The experienced loose-forward will wear his regular No 6 jersey after a lengthy period on the sidelines due to injury.
Flanker Darrien Landsberg makes his Vodacom URC debut for the franchise, forming a dynamic loose-trio combination with Kriel and Emmanuel Tshituka.
The Joburg side will be looking at claiming a second successive victory in front of their home fans after a 33-25 win against Welsh outfit Dragons last Sunday.
Emirates Lions head coach Ivan Rooyen has identified the attacking nature of the Scarlets team and has prepared his side for a dynamic encounter in what is predicted to be sweltering conditions.
“We know Scarlets are a team who enjoy attacking and keeping ball in play," said Van Rooyen.
"If you look at their game against the DHL Stormers last week, the last 15-20 minutes featured plenty attack from them which puts teams under huge defensive pressure.
“Reflecting on our fixture against them last year, we learnt huge defensive lessons and it’s something we’ve taken stock of ahead of Sunday."
Van Rooyen has challenged his troops to explore attacking options rather than to defend for long periods.
“It’s important for us not to sit back and try defend their attacking game but also see how our attacking game can put them under pressure. They are a team that keeps the ball in play, so I think it will be a great running spectacle on Sunday, which will be great for fans,” he concluded.
Kick-off is at 13h30 and the game will be broadcast live on SuperSport.
Emirates Lions: 15 Quan Horn, 14 Rabs Maxwane, 13 Henco van Wyk, 12 Marius Louw, 11 Edwill van der Merwe, 10 Jordan Hendrikse, 9 Sanele Nohamba, 8 Emmanuel Tshituka, 7 Darrien Landsberg, 6 Jaco Kriel, 5 Reinard Nothnagel (captain), 4 Ruben Schoeman, 3 Ruan Dreyer, 2 PJ Botha, 1 Sti Sithole. Replacements: 16 Jaco Visagie, 17 JP Smith, 18 Asenathi Ntlabakanye, 19 Ruan Venter, 20 Sibusiso Sangweni, 21 Andre Warner, 22 Gianni Lombard, 23 Zander du Plessis.
