By Spiro Zavos
June 1st 2009 @ 6:04am
The Lions come out meowing like pussy cats
No one expected the British and Irish Lions to play with the panache and skill expected to win a Test series from their first tour match but this performance against the Royal XV was abysmal. The Lions were more rugby pussy cats than roaring, dangerous beasts.
The first surprise in the match was the small crowd, officially 12,352. The reason given is that Pretoria is not too far down the road and the fans were there for a real rugby match.
The second surprise was the appalling play from the Lions for the first hour of play.
With only 13 minutes of play left, the Royal XV led the Lions 25 – 13. This was virtually game over, if (and it is the ifs of sport that make it such an intriguing business) the second division players from the high veldt had only taken their time to work through to a victory.
Instead from the kick-off Shane Byrne (the best of the Lions along with his captain Paul O’Connell) put in a high ball which was allowed to bounce. Byrne got his foot to the ball twice with speculative kick-throughs. The ball sat up for him finally to grab and plant across the tryline for a crucial try.
The Lions then missed try after try as the Royals XV began to kick poorly and fall off tackles.
The Lions began to use the rolling maul which can no longer be dragged down. The referee, Marius Jonker allowed the mauls to stop and start several times. Inevitably, the Lions scored. And then at the end there was a breakout with Ronan O’Gara scuttling away to score between the posts.
In the end the scoreline 37 – 25 looks respectable. But against second rate opposition which was allowed to look first rate, the Lions could only score four tries. They conceded three tries.
The general consensus of the British rugby writers is that the Lions got their (inevitable?) bad tour match out of their system. ‘All we know for sure at the moment is the Lions can finish a game extremely well,’ insists The Sunday Times rugby writer Stephen Jones.
This brought a sardonic retort from one of his readers: ‘Marvellous match. Huge fan turn out, top performance from England’s and Ireland’s best. Bring on the Bulls.’
You can’t take too much out of an opening match, of course.
But the Lions pack, especially the bigger players looked to be heavy-footed around the field. Perhaps the altitude got to them early.
The back line on the day, which had only one youngster Keith Earls (who had a shocker), was loaded with stars. But only Byrne really enhanced his reputation.
The Lions will surely get much better. But on the evidence of their opening match and the superb play of the Bulls down the road at Pretoria, the Lions will have to get much better than just much better to stand any chance in the Test series.
The Bulls (who will form the brawn and brain of the Springboks, surely) played like rampaging bulls.
The Lions, for most of their match, played like pussy cats.
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Allan said | June 1st 2009 @ 8:40am | Report comment
I was most impressed with the contribution of Shane Byrne, who despite having retired 2 seasons ago as Ireland’s Hooker played a sterling game at Full back for the Lions. At least according to your report. Get you facts right, the Wales and B&I Lions Full back is Lee Byrne. You do your credibility no good at all. Why pay any attention to you match reports when you don’t even know who played?
Amateur Hour said | June 1st 2009 @ 10:16am | Report comment
I haven’t seen the match, but my English mate who had assured me at lunch yesterday that his faith in the Lions has reached new lows and he is now more than ever convinced that they will go down 3-0. Whatever happens it should make for interesting viewing. Let’s hope that their first match wasn’t indicative of the quality that we can expect over the next 2 months.
Allan – marvellous comment, hugely insightful, top performance.
van der Merwe said | June 1st 2009 @ 10:21am | Report comment
Ja, the final scoreline really flatters the B&I Lions. Several stars made complete asses of themselves and watching the “Royal” loose forwards dominate Europe’s finest must have been really disconcerting for the latter’s coaches. The backline was predictable and unimaginative, obviously this team had only been together for a week or so, but that hardly excuses the amount of basic handling errors. Spiro, you rightly mention O’Connell as being one of the better players on the field, but as far as captaincy and decision making goes, he was poor. Why did he not go for the posts and get a decent lead to relieve some of the pressure? Even later in the game, when his team were still trailing, he seemed reluctant to kick at goal. Obviously the Lions were expected to put a cricket score on their opponents, but if it weren’t for the cowardice of the Royal 15 fullback, it would have reflected very poorly on him indeed.
I suppose, I’ll add the usual “early days yet” cliche now.
Allan said | June 1st 2009 @ 10:37am | Report comment
Thanks Amateur Hour – I can’t standing sneering ‘experts’. Van Der Merwe. I agree with you point about O’Connell, he carried the ball V well in the second half but I’m surprised that the press haven’t picked up on his failure to go for the posts rather than kick for line out. It cost about 9 points by reckoning – 9 points that would have really taken the pressure off.
Viscount Crouchback said | June 1st 2009 @ 11:34am | Report comment
O’Connell really needs to stop carrying so much ball. He just doesn’t have the physique for it. I’m convinced that it’s an ego thing, but he needs to put his ego to one side for the good of the Lions.
Also, the Lions ought to have enjoyed at least four penalties at scrum-time. They were all over the Highveldt scrum, but Marius Jonker resolutely refused to notice when the locals were wheeled or collapsed or popped up. One might be tempted to put this down to generosity on Jonker’s part, but it happens all the time in rugby now. Refs are persistently ignoring collapsed scrums. It makes a mockery of the whole thing. Why even bother engaging if the referee will allow the team putting in to just flop onto the turf?
I suspect that the IRB is encouraging referees not to waste too much time re-setting scrums.
Hoy said | June 1st 2009 @ 2:09pm | Report comment
I reckon if the ball is at the back when the scrum goes down, you might as well get the ball out and let the game run. A pet hate of mine is when the halfback has his hands on the ball, the scrum goes down, and the ref pulls it up to be reset.
Viscount Crouchback said | June 1st 2009 @ 2:23pm | Report comment
Completely disagree, Hoy. If the team putting in isn’t strong enough to keep the scrum up until the ball is gone then they deserve to be penalised. Referees nowadays are scared to blow up for fear of being seen to spoil the game with a succession of re-sets.
The truth is that most refs don’t have a clue who is doing what at scrum-time and are therefore delighted for the ball to get away from the set-piece as quickly as possible.
Re-sets might be boring, but the emasculation of the scrum is even worse.
Spiro Zavos said | June 1st 2009 @ 3:30pm | Report comment
Lee Byrne, thanks Allan. Also there were references during the game and in the British media from the despised experts about O’Connell’s unwillingness to take kicks at goal from easy shots. My feeling about this is that the Lions were rather arrogant and believed that the Royal XV would somehow disintegrate before them, something that did not happen until the last 10 minutes.
l
Ian Noble said | June 1st 2009 @ 9:35pm | Report comment
Spiro
On another post I mentioned the Lions lost their first game in 1997 and yet won the series. This time it will be tougher.
Of course we want to win, but imho the Lions is much more than winning rugby games. 50,000 BI fans will be supporting them; great fun, good rugby, great for the coffers of SA. The Lions will improve, Geech knows his way around, but to be frank their work during the week in the Townships and spreading rugby is just as important, together with the rugby gear both new and old sponsored by rugby clubs and individuals throughout the British Isles.
The decision by O’Connell not to take kicks at goal was really the opportunity to have the ball in hand and shake off the rustiness of the first game, just imagine the outcry if the Lions had won through penalty kicks and fewer tries. Many touring sides over the years perform poorly in the first game, the real test will come after the first three games as Geech has chance to play all the squad and assess the best combinations.
Knives Out said | June 1st 2009 @ 9:55pm | Report comment
I see that tabloid is still as popular as ever in Australia. Btw, are the Bulls still one-dimensional bully boys, Mr. Zavos or have we had a change of heart?
van der Merwe, I couldn’t be bothered to debate you but I struggle to see how a scoreline could flatter the Lions when realistically they fluffed countless scoring chances.
Guy Smiley said | June 1st 2009 @ 11:46pm | Report comment
Pros :
1) The bad game is out of the way
2) An easy game (like v WA XV in 2001, 116-10) benefits no-one
3) They dug themselves out of a very deep hole when their lungs should have been burning and their legs full of lead
4) The impact of the bench players
5) Good scrum (although neutered by the ref as the game went on)
6) Good mauling
Cons :
1) The bad game was very, very bad
2) They played without passion, intensity and structure
3) For the majority of the game they were outplayed by relative amateurs
4) The form of Rees, Shaw, Worsley, Wallace (albeit out of position), Blair, Earls
5) Poor rucking
6) Poor fringe defence
Only way is up but there will be serious lessons learned. Next game in Joburg should be a bigger test but lets remember how awful the Lions were in S14 this year. Yes, a big step up but teh B&I Lions should still win. Plus a large crowd will, I believe, help them. Most Lions fans on tour would have booked to arrive for this game so could be a great atmosphere.
matty p said | June 2nd 2009 @ 2:19am | Report comment
Viscount/Hoy – the point about a collapsed scrum is that the rugby laws (quite rightly) require that the referee blow the game up immediately. It is a safety issue, it has nothing to do whether the ball is in or out of the scrum, and the ref has no option to determine otherwise. Even if the ref determines the non-feeding has collapsed the scrum and the feeding side has advantage, it can’t be played.
jools-usa said | June 2nd 2009 @ 2:49am | Report comment
Spiro,
Much as I feel that Lions will not win a Test – especially after seeing Bulls in full flow- I have to
give them some excuses for their 60 minute ineptness: Only a few weeks to play together, the altitude,
plus different climate to rainy/raw UK. I dont buy the ‘arrogance’ label…………yet!
Showed some individual talent (don’t all NH sides have that), but no coherence.
If that can be found then the Tests could be interesting.
Jools-USA
-
pothale said | June 2nd 2009 @ 4:20am | Report comment
Insightful stuff Jools. How come the rest of us never thought of that?
Rugby Fan said | June 2nd 2009 @ 6:06am | Report comment
SZ wrote: “The general consensus of the British rugby writers is that the Lions got their (inevitable?) bad tour match out of their system.”
I don’t think that was the consensus at all. Even the British and Irish writers who expect the Springboks to beat the Lions easily were surprised at just how poorly they played on Saturday. The are a number of reasons flying around, some of which are mentioned above, but almost everyone has written that any similar lack of intensity will be severely punished in future matches.
Martyn Williams is quoted on the BBC site saying:
“…The conditions were also a nightmare, some of the toughest I’ve ever encountered. As soon as I ran onto the pitch on Saturday, the heat hit me. Then when the game started, the altitude took the wind out of me and I felt very lethargic. It did get easier as the game went on though. The coaches have told us it takes eight days to get used to altitude, so the boys should be fully adjusted to it when they take on the Golden Lions on Wednesday…”
I hope that’s right but I think most Lions supporters are a little more nervous about how quickly the team can come together. I’m confident we’ll see better performances but the opposition will be getting better too and won’t give away a winning position as easily as the Royal XV.
Knives Out said | June 2nd 2009 @ 6:21am | Report comment
‘The conditions were also a nightmare, some of the toughest I’ve ever encountered. As soon as I ran onto the pitch on Saturday, the heat hit me.’
I was talking to a South African and he informed that where the Lions played on Saturday it was basically winter conditions. The SH rugby fan does not grasp how the average NH rugby player is affected by any form of heat or humidity.
pothale said | June 2nd 2009 @ 7:07am | Report comment
He’s right. The weather right now is a lot cooler in particular parts. But it’s still like wading through soup until you get used to it.
Them’s the breaks – it’s not as if they didn’t know it. The local boys will be far more acclimatised, but I figure it’ll be Saturday before they’ve all had a taste of it and got used to it.
Comment from from Mr Stephen Jones of the Times re the Bulls walkover against the Chiefs:
“There was no doubting the pace, the spectacle and the sense of occasion of the Super 14 final, which brought an avalanche of points and a smashing win by the Bulls. In terms of the pace, intensity, crowd noise and big-day atmosphere, it was all several leagues above the proceedings at the Royal Bafokeng Stadium….
Many of us watching on the television from Rustenberg and a few of our number who attended the game were left with a burning question, however. If that dire, talent-free lot representing the Chiefs were the second best team in the Super 14, then what on God’s earth were the bottom team like?”
That ought to get a few people shouting.
Knives Out said | June 2nd 2009 @ 7:29am | Report comment
Mr. Jones, having watched an early Bulls performance a few months ago, suggested that perhaps the Super tournament was actually very good – despite years of exposing its’ alleged weaknesses, and that the Lions might struggle in the summer. He suggested that Pierre Spies was a superb number 8 despite the fact that he actually missed 10 tackles in the game.
What I am saying is that the man does not understand modern rugby. His match ratings are often so innacurate that I would genuinely argue that if he doesn’t not understand the game then he doesn’t actually watch games. Some of the things he has said over the past few months have been laughable: David Wallace isn’t a good flanker; Bakkies Botha isn’t a good lock (but apparently now he is); Morgan Parra is rubbish; Juan Martin Hernandez is the greatest player in the world; Marcos Ayerza is the best prop in the world; Louis Picamoles is rubbish; Josh Lewsey exposed the Lomu myth; Marc Lievremont has an obsession with Montpellier, and the list goes on and on. That he still has a job is a sad indictment of the ‘jobs for the boys’ amateur attitude that still pervades the upper echelons of rugby.
Scott The Aussie said | June 2nd 2009 @ 7:36am | Report comment
Not really Pothale, not really. It takes only a moments cogent reasoning and thought to dismiss everything Jones says as so much bumfodden. Teams that come second in hard fought competitions are rarely talentless.
Knives Out said | June 2nd 2009 @ 7:42am | Report comment
Labelling the Chiefs as talent-free speaks volumes. I do recall Mr. Jones labelling Peter Stringer as just a little, bald bloke, or something similar. Respect is the core tenet of rugby and the majority of notorious correspondents tend to exist on a diet of tabloid antagonism and bitter vitriol as opposed to the values that make our sport so vital. It’s quite sad actually.
pothale said | June 2nd 2009 @ 7:58am | Report comment
Scott: “It takes only a moments cogent reasoning and thought to dismiss everything Jones says as so much bumfodden. Teams that come second in hard fought competitions are rarely talentless.”
You are the calm voice of reason. Can we pin that quote at the top of the Roar page in nice shiny letters?
stillmissit said | June 3rd 2009 @ 9:14am | Report comment
So according to Jones the Chiefs are talent free are they. I would back them to beat England.
Knives Out – “Respect is the core tenet of rugby and the majority of notorious correspondents tend to exist on a diet of tabloid antagonism and bitter vitriol” how true is this statement and another indictment is that rugby supporters come to the roar for some analysis of the players and the game plan, whereas this should be the diet that the rugby writers feed us. Spiro is our only popular insightful rugby writer the other writer makes Jones look like a genius.
Havent seen the game yet but have it on HDD might have a glimpse today but it doesnt sound like it worth sitting through.
Rusty said | June 3rd 2009 @ 9:43am | Report comment
I would back the Chiefs to humble England, at Twickenham with all their Lions players back.
Rusty said | June 3rd 2009 @ 9:44am | Report comment
and if the game was played in Hamilton I would predict a blood bath
Rusty said | June 3rd 2009 @ 9:56am | Report comment
in fact – given the penchant for random straw polls. Which Super 14 teams do you think could beat England? To cover both angles mention home and away (uk) . I will start
Bulls – home definitely, away highly likely
Chiefs – home definitely, away highly likely
Rusty said | June 3rd 2009 @ 9:57am | Report comment
back to the thread a bit – suprised by Martyn Wiliams comments given he was in SA not so long ago for a 2 game series on the highveld
Justin said | June 3rd 2009 @ 10:01am | Report comment
What does it make the B&I Lions if they can only beat a 2nd division invitational side in the last 15 minutes???
Rusty said | June 3rd 2009 @ 10:04am | Report comment
Justin – there are still a bit of scratch side so I will reserve judgement until they play the emerging Boks by which point they should be close the finished article.
That said the Royal XV was also scratch and if the conditions were that hard then the BI Lions should have faded, not the other way around.
Rusty said | June 3rd 2009 @ 10:05am | Report comment
Justin – also interested to hear your views in the straw poll
pothale said | June 3rd 2009 @ 10:21am | Report comment
They play first Test before they play the Emerging Boks so they better be finished before then. The Emerging Boks will get the B side only, I’d say.
Dick $tallion said | June 3rd 2009 @ 10:24am | Report comment
Some thoughts from the peanut gallery:
1) Shane Byrne – owner of the greatest mullet to ever pack into a scrum
2) Anyone else notice the abundance of “cocks” on the field?
– Koch
– Jeacocks
well only two – but they got alot of ball…..
Rusty said | June 3rd 2009 @ 10:29am | Report comment
my bad Pothale – for some reason I had it in my head that that they played them beforehand. In which case swap Sharks for emerging Boks. As I dont expect my WP to have the forward grunt to compete with the Lions
Dick $tallion said | June 3rd 2009 @ 10:30am | Report comment
The following teams could beat the current Engalnd team both home and away:
Crusaders
Waratahs
Bulls
Chiefs
pothale said | June 3rd 2009 @ 10:38am | Report comment
Why not Western Province, Rusty? Am planning to go to that match on my trip.
You do know by the way that Stephen Jones is the main portrayer of doom saying for the last two months that the Lions will lose all three matches against the Boks. And after the Bulls win, is even more convinced of it.
Rusty said | June 3rd 2009 @ 11:08am | Report comment
in terms of touring mate – you have to go to the WP game for the festivity, the history of Newlands located in the shadow of table mountain and the fact its next to the SAB brewery says something! Being from Cape Town I would say you will enjoy the overall package of going to see this game better than say the G Lions in Johburg. My point is that as evidenced in the Super 14 I just dont think the WP pack and shorn of their Boks will be able to compete with the BI Lions. So from a point of reference they will not be able to test them as much as say the Sharks. With 40K fans in the Newlands cauldron it should still be a cracker though.
After or before depending on your preferences (all local)
Drink in the beer garden outside the Grand Stand side
Drink at the Forresters Arms or Forries as its called locally
Eat at Barristers Steak house (in my opinon in the top 3 in CT)
Eat at the Butchers Grill (5min walk from Newlands)
There are plenty of other places to eat and drink but If you like a sherbert or two in a couple of unique locations also try the following:
Brass Bell in Kalk bay
Red Herring in Noordehoek
Dunes restraunt Houtbay
Rusty said | June 3rd 2009 @ 11:13am | Report comment
and if you like ladee-dah anything in Camps Bay, such as Barazza, Blues, Eclipse, Summerville and Caprice will fit the bill. For an incredible sunset view and cocktails head up the road from Campsbay and half way to Llandudno/Hout Bay you will find a hotel all by itself. Well worth it
Rusty said | June 3rd 2009 @ 11:21am | Report comment
I like to cover the globe in terms of rugby so I do read most online resources. So I know Mr Jones has been paying out the Lions but the Chiefs comment was a bit strong
Rowdy said | June 3rd 2009 @ 11:08pm | Report comment
Rusty,
I think it’s common knowledge amongst rugby experts such as yourself that England would do well to come second against the Taranaki under-13 girls’ XV. But I doubt that this year’s Crusaders or Warries would beat them home and away.
pothale said | June 4th 2009 @ 6:39am | Report comment
Thanks for those Rusty. Was in Cape Town last year and enjoyed it immensely. The best place I’ve visited in 20 years of travelling – a lot. Shall check out some of the places you mention.