Lions bench Bok Jantjies

Golden Lions coach Johan Ackermann has benched Springbok flyhalf Elton Jantjies ahead of their opening match of the Currie Cup season.

The newly promoted Super Rugby franchise face the Cheetahs, who reached the Super Rugby play-offs, at Ellis Park on Saturday.

Ackermann opted for Marnitz Boshoff at flyhalf.

Derick Minnie has been named captain for the season, after first-choice Warren Whiteley was ruled out for eight weeks - having to undergo surgery for a dislocated finger, suffered in the promotion-relegation game last Saturday.

* Meanwhile the Lions have opted not to select prop Jacobus Roux, who is on trial at Ellis Park.

Although he is training with the team and negotiations for a Currie Cup contract is continuing, no formal agreement has been reached.

Roux, better known as 'Bees', hit the headlines for all the wrong reasons in August 2010 - when he was arrested in connection with the death of a South African police officer in Pretoria.

Roux was given a five-year suspended jail sentence in 2011 over the beating to death of Tshwane metro police officer Johannes Mogale the year before.

Lions: 15 Chrysander Botha, 14 Deon Helberg, 13 Nicolaas Hanekom, 12 Dylan des Fountain, 11 Anthony Volmink, 10 Marnitz Boshoff, 9 Guy Cronje, 8 Willie Britz, 7 Warwick Tecklenburg, 6 Derick Minnie (captain), 5 Hugo Kloppers, 4 Stephan Greeff, 3 Ruan Dreyer, 2 Martin Bezuidenhout, 1 Jacques van Rooyen.

Replacements: 16 Francois du Toit, 17 CJ van der Linde, 18 Lambert Groenewald, 19 Jaco Kriel, 20 Tian Meyer, 21 Elton Jantjies, 22 Lionel Cronje/Robert de Bruyn.

Date: Saturday, August 10

Venue: Ellis Park, Johannesburg

Kick-off: 15.00 (13.00 GMT)

Referee: Marius van der Westhuizen

Assistant referees: Ben Crouse, Cobus Wessels

TMO: Shaun Veldsman