Stormers end drought against toothless 14-man Lions

MATCH REPORT: The Stormers ended a four-match losing streak with a comprehensive 29-10 over a toothless Lions team in a United Rugby Championship Round Eight match in Cape Town on Saturday.

Reduced to 14 men for an hour of the encounter in front of 22,000-odd spectators, the Lions were never a real threat to a hungry home team.

It was a high-risk, high-reward game for the Stormers against a visiting team that produced sporadic bursts of energy and creative play.

The game was effectively over as a contest on the 20-minute mark – seasoned lock Ruben Schoeman was red-carded for a dangerous clear-out.

They were down to 13 men for 10 minutes, when replacement Manny Rass was yellow carded for a cynical foul within minutes of coming onto the field – slapping the ball away.

The Lions also did not help their own cause with some sloppy errors – captain Marius Louw was the biggest culprit. He is again contesting the ‘competition’ for the most handling errors in the URC.

Replacement hooker Franco Marais was a close second with his errant line-out throwing.

For the Stormers, there will be concern over the hip-flexor injury that saw Springbok Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, who limped off in the 27th minute – just back from knee surgery.

The opening five minutes were dominated by phase-play from the Stormers, with the Lions’ defence standing their ground and eventually winning a turnover.

In the 10th minute, scrumhalf Morné van den Berg thought he had crossed for the first try of the match. However, the TMO spotted Lions captain Marius Louw breaking the offside line and the try was scratched.

The TMO, Marius van der Westhuizen, spotted a high tackle and the Stormers set a maul – Joseph Dweba getting the armchair ride for the opening score. Manie Libbok hooked the conversion attempt past the left upright – 5-0 after 14 minutes.

That was followed by a red card to Lions lock Ruben Schoeman for a dangerous clear-out at a ruck and making contact with Manie Libbok’s head.

Another Stormers maul followed, but this time there was obstruction and the try was overturned.

The Stormers soon made their numerical advantage count – a Libbok cross-field kick from Libbok saw Suleiman Hartzenberg score the home team’s second try. This time Libbok pushed the conversion attempt wide to the right.

From the restart, Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu went down with a hip flexor injury and limped off the field.

Another penalty, another Stormers maul and Dweba scored his second and the Stormers’ third in the 35th minute. Libbok hit the uptight, his third miss in three attempts – 15-0, also the half-time score.

The Lions got the second half off to perfect start – a chip-and-chases by left wing Edwill van der Merwe finally getting them on the board in the 44th minute. Sam Francis also missed his conversion – 5-15.

However, the Lions were soon under pressure. Replacement Manny Rass was yellow carded for a cynical foul – slapping the ball away.

From the subsequent maul, the Stormers went wide where Leolin Zas scored the bonus-point try. This time Libbok landed the conversion – 22-5.

A couple of penalties allowed the Lions a line-out deep inside the Stormers’ 22. A trick play allowed replacement hooker Franco Marais to charge over on the right touchline. Replacement utility Sanele Nohamba was wide of the mark with the conversion attempt – 10-22 after 65 minutes.

The Lions now enjoyed some territory and possession, but found in the Stormers’ defence a solid blue wall.

And in no time it was replacement prop Neethling Fouché who scored 90 metres down the field, after a sublime counter by the Stormers – playing with much more freedom. Libbok added the conversion – 29-10 with four minutes remaining.

That is how it stayed to the end.

The scorers

For the Stormers
Tries: Dweba 2, Hartzenberg, Zas, Fouché
Cons: Libbok 2

For the Lions
Tries: Van der Merwe, Marais

Red card: Ruben Schoeman (Lions, 21 – foul play, dangerous clear-out)
Yellow card: Manny Rass (Lions, 47 – cynical foul, slapping the ball away)

Teams

Stormers: 15 Warrick Gelant, 14 Suleiman Hartzenberg, 13 Ruhan Nel, 12 Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, 11 Leolin Zas, 10 Manie Libbok, 9 Herschel Jantjies, 8 Marcel Theunissen, 7 Ben-Jason Dixon, 6 Deon Fourie (captain), 5 JD Schickerling, 4 Salmaan Moerat, 3 Frans Malherbe, 2 Joseph Dweba, 1 Ali Vermaak.
Replacements: 16 JJ Kotze, 17 Brok Harris, 18 Neethling Fouché, 19 Adré Smith, 20 Willie Engelbrecht, 21 Paul de Villiers, 22 Paul de Wet, 23 Jean-Luc du Plessis.

Lions: 15 Tapiwa Mafura, 14 Rabz Maxwane, 13 Erich Cronje, 12 Marius Louw (captain), 11 Edwill van der Merwe, 10 Sam Francis, 9 Morné van den Berg, 8 Francke Horn, 7 WJ Steenkamp, 6 Jarod Cairns, 5 Ruan Delport, 4 Ruben Schoeman, 3 Asenathi Ntlabakanye, 2 PJ Botha, 1 Juan Schoeman.
Replacements: 16 Franco Marais, 17 Morgan Naudé, 18 Conraad van Vuuren, 19 Raynard Roets, 20 Izan Esterhuizen, 21 JC Pretorius, 22 Sanele Nohamba, 23 Manny Rass.

Referee: Christopher Allison (South Africa)
Assistant referees: AJ Jacobs (South Africa), Stephan Geldenhuys (South Africa)
TMO: Marius van der Westhuizen (South Africa)

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