Springbok halfback Morne van den Berg brings up 100 caps for the Fidelity Securedrive Lions this weekend as they look to consolidate their position in the top eight of the Vodacom United Rugby Championship against Scottish side Edinburgh.
Van den Berg - nicknamed Krappies by his teammates - is a player that embodies the heart and soul of the side and is often the player that much of the Lions success revolves around.
His century will serve as an inspiration for his teammates, who know they can continue their excellent season if they get a win over a depleted Edinburgh side and further entrench their claims for their first ever playoff spot in URC history.
His milestone is the main driver this week, but the return of Springboks Ruan Venter and Asenathi Ntlabakanye is also a boost for the Lions, who will want to follow up their win over the Stormers in their last outing with another victory.
Erich Cronje switches from outside centre to the wing to allow Henco van Wyk to return and the Lions will be looking to capitalise on recent form against an Edinburgh side that also desperately needs a win.
They will also be looking to capitalise on the boost that a number of their players got when they were invited to the Springbok alignment camp, something lock Etienne Oosthuizen, who extended his contract with the franchise, spoke about this week.
“The players coming back from the alignment camps don’t normally chat about it in detail, but they do bring that energy and drive the standards for us when they are back with the team,” Oosthuizen told the media this week.
100 up for Krappie! See you at Ellis Park Stadium tomorrow.https://t.co/fGGGP93Lae@Vodacom #URC | #LIOvEDI | #ForOurCity | #LionsPride pic.twitter.com/YcuiapnQMa
— Lions (@LionsRugbyCo) March 20, 2026
“That’s a good thing for us. Not all of us get to go there, and they bring that experience back, that drive and hunger. That lifts us up as a team as well.”
Coach Ivan van Rooyen has also underlined how important a win is this week, especially if the Lions want to achieve their goal of finishing in the top eight. They have four home games left, and two overseas matches in Ireland to finish off their campaign. And Van Rooyen knows they can’t leave everything until those last matches against Munster and Leinster.
“In an ideal world, you’d want to do the majority of the business before we leave for Ireland,” Van Rooyen said. “We don’t want to put ourselves in that position by going there and needing six, eight, or 10 points.”
“That means the home games will be important for us to put us in a position where we don’t have to go there and need miracles… We also can’t get carried away by chasing 15 or 20 points. There is a big focus on Edinburgh to start well, get the maximum in this fixture and then take it to the Dragons.”
Lions team for Edinburgh
15 Quan Horn, 14 Angelo Davids, 13 Henco van Wyk, 12 Bronson Mills, 11 Erich Cronjé, 10 Chris Smith, 9 Morné van den Berg, 8 Francke Horn (c), 7 Ruan Venter, 6 Siba Mahashe, 5 Darrien Landsberg, 4 Etienne Oosthuizen, 3 Asenathi Ntlabakanye, 2 PJ Botha, 1 SJ Kotze.
Replacements: 16 Franco Marais, 17 Eddie Davids, 18 RF Schoeman, 19 Reinhard Nothnagel, 20 Batho Hlekani, 21 Renzo du Plessis, 22 Haashim Pead, 23 Richard Kriel.