Johannebsurg - To be slightly facetious, the Lions achieved a record this season that the Bulls and Sharks could not replicate: They won all of their recent European tour matches in the URC.
While Lions supporters can be a bit glib about the results, for sure, it doesn’t change the fact that it was an impressive feat by a still young team.
The Joburgers started the tour by narrowly beating Ospreys 28-27, battled hard to secure a 31-18 triumph over Cardiff, and then rounded off their three-match tour with a brilliant 22-19 victory over Edinburgh last Friday.
The clash against the Scottish side was arguably their toughest assignment abroad, but a calm, composed and confident Lions team weathered the conditions and their hosts to wrestle away a splendid win.
It was once again built on the back of their defence, which did crack on more than 30 occasions, but which showed a lot of character and determination.
There was a distinct feel of controlled desperation as the Lions tracked back when their line was broken to go the extra yard, and make that telling tackle.
Together with their discipline, it wore down Mike Blair’s team, and when their opportunities arose to score, the Lions – for the most part – took them.
Of course, certain aspects require work.
Their maul defence was once again fractured, while they will certainly need to tighten up their first-time tackles.
In the second half, their scrum continued to buckle – a slight worry despite the august picture that has formed. These are slight grievances, however.
Meanwhile, a number of players are making a noticeable impact.
Francke Horn is catching the eye, as is fellow loose-forward Ruan Venter, while Sibusiso Sangweni has been quietly going about his business, performing dark arts in unseen places on the field.
Sanele Nohamba continues to return to the type of form that made the Springboks take note of him, while Gianni Lombard put in some controlled performances to keep the pack moving forward while attacking and defending with unflustered intent.
Marius Louw and midfield partner Henco van Wyk have quickly and quite nonchalantly filled the void left by Burger Odendaal and Wandisile Simelane, while at the back, Andries Coetzee has enjoyed a bit of a renaissance at fullback on his return to the Johannesburg-based team.
Keeping all these well-oiled moving parts turning over will be the priority of coach Ivan van Rooyen and company at home in the coming weeks.
The Lions are happily sitting fifth in the standings after four games (three wins and one loss), and with five home games at Ellis Park in their near future, could be dancing for joy come 2023.
That run starts against Ulster on Saturday, and the match-day 23 that plays then could undergo some rotation to rest the tired bodies that will return from Europe.
The team from Ireland are currently second in the competition, themselves having come off a good 47-17 victory over Ospreys at the weekend, and will represent a dangerous proposition to overcome, even at the altitude and in the heat of Johannesburg in October.
The Lions will face Glasgow Warriors and the Stormers on successive weekends thereafter, before the international break in November pauses the URC briefly. They will then face the Dragons and Scarlets to finish up their year in the tournament, with a further home game scheduled against Stade Francais in the Challenge Cup.
All those matches are winnable. The Lions currently have 13 points. By the end of this year they could have as many as 38 – only three less than what they ended with last season.*