After all the discussions about selection the tour finally got under way on Saturday when the tourists played their first match against the grandly named Royal XV. As with any combined side there were worries about how the team would gel and a couple of late withdrawals for slight injuries probably didn't help but a team with six Welsh and five Irish should have been able to work together reasonably well. It turned out to be the stuff of nightmares with scrum half Mike Blair having his first clearing kick charged down and surprise centre choice Keith Earls being unable to hold onto the ball at all.
Despite their early problems the Lions actually took the lead with an O'Gara penalty only for Naas Olivier to equalise soon after. Earls inability to hold onto the ball cost the Lions dearly soon after when, from his mistake, the home side attacked from the ensuing ruck and their captain Wilhelm Koch scored the first try, converted by Olivier. A further penalty and a second try this time scored by Rayno Barnes left the Lions in disarray and in desperate need of the next score. Fortunately for them Tommy Bowe popped up in midfield to score the tourists first try, converted by O'Gara which reduced the gap to eight points at half time. A further O'Gara penalty soon after the break cut the gap by a further three points. Although the Lions now seemed to be getting on top they were finding it difficult to score with former World Player of the Year Shane Williams even managing to drop the ball when over the line!! They were made to pay for this profligacy when Bees Roux crashed through the tackle of Joe Worsley and over for the try which after the conversion moved the hosts 25-13 ahead. After that however the Lions finally got their collective act together. First up was a miraculous kick and chase by Lee Byrne, then Alun-Wyn Jones drove over after the Lions forwards had mauled well, and finally O’Gara went between the posts to settle the match. O'Gara converted all three tries and kicked a further penalty to leave the final score 24-37 and looking far more convincing than it was.
Winners and Losers
Lee Byrne and Jamie Roberts were both in fine form
Keith Earls may very well have played himself out of contention in his first match
David Wallace, Martyn Williams, Matthew Rees and Worsley will not enjoy studying the tapes of this game.
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2nd Match
After the close run affair in the first match of the tour the management were hoping for better things when they played the Golden Lions (formerly the Gauteng Lions). The omens were good as the home team appeared to be one in turmoil. They had the worst defensive record in the Super 14, had just sacked their coach and several of the senior players had originally refused to play - just the sort of opposition to set the record straight.
Just to make things worse for the home side full back Louis Ludick was stretchered off after just five minutes and to add insult to injury the Lions scored almost immediately through Jamie Roberts. Brian O'Driscoll in his first Lions match since his horrific injury on the last tour soon added a second try, and with Stephen Jones converting both and adding a penalty the Lions were 17-0 up after just twelve minutes. Although the hosts got on the scoreboard with a penalty the tourists were in no mood to ease up. Jones added a second penalty and further tries were scored by Ugo Monye and Tom Croft with Jones converting the second to extend the gap to 29 points (32-3). To their credit the home side kept attacking and were rewarded with a try scored by the wonderfully named Shandre Frolick, which with the conversion produced a score of 10-32. However their was just time for Jamie Roberts to grab his second try (again converted by Jones to leave the half time score 10-39.
Although the pace died down a bit in the second half the tourists ran in another five tries from Tommy Bowe (2), Monye for his second, James Hook and Stephen Ferris with Jones converting two and Hook three.
Winners and Losers
No losers
All really winners but particularly Bowe and Roberts. O'Driscoll enhanced his reputation and Tom Croft justified his selection and put himself very firmly in the selectors eye with a good all round game especially at the line out (even stealing a couplke on the opposition throw). Stephen Jones can also have done his cause nothing but good.
3rd Match v Free State Cheetahs
With the management sticking to their pre tour message of giving everybody game time in the first three matches it was another "mix and match" side that turned out on Saturday. As in the previous match the Lions started with an early bang and were 20-0 ahead after the first quarter with tries from Stephen Ferris and Keith Earls, converted by James Hook, who also kicked two penalties.
However things turned around soon after that when Ferris was sin-binned and during the time he was off the field the Cheetahs scored twice through Danwell Demas and Wian Du Preez with Jacques-Louis Potgeiter converting both. As the Cheetahs back row had started dominating the breakdown things were not looking as rosy for the tourists as they had. Hook settled the nerves slightly with his third successful penalty just before half time to send the tourists in 23-14 ahead.
Potgeiter scored an early penalty to reduce the gap but then Hook extended it again with his fourth successful penalty leaving the tourists nine points ahead entering the last half hour. That turned out to be the last score for the tourists who then started losing possession with alarming regularity. Shane Williams epitomised their disfunctionality with a telegraphed pass that was picked off by Corne Uys who went 80 metres to score a try which replacement Louis Strydom converted to leave the gap only two points with eight minutes left. The tourists held on but were lucky when a last minute drop goal attempt from Strydom drifted just wide - and also that Potgeiter and Strydom missed a penalty apiece.
To put the match into context it has to be remembered that the Cheetahs finished bottom of this season's Super 14.
Winners and Losers
Losers - Shane Williams who needs to produce as he seems to be getting in on reputation rather than performance.
Andy Powell who seemed to be more concerned with taking the ball into contact than setting the backs free and in consequence was guilty of losing the ball too often
Possibly Paul O'Connell who (as captain) does not seem to be inspiring the team to any great degree.
Winners.
On the day Keith Earls got the nightmare of his first match out of his system, but is still probably a long way down the list.
4th Match v Sharks
The Lions continued their unbeaten start to the tour of South Africa with a five-try win over the Sharks.
The tourists dominated the first half but only had a try from Lee Mears to show for their efforts, while Rory Kockott kicked a penalty for the hosts. But the Lions did improve, with Mike Phillips claiming a well-worked try with Luke Fitzgerald adding another. Lee Byrne claimed a fine sole effort while Jamie Heaslip completed the scoring right at the whistle.
The performance was an improvement from the one that saw off the Cheetahs last weekend, but head coach Ian McGeechan still has plenty of work to do before the first Test against South Africa on 20 June. The Lions conceded numerous penalties at the hotly-contested breakdown area as well as struggling to get quick ball, while loose-head prop Gethin Jenkins was at the wrong end of some harsh refereeing at scrum time.
it seems that the Lions are still struggling to come to terms with some of the refereeing attitudes and this could start to cost them dearly.
There were no real winners this week in my humble opinion and the losers were off the pitch as both Leigh Halfpenny and Stephen Ferris had their tours finished by injury. Even more unlucky (or oddly) Ryan Jones the replacement for Ferris flew to South Africa from where he had been captaining Wales, landed and was almost immediately sent home suffering from a concussion picked up last Saturday. You would have thought that this piece of information would have been passed on to the selectors before he made the pointless flight.
5th match v Western Province
In their final Saturday match before the first test the Lions were looking for a sparkling performance to enhance their reputation. A combination of wet and windy weather and highly committed opposition made sure that there was more graft than glory.
After a dismal opening period notable only for repeated bouts of aerial ping-pong, two well-struck penalties from Stephen Jones, in response to an early one from Western Province fly-half Willem de Waal, put the Lions 6-3 ahead. However thr Lions then fell 9-6 behind when De Waal fired over a superb left-footed drop-goal from 40m in the 18th minute before full-back Pietersen, uncertain under the high ball in defence, joined the attack to land an easier drop from in front of the posts. The Lions wasted no time in rectifying the situation, however, scoring their opening try within a minute, from their first decent attack of the half. Number eight Andy Powell made a charge, Williams popped up a sweet pass and Rob Kearney delayed his pass to Bowe, on the wing, perfectly. The Monaghan man still had plenty to do, but caught the ball behind him and pirouetted out of a tackle before fending off another to score. Jones missed the conversion from the touchline, and Pietersen was off target with a snap drop-goal that might have regained the lead for the hosts. But the Lions stepped up a gear and scored a second try in the 34th minute after patiently working the ball through nine phases.
Again it owed everything to Bowe, who cut a wonderful angle off his right wing into the line before stepping inside one man, fending off another and then looping an inviting pass for Monye to sprint onto and dive into the left corner. Jones landed the extras for an 18-9 advantage, but De Waal's second penalty, with the last kick of the first half, kept the hosts in touch at the interval.
De Waal's powerful boot kept the Lions pinned back on several occasions, and after missing a penalty attempt from inside his own half, he banged over another to reduce the deficit to three points. But the tourists responded with a third try, a patient series of pick-and-goes from the pack rewarded when Williams spun out of a tackle to dot down in the left corner. Jones again failed to convert from the touchline, but at 23-15 up, the platform seemed set for another late Lions onslaught. Western Province had other ideas. De Waal's fourth penalty on the hour brought the hosts to within a score, and when it came five minutes later it was rapturously greeted by the home fans in the 34,000 crowd. Lock Anton van Zyl sent Riki Flutey the wrong way with a lovely dummy as he charged into the Lions 22, and as the ball was swept along the line, Pietersen found himself with room to dive over in the left corner. De Waal was unable to convert from the touchline, however, and the Lions endured some anxious moments as the clock ticked down. Hook missed a long-range penalty, Powell was penalised for not using his arms in a thundering hit on flanker Duane Vermeulen, and Monye was penalised for taking a quick line-out to himself but not throwing it five metres. But to their credit they refused to buckle as the hosts went in pursuit of a famous victory, and Hook's late penalty saw them prevail, just.
It would seem that the major winner from this match was Tommy Bowe who must have played himself into the Test team.
Other than that nobody seemed to really grasp the nettle and several places must still be up for grabs.
Lions v Southern Kings
In their final warm up match before the test series begins the Lions were no doubt looking for final pointers for the test side. The last thing they wanted (or probably expected) was a bad tempered match littered with late and high tackles and general skullduggery. Unfortunately this is exactly what they got.
After former Leicester player Jaco van der Westhuyzen opened the scoring for the home side the Lions then lost first Euan Murray to a tour ending ankle injury and then James Hook to a neck injury within the first twelve minutes.
Van der Westhuyzen was the first to be yellow carded after only eighteen minutes (showing a different side to his character from the one fondly remembered by Tigers fans) but the only reward the Lions had in the first half was a solitary penalty by replacement Ronan O'Gara. There was also a remarkably rare comment in the first period "O'Gara to make a crucial last-ditch tackle".
The Lions finally improved enough in the second half to stretch away with a fortunate try from Ugo Monye and a penalty try after several Southern Kings scrum infringements, both converted by O'Gara who also kicked a second penalty and although flanker Mpho Mbiyozo stretched over for a try for the home side the tourists retained their 100% record with a 20 - 8 victory.
The first test now looms large and this is the squad chosen to represent the Lions:
L Byrne (Wales and Ospreys); T Bowe (Ireland and Ospreys), B O'Driscoll (Ireland and Leinster), J Roberts (Wales and Cardiff Blues), U Monye (England and Harlequins); S Jones (Wales and Scarlets), M Phillips (Wales and Ospreys); G Jenkins (Wales and Cardiff Blues), L Mears (England and Bath), P Vickery (England and Wasps), Alun Wyn Jones (Wales and Ospreys), P O'Connell (Ireland and Munster, capt), T Croft (England and Leicester), D Wallace (Ireland and Munster), J Heaslip (Ireland and Leinster).
Replacements: M Rees (Wales and Scarlets), A Jones (Wales and Ospreys), D O'Callaghan (Ireland and Munster), M Williams (Wales and Cardiff Blues), H Ellis(England and Leicester), R O'Gara (Ireland and Munster), R Kearney (Ireland and Leinster).
Lions v South Africa
All the talking was done - it was time to perform. Unfortunately from the Lions point of view it also needed the referee to perform as well. He had been bombarded with propaganda from the South African coaching staff about the illegality of the Lions scrum and some of that had obviously stuck.
It seemed that every time there was a scrum in the first half the Springboks got a penalty usually awarded against Phil Vickery. While he has been having problems over the last couple of years it seemed that he could do no right and his opposite number Tendai (The Beast) Mtawarira could do no wrong.
The home side scored an early try through captain John Smit converted by Ruan Pienaar and four penalties (three from Pienaar, the other from Frans Steyn) stretched their lead and although the Lions scored a try through Tom Croft (converted by Stephen Jones) they turned round 19-7 down. The Lions were not helped by losing Lee Byrne to injury in the first half as he has been probably their most potent attacker.
Heinrich Brussow crossed early on the resumption again converted by Pienaar and the Lions looked dead and buried. However a combination of second half substitutions and greater match fitness began to tell and Croft got his second try again converted by Jones with 12 minutes left to reduce the deficit. Mike Phillips crossed for the Lions third try with just five minutes left and Jones conversion reduced the gap to just 5 points but that was as close as they could get as time ran out with the hosts clinging on desperately.
The following is an extract from Brian Moore's column in the Telegraph which highlights just what south Africa were allowed to get away with and that in fact a lot of the penalties that went their way should actually have been the other way. Like him or not he has played in the arcane position of the front row and potentially knows what to look for.
"Durban, we have a problem" would have been an apposite announcement from the orbiting Phil Vickery to the Lions management back on Earth at the first of a number of scrums during which his opposite number, Tendai 'the Beast' Mtawarira, gave him probably the most uncomfortable ride of his distinguished career. Vickery was not helped by the fact that yet another elite referee, Bryce Lawrence, of New Zealand, did not have a clue about what goes on in the front row and officiated accordingly. When Vickery was shot moon-wards, it was the clearest example of illegally lifting a player one could wish for, yet Lawrence saw only that Vickery stood up. How anyone can stand up, yet propel themselves off the ground by five feet is something no doubt Lawrence can explain.
The image of Vickery's embarrassment had deep psychological effects on both teams, but more importantly on Lawrence, who thereafter saw only one team infringing at the scrum. He failed to notice that Mtawarira, not known for his scrummaging hitherto, was allowed to close the head gap and deny Vickery a place to engage, swing out and round and run the Lions' front row sideways and then simply step left and drive under and through Vickery's arm and shoulder – none of which is allowed.
Lions v Emerging Springboks
After the disappointment of the first test the Lions needed a convincing match to get back on track. Unfortunately a combination of a committed opposition and torrential rain gave very little scope for spark.
The Lions recovered from an early penalty miss by O'Gara (from right in front of the posts) to gradually establish a sort of platform and a successful penalty was followed by a try for Keith Earls (converted by O'Gara) to establish a 10-0 lead. The Emerging Springboks then took a grip on the match and penalties either side of half time by Earl Rose reduced the gap to four points. Other than those kicks Rose was having a nightmare with his place kicking missing opportunities to put the Lions under even more pressure.
James Hook on as a second half replacement kicked a penalty to establish a seven point lead and it seemed as though that would be enough. The home side however had other ideas and launched one final attack. They won a lineout with just five seconds left and the ball was kicked through for Danwel Demas to score a try in the corner. With only time for the conversion, the rain pouring down and the wind gusting around and the result dependant on the kick replacement Willem de Waal made no mistake and levelled the scores at 13 all.
The Lions have announced their team for the second test on Saturday and it shows five changes:
R Kearney (Leinster and Ireland); T Bowe (Ospreys and Ireland), B O'Driscoll (Leinster and Ireland), J Roberts (Cardiff Blues and Wales), L Fitzgerald (Leinster and Ireland); S Jones (Scarlets and Wales), M Phillips (Ospreys and Wales); G Jenkins (Cardiff Blues and Wales), M Rees (Scarlets and Wales), A Jones (Ospreys and Wales), S Shaw (Wasps and England), P O'Connell (Munster and Ireland, capt), T Croft (Leicester and England), D Wallace (Munster and Ireland), J Heaslip (Leinster and Ireland).
Replacements: R Ford (Edinburgh and Scotland), A Sheridan (Sale Sharks and England), A-W Jones (Ospreys and Wales), M Williams (Cardiff Blues and Wales), H Ellis (Leicester and England), R O'Gara (Munster and Ireland), S Williams (Ospreys and Wales).
Lee Byrne is missing due to the injury he picked up in the first match but the other changes are tactical.
Lions v Springboks - Second Test
Has there ever been a game like it? This was one of the great matches of all time, a drama which defined how good Test rugby can be. South Africa won it with the last kick of the match to take the series 2-0 but, frankly, victory seemed an irrelevance after such a pulsating occasion.It was also a match that brought the brutal nature of international rugby into horrible relief. Both teams suffered a catalogue of nasty injuries. Andries Bekker, a Bok replacement, suffered a sickening accidental blow to the head, while the Lions finished with a makeshift front row and a makeshift midfield as the men in the starting positions were forced off with broken bodies.
n the first half the Bok bully boys were bullied themselves as the Lions raced to a 16-8 lead, reversing all the frailties of the first Test.
They were strong in the tackle, strong in the scrum, strong in the faces of the Springbok big men. Simon Shaw had an immense match but the entire Lions team can take credit for their effort. Staring at humiliation as the Boks imperiously drove the first kick off, the Lions rallied superbly to frighten the world champions to death.
They were also true to the spirit of the sport. Some of the rugby the Lions played in that first half was mesmerising. Rob Kearney, all bristling energy and class, started umpteen attacks from deep within Lions territory and the Springboks appeared flaky every time the Lions midfield ran at them. All of head coach Ian McGeechan’s changes were working at this stage. Luke Fitzgerald defended bravely to frustrate JP Pietersen and Shaw was simply marvellous.
And then came the moment all South Africa was waiting for. The action was so fluid, so wonderfully frenetic that it was fully 16 minutes into the match before the first scrum was signalled. It came with the Bok put-in. As the packs collided, a country held its breath, ready to exhale it in an elongated cry of “Beeeeaaasst”, but the Welsh front row held firm. At the very next scrum, Adam Jones popped the Beast out of the top of the front rows. Poor Beast. A legend a week ago, Tendai Mtawarira suddenly seemed very, very ordinary.
And all this occurred after the most explosive of starts. From the kick off, as the Boks looked to drive, Schalk Burger, another icon of Bok ruggedness, threw Fitzgerald out of the maul using his eye socket as a hand hold. Bryce Lawrence, the touch judge, intervened and Burger was yellow carded, but red was the colour Burger should have seen. It was a decision that turned a Test. Munster’s Alan Quinlan missed a Lions tour and was suspended for 12 weeks for a similar offence in a Heineken Cup fixture. Burger can expect the same punishment when the citing officer examines the video footage.
With Burger off, the Lions piled on the points. Kearney went over for a smart try, Stephen Jones knocked over a penalty and a conversion and the Lions had a 10-point lead. The Boks at this point were on the ropes. Rattled at the scrummage, their discipline went and they were unable to hold on to the ball long enough to get their driving game going. Ruan Pienaar and Francois Steyn also had an off day kicking penalties. Indeed, so bad were the Boks generally, so manifestly off their game that an upset looked on the cards. And when Stephen Jones banged over a penalty to give the Lions a 19-8 lead, that possibility tightened even further.
Yet a combination of Bok resilience and Lions’ injuries and fatigue changed the momentum. The Lions lost Gethin Jenkins and Adam Jones forcing uncontested scrums and the Boks started to apply pressure. Their big forwards, Pierre Spies and Juan Smith, started running in the wider channels and the Lions were forced onto the defensive. Mike Phillips brought off a wonderful scrambling tackle on Bryan Habana to save a score but Habana retaliated later by blasting through the Lions midfield after Fourie du Preez had brought him beautifully into the action on an arcing run.
And as the match entered its telling phase so the Lions’ energy levels flagged. It was South Africa who dominated the territory, South Africa who were asking questions of the Lions as they failed to match the tempo and continuity of the first period. Even so, it took the involvement of the TV official to get the Boks back into the match when Jaque Fourie held off an attempted tackle by Phillips to score in the corner. Morne Steyn, on for Pienaar, knocked over the conversion to give the Boks the lead for the first time with seven minutes of the match remaining.
Even then this remarkable spectacle had further twists. Jones stroked over a penalty to tie the game at 25-25 before Ronan O’Gara not only failed to find touch but was adjudged to have taken out Du Preez in the air. Morne Steyn steadied himself and from 51 metres hurtled the ball through the thin Pretoria air and between the posts to avenge the series defeat in 1997.
After the match five of the Lions team were taken to hospital with Gethin Jenkins and Adam Jones both having operations for a cracked cheekbone and a dislocated shoulder respectively. The other victims were Brian O'Driscoll (knock to the head), Tommy Bowe (elbow) and Jamie Roberts (wrist). If ODriscoll is deemed to have concussion he would face a mandatory three week layoff.
Boks Schalke Burger and Bakkies Botha are both facing the citing officer after their thuggery so we wait to see what happens.
Botha has been banned for two weeks and Burger for eight which is strange considering Quinlan missed the tour after receiving a twelve week ban for exactly the same offence. The authorities must get their act together and ensure that punishments are uniform - and referees must start doing their job properly. There is absolutely no doubt the Burger should have been dismissed and who knows what effect that would have had on the result.
Third Test
Astonishing. In a match in which tradition dictates that the touring side are out on their feet, a match in which South Africa were noticeably galvanised by the banning of their iconic lock Bakkies Botha, the Lions reduced the world champions to a rabble.
There is no other word for it. At no stage did the Lions look like losing and, apart from a decent effort by Odwa Ndungane in the last five minutes, South Africa never looked like scoring. There was that much between the sides.
The scenes at the end were actually anticlimactic. There was no crowing from the Lions when the game ended. No celebratory high fives. The margin and manner of the win was so decisive that it was as if the Lions knew that the series had been there for the taking. History will record otherwise, though. God, sport can be cruel.
This was another remarkable occasion, partly for the bitterness that peppered the exchanges, and partly because the Lions had embarrassed the Boks in their spiritual home.
Only one side, France, have won here in the last 11 matches. Even the All Blacks struggle at Ellis Park. So for the Lions to come off the floor, make eight changes to their side, score three tries to zip and play with a commitment that was beyond what should be asked of any set of athletes was truly amazing.
Yet that was only the half of it. As remarkable was the way the Lions took the game to South Africa.
Some of the rugby they have played in this series has been breathtaking. It started in the first minute when Rob Kearney again ran the ball back at the Boks and it continued with an intelligence and a fluidity that went right through to the final whistle.
That may be the Lions greatest legacy from this visit. They have shown that international rugby does not have to be a series of boring, repetitive car crashes.
The Lions won their fair share of the collisions, but they also brought a ton of guile to the proceedings.
Shane Williams, the tiniest individual on the pitch, notched two tries, as if to prove that small can be beautiful in a big man’s game, and some of the handling from Riki Flutey, Tommy Bowe and many of the forwards was out of the top drawer.
The fear was that the Lions would run out of steam, given the length of the tour and the altitude factor, but it was the Boks who were in bits come the end.
And this was a game South Africa wanted badly to win. Make no mistake about that.
The Boks took to the field wearing white armbands as a gesture of solidarity for Botha who received a two-week ban for charging into a ruck in a manner that South Africa’s coaches and players consider legal.
The Boks were also seething at the lack of credit they feel they have received for winning the series. That was the back story of this match and that was why the Lions performance was so courageous.
The Boks are the bullies of rugby, given half a chance, but in the final 10 minutes, when Heinrich Brussow scragged Mike Phillips and Bismarck du Plessis late-tackled Stephen Jones, they looked more like a bunch of petulant schoolboys.
Several Lions stood up yesterday. Jamie Heaslip had a marvellous game, finally adjusting to the pace and physical intensity of the series, but the man your heart went out to was the Lions captain, Paul O’Connell.
To watch O’Connell encouraging his players after a big tackle was made, or a scrum driven, was to witness a person who has given everything to this group of players.
At times O’Connell has been a tad off his best on this tour as a player, but not for a minute has he lost his stature as a man.
There were other plusses too. Flutey and Bowe played well in the Lions reconstituted midfield and Phil Vickery restored his reputation after it had been tarnished in the first Test.
Vickery forced two penalties and a free-kick from the first three scrums against 'the Beast’.
It was only in his last scrum, before Vickery was replaced, that Tendai Mtawarira contorted him into an uncomfortable position.
Redemption clearly meant a lot to Vickery. As he neared the touchline to take a well earned rest, he let out a series of triumphant bellows. Raging Bull by nickname, it was Raging Bull by performance here.
As for the Boks? Frankly, they were disappointing. Clearly missing Botha, the forwards lacked their hard edge.
Victor Matfield knocked on twice and John Smit struggled to get into the game.
And when Fourie du Preez started to fumble the ball, it was clear that South Africa were unable to get their usual steely grip on the Test.
The Lions outscored their hosts by three tries to nil and the only downside for them was the subsequent citing and banning for two weeks of Simon Shaw.
Tries: S Williams (2), U Monye
Cons: S Jones (2)
Pens: S Jones (3)
Pens: M Steyn (3)