Smith relishes front row war

Lions prop JP Smith (below) is thoroughly looking forward to the challenge that he will face against a Springbok World Cup-winning front row when the Lions and Sharks battle it out in their United Rugby Championship (URC) match at Ellis Park tomorrow afternoon.

The Sharks will more than likely back the formidable front three of Ox Nche, Bongi Mbonambi and Vincent Koch for the important game, which will be a huge test for a Lions front row without any international experience.

Smith is however well travelled, having started his career at Western Province, before featuring for both the Brumbies and Reds in Australia, and then moving on to a short stint in Major League Rugby in America before returning to SA to join up with the Lions in 2021.

He is particularly excited to come up against Koch, who he has enjoyed some good scrum battles with since their school days.

“I have scrummed a few times against him. Obviously when I was at school – he was at Wellington and I was at Paarl Gim – but also over the years when he was at Stade Francais as well,” said Smith.

“It is always a challenge, he is a two-time World Cup winner, and with the likes of Bongi and Ox next to him you don’t get much better than that.

“So it is a massive challenge for us. Especially after our last performance (against the Bulls) we really want to take a step up.”

The last two games for the Lions pack, both against the Bulls, have seen markedly different performances after they put in a superb shift in the first clash at Loftus, but were then dominated in the return match at Ellis Park.

They will be eager to bounce back with a strong showing and there is no better front-row to make a statement against than an internationally laden, powerful Sharks one.