Francke Horn will captain the Lions against Zebre in Parma on Sunday having recovered from a calf injury.
Coach Cash van Rooyen has made five changes from the side beaten by Cardiff in the opening round of the Vodacom URC, with Horn’s comeback a major boost for the Joburg-based outfit.
The No 8 replaces WJ Steenkamp and takes over the captaincy from fullback Quan Horn, who continues in the back three alongside Angelo Davids and Eduan Keyter, the former Sharks winger set for his Lions URC debut.
Chris Smith has completed his return-to-play protocols after a concussion and starts at flyhalf, pushing Lubabalo Dobela to the bench. He links up with Nico Steyn at scrumhalf, while Richard Kriel and Henco van Wyk form a familiar midfield pairing.
Up front, RF Schoeman starts at tighthead prop in place of Springbok Asenathi Ntlabakanye, who drops to the bench, with Franco Marais and SJ Kotze completing the front row.
Ruan Delport partners the returning Etienne Oosthuizen in the second row, while Ruan Venter and Renzo du Plessis join Francke Horn in the loose trio.
The bench features Morne Brandon and Heiko Pohlmann as front-row cover, with Darrien Landsberg, Junior Boks scrumhalf Haashim Pead and Rynhardt Jonker completing the match 23.
PIETERSE: Lions must cut out errors
Juan Schoeman, PJ Botha, JC Pretorius, Jaco Visagie, Siba Qoma, and Rabz Maxwane are among those sidelined while Morne van den Berg is unavailable due to Bok selection.
Zebre head into the clash on the back of a 31-28 victory over Edinburgh, sealed with a late penalty.
LIONS – 15 Quan Horn, 14 Eduan Keyter, 13 Henco van Wyk, 12 Richard Kriel, 11 Angelo Davids, 10 Chris Smith, 9 Nico Steyn, 8 Francke Horn (c), 7 Ruan Venter, 6 Renzo du Plessis, 5 Ruan Delport, 4 Etienne Oosthuizen, 3 RF Schoeman, 2 Franco Marais, 1 SJ Kotze.
Bench: 16 Morne Brandon, 17 Heiko Pohlmann, 18 Asenathi Ntlabakanye, 19 Darrien Landsberg, 20 WJ Steenkamp, 21 Haashim Pead, 22 Lubabalo Dobela, 23 Rynhardt Jonker.
Francke is back to lead the side against Zebre Parma. Here’s the rest of your Match 23.
🆚 @ZebreParma
🗓: Sun, 5 Oct
⏰: 16:00
🏟: Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi@Vodacom #URC #ForOurCity #Respresent#LionsPride🦁 pic.twitter.com/iVm53zfDxs— Lions (@LionsRugbyCo) October 3, 2025
Photo: Kian Abdullah/Gallo Images
