people say about him and just cannot believe what I see,” White said.
“He has only been here for a week but it feels like he has been here for six months, he is unbelievable. He is like having a coach there. He is very clever and extremely skilful, I cannot wait for tomorrow to see how he goes because I am sure people will see just the value that he has.”
White added: “To all the critics, I ask that you lay it off because he is probably one of the best if not the best player to have played for the Boks and if he is not the best then he is definitely the cleverest.
“The guy is unbelievable and I cannot believe it has only been a week. Even when he was at the World Cup he was asking for the defensive and attacking plays, wanting to understand what we are doing and now that he is here it feels like he has been here for a whole season. I can now understand why he gets picked week in and week out.
“In one week, I can’t believe what he has been able to do. It is like having a coach there, a coach who understands the game. I did hear this from the other players before arriving here, Canan (Moodie), Kurt-Lee (Arendse), Marco (van Staden) all said he is unbelievable to play alongside and now I see it too.
“Hopefully everybody else sees it too.”
“There’s no test for the heart” 💙 Double World Cup winner Willie Le Roux sat down with us on the official Vodacom Bulls podcast 🐂
Watch the FULL episode here: https://t.co/LW6V54AnZH@vodacom pic.twitter.com/soa8vLAYos
— Official Blue Bulls (@BlueBullsRugby) November 24, 2023
Connacht head coach Pete Wilkins was excited ahead of the encounter awaiting them in Pretoria.
“To play the Bulls at Loftus Versfeld is one of the great experiences in world rugby, and although it shapes to be a big challenge our entire squad is excited and ready to go,” Wilkins said.
“I am pleased with the momentum we have built in this early part of the URC season. Our previous performance against the Sharks, whilst not perfect, was another significant step in the development of our team, demonstrating that we can find a way to win in tough and unfamiliar environments away from home.
“The selection changes we have made reflect the importance of taking some fresh legs to Pretoria, whilst also building on some of the combinations that have served us well in recent weeks. Both Sean Jansen and David Hawkshaw deserve their first opportunities in the starting lineup and will no doubt make significant contributions to what will need to be a relentless and physical 23-man performance.”
The Sharks are now the only side still looking for a first win of the season as they are bottom of the standings with just two losing bonus points against their name. They host the Welsh team the Dragons.
Away to Welsh opposition last season the Sharks won 20-19 at the Dragons and lost 32-20 at the Scarlets. In Durban, they crashed 0-35 to Cardiff and beat the Ospreys 25-10.
The Sharks is another team that made full use of the availability of their returning Springboks, having Eben Etzebeth, Makazole Mapimpi, Jaden Hendrikse, Ox Nche and Grant Williams in the mix.
Talking about what these World Cup winners bring to the team, Sharks attack coach Dave Williams said, “We’ve been celebrating the achievements of the Sharks players returning from the World Cup with them and they’ve brought a huge amount of energy with them which has been great for us as a collective.
🤫#FearTheFin pic.twitter.com/maQl1Mmt24
— The Sharks (@SharksRugby) November 23, 2023
“Having these players back and the confidence they bring, has been contagious and the rest of the group are all excited for Saturday’s game.
“Although the results haven’t gone the way of the Sharks this campaign, there’s no reason to overthink things. But everyone involved does understand the need to turn things around.
“We have a long-term plan, but the immediate focus is around getting excited about finishing opportunities that we’re creating and maximising those rewards.
“We’ve spoken as a group around evolving our game and building pressure with the ball and through our transition game. We’re seeking rewards and the focus is on getting those conversions on the back of good rugby.
“Working for a franchise like this, you embrace the pressure of expectation. In terms of this being a must-win, we go out every game to deliver a performance that wins rugby games, and that’s no different this week.”
But the most mouth-watering clash of the weekend is most probably table-toppers Leinster and champions Munster.
Saturday’s renewal at the Aviva Stadium is a rematch of last season’s memorable semifinal that Munster edged thanks to a late drop-goal.
Leinster will be out for some measure of revenge in a game that is close to a sell-out at Lansdowne Road.
All the SATURDAY and SUNDAY (November 25, 26) teams and predictions follow below …
Saturday, November 25
Lions v Zebre Parma
(Ellis Park, Johannesburg – Kick-off: 14.55; 12.55 Ireland & UK time; 13.55 Italian time; 12.55 GMT)
Prediction
@rugby365com: Lions by 12 points
Lions: 15 Quan Horn, 14 Richard Kriel, Henco van Wyk, 12 Marius Louw (captain), 11 Edwill van der Merwe, 10 Sanele Nohamba, 9 Morne van den Berg, 8 Francke Horn, 7 Ruan Venter, 6 Emmanuel Tshituka, 5 Ruben Schoeman, 4 Ruan Delport, 3 Asenathi Ntlabakanye, 2 PJ Botha, 1 JP Smith.
Replacements: 16 Jaco Visagie, 17 Corne Fourie, 18 Ruan Smith, 19 Willem Alberts, 20 Hanru Sirgel, 21 JC Pretorius, 22 Jordan Hendrikse, 23 Rabz Maxwane
Zebre: 15 Lorenzo Pani, 14 Scott Gregory, 13 Luca Morisi, 12 Franco Smith Jr, 11 Simone Gesi, 10 Giovanni Montemauri, 9 Gonzalo Garcia, 8 Giovanni Licata (captain), 7 Iacopo Bianchi, 6 Giacomo Ferrari, 5 Andrea Zambonin, 4 Leonard Krumov, 3 Juan Pitinari, 2 Marco Manfredi, 1 Danilo Fischetti
Replacements: 16 Giampietro Ribaldi, 17 Luca Rizzoli, 18 Matteo Nocera, 19 Guido Volpi, 20 Taina Fox-Matamua, 21 Thomas Dominguez, 22 Geronimo Prisciantelli, 23 Jacopo Trulla.
Referee: Craig Evans (Wales)
Assistant referees: Morné Ferreira (South Africa) ; AJ Jacobs (South Africa)
TMO: Sean Brickell (Wales)
Bulls v Connacht
(Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria – Kick-off: 17.00; 15.00 Ireland & UK time; 16.00 Italian time; 15.00 GMT)
Prediction
@rugby365com: Bulls by 14 points
Bulls: 15 Willie le Roux, 14 Sebastian de Klerk, 13 Stedman Gans, 12 David Kriel, 11 Sergeal Petersen, 10 Jaco van der Walt, 9 Zak Burger, 8 Nizaam Carr, 7 Elrigh Louw, 6 Marco van Staden, 5 Ruan Nortje (captain), 4 Reinhardt Ludwig, 3 Wilco Louw, 2 Akker van der Merwe, 1 Gerhard Steenekamp
Replacements: 16 Simphiwe Matanzima, 17 Jan-Hendrik Wessels, 18 Mornay Smith, 19 Janko Swanepoel, 20 Cyle Brink, 21 Embrose Papier, 22 Chris Smith, 23 Canan Moodie
Connacht: 15 Tiernan O’Halloran, 14 Byron Ralston, 13 David Hawkshaw, 12 Cathal Forde, 11 Diarmuid Kilgallen, 10 Jack Carty (captain), 9 Colm Reilly, 8 Sean Jansen, 7 Shamus Hurley-Langton, 6 Oisin Dowling, 5 Joe Joyce, 4 Darragh Murray, 3 Finlay Bealham, 2 Tadgh McElroy, 1 Denis Buckley
Replacements: 16 Dylan Tierney-Martin, 17 Peter Dooley, 18 Sam Illo, 19 Niall Murray, 20 Sean O’Brien, 21 Caolin Blade, 22 JJ Hanrahan, 23 Conor Oliver
Referee: Gianluca Gnecchi (Italy)
Assistant referees: Paul Mente (South Africa); Dylen November (South Africa)
TMO: Andrea Piardi (Italy)
Sharks v Dragons
(Kings Park, Durban – Kick-off: 19.05; 17.05 Ireland & UK time; 18.05 Italian time; 17.05 GMT)
Referee: Frank Murphy (Ireland)
Prediction
@rugby365com: Sharks by three points
Sharks: 15 Aphelele Fassi, 14 Werner Kok, 13 Lukhanyo Am ©, 12 Francois Venter, 11 Makazole Mapimpi, 10 Curwin Bosch, 9 Jaden Hendrikse, 8 Sikhumbuzo Notshe, 7 Phepsi Buthelezi, 6 James Venter, 5 Emile van Heerden, 4 Eben Etzebeth, 3 Coenie Oosthuizen, 2 Fez Mbatha, 1 Ntuthuko Mchunu
Replacements: 16 Daniel Jooste, 17 Ox Nche, 18 Hanro Jacobs, 19 Corne Rahl, 20 Jeandre Labuschagne, 21 Grant Williams, 22 Boeta Chamberlain, 23 Rohan Janse van Rensburg
Dragons: 15 Cai Evans, 14 Rio Dyer, 13 Sio Tomkinson, 12 Aneurin Owen, 11 Ewan Rosser, 10 Will Reed, 9 Dane Blacker; 8 Aaron Wainwright, 7 Ollie Griffiths (c), 6 Sean Lonsdale,5 George Nott, 4 Matthew Screech, 3 Chris Coleman, 2 Bradley Roberts, 1 Aki Seiuli,
Replacements: 16 James Benjamin, 17 Rhodri Jones, 18 Lloyd Fairbrother, 19 Joe Davies, 20 Harri Keddie, 21 Rhodri Williams, 22 Steff Hughes, 23 Ashton Hewitt
Referee: Frank Murphy (Ireland)
Assistant referees: Christopher Allison (South Africa); Stephan Geldenhuys (South Africa)
TMO: Eoghan Cross (Ireland)
Leinster v Munster
(Lansdowne Road Stadium, Dublin – Kick-off: 18.30; 19.30 Italian time; 20.30 SA time; 18.30 GMT)
Prediction
@rugby365com: Leinster by nine points
Leinster: 15 Hugo Keenan, 14 Jordan Larmour, 13 Garry Ringrose, 12 Robbie Henshaw, 11 Jimmy O’Brien, 10 Ross Byrne, 9 Jamison Gibson-Park, 8 Caelan Doris, 7 Josh van der Flier, 6 Jack Conan, 5 James Ryan, 4 Joe McCarthy, 3 Tadhg Furlong, 2 Dan Sheehan, 1 Andrew Porter.
Replacements: 16 Rónan Kelleher, 17 Jack Boyle, 18 Michael Ala’alatoa, 19 Ross Molony, 20 James Culhane, 21 Ben Murphy, 22 Ciarán Frawley, 23 Scott Penny
Munster: 15 Simon Zebo; 14 Calvin Nash, 13 Antoine Frisch, 12 Rory Scannell, 11 Shane Daly; 10 Jack Crowley, 9 Craig Casey; 8 Gavin Coombes, 7 John Hodnett, 6 Tom Ahern, 5 Tadhg Beirne; 4 Jean Kleyn, 3 Stephen Archer; 2 Diarmuid Barron (captain), 1 Jeremy Loughman.
Replacements: 16 Scott Buckley, 17 Dave Kilcoyne, 18 John Ryan, 19 Brian Gleeson, 20 Alex Kendellen, 21 Conor Murray, 22 Tony Butler, 23 Shay McCarthy.
Referee: Chris Busby (Ireland)
Assistant referees: Peter Martin (Ireland); Keane Davison (Ireland)
TMO: Mark Patton (Ireland)
Glasgow Warriors v Ulster
(Scotstoun Stadium, Glasgow – Kick-off: 19.35; 20.35 Italian time; 21.35 SA time; 19.35 GMT)
Prediction
@rugby365com: Glasgow Warriors by four points
Glasgow Warriors: 15 Josh McKay, 14 Sebastian Cancelliere, 13 Sione Tuipuluto, 12 Stafford McDowall (captain), 11 Kyle Rowe, 10 Tom Jordan, 9 Sean Kennedy, 8 jack Dempsey, 7 Rory Darge, 6 Matt Fagerson, 5 Scott Cummings, 4 Greg Peterson, 3 Zander Fagerson, 2 George Turner, 1 Jamie Bhatti
Replacements: 16 Johnny Matthews, 17 Oli Kebble, 18 Lucio Sordoni, 19 Richie Gray, 20 Sintu Manjezi, 21 Sione Vailanu, 22 Ben Afshar, 23 Duncan Weir
Ulster: 15 Will Addison, 14 Rob Baloucoune, 13 James Hume, 12 Luke Marshall, 11 Jacob Stockdale, 10 Billy Burns, 9 John Cooney, 8 James Mcnabney, 7 Reuben Crothers, 6 Harry Sheridan, 5 Iain Henderseon (captain), 4 Kieran Treadwell, 3 Tom O’Toole, 2 Tom Stewart, 1 Eric O’Sullivan
Replacements: 16 Z Solomon, 17 S Kitshoff, 18 M Moore, 19 A O’Connor, 20 Matty Rea, 21 D Shanahan, 22 J Flannery, 23 B Moxham
Referee: Ben Whitehouse (Wales)
Assistant referees: Ru Campbell (Scotland) ; Jonny Perriam (Scotland)
TMO: Wayne Davies (Wales)
Sunday, November 26
Ospreys v Scarlets
(Swansea Stadium, Swansea – Kick-off: 15.00; 16.00 Italian time; 17.00 SA time; 15.00 GMT)
Prediction
@rugby365com: Ospreys by ten points
Ospreys: 15 Max Nagy, 14 Dan Kasende, 13 Owen Watkin, 12 Keiran Williams, 11 Luke Morgan, 10 Jack Walsh, 9 Reuben Morgan-Williams, 8 Morgan Morris (captain), 7 Jac Morgan, 6 Rhys Davies, 5 Adam Beard, 4 James Fender, 3 Tom Botha, 2 Dewi Lake, 1 Nicky Smith
Replacements: 16 Sam Parry, 17 Gareth Thomas, 18 Rhys Henry, 19 Harri Deaves, 20 Tristan Davies, 21 Rewan Kruger, 22 Dan Edwards 23 Luke Scully
Scarlets: 15 Johnny McNicholl, 14 Tom Rogers, 13 Joe Roberts, 12 Johnny Williams, 11 Steff Evans, 10 Ioan Lloyd, 9 Gareth Davies (captain), 8 Carwyn Tuipulotu, 7 Teddy leatherbarrow, 6 Vaea Fifita, 5 Jac Price, 4 Alex Craig, 3 Harri O’Connor, 2 Ryan Elias, 1 Wyn Jones.
Replacements: 16 Shaun Evans, 17 Steff Thomas, 18 Joe Jones, 19 Morgan Jones, 20 Ben Williams, 21 Kieran Hardy, 22 Charlie Titcombe, 23 Ioan Nicholas
Referee: Mike English (Wales)
Assistant referees: Adam Jones (Wales); Rhys Jones (Wales)
TMO: Ian Davies (Wales)
* Additional reporting by @URCOfficial
