Latest news with #EdwillvanderMerwe
The Citizen
19-05-2025
- Sport
- The Citizen
Cash happy Lions sent Edwill and Marius off with a win
Edwill van der Merwe heads down to Durban to join the Sharks, while Marius Louw departs overseas to join English Premiership side Sale Sharks. Lions wing Edwill van der Merwe leaves the union on a high, scoring a try in their final URC game of the season to help them beat Ospreys at Ellis Park over the past weekend. Picture: Piaras O Midheach/Gallo Images Lions coach Ivan van Rooyen was happy to send off departing players Edwill van der Merwe and Marius Louw on a winning note after the team's exhilarating 29-28 United Rugby Championship (URC) win over Ospreys at Ellis Park on Saturday. Wing Van der Merwe has signed for the Sharks in Durban and will join up with his new side in the off season, while centre Louw heads overseas to English Premiership club Sale Sharks. Both players have been integral members of the Lions team since arriving from the Stormers and Sharks in 2021 and 2022 respectively, with Van der Merwe becoming the Lions' most lethal finisher, while Louw became the club captain. After it was confirmed a week previously that the Lions were out of the running for the URC playoffs, making it another season of disappointment, scrum coach Julian Redelinghuys and prop Asenathi Ntlabakanye spoke of the team's eagerness to send their stalwarts off on a high. And so they did, although it took a last gasp try from flyhalf Lubabalo Dobela after the fulltime hooter to secure the win, which also snapped a three game losing streak against their 'bogey' Welsh opponents. Van der Merwe also enjoyed a try scoring goodbye, as he showed all his trademark finishing skills to open the scoring for the Lions in the first half. Pleased with result After the match Van Rooyen said he was pleased with the result and happy to give the two stalwarts a positive send off, but was sad to lose two key players for next season. 'To win one of the tight ones is nice. I think at stages we played really good rugby, we just didn't manage to finish in the last 20m,' said Van Rooyen about the game. 'The one try they scored seemed to be forward, and they put us under pressure and made it a lot tighter than the flow of the game went. But to finish at the end is really cool, to send off Marius and Edwill. 'It was really an honour and a privilege to have them in our system. They are great team guys, ultimate professionals on and off the field, so to have them in our system was awesome. To lose them obviously is then the opposite. 'You never want to lose two of your most senior players, experience wise and performance wise. So we wanted to get a win for them as well. Their contribution this season and in previous seasons was immense. It's sad to see them go. Good luck to Maro in England, and we'll see Edwill soon.' The Lions now break for the off season, although a number of their squad will be back in action in the Currie Cup which kicks off in July.
IOL News
14-05-2025
- Sport
- IOL News
Lions aim to end disappointing URC season on a high against Ospreys
Saturday's match against the Ospreys will most likely be Edwill van der Merwe's last game in the Lions colours before he heads off to the Sharks. Photo: Backpagepix Image: Backpagepix The Lions will close out their underwhelming United Rugby Championship (URC) campaign this weekend with little more than pride at stake, as a disappointing season ends against the Ospreys at Ellis Park. Saturday's clash (kick-off 5.15pm) is a dead rubber. The Joburgers cannot break into the Top 10 — unlike previous seasons when they finished ninth and narrowly missed the quarter-finals — and victory for either side will have no bearing on the teams above them jostling for play-off placements. It's a mediocre conclusion to a campaign that once held much promise. Back in late September, the Lions won four consecutive games and were considered dark horses. But in the 13 matches that followed, they managed just three more wins. It's a tough situation — largely self-inflicted — especially considering the talent within the squad. Costly home defeats and a repeated failure to close out tight contests have left a sombre and frustrating tone among the Lions faithful. Lions assistant coach Julian Redelinghuys echoed those frustrations but remained optimistic about the group's potential. 'We are very disappointed in how the season has turned out,' said the former Springbok prop on Wednesday, during a media briefing. 'Especially after a good start. 'Inconsistency killed us. We didn't look after the small things. 'I still have no doubt about the potential of this group of players. I believe these players are machines, I believe these players are ysters (exceptional). We were just not consistent enough — individually or collectively. We can't then expect to be in the play-offs. 'We would have liked to be sitting here already qualified. We had the potential to do that. I have no doubt that the guys will want to finish off on a high note this weekend and lay a platform for next season.' Marius Louw will also be departing the Lions at the end of the URC season for Sale Sharks. Photo: Backpagepix Image: Backpagepix Lions cult figure Asenathi Ntlabakanye agreed with the assessment, saying: 'We had a vision of being in the Top 8 and breaking into the Champions Cup. 'It is something that we haven't managed to do since the URC started, and to fall short of that is very disappointing. Throughout the season, we were up and down. Going forward, we need to find a way to be consistent and to perform week in and week out. 'This coming weekend is an opportunity to send some guys off on a high note and to play some good rugby — Lions rugby — which we've not done over the past two or three weeks.' Among those departing after the weekend are Springbok Edwill van der Merwe and former captain Marius Louw. Beating the Ospreys won't shift the Lions' standing in the URC, but it will offer a glimpse into the team's mental state heading into the off-season. This unit will play a significant role in the upcoming Currie Cup, which now takes on added importance, and it will form the foundation for the next URC campaign, where few to no excuses will be accepted should failure come knocking again.
TimesLIVE
27-04-2025
- Sport
- TimesLIVE
‘Your morale is down so the win was important': Lions stick to simple script
Lions captain Jaco Visagie lauded his team's discipline after their 26-7 United Rugby Championship win over Connacht at Ellis Park on Saturday. The win snapped a five-match losing sequence but their failure to earn a bonus point almost certainly leaves them out of contention for a top eight spot. The Lions, however, came off a low base and they opted to slip into different mode to eke out a win. The hosts went for a safety-first approach and drifted from the high-tempo game to which they usually expose touring teams. 'The plan was not to play inside their own half,' Visagie explained. 'We managed that well. 'We went for contestables and got the 50/50s back,' said the hooker who lamented that the Lions weren't more clinical when scoring opportunities presented itself. Edwill van der Merwe puts Connacht to sleep 😤💤 The Lions winger finally gets his try ⚡ 📺 Stream #VURC on DStv: — SuperSport Rugby (@SSRugby) April 26, 2025 Visagie said the Lions were forced into a more conservative approach to keep their error rate down. He admitted they had been under the cosh and felt their efforts had gone unrewarded. 'We make mistakes and we work harder but sometimes it feels like we're in quick sand. We were more conservative to eliminate errors. 'The win was important after that losing sequence. Your morale is down so that's why the win was important also to show that we have what it takes to win matches.' Coach Ivan van Rooyen was pleased his team stuck to the plan. 'There were fewer errors. We were more disciplined in the way we wanted to play in certain areas. We were more accurate,' he said. 'We were desperate for the win. There was discipline to what we planned in particular the zonal and defensive discipline. Can you believe this try-saving tackle from Matthew Devine? 🤯 📺 Stream #VURC on DStv: — SuperSport Rugby (@SSRugby) April 26, 2025 'We lost three loosies in the week. We were challenged in terms of selection. It was the first time six, seven and eight played together and Bronson's [Mills] first game.' Though the Lions' approach and lack of quality from an injury-ridden Connacht did little to elevate the game to the realm of spectacle, there were some notable individual performances. Props Asenathi Ntlabakanye and Morgan Naude were industrious, while young flank Renzo du Plessis made his presence felt in a man of the match performance. Scrumhalf Morne van den Berg kept Connacht under pressure around the fringes and through his testing contestable kicks, while wing Edwill van der Merwe delivered familiar menace. Debutant centre Mills also caught the coach's eye. 'I thought he was good. What's nice about him is he's got a good boot and has good skills. 'For a first game, being thrown into the deep end, he was very good.'
