Ospreys stun Lions at the death in Challenge Cup

The Welsh side scored the first try in front of the modest Ellis Park crowd when Owen Watkins charged down an attempted clearance kick from flyhalf Gianni Lombard, scooped the ball up and scored.

But the Lions struck back almost immediately, with Marius Louw collecting a clever kick from talisman Sanele Nohamba.

The to-and-fro contest continued when Welsh international George North barrelled his way through the Lions' defence from 25 yards out.

The hosts then finished strongly with tries from former Sevens star JC Pretorius and that man Louw in the final five minutes of the half, taking their lead out to 18-14.

Early in the second stanza, Louw was shown a yellow card for a shoulder charge. But it didn't impact the scoreline, as the teams just traded penalty goals. The Lions then secured the bonus point when forward Michael van den Berg caught the Ospreys defence napping and bundled over the line after a quick tap from 5m out.

Ivan van Zyl's charges were again reduced to 14 men in the 67th minute when Hanru Sirgel was sent off for playing the ball on the ground.

That was the beginning of the end for the Lions, as tries from Keenan Gilesa and Cameron Jones put the visitors three points ahead. Osprey's No.8 Morgan Morse then put the result beyond doubt with an intercept try in the 78th minute.

Aside from points difference, the result matters little, as both teams had already secured their place in Challenge Cup playoffs.

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