Do-or-die time for Bulls, Lions in Europe
It’s do-or-die for the five South African teams in the round of 16 in European competitions this weekend.
The Bulls and Stormers are playing in the Champions Cup, while the Sharks, Lions, and Cheetahs are in the Challenge Cup.
The Bulls will host Lyon at Loftus on Saturday, and the Stormers will welcome La Rochelle to Cape Town.
The Sharks play Zebre Parma at home in Durban, while the Lions will meet Benetton in Italy, and the Cheetahs play Clermont in France.
The Bulls will enter their match against Lyon with confidence as they remain unbeaten at home this season in both the Champions Cup and the United Rugby Championship, while they will also draw inspiration from the fact that they finished the pool stages ranked second after winning three of their four pool matches, one spot in front of their French rivals, who were third on the table.
The Pretoria outfit have also had a strong URC season, winning nine of their 13 matches, while Lyon has battled to make their presence felt in the French Top 14, where they are currently ranked third-last on the log after nine victories in 20 matches this season.
The Lions will look to secure back-to-back Challenge Cup quarter-final spots, but they will have to dig deep in what will mark their third away game in a row after being on the road in their last two URC games.
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