Nico Steyn to get a run ahead of Haashim Pead for Lions against Stormers

Talented Lions scrumhalf Nico Steyn is finally set to be brought back in from the cold, and will likely play off the bench in their United Rugby Championship (URC) derby against the Stormers at Ellis Park on Saturday.

In-form Springbok star Morne van den Berg will likely start at nine, with him fresh off his man-of-the-match heroics against the Sharks over the past weekend.

The talented Steyn though is finally set to get a run, having missed out on most of the games for the Lions so far this year.

The 23-year-old Steyn started the season by playing in the first nine matches of the campaign for the Lions, including six starts and three appearances off the bench in that time, leading up to their loss against the Stormers in December.

But since then he has featured just once in the Lions’ last six games, off the bench in their Challenge Cup match against Perpignan in France in mid-January.

Exciting young talent Haashim Pead has stepped into Steyn’s role this year, featuring in all of the Lions’ last six games, with one start and five impact showings off the bench.

The 20-year-old Pead had enjoyed a stunning rise last year after a brilliant campaign for the Junior Springboks during their U20 World Championship winning run, and was invited to a Bok training camp at the end of the year.

But he had played precious little rugby for the Lions before the start of this year, having only made two appearances and played 16 minutes in total over their first nine matches.

Steyn gets nod

He thus finally earned a run in the team, and has performed admirably, but it seems Steyn will get the nod this weekend due to the expected wet weather conditions.

“There will be rotation. I think the game is going to be wet on Saturday, and we are prepping for a wet game. Nico has a good kicking game and is very physical,” explained Lions assistant coach Jaque Fourie on Tuesday.

“We have got three amazing scrumhalves. With Krappie (Van den Berg) being with the Springboks, you always want to play him (when available), and then we rotate Nico and Hash (Pead) to keep them fresh.”

Van den Berg is arguably the Lions’ best player, and his performances often help lift the team when he plays, and he will be required to do that in a massive clash against the Stormers, who they will be targeting just a second home win over in five URC encounters at Ellis Park.

“Krappie, when you see him train, that is the way he plays. He brings a lot of confidence and experience,” said Fourie.

“He hasn’t played a lot of Bok games but the experience he gets in the national camp from the other scrumhalves, which he brings back, is invaluable for our other nines.”