The Lions have shown that squad stability can outweigh Springbok star power, writes SIMON BORCHARDT.
The Stormers are top of the Vodacom URC log with two rounds of the league stage remaining, but it’s the third-placed Lions who have emerged as the biggest success story of the South African campaign.
Seven consecutive wins have all but secured the Lions’ first-ever URC playoff appearance, at their fifth attempt, along with qualification for next season’s Investec Champions Cup – the first time they will sit at Europe’s elite table.
The knives were out for coach Ivan van Rooyen after last season’s disappointing campaign, which saw the Lions finish 11th with 40 log points from eight wins and 10 defeats – eight points outside the playoffs. That followed two successive ninth-placed finishes (in 2023-24, they ended level on points with the eighth-placed Ospreys but were ranked lower after winning one fewer match).
Having survived the chop, it felt like the season ‘Cash’ had to deliver a return on the Lions board’s investment.
The Lions lost their first three tour matches – to Cardiff, Zebre and Benetton – but they responded with two home wins before beating the Bulls 43-33 at Loftus in November.
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A 52-17 hammering by the same opponents at Ellis Park in January, where they were dominated at the set-piece, threatened to derail their campaign. But the Six Nations break came at the right time, and Van Rooyen’s men reset with home wins against the Sharks and Stormers to secure their first SA Shield title.
That sparked a seven-match winning run, highlighted by a 54-12 thrashing of the then log-leading Glasgow Warriors, who chose the wrong day to rest and rotate.
Van Rooyen has said the Lions are reaping the rewards of a long-term rebuild centred on a core group of youngsters. But the biggest reason for their success this season is continuity, with most of the squad remaining together throughout the season.
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Only scrumhalf Morné van den Berg is a regular Springbok. Prop Asenathi Ntlabakanye has earned just three Test caps since his debut in July 2025 as the Boks await the outcome of his doping hearing, while utility forward Ruan Venter and fullback Quan Horn have not added to their solitary caps, earned against Portugal last year.
Three former Junior Boks – flank Batho Hlekani, scrumhalf Haashim Pead and centre Henco van Wyk – have attended Bok alignment camps but are yet to feature at Test level.
Other standout performers, such as No 8 Francke Horn and the reliable flyhalf Chris Smith, are not in the Bok picture but would not look out of place in some Test sides.
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So the Lions are largely unaffected by Springbok call-ups.
In contrast, the Sharks lose a significant portion of their squad during international windows and are forced to rest those players at other stages of the season.
Coach JP Pietersen has echoed his predecessor John Plumtree in highlighting this disruption, and the Sharks may look to avoid further big-name Bok signings such as Eben Etzebeth and Siya Kolisi, who have spent more time off the field for the Durbanites than on it.
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The Lions’ lack of Springbok star power could count against them in a URC final against a side like Leinster, but their current squad make-up is perfectly suited to sustained regular-season success.
Photo: Anton Geyser/Gallo Images
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