LIONS PREVIEW: Stars have aligned for Cash, but can the Lions really dream of more?

If the stars in the 10bet Lions eyes are anything to go by, they will be a handful this season.

But while the Vodacom United Rugby Championship’s favourite “Moneyball” team continues their rise after making the top eight for the first time last season, the real question is if that was a once-off or if they can back it up and continue their rise in the URC this year.

The Lions have a few Boks - they lost Asenathi Ntlabakanye to suspension last year - but they still have Morne van den Berg, Ruan Venter and Quan Horn as their current Boks and have added the 130kg bulk of Boan Venter to their roster for the season as well.

If all can remain fit and focused, the style of play and their camaraderie will go a long way and if they can replicate their form at home - at Ellis Park - they will be able to make a decent crack at making the top eight again, and with a little bit of luck, a bit higher up.

The reality for the Lions is that they don’t have the stars that other teams have and while they have added in terms of depth, they don’t have the quality that other teams have.

But they have the bravery and hunger, and the rise of players that will be knocking on the Bok door over the next few seasons - players like Bronson Mills, Siba Mahashe and Francke Horn in particular, will give them a lift when they need it.

And while they did touch the heights and got to the quarterfinals last season against Leinster - ironically their opening round opposition at home this weekend - they know that they are so much better than that.

The hammer and tongs approach to going head to head with the All Blacks during the recent Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry tour provided them with a dollop of confidence that few sides will want to squander and their own exuberance is something that should make the defending champions sit up and take notice.

After all, the Lions were well-beaten in that quarterfinal, but they are a side that has grown immensely in the past 12 months.

“I think system-wise, definitely. Until you experience and feel the pressure, it's difficult to prep against. Some good experience for the players that played. Some good, great learnings because we took a hiding. So some good learnings there.

"It's nice that we played them first up, see if we can rectify that. So I'm not quite sure what kind of team they'll pick, but we know their systems is absolutely world class, their squad is world class. So we're expecting an unbelievable performance from them,” coach Cash van Rooyen said in terms of learning from the Dublin defeat to this weekend’s match.

And that’s why playing at home this weekend is a massive thing for the Lions. They want to make an impression and get off to a good start.

“It is really nice, massively important. We've got Leinster and Ospreys and for us it's two tough fixtures — one is highly skilled and highly technical and highly fit, and the other one is just extremely tough, they want to play a suffocating game, tough at every breakdown.

"So it is a good start for us in terms of that because we can't be half ready for those two games. And then we've got the Bulls away and then Champions Cup, Glasgow away, Edinburgh away. So it's a really tough start. The difference from last year and this season is two at home, and we've got to get sprinting early.”

Van Rooyen has also made some other signings to bolster depth, although many of them won’t raise too many eyebrows. All are good journeymen - like locks Hyron Andrews and JP du Preez, flyhalf Boeta Chamberlain and winger Daniel Kasende and young SA under-20 scrumhalf Asas Moos.

“As for the rest of the signings, I’m really excited — but in terms of Boan - he's big, he's 130 kilogram loosehead, so he's big. He brings bulk, brings a bit of beef. 'Hardkoppigheid”’' in Afrikaans is the way that he plays. So it's physical, exciting in the loose, which I think obviously fits our game a little bit.

"So no, he's been awesome. We've actually now had two weeks with him where we can assess where he is, had a good discussion again with him today. He's currently at that yo-yo position where he's with the Boks, with us, or whatever it is, wherever he gets minutes.

"It's important for him and for us to perform, important to bring his set piece to us and assist in the loose as much as possible,” Van Rooyen explained.

“Yeah, we felt at the locks we needed a little bit more height plus numbers. So JP [du Preez] and Hyron [Andrews] are two really tall men — also experienced, JP won the URC with Glasgow, Hyron played at the Sharks. JP had a quick stint in Japan as well.

"So there's two guys that have played in very different, tough conditions, bringing in a lot of experience, and obviously with [Sikhumbuzo] Notshe — played at the Boks, played at the Lions level, again also travelled quite a bit.

“So we felt we needed to bring in some experience up front to help with not just set piece but consistency, sharing memories, sharing experiences — giving us a little bit more of a deeper pack, if I can say that. And then aside from that, from the Stormers, nice, quick, exciting — we feel [Asad Moos] can help in the way that we wanna play.

"And then [Boeta] Chamberlain and Daniel [Kasende] on the outside — again, we felt we were a little bit short and a little bit young on the outside backs, so again some experience from there, also played in that winning era before.”

The optimism will be tested early by Leinster, but if the Lions can show some enterprise they will be a good bet for top eight. If they can manage the challenges of Champions’ Cup alongside a long season they can surprise and if they can keep their stars injury free, they can dream of more.

But those are a lot of ifs, and the proof will be in the results. Van Rooyen has had a longer stay at a franchise than most coaches ever get, and the stars have aligned for him and his coaching team. They have an opportunity and time will see if they can take it.

Lions URC and Investec Champions Cup squad

Forwards: Hyron Andrews, Thando Biyela, PJ Botha, Morné Brandon, Jarod Cairns, Luke Cannon, Eddie Davids, Ruan Delport, Renzo du Plessis, JP du Preez, Marco Ferreira, Marno Grobbelaar, JD Hattingh, Bathobele Hlekani, Francke Horn, SJ Kotze, Tiaan Lange, Sebastian Lombard, Sibabalwe Mahashe, Morgan Naude, Reinhard Nothnagel, Sikhumbuzo Notshe, Etienne Oosthuizen, Cecil Parsons, JC Pretorius, Sibabalo Qoma, James Schnetler, RF Schoeman, Mahle Sithole, Dylan Sjoblom, Ruan Swart, Conraad van Vuuren, Boan Venter, Morné Venter, Ruan Venter.

Backs: Ethan Adams, Boeta Chamberlain, Zian Cilliers, Erich Cronje, Angelo Davids, Alzeadon Felix, Likhona Finca, Samuel Francis, Jason Hugo, Layton Horn, Quan Horn, Rynhardt Jonker, Daniel Kasende, Richard Kriel, Rabz Maxwane, Gilermo Mentoe, Bronson Mills, Asad Moos, Kelly Mpeku, Chris Smith, Keagan Smith, Nico Steyn, Morné van den Berg, Henco van Wyk.