Aphiwe Dyantyi will start at outside centre when the Lions face the Sharks in Johannesburg on Friday.

Dyantyi has been named at 13 in place of Wandisile Simelane, who has been bracketed on the bench. In other big news, Cyle Brink will return from injury to start on the flank.

Brink has been out of action since suffering a freak knee injury while in camp with the Springboks last year, and now makes a welcome return to a Lions loose trio that has been decimated by injuries.

From the Lions team that was last in action against the Sunwolves, Andries Coetzee also returns to fullback, with Tyrone Green shifting to right wing, while Ross Cronjé will start at scrumhalf.

Lions – 15 Andries Coetzee, 14 Tyrone Green, 13 Aphiwe Dyantyi, 12 Lionel Mapoe, 11 Courtnall Skosan, 10 Elton Jantjies 9 Ross Cronjé, 8 Ruan Vermaak, 7 Cyle Brink, 6 Marnus Schoeman, 5 Marvin Orie, 4 Rhyno Herbst, 3 Carlu Sadie, 2 Malcolm Marx (c), 1 Sti Sithole .
Subs: 16 Jan-Henning Campher, 17 Nathan Macbeth, 18 Frans van Wyk, 19 Wilhelm van der Sluys, 20 Stephan Lewies, 21 Nic Groom, 22 Hacjivah Dayimani, 23 Sylvian Mahuza/Wandisile Simelane.

Photo: Gavin Barker/BackpagePix