The Hurricanes, holding out in the face of a strong second-half charge by the Lions, secured a 38-32 bonus-point win in an entertaining Super 14 match in Johannesburg on Saturday.

The five-tries-to-four win saw them move into Super 14 play-off contention ? securing fifth place on the standings at the halfway mark.

It was a game that was dominated by the Hurricanes in the first half, as they raced into a 17-0 lead after 13 minutes and then still held a 24-11 lead at the break.

But a 14-point blitz by the Lions in six blistering minutes just after the break saw the home team take a one-point lead ? just for the Hurricanes to reclaim the lead inside the final 10 minutes.

The Lions did have a late flurry and actually had a chance of snatching a win, but had to settle for two bonus points ? one for four tries and one for losing by less than seven points.

In that first half the Lions' defence was shocking and against the Hurricanes' runners they were made to pay. The Lions' ball skills also left a lot to be desired and several chances were wasted as they seemed to rush things.

After the break the Lions showed greater composure and the Hurricanes appeared to be making the rash decisions ? also falling foul of the referee on far too many occasions.

The Hurricanes' line-outs were also a big concern, but in the end they came good when it mattered and held on for a deserved win.

The Lions enjoyed some early possession, but found the Hurricanes' defence well organised and were forced to put boot to ball ? with Andre Pretorius's drop-goal attempt drifting wide.

In contrast the Hurricanes found breaching the advantage line much easier against a fragmented Lions' defensive line ? with Hurricanes centre Conrad Smith scoring the first try after running through a huge hole in the sixth minute. Piri Weepu added the conversion for a 7-0 lead.

The visitors stunned the Lions again a couple of minutes later when, from a great kick ahead, they forced the Lions into touch. A quick throw then caught the Lions napping and Smith darted over for his second try. Weepu added the extras for a 14-0 lead after just eight minutes.

While the Lions had their moments, and came close on a couple of occasions, they never appeared to posses the strike power of the Hurricanes.

And they found themselves further down when Weepu landed a penalty in the 25th minute, to make it 17-0.

The Lions did eventually find their way over the Lion, with Jaque Fourie getting the try in the 24th minute ? but not before they almost made a real meal of the possession and territory. The conversion, by Pretorius, drifted wide, but at least the home team had something on the board 5-17.

That try gave the Lions some confidence and while their execution may not have been as accurate as they would have liked, they continued to enjoy territorial advantage.

And they got reward when Pretorius slotted a penalty in the 33rd minute to narrow the gap to 8-17.

It was more of the same two minutes later, when the referee gave the Hurricanes a talking to for repeated infringements at the breakdown and Pretorius made it 11-17 with his second penalty.

And when the Hurricanes went offside minutes later Pretorius had a chance to make it a three-point game, but his shot drifted wide.

The Hurricanes then turned it up a few notches and just before the break scrumhalf Alby Mathewson went over, after a few quick phases left the Lions short of defenders. Weepu added the conversion to make it 24-11 at the break.

The Lions got their second half off to a cracking start ? stealing a Hurricanes line-out, Doppies la Grange busting through in midfield and off-loading to Jaque Fourie, who went over for his and the Lions' second try. Pretorius's conversion made it a six-point game ? 18-24.

And the comeback continued for the Lions, with some great interplay seeing Louis Ludik in space out wide and when the cover defence got to him, American import Todd Clever was on his inside and went over for the Lions' third try. Pretorius slotted the conversion to give the Lions the lead for the first time in the 29th minute - 25-24.

Now the Lions looked the more secure of the two teams, with the Hurricanes beginning to show signs of panic ? which contributed to their increased error rate. They remained dangerous, but just not as accurate on the ball.

But they did get that crucial score, as Ma'a Nonu found a hole in a tiring Lions defence and went over for the bonus-point try in the 67th minute. Weepu added the conversion as the Hurricanes reclaimed the lead - 31-25.

Now it was the turn of the Hurricanes to play the controlled, territorial game and leave the Lions chasing the score.

And the crucial score came when the Lions failed to control a Ma'a Nonu kick and Willie Ripia collected to score the fifth try. Weepu added the conversion for a 38-25 lead.

The Lions were not about to give up and replacement Shandre Frolick used his pace to outsprint the cover and score the Lions' bonus-point try. Pretorius added the conversion to make it 32-38.

There was just enough time for the restart, but Frolick, having just done so well to score, then proceeded to kick possession away and Cory Jane hoofed the ball into touch to end the game and secure a great win.

The Lions' consolation was that they got two bonus-points out of the game ? one for their four tries and one for losing by less than seven points.

Man of the Match: Veteran Lions lock Jannes Labuschagne showed that there's plenty of rugby left in his 'old' legs, Bok prop Lawrence Sephaka had his best game in several years, American import Todd Clever made an impact, while Jano Vermaak and Jaque Fourie were superstars. The Hurricanes had a stellar performances from Rodney So'oialo, Ma'a Nonu was a beast in the midfield and outside centre Conrad Smith had a real battle with the Lions' Fourie. However, our award goes to Hurricanes flyhalf Piri Weepu, who controlled the game and kept putting his fellow backs into holes with pint-point passing.

The scorers:

For the Lions:
Tries: Fourie 2, Clever, Frolick
Cons: Pretorius 3
Pens: Pretorius 2

For the Hurricanes:
Tries: Smith 2, Mathewson, Nonu, Ripia
Cons: Weepu 5
Pen: Weepu

Teams:

Lions: 15 Louis Ludik, 14 Ashwin Willemse, 13 Jaque Fourie, 12 Doppies la Grange, 11 Henno Mentz, 10 Andre Pretorius, 9 Jano Vermaak, 8 Ernst Joubert, 7 Todd Clever, 6 Cobus Grobbelaar (captain), 5 Anton van Zyl, 4 Jannes Labuschagne, 3 Lawrence Sephaka, 2 Willie Wepener, 1 Heinke van der Merwe
Replacements: 16 Hans van Dyk, 17 Gert Muller, 18 Gerhard Mostert, 19 Willem Alberts, 20 Chris Jonck, 21 Earl Rose, 22 Shandre Frolick

Hurricanes: 15 Tamati Ellison, 14 Zac Guildford, 13 Conrad Smith, 12 Ma'a Nonu, 11 Hosea Gear, 10 Piri Weepu, 9 Alby Mathewson, 8 Rodney So'oialo (captain), 7 Karl Lowe, 6 Faifili Levave, 5 Jason Eaton, 4 Jeremy Thrush, 3 Tim Fairbrother, 2 Dane Coles, 1 John Schwalger.
Replacements: 16 Ged Robinson, 17 Jacob Ellison, 18 Bryn Evans, 19 Api Naikatini, 20 Willie Ripia, 21 Jason Kawau, 22 Cory Jane.

Referee: Jonathan Kaplan
Touch judges: Phillip Bosch (South Africa), Willie Roos (South Africa)
TMO: Johann Meuwesen (South Africa)