The Lions tour squad was boosted by the return of Springbok fullback Quan Horn and outside centre Henco van Wyk for their two crucial overseas United Rugby Championship (URC) clashes and Challenge Cup playoff match.
But the good news came mixed with some bad, with Bok scrumhalf Morne van den Berg missing the trip due to an injured thumb. He picked it up in the narrow defeat to the Sharks earlier this month.
The Johannesburg side left for Wales on Monday, where they will face Cardiff Rugby this coming Friday. After that, they are off to Scotland for a meeting with the defending champions, the Glasgow Warriors.
A Challenge Cup knockout match follows in April against Edinburgh in the Scottish capital, and the Lions have braced themselves for a tough United Kingdom trip.
Head coach Ivan van Rooyen selected a 28-man group which sees the return of flyhalf Kade Wolhuter who will provide cover for the in-form Manni Rass. Scrumhalf Layton Horn earned his first call-up to a Lions tour squad and will be second-in-charge behind Nico Steyn.
The 23-year-old versatile loose forward Jarod Cairns told Independent Newspapers that they are geared for what awaits overseas.
On a mission.#ForOurCity #LionsPride🦁 pic.twitter.com/FImFVHDVJD
— Lions (@LionsRugbyCo) March 17, 2025
“As a team, we know we must go overseas and perform to stay in the top eight,” he said.
“We have all bought in on making the playoffs and want to get there. We are out to prove a point overseas and are not going just to go and play. We want to take the teams on that we are facing and have a good chance of putting up special performance against Cardiff and Glasgow.
“The vibe in the squad is good and we are looking forward to the next month. It will be tough.”
He says there is an air of positivity in the group after some strong performances in the local derbies that saw them break into the top eight. While they lost narrowly in their previous game, they saw enough positive signs to be optimistic for Friday’s encounter.
🔥 The #RaceToTheEight is ON! 🔥
— Vodacom United Rugby Championship (URC) (@URCOfficial_RSA) March 17, 2025
The play-offs picture is changing every week... Who will rise in Round 13? 👀@Vodacom #URC pic.twitter.com/WQudzOA9R9
But, he added, they spoke about putting out performances of 85 minutes to secure games. They’ve lost a couple of matches this season after dominating for 60-plus minutes just to let the victory slip through their fingers towards the end.
“We want to put out proper 85-minute performances and keep the focus up. That is a big goal for us going into this last stretch of the URC. We’ve been making good progress in training and our games.”
Lions touring squad
Forwards: PJ Botha, Jarod Cairns, Ruan Delport, Izan Esterhuizen, Francke Horn, SJ Kotze, Darrien Landsberg, Franco Marais, Asenathi Ntlabakanye, JC Pretorius, Sibabalo Qoma, Juan Schoeman, RF Schoeman, Ruben Schoeman, Conrad van Vuuren, Ruan Venter, Jaco Visagie.
Backs: Richard Kriel, Quan Horn, Layton Horn, Gianni Lombard, Marius Louw, Tapiwe Mafura, Manni Rass, Nico Steyn, Edwill van der Merwe, Henco van Wyk, Kade Wolhuter.