Following a 30-23 triumph for the Lions over the Stormers, here are our five takeaways from the United Rugby Championship encounter at Emirates Airline Park on Saturday.
The top line
The Lions claimed the derby spoils as they produced 20 minutes of spellbinding rugby to rip the Stormers apart and boost their play-off hopes.
It was a messy opening in Johannesburg, with Gianni Lombard and Jurie Matthee trading penalties, but the hosts eventually found their rhythm in attack and took the game beyond the away side’s reach. They touched down three times through Morne van den Berg, Henco van Wyk and Marius Louw to move 24-6 in front at the interval.
That first-half performance was all about attack but in the second they needed to be on their guard defensively as the Stormers often laid siege to their line. It was breached twice via Warrick Gelant and Evan Roos, but the Lions generally withstood the barrage impressively, with Van Wyk, in particular, making a couple of important interventions.
The Stormers did snatch a losing bonus-point thanks to Matthee’s three-pointer, while the hosts would have been disappointed not to get theirs, but it was still very much the Lions’ day.
Quan Horn
He has been exceptional for a couple of years now, but this was very much a statement performance, coming just a day after the 23-year-old was named in the Springboks’ alignment camp. Horn was absolutely superb as the Lions excelled in the opening half and moved into a comfortable lead at the break.
The full-back was central to the Johannesburg outfit’s attacking brilliance as he scythed through the Stormers’ defence with regularity. Horn set up the first try for Van den Berg with a brilliant break before those two combined again as the flyer’s run was once again supported by the scrum-half. This time, the visitors had the playmaker covered, but Van Wyk was on hand to finish.
No doubt Rassie Erasmus is watching him closely but the youngster is arguably the form back in South Africa at the moment. Horn made his Test debut against Portugal last year but, on this evidence, he could well become a Boks regular in 2025.
Sparkling Lions backline
While Quan Horn was the standout in the opening period, the Lions are a team littered with talent behind the scrum. The Stormers’ defence simply could not cope with the pace, creativity and high skill set as the hosts produced a match-winning effort in the opening 40 minutes.
They are the most exciting team to watch in South Africa, if not the URC, and, after a mistake-ridden opening quarter, they found their range and played some brilliant rugby which the Stormers, quite frankly, could not live with. It was a thrill a minute heading into the break as the hosts scored 21 unanswered points thanks to some superbly worked scores.
The whole backline played their part but it was the key men – Van den Berg, Van Wyk, Edwill van der Merwe and the aforementioned Horn – who particularly stood out. Although they struggled to find their rhythm in the second period, as the visitors mounted a comeback, the work was done in that remarkable 20 minutes before the interval.
Legendary Frans Malherbe
It was not how the Springboks great would have wanted to celebrate his 150th cap but it does not detract from his service for the Stormers, as well as South African rugby in general. Malherbe remains one of the premier tightheads in the world game and he showed why when they packed down in the scrum.
Unfortunately for the prop, there was not enough of them for him to really exert his influence as the Lions’ backline showcased their exceptional quality. The 33-year-old had the better of opposition loosehead Juan Schoeman but, with the set-piece not a factor and the altitude taking its toll, Malherbe was replaced early in the second period.
The outstanding prop remains a key cog for club and country, and he should add significantly more caps for both teams. Malherbe doesn’t add too much in the loose nowadays, but that has never been his strength and that scrummaging prowess is what sets him apart.
Trouble for Stormers
The inaugural URC champions have endured a difficult season and that continued on Saturday, putting them in danger of missing the play-offs, which would be unthinkable for a team as good as the Stormers.
Their defeat in Johannesburg was their seventh of the campaign, leaving them down in ninth place in the table. And it doesn’t get any easier over the next few rounds. They have three away games coming – against the Bulls, Scarlets and Ulster – and failing to get at least one victory from that trio of matches could end their title hopes.
Although the Cape Town outfit do have four relatively kind home clashes to finish, with Connacht, Benetton, Dragons, and Cardiff travelling to South Africa, one slip-up would be costly. Even if the Stormers do sneak into the top-eight and keep their title hopes alive, they would have to do it the hard way and win a series of games away from home, something they have struggled to do all season.
Src: Planetrugby.com - https://www.planetrugby.com/news/lions-v-stormers-five-takeaways-as-form-springboks-back-produces-statement-performance-in-spellbinding-20-minutes-that-tears-ex-champions-to-shreds
