Ivan van Rooyen is set to field a new-look Lions lineup against Perpignan for their Challenge Cup opener, as the head coach balances their high-tempo style with workload.
The Pride hit the road for their second foray into European club rugby in France, after the Joburgers made it two wins in a row as they powered to a 49-24 victory against the Dragons in the Vodacom URC at Ellis Park on Saturday.
A Lions squad led by Marius Louw, and driven by youngsters Henco van Wyk and Sanele Nohamba, will look to build on their quarter-final appearance during their Challenge Cup bow in 2022-23, and lock horns with Perpignan on Sunday at the Stade Aimé Giral.
Speaking post-match this weekend, Van Rooyen touched on squad rotation as well as the Lions’ ninth place on the URC standings after seven rounds of the competition.
“We started flat. [It is due to] the month away, the travel back and a busy week,” he told reporters. “We are probably going to rotate a little bit for the trip to France. Use the squad for this game on a Sunday afternoon.
“We will be flying on Wednesday and coming back next Tuesday night. To get the best performance and see if we can win both of them, we are going to have to rotate a bit and use the squad.
“We have great confidence in using the squad. We have prepared like that for the last two or three weeks, so I think we are ready to go.”
Van Rooyen added: “We want to be proud of our toughness, how together we are and the tempo we play with. To see the guys still fight in minutes 70 and 75 says a lot of where we are in team cohesion and hopefully where we will be in this competition come May and June.”
Photo: @LionsRugbyCo/Twitter