Griquas must beware Lions’ flying Francis at Ellis Park

The Lions pumped former champions the Pumas in the Currie Cup last week, and for those paying attention, the victory set tongues wagging.

It was not so much the 75-21 end result, but rather the performance of debutant Sam Francis during the victory.

The 21-year-old Lions flyhalf collected 30 points in the rout, impressing with his play.

Whether it was a flash in the pan remains to be seen, but repeat the performance against a combative Suzuki Griquas at Ellis Park (3pm start) on Friday, and the true value of the former Junior Bok’s temperament and skill will be easier to ascertain.

Gates open at 13:00. Get your tickets at the Emirates Airline Park Ticket Office or online at @TicketProSA and join us for the action!

🆚 Suzuki Griquas
🗓: Fri, 19 July
⏰: 15:00
🏟 : Emirates Airline Park#LionsPride🦁 pic.twitter.com/FDYvLlTOl4

— Lions (@LionsRugbyCo) July 19, 2024

Lions coach Mziwakhe Nkosi has again selected Francis at pivot for the clash, and on Thursday the former SA Schools coach admitted surprise that Francis had fans and pundits so excited.

After all, Nkosi has had a decent look at the 21-year-old for some time. It is surprising that Francis is new to people’s lips,” Nkosi said.

“He is a Junior Springbok, who played for them last year. He has played for the (Lions) Under-21s since his arrival here from the Eastern Cape three years ago. He is a guy who has come through our ranks.

“He played nicely (against the Pumas) and he made some good decisions. It helped that he played behind a pack going forward.

“He has to back it up and we have to coach him so that he can do that. If he can keep his head and just churns out a couple of performances, I think he will rise up the ranks. It’s all on him.”

The Lions have had a solid start, winning both their opening games away.

They are one of three teams that remain undefeated in the tournament, along with Blue Bulls and defending champions the Free State Cheetahs, who face each other on Friday afternoon.

“It has been a positive start,” Nkosi said with reservations, “but it hasn’t been perfect by any means in terms of performance …

“I am really proud of how the boys have started, but we understand that we have not achieved anything by any stretch of the imagination.”

There could be some important movements in the standings this weekend, with the Bulls and Cheetahs’ unbeaten records on the line at Loftus Versfeld (5pm).

Last weekend, the Bulls overcame the Griffons 52-10, while the Cheetahs dispatched Western Province 37-17.

“The Cheetahs have been on a good run against us for a while now,” said Bulls coach Phiwe Nomlomo on Thursday, “but it is not about revenge or anything.

“It is an opportunity for us to execute what we have been working on. Yes, we take learnings from the past and the game in itself is very important, considering they are one of the unbeaten sides in the competition, so we must look to be on top of our game.”

Closing out the day, the Sharks will look to secure their first win of the tournament when they host what is expected to be a bruised Pumas side on Friday night (7pm).

The Durbanites have lost both their opening games by narrow margins.

Coach JP Pietersen has made wholesale changes to the team that lost 34-31 to the Griquas in Kimberley last week, due to releasing his Springboks for their clash against Portugal on Saturday.

On Thursday, Pietersen insisted the team were building towards victory.

Said the former Bok wing: “The game against Griquas, we had opportunities to finish off the game that we didn’t take …

“We are working on the balance between playing and game management. That was a chat this week – how we can control that better when we are in the cycle of not going forward, and how we transfer pressure.”

Match-day three wraps up on Sunday, when the Griffons host WP in Welkom. Both the Purple People Eaters and Province will look to register their first victories of the campaign.

Grab your match-day snacks and set those reminders for round three of the #CarlingCurrieCup 🍿⏰

Watch all the tries and tackles LIVE on @SuperSportTV 📺#WhereChampionsRise pic.twitter.com/MHmFPCY3lX

— The Carling Currie Cup (@TheCurrieCup) July 19, 2024

Currie Cup Teams

Lions: 15 Gianni Lombard, 14 Rabz Maxwane, 13 Manuel Rass, 12 Reinhardt Jonker, 11 Kelly Mpeku, 10 Sam Francis, 9 Nico Steyn, 8 Ruhan Straeuli, 7 Sibabalo Qoma, 6 Jarod Cairns, 5 Ruben Schoeman, 4 Raynard Roets, 3 RF Schoeman, 2 Jaco Visagie (captain), 1 Morgan Naude.

Bench: 16 Morne Brandon, 17 SJ Kotze, 18 Conrad van Vuuren, 19 Luca Ribbens, 20 Renzo du Plessis, 21 Layton Horn, 22 Zander du Plessis, 23 Bronson Mills.

Griquas: 15 Cameron Hufke, 14 Marcqiewn Titus, 13 Sango Xamlashe, 12 Mnombo Zwelendaba, 11 Sako Makata, 10 Lubabalo Dabela, 9 Thomas Bursey, 8 Hanru Sirgel (capt), 7 Marco de Witt, 6 Carl Els, 5 Albert Liebenberg, 4 Athenkosi Liebenberg, 3 Janu Botha, 2 Jancu Uys, 1 Leon Lyons.

Bench: 16 Gustav du Rand, 17 Eddie Davids, 18 Cebo Dlamini, 19 Dylan Sjoblom, 20 Derik Pretorius, 21 Stephan Smit, 22 Bobby Alexander, 23 Zinedine Robison.