The Lions have completed a Super Rugby sweep of the Jaguares, defeating the Argentine side 47-39 at Emirates Airline Park in Johannesburg.

The hosts had suffered back-to-back disappointments since claiming their first ever win in Buenos Aires in Round 1, losing to the Stormers at Newlands and the Bulls at home, and those results had prompted Swys de Bruin to make eight changes to the starting side; the Lions coach replaced several of his most senior and experienced players in favour of youngsters from the junior ranks, and he was rewarded with 50 minutes of dominance.

The Lions led 26-13 at halftime and then scored three converted tries without reply in the opening 10 minutes of the second stanza to have the Jaguares on toast. But they lost whatever intensity they had displayed previously in a fixture that featured limited defence and physicality, and the Jaguares scored four tries in the final 15 minutes to deny their hosts a winning bonus point.

Rhyno Herbst, Elton Jantjies, Kwagga Smith and former Junior Springboks star Wandisile Simelane scored in the first half for the Lions - Herbst and Simelane touching down for the first time in Super Rugby -- while Marnus Schoeman and Courtnall Skosan, with a brace, added to the tally shortly after the break.

Julian Montoya (two), Ramiro Moyano, Gaspar Balduncier, Matthias Moroni and Joaquin Tuculet scored tries for the Jaguares, who would have claimed an unlikely bonus point for losing by less than eight points had Moroni not hurried a drop-kick conversion and missed after his try under the posts.

Malcolm Marx, standing in as Lions skipper for injured Warren Whiteley, said the victory foundations were laid at the set-pieces.

"We were much better at the scrums and lineouts than last weekend," he said, referring to the 18-point loss at home to the Bulls in the Jukskei Derby.