MTN Lions Challenge squad and schedule.

As most of you will know the Lions has been kicked out of the super XV, they have also lost their major sponsors, so you would think things look bleak for the Johannesburg Franchise.

Well not entirely, Kevin de Klerk and his chronies have been hard at work to ensure the Lions will be busy during the Super XV season, and ready to take on the Kings for the Promotion Relegation matches end of season.

I say Kings because I beleive it will be them at the bottom of the south African conference.

Squad.

Loosehead Prop: JC Janse van Rensburg, Jacques van Rooyen
Hooker: Martin Bezuidenhout, Robbie Coetzee, Francois du Toit
Tighthead Prop: Ruan Dreyer, CJ van der Linde, Jacques Kotze
Lock: Willie Britz, Franco Mostert, Hendrik Roodt, JJ Breet, Gavin Annandale, Hugo Kloppers
Loose Forward: Jaco Kriel, Derick Minnie, Warwick Tecklenburg, Warren Whiteley, Claude Tshibidi
Scrumhalf: Michael Bondesio, Ross Cronje
Flyhalf: Marnitz Boshoff, Guy Cronje, Lionel Cronje, Harold Vorster
Centre: Dylan des Fountain, Alwyn Hollenbach, Deon van Rensburg, Stokkies Hanekom, Jacques Nel
Wing: Ruan Combrinck, Deon Helberg, Anthony Volmink
Fullback: Andries Coetzee, Ruhan Nel

Fixtures
19-Jan-13 vs Russia @ Ellis Park

23-Jan-13 vs Cheetahs @ Ellis Park

2-Feb-13 vs Bulls @ Orlando Stadium

9-Feb-13 vs Kings @ Ellis Park
23 Feb-13 vs Namibia @ Windhoek, Namibia

16-Mar-13 vs Mont de Marsan @ Ellis Park (Current 14th in Top 14)

13-Apr-13 vs US Invitational in Irvine, CA, USA

20-Apr-13 vs US Invitational in Vancouver, Canada

27- Apr-13 vs Chicago Lions @ Chicago, IL, USA

11-May-13 vs Agen @ Ellis Park (Current 12th in Top 14)

1-Jun-13 vs Samoa @ Ellis Park

8-Jun-13 vs French Barbarians @ Ellis Park

15-Jun-13 vs Stormers @ Ellis Park

21-Jun-13 vs Sharks @ Ellis Park

12-Jul-13 vs Montpellier @ Ellis Park (Current 4th in Top 14)

20-Jul-13 vs Grenoble @ Ellis Park (Current 6th in Top 14)

27-Jul-13 Promotion relegation away

3-Aug-13 Promotion relegation @ Ellis Park

GLRU President Kevin de Klerk emphasised the importance of the tournament as a motivating factor for the players, coaches and management staff following the Lions’ exclusion from Super Rugby. “Our absolute philosophy was to keep going and come together as an outfit to ensure that we as a Union – staff and players – had something to work with, and for, in place of Super Rugby,” explained De Klerk. “We are excited to see our hard work come to life when the tournament gets under way next week.”

I certainly hope this will not all be for naught, SARU might still throw a spanner in the works and the promotion relegation could be called off. Cheeky Watson has made it clear that the promotion relegation is unfair and knowing him, politics might still have a say in all of this.

In the Meantime, Kudo's to de Klerk for trying.

I don't see a problem with Promotion/Relegation etc... as long as it is maintained in the future (assuming 5 teams will remain).

But not the Kings... the highest placed non SR Currie Cup team... i.e. Griquas.

Until the Kings can get to the top tier of Currie Cup then they shouldn't be at the negotiations table.

So whats the odds on the Kings losing every game??? Probably less than them winning one.

I look at the kings schedule and its pretty daunting.

They'll be beat by all SA provinces away and at home I can only see them competing with the Cheetahs (but if players like Goosen are fit... say goodbye).

I reckon they have only 4 games where they have realistic chances

Cheetahs, Force & Waratahs at home & the Rebels away.

But still I see a big gulf between them and everyone else.

Looks like they play the other SA super teams once, each will they have an internal SA table with them, the others using one Super XV match?

Would it be better than have relegration each year to have Central Cheetahs and Lions, reform as the Cats?

I doubt the Cats will re emerge, I think ylu idea is he best one though, but the internal fighting and discord last time round, I can't see them agreeing to it.

As I said before the lions would play the S15 franchises from south africa. It is eaither to say look it can be done and will be used to get a 6th SA team in.

Will they be playing the S15 team son their week off or before the season starts.

To bring in an extra Sa team only means that NZ and Oz team only miss out on playing one team which would be SA team

SA 10 derbies + 6 S16 = 16 games
Oz/Nz 8 derbies + 8 S16 = 16 games.

I am sure NZ teams would love it but not sure that Oz would.

Brendon the matches against the Super XV franchises are during the June test period.

As far as six Fracnhise teams, that is effectively our Premier Currie Cup, which would be just doubling up on the same thing.

We must reduce the number of teams for the Super XV, to max 3 per country, otherwise rather can the thing.

In some ways the Cats would make sense....i.e. they would become very very strong on paper.

But it would be like stringing Bath and Leicester together. It was a difficult marriage.

The Cheetahs were often the ugly sister of the two and got shunned both in CC player registration and match time.

It was the Lions in all but name.

The thing with the FS is that they are the bedrock of grassroots development with the western cape. They do an awful lot in bringing in the next generation of players through for all franchises... notably the bulls and the sharks.
I don't think they will want the Lions to get one up on them.

PE is a much smaller rugby region than the FS.... in a straight off fight it will be the Jo'burg vs. PE all the time.

Have to admit I don't like the format of the SuperXV, don't like it when someone can play a poor team a number of times and someone else plays them only once.

I would love to see Argentina enter 4 teams with 6 SA teams, in one league, home and away, NZ/AUS 10 teams home and away in another league, top 4 in each go into the kockouts against each other. Top of Aus/NZ league plays 4th in SA/ARG etc etc

That would bring balance back and promote ARG, (if they would allow professional teams) and allow Lions and Southeren Kings in.

Biltong wrote:Brendon the matches against the Super XV franchises are during the June test period.

As far as six Fracnhise teams, that is effectively our Premier Currie Cup, which would be just doubling up on the same thing.

We must reduce the number of teams for the Super XV, to max 3 per country, otherwise rather can the thing.

I don't know why the S15 can't be like the HC were it is run on a international stage but separate from their domestic leagues

Brendon the problems the Super rugby competition face are numerous.

Australia uses it as their one and only domestic compeition as well, for some reason a country with such a strong economy does not have the money to put together their own domestic competition that is sustainable. If you ask me that is nonsense, there must be a way.

So we are sitting with a situation where Australia wants to expand the Super XV comp to their benefit.

The reality is the competition is being dilluted due to too many teams being introduced.

Then the travel and cost factor I suspect eats away quite a bit of the revenue.

You also have the problem whereby the viewing times between us and them are really inconvenient for them as the games played in SA are at inconvenient times.

This brings to bear (in my opinion) the reason for SARU to subsidise television revenue for the other two nations.

Apart from that with NZ only having a population of 4 million the television revenue from their side will never be huge, even if te whole country watches every match

From what I have read rugby union isn't popular enough and therefor there isn't much television revenue there.

Because of all the expansion in the Super rugby comp. SA and NZ had to dial down on their premier domestic competitions which in my view is the single biggest issue.

SO.

If SANZAR comes up with a plan whereby the Currie Cup, ITM Cup and the Australian conference play their domestic season first from which the top teams (2 or 3) from each nation then qualifies for a Super 6 or 9, it will reduce the time necessary for the competition to run and also not negate the Currie Cup or ITM Cup.

This way Australia can still use the Super Rugby Comp as their tool to stage a domestic comp, and the top teams and top players can still compete against other top teams which gives it an international flavour.

We saw this year how badly SA was hit with retirements, players moving overseas and then injuries on top of that, which makes it very hard to select and manage the springbok team.

Wonder what kind of teams those french clubs are going to play, considering how long their season is already.

I know rugby league and i think soccer Aus and Nz have a joint league. I don't see why SA can't say we are going to have or own cup with the top 4 teams from our cup going into the S8 with the top 4 from the combined Oz/Nz league.

I think that is a brilliant plan by the Lions. Really brlliant.
But I think it is really only sustainable for one season. They seem to be betting everything on being able to play the Kings to climb back into the Super Rugby tournament. Good luck to them.

They might as well throw in all their chips...... if they spend another season out of super rugby they will lose the SR revenue and fold as a province.

They are already in huge debts and will probably be eaten up by the bulls.

Outside of SR (pre CC season) the leagues are near semi-pro. The crowds.... tiny.

The Lions started their campaign with a 51-13 bashing of Russia, the Russians had a good number of their RWC 2011 players in the team, but they were completely outplayed in a 7 try routing by the Lions.

What was most surprising was their usual strength of their forward pack that was completely dominated by the Lions.

Ill discipline in the form of two yellow cards either side of halftime sank any hopes they had of competing against the Lions, a tip tackle in the final move of the game cost Russia a Redcard which might turn out to be recieving a few weeks off for the Russian Fullback.

Overall not a bad start by the Lions who in wet weather made the most of their opportunities.

I really expected Russia to man up better than they did against a very young and quite depleted Lions team.

Biltong wrote:The Lions started their campaign with a 51-13 bashing of Russia, the Russians had a good number of their RWC 2011 players in the team, but they were completely outplayed in a 7 try routing by the Lions.

What was most surprising was their usual strength of their forward pack that was completely dominated by the Lions.

Ill discipline in the form of two yellow cards either side of halftime sank any hopes they had of competing against the Lions, a tip tackle in the final move of the game cost Russia a Redcard which might turn out to be recieving a few weeks off for the Russian Fullback.

Overall not a bad start by the Lions who in wet weather made the most of their opportunities.

I really expected Russia to man up better than they did against a very young and quite depleted Lions team.

Just shows how far behind Russia is. They have a very long way to go.