Two of the changes are due to injuries suffered by JC Pretorius and Richard Kriel.
The Lions will go into Saturday’s United Rugby Championship clash against Ulster with consistency in selection, as well as confidence, as they chase a second straight win in the competition.
Ivan van Rooyen has made minimal changes to the team that edged Scarlets at Ellis Park last weekend, with fit-again Reinhard Nothnagel moving into the starting team from the bench and Jarod Cairns replacing the injured JC Pretorius on the side of the scrum.
Also, at the back, the promising centre Bronson Mills comes into the side in place of the injured Richard Kriel.
The Lions got their URC campaign up and running with a hard-fought win last weekend, after starting their season with three losses in Europe.
Ulster, however, will prove far tougher opposition than Scarlets. The men from Ireland beat the Sharks 34-26 last Saturday and currently occupy fifth place on the points table. The Lions, after last weekend’s win, are 11th.
This is the last round of matches for a month, because of international Test matches taking place in Europe.
Playing on the highveld
Lions kicking coach Morne Steyn said a big 80 minutes lay in front of the Joburg side.
“Ulster are a quality team. They’ve got great forwards and exciting backs. From nine to 15, almost all of them can kick, so it’s going to be a tough, physical battle.
“Luckily, we play in Joburg, so hopefully we can tire them a bit and run them around.”
The match kicks off at 1.45pm and the players will hope a few more fans turn up to cheer them on. A little over 1,700 spectators turned up at the 65,000-seater Ellis Park last weekend to watch Van Rooyen’s team record their first win of the campaign.
Lions: Quan Horn, Eduan Keyter, Henco van Wyk, Bronson Mills, Angelo Davids, Chris Smith, Nico Steyn, Francke Horn (capt), Ruan Venter, Jarod Cairns, Reinhard Nothnagel, Etienne Oosthuizen, Asenathi Ntlabakanye, Franco Marais, SJ Kotze. Bench: Morne Brandon, RF Schoeman, Conraad van Vuuren, Darrien Landsberg, Renzo du Plessis, Layton Horn, Gianni Lombard, Kelly Mpeku
