Lions determined to keep it clean

MAYBE they were still gripped by the worldwide mania caused by the Floyd Mayweather versus Manny Pacquiao boxing match, but the Brumbies brought boxing gloves to their Super Rugby clash against the Stormers in Cape Town last weekend.

There was so much niggle going on off the ball in that game – eventually won 25-24 by the Stormers – that it was surprising the teams finished with 15 men on the field.

It was a clear ploy by the Australians to get up the noses of the South Africans in the hope that they would lose their cool, lash out and incur the wrath of the law.

The Stormers, although tested to their temperament limits, managed to keep their cool and eked out a vital one-point win.

The Lions, who host the Brumbies at Ellis Park this evening, will also be tested in this department come 5.05pm kick-off.

But coach Johan Ackermann, whose side is one of the cleaner in Super Rugby with four yellow cards and no reds, said his men had to just stay out of the argy-bargy stuff.

“The players know that I expect them to be disciplined. For one, we can’t afford to have any cards,” he said.

“The only other thing we can control is to play hard, but within the law, and hopefully the referee will look after the rest – if they do anything off the ball or if they are offside or whatever the case is.

“Those kind of things will depend on the officials to take care of.

“It isn’t up to us to chat to the referee; only [captain] Warren [Whiteley] will do that and the rest of the guys must just get on with the job.”

The Lions have an opportunity to keep alive their Super Rugby playoff hopes today with a win against one of the stingiest defences in the competition.

They clawed back from a 20-3 half-time deficit against the Highlanders last Saturday to win 28-23, but they aren’t likely to find as much space as they did against the New Zealanders.

The Brumbies have a knack for spoiling the party for South African teams on their tours.

In 2013 they beat a strong Sharks team 29-10 in Durban before knocking the Bulls out 26-23 at Loftus in that year’s semifinal.

But Whiteley said they too would be fighting hard for a playoff spot. “We set certain standards for ourselves from last year but the most important thing is to stick to our process- es and to what we want to do,” he said.

“This is a fantastic challenge for us, so there is a lot of excitement ahead of the game. The Brumbies are one of the better sides in the competition.

“Physically, they have strong forwards and a strong pack as well as a good set-piece. They are playing good rugby at the moment.”

In the 11.40am game, the Sharks are in Sydney to face the Waratahs with nothing but pride to play for.

Their Super Rugby hopes sailed into the distance when they lost to the Hurricanes in Wellington last week but they could still do South African teams a big favour by beating one of Australia’s strongest playoff contenders.

Ideally, South Africa would like to have three teams in the playoffs – the conference leaders plus two wild card entries – and for that to happen some strong competition must be eliminated along the way.

The Sharks picked up their performance last week and at some point looked like they would upset the overall log leaders.

Bismarck du Plessis, Frans Steyn and Sibusiso Sithole had their best games in black this season and could give the Waratahs backs plenty to think about.

Later, the Cheetahs host the Highlanders in Bloemfontein looking to give departing coach Naka Drotske a fond final five weeks in the job. That match should pit Australia’s most exciting backline against a South African team known for moving the ball through the hands – a winner for the neutrals.