The Lions roared but did not make the kill
Columnist By Spiro Zavos, 29 Jun 2009 Spiro Zavos is a Roar Expert
- Tagged:
- british and irish lions, Ian McGeechan, Rugby Union, South Africa, Springboks, The British and Irish Lions
The British and Irish Lions roared but did not make the kill and so the series against the Springboks is already lost 2 – 0. Big sport is all about momentum and driving home the advantage so that the opposition cannot come back to snatch away a victory.
The Lions played superbly against the Springboks for the first 60 minutes of one of rugby’s great Tests.
The lead of 16 – 8 should have been enough to finish off the Springboks.
But the altitude and injuries got to the Lions. Right on time a nerveless Morne Steyn booted over a huge penalty from 55m out. The ball sailed well over the crossbar and virtually from the time it left his book Steyn was jumping around with joy.
South Africans have a word ‘Isiphiwo’, a Zulu word for destiny which was invoked by the spin doctors in 1995 during the Rugby World Cup tournament to sell the Springboks and the notion of the Rainbow Coalition to a deeply divided nation.
That sense of destiny, it was once explained to me by Bryce Courtenay (who played on the wing as a youngster for the Transvaal Colts), goes hand-in-hand with the Afrikaner notion of a ‘sacred covenant’ between the nation and the Springboks that Tests must be won as a gesture of collective self-assertion against a hostile and unsympathetic world.
Often in their quest for the necessary victory to fulfill their destiny, the Springboks (and their referees up to the 1980s) do anything necessary to win. This almost religious fanaticism can be the only explanation for the blatant and vicious eye-gouging by Shalk Burger on Luke Fitzgerald in the opening maul of the Test.
The match had been in progress 55 seconds. Bryce Lawrence the New Zealand touch tried to coach the referee, Cristophe Berdos, into giving Burger a red card by saying ‘it is at least a yellow card’ offence. Burger deserved to be given a red card, for seeing red seemingly.
Berdos did not take this option. Perhaps there was something of a square off when Ronan O’Gara was penalised right on time for taking out Fourie du Preez in the air.
As for Burger he should be out of rugby for the rest of the year.
Eye-gouging is a cardinal rugby offence against a defenceless player for obvious reasons. It is also a potential criminal offence.
Burger’s cause has not been helped by the inane comments by the Springbok coach Peter de Villiers: ‘It’s sport, man … I don’t think it was a card at all. There was a lot of needle and, if you dissect the whole game, you will see yellow cards that were missed.’
At the kick-off I wrote in my note-book a comment to the effect that I wondered if Ian McGeechan would revert to the nasty, vicious, player-baiting tactics of the Lions against Australia in the second Test in 1989 after they’d lost the first Test. The Lions won the Test and the series.
But I was wrong to even think this. The Lions played with ferocity. But it was fair aggression.
Their scrum lifted the Springboks. Their lineout was secure.
And the backs, led by Stephen Jones who was magnificent, continued on from the last 20 minutes of the first Test to make great breaks against a tough Springboks defence.
So let it be recorded: Ian McGeechan is a great coach.
The Lions played a style of expansive and dangerous rugby that was beyond the capabilities of the Springboks. The alignment of the backs and the cleverness of the attacking ploys were a credit to McGeechan’s coaching.
This was modern rugby at its best.
With the scoreline of 16 – 8 and only 20 minutes of play left, it looked all over for the Springboks. But then the props Geithin Jenkins and Adam Jones were injured in the same movement. The game was reduced to uncontested scrums.
Later on, Brian O’Driscoll and Jamie Roberts, the two Lions destroyers in mid-field were injured. This saw O’Gara, a pathetic tackler, come on. While these injuries were taking the star players from the field, the altitude was tiring the Lions players.
Isiphiwo. A terrific move from an uncontested scrum saw the great du Preez run wide and pass the ball to Bryan Habana, on his outside and on the burst. The flying winger was over the tryline in a flash. 19 – 15 to the Lions.
Isiphiwo. After an exchange of penalties from Steyn and Jones the Springboks mounted an attack, from another uncontested scrum, that saw Jacque Fourie, admittedly a big player, run over O’Gara and plant the ball over the try line while somehow not going into touch in a crash of bodies near the corner post.
Isiphiwo. Steyn, who replaced Rian Pienaar who missed a number of penalty attempts, belts the conversion from the sideline right over the middle of the crossbar. 25 – 22 to the Springboks.
Then the Lions get a penalty which Jones kicks. 25 -25.
And then O’Gara puts up a bomb from outside his 22 and charges at the catcher, du Preez …
For drama, excitement, brilliant play, shocking play, for confrontations, for huge tackling, brilliant running, for controversy and for the heart-ache and the exhilaration of the finish, this Test had everything.
In four years time, we should be so lucky to see a similar sort of Test here when the Lions tour Australia in search of their first series win in the 21th century.
Recommend this story.
June 29th 2009 @ 10:23am
SeemsStrange said | June 29th 2009 @ 10:23am | Report comment
Lions played with great enterprise at times – a pity the de-powering of the scrum prevented the Lions from showing if their scrum was to endure the humiliation of the week before or whether they would gain parity or even be them who applied the blowtorch. I do feel that at 19-6 their play started to suggest they were content on protecting the lead instead of upping the ante even more – Jones field goal in front of posts after some pressure was applied to the Boks line was a massive pressure release on the Boks, even though the Lions collected 3 points for the journey down there..
June 29th 2009 @ 11:03am
Hoy said | June 29th 2009 @ 11:03am | Report comment
It does seem stupid that the 8 weeks is when he won’t be playing many games anyway.
Perhaps when someone gets into the national squads like this, it should be something like 8 tests, with stipulation that as a player is in the national squad, he can’t play club during that time as well? And that effectively rubs him for most of the year. Just a pointless pondering really. Will never happen.
June 29th 2009 @ 4:50pm
mart said | June 29th 2009 @ 4:50pm | Report comment
Spiro – agree with you mostly. 2 fantastic Tests, roll on 4 years time ! However 2 Tests that arguably swung on “odd” officials decisions (the interpretation of Beast’s ‘legal’ scrumming in 1st Test that effectivley game the Boks the game given the final score, and the Burger decision after 55 seconds of the 2nd that would have radically altered the game’s blueprint). It’s been done to death in posts elsewhere on the Roar but I’m not sure how a more blatant red card offence right in front of an official could have been presented ! Just for once I agree with a losing coach (and I agree with your assessment of McGeechan) in claiming that Lady Luck had been a major factor in the first 2 Tests. Where I’m surprised (hence the ‘mostly’) in your report is the lack of strong worded condemnation of the sort of ‘play’ exhibited by Burger, Bakkes, etc … no “scum still rises” type headline or scorn as per the norm if the British Lions / England transgress ? Why not ?
June 29th 2009 @ 6:13pm
Greg Smith said | June 29th 2009 @ 6:13pm | Report comment
Agree AND disagree:
Disagree
1. ‘This almost religious fanaticism can be the only explanation for the blatant and vicious eye-gouging by Shalk Burger on Luke Fitzgerald in the opening maul of the Test.’
2. ‘So let it be recorded: Ian McGeechan is a great coach.’
3. ‘Isiphiwo’
Reasoning:
1. Eye gouging as a dramatic device in rugby theatre is another plausible explanation
2. Ian McGeechan … losing coach When PdV… winning coach – need I say more ?
3. I’m a Saffer, never heard of ‘Isiphiwo’. I come from a non Zulu region and Xhosa people have a different culture. I wouldn’t try to oversimplify the logic too much but winning is winning ! If this was the Red Sox vs the Bears, I’d still be fanatical.
(eg watch local Bears fans when they take the series against the Red Sox – happy days !)
June 29th 2009 @ 6:25pm
Viscount Crouchback said | June 29th 2009 @ 6:25pm | Report comment
Good article, Spiro.
I agree about the religious fanaticism. Frankly, they go beyond the boundaries of civilised behaviour. The charmlessness on display since the Bok victory has been quite stunning (Greg Smith being a prime example).
I have my doubts about the sanity of the South Africans. People do tend to lose the plot in troubled societies.
June 29th 2009 @ 7:30pm
Greg Smith said | June 29th 2009 @ 7:30pm | Report comment
@Miscount Crouchback
I agree – re ‘troubled societies’ and that’s why, everyday I thank my ancestors for leaving the UK 200 years ago !
As my grandfather said, ‘charm & a gentlemans hat are no substitute for simple honesty’
You may have your doubts about South Africans, but I have absolutely no doubts about your mob. I don’t blame you personally. It’s the inbreeding.
June 29th 2009 @ 8:44pm
pothale said | June 29th 2009 @ 8:44pm | Report comment
Very friendly stuff, lads.
Any other racism, xenophobia, bigotry you’d like to add to the debate?
June 29th 2009 @ 9:28pm
Campbell Watts said | June 29th 2009 @ 9:28pm | Report comment
And where’s old Knives Out today?!?!
Not like him to be so quiet!
Perhaps he can’t find an angle to whine about cause they lost the series 2 nil!
As the cheeky Gregan once told the All Blacks “4 more years boys!”
June 29th 2009 @ 9:35pm
Knives Out said | June 29th 2009 @ 9:35pm | Report comment
Campbell Watts… another new character. Some people sure are busy.
I’ve already commented on the game, and what more can be added to this:
‘The Lions played a style of expansive and dangerous rugby that was beyond the capabilities of the Springboks.’
The Lions aren’t meant to win but at least they’ve proved a lot of people wrong, and the tests have been a pleasure to watch.
June 29th 2009 @ 9:51pm
Ian Noble said | June 29th 2009 @ 9:51pm | Report comment
Spiro
Great test match, undermined in the UK by too much emphasis in the press about violence on the rugby field.
There is no doubt that at the outset both coaches probably said take no prisoners or words to that effect. Yet judging from PdeV post match comment his view on playing the game seems to be at variance with the laws of rugby. It no wonder we are debating Burger and Botha’s bans when quite clearly the main intention of the Boks was to maim and injure their opponents. Rugby played at the highest level has a responsibility to project the game in the right way. What about a disrepute charge for coach for inciting unnecessary violence?
Rugby in the NH is growing not just in spectator interest but at also at the grass roots particularly with the pre-teens. The big danger is that unless the IRB tackles this problem more effectively, then it will have a detrimental effect as some parents may prevent their “young jimmy or jane” from playing the game.
The RFU have introduced a mandatory ban of 6 months for gouging, a rugby player in the UK was recently charged and convicted for violence on the rugby field. What would have been the action if Burger finger had slipped further and Fitzgerald’s eye had been permanently damaged, 8 weeks ban, if it had been in the UK he would be sued and with TV evidence found guilty.