VIDEO: Jaguares tame Lions in 11-try thriller
The Jaguares – who occupied the bottom spot of the South Africans Conference – outscored the conference log-leaders the Lions six tries to five.
The win sees the Jaguares move above the Bulls into the fourth spot in the conference.
Jaguares wing Emiliano Boffelli and No.8 Javier Ortega Desio both scored two tries, respectively while Bautista Delguy and centre Bautista Ezcurra also visited the chalk. Flyhalf Nicolas Sanchez added five conversions and three penalties for the hosts.
The Lions' five tries came via Marvin Orie, wing Sylvian Mahuza, Lourens Erasmus and a brace by Malcolm Marx, while flyhalf Elton Jantjies contributed to the tally with five conversions.
The Jaguares got off to a flying start, with less than 60 seconds on the clock the hosts went 7-0 up. Captain Pablo Matera's impressive linebreak handed wing Delguy a perfect platform for the first try of the match. Sanchez added the extras.
The early score set the tone for the home side who extended the lead minutes later with a successful penalty by Sanchez.
The Lions finally broke their duck when Orie powered his way over the chalk from the back of a line-out drive. Jantjies' conversion narrow the deficit to just three points.
As the match progressed the visitors settled down and took a 14-10 lead thanks to Lions speedster Sylvian Mahuza, who wiggled his way in between defenders for the five-pointer.
However, the hosts reacted quickly. They shifted the lead back in their favour courtesy of their very own speedster Boffelli. Sanchez failed to convert and the score remained 15-14.
On the stroke of half-time, the South Americans dominated possession and after a successful penalty by Sanchez, the hosts again baffled the Lions defence as Delguy's impressive run inside the Lions' 22 was rounded off by No.8 Ortega Desio for his first try of the match.
Sanchez added the extras for a comfortable 25-14 lead at the break.
Entering the second spell, the Jaguares started exactly how they finished the first half – over the try line – as Emiliano Boffelli crossed for his sixth score of the season.
A pair of signature Malcolm Marx tries in the second half wouldn’t be put the Lions back on top as last year’s finalists leaked two more converted tries – including a stunning solo effort from 22-year-old midfielder Bautista Ezcurra – to put the scoreline out of reach.
The Jaguares looked like a significantly improved team as they took excellent care of the ball, surrendering just eight turnovers in comparison with a whopping 26 last weekend.
Man of the match: The Jaguares' wings Bautista Delguy and Emiliano Boffelli were absolutely magnificent. However, our nod goes to Jaguares captain Pablo Matera.
The scorers:
For Jaguares:
TRies: Delguy, Boffelli 2, Ortega Desio 2, Ezcurra
Cons: Sanchez 5
Pens: Sanchez 3
For Lions:
Tries: Orie, Mahuza, Marx 2, Erasmus
Cons: Jantjies 5
Teams:
Jaguares: 15 Joaquin Tuculet, 14 Bautista Delguy, 13 Matias Orlando, 12 Bautista Ezcurra, 11 Emiliano Boffelli, 10 Nicolas Sanchez, 9 Gonzalo Bertranou, 8 Javier Ortega Desio, 7 Marcos Kremer, 6 Pablo Matera (captain), 5 Tomas Lavanini, 4 Matias Alemanno, 3 Nahuel Tetaz Chaparro, 2 Agustin Creevy, 1 Santiago Garcia Botta.
Replacements: 16 Julian Montoya, 17 Felipe Arregui, 18 Juan Pablo Zeiss, 19 Guido Petti, 20 Juan Manuel Leguizamon, 21 Martin Landajo, 22 Jeronimo de la Fuente, 23 Ramiro Moyano.
Lions: 15 Andries Coetzee, 14 Sylvian Mahuza, 13 Lionel Mapoe, 12 Rohan Janse van Rensburg, 11 Aphiwe Dyantyi, 10 Elton Jantjies, 9 Marco Jansen van Vuren, 8 Albertus Smith, 7 Robert Kruger, 6 Cyle Brink, 5 Francois Mostert, 4 Marvin Orie, 3 Ruan Dreyer, 2 Robbie Coetzee, 1 Jacques van Rooyen.
Replacements: 16 Malcolm Marx, 17 Dylan Smith, 18 Johannes Jonker, 19 Lourens Erasmus, 20 Len Massyn, 21 Dillon Smit, 22 Howard Mnisi, 23 Shaun Reynolds.
Referee: Jamie Nutbrown (New Zealand)
Assistant referees: Paul Williams (New Zealand), Pablo Deluca (Argentina)
TMO: Santiago Borsani (Argentina)
Rugbypass & rugby365com
