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Bok sent off but Lions survive Glasgow fightback to claim URC win
By PA
The Lions survived a sending-off, two sinbinnings and a Glasgow fightback to claim a hard-fought 35-24 win in the United Rugby Championship on Saturday.
Tries from Sanele Nohamba, Francke Horn, Manuel Rass, Edwill Van Der Merwe and Ruan Venter put the hosts in a commanding position at Johannesburg’s Emirates Airline Park but their ill-discipline could have proved costly.
Van Der Merwe and Quan Horn both received yellow cards before Ruan Dreyer was shown a red and Glasgow responded as Tom Jordan and Thomas Gordon added to earlier tries from Eli Caven and Carl Forbes.
But with Gianni Lombard supplementing the score with two conversions and two penalties, the hosts had enough to hold on.
Glasgow started well as Sam Johnson, making his 100th Warriors appearance, burst through a gap from a line-out to send Caven over.
Forbes went close to adding another but was stopped short and the Lions hit back with four tries in quick succession.
The first came after Van Der Merwe broke down the left and stepped inside to release Nohamba and another quickly followed as Francke Horn pounced on a Warriors handling error.
Rass barged through two tackles to claim a third before Warriors number eight Sione Vailanu was sinbinned for a bad tackle after the Lions had halted a counter-attack.
The Lions secured their bonus point before half-time as Lombard found Van Der Merwe out wide with a looping pass.
The first period ended scrappily as the Lions misjudged the restart and Matthews gathered to set up Forbes, but Glasgow then made a similar mistake. This time Johnson dropped the ball and Lombard made it 27-14 at the interval.
The Lions lost Van Der Merwe to the sinbin for an infringement in a tackle but it did not hold back the hosts as Venter – playing after the death of his father this week – burrowed over for an emotional try.
The Warriors replied as Jordan scored on the right and Gordon was driven over from a line-out after Quan Horn was yellow-carded for a deliberate knock-on.
The Lions were hampered again as Dreyer was sent off for a dangerous challenge but Rabz Maxwane produced a fine tackle to prevent Jamie Dobie reducing the deficit further.
Another Lombard penalty gave the Lions breathing space and they held on to end a five-game losing run.
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Latest Comments
Hopefully Joe stays where he is. That would mean Les, McKellar, larkham and Cron should as well. It’s the stability we need in the state programs. But, if Joe goes, RA with its current financial situation will be forced into promoting from within. And this will likely destabilise other areas.
To better understand some of the entrenched bitterness of those outside of NZ and NSW (as an example 😂), Nic, there is probably a comparison to the old hard heads of welsh rugby who are still stuck in the 1970s. Before the days where clubs merged, professionalism started, and the many sharp knives were put into the backs of those who loved the game more than everyone else. I’m sure you know a few... But given your comparison of rugby in both wales and Australia, there are a few north of the tweed that will never trust a kiwi or NSWelshman because of historical events and issues over the history of the game. It is what it is. For some, time does not heal all wounds. And it is still festering away in some people. Happy holidays to you. All the best in 2025.
Go to commentsNot surprised to see Barretts rating. He has always been a solid defender for the ABs but not particularly effective in attack situations.
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