The British and Irish Lions eagerly-anticipated tour Down Under starts in steamy Hong Kong on Saturday night but critics believe it’s a dangerous waste of time.
World Cup-winning coach Clive Woodward, who guided the Lions on their horrible 2005 series wipeout in New Zealand, has led calls of opposition to the tour opener being played in extreme heat against an underdone Barbarians outfit.
While Wallabies players feature in Super Rugby matches this weekend before heading into a three-week training camp, the Lions will kick off the first of six matches leading into the three-Test series in what’s being viewed as a glorified training run.
The Barbarians were smashed 40-12 by an understrength England outfit last weekend and Woodward rated them “dishevelled and uninterested”.
The invitational side – which includes former Wallabies lock Dean Mumm, ex-All Blacks Nick Evans and Joe Rokocoko and a host of European-based players – have put themselves on an alcohol ban this week after pre-match bonding at the races was blamed for their poor display at Twickenham.
Woodward said the Baa-Baas just weren’t good enough and wouldn’t help the Lions prepare for the Test series starting June 22 in Brisbane.
The former England coach said the Lions should have organised a game against international opponents such as Fiji, Tonga or France who would have treated it more seriously.
“To be blunt, playing the Barbarians in Hong Kong on Saturday will do absolutely nothing to help them prepare for the pace and professionalism of the Wallabies,” Woodward wrote in his Daily Mail newspaper column.
“They need tough fixtures to be battle-hardened and up to speed.
“This first game is not a step forward in the right direction. It is simply a sidestep.”
The match scheduling in Hong Kong, which is the global headquarters of Lions sponsors HSBC, has also been a target of criticism due to the extreme heat and poor ticket sales.
The temperature is forecast to be 29 degrees and humidity at 90 per cent when the game kicks off at 7.30pm local time (2130 AEST), forcing a drinks breaks to occur in each half for safety reasons.
Leading British sports scientist Mike Tipton said it was a mistake to play in southern Asia in summer.
“From a safety point of view I would not have chosen Hong Kong in the first place,” Tipton, the chair of UK Sports Research Advisory Group, told The Telegraph.
Scottish fullback Stuart Hogg, to make his Lions debut against the Barbarians, admitted the energy-sapping conditions made training a challenge this week.
“I’m finding it pretty tough,” he said. “It’s massively important to take on water out here.
“Every stoppage we’ve got the strength and conditioners and the nutritionists on with the water.”
Welsh prop Adam Jones labelled the Hong Kong stopover far more demanding than training at altitude in South Africa four years ago.
“It was tough in 2009, but this is something else. I haven’t trained anywhere hotter than this.”
atlas
Guest
are you his mother? rather precious I'd have thought on that basis is any mention that may be perceived as negative re Lions or Clive out of bounds?
atlas
Guest
appears Sir Clive not aware of the current test schedules "against international opponents such as Fiji, Tonga or France who would have treated it more seriously." If he wants a Lions game today, well I'm watching Fiji play Japan right now in the PNC. Tonga may be en route to Canada for their next PNC match (and BTW, flying to Fiji or Tonga between UK and Australia not exactly as easy as a stopover in Hong Kong). France? Well they arrived in New Zealand on Thursday. Try again, Clive
Hermann Dill
Guest
Sir Clive did not do a great job as Lions head coach in 2005, we all know that. But he has a valid point this time. On another note, lets not forget (especially all ignorant kiwis) the AB:s targeted BOD in the first minute of the first test in the Lions series 2005. Just imagine if the Lions (or any other team) took out Captain Richie in the first minute in the first test - the kiwis would cry for years and call for a life-ban on the man who did the dirty work. Just remember that before you have another go at Sir Clive or The Lions.
Wilson Flatley
Guest
I thought the same thing Gavin, one of the baa-bass should have knocked an Englishman out early and set the tone. Especially when it is an invitational side and they're all "hungover". -- Comment from The Roar's iPhone app.
Roarer
Guest
Yeah, because he picked a team full of past it English players and outlooked the majority of Scots, Irish and a grand slam winning team.
Mike
Guest
*LOL* Good one...
peterlala
Guest
It will break the trip -- and be a good warm up match. At the least. And promote rugby in Hong Kong, which gave us the sevens circuit.
Gavin Melville
Roar Pro
Yup. Proper rugby touring. I still haven't seen the newspaper report telling me who broke the "can of beer" record on the flight out to Hong Kong. ...and if the Baabaas were so frought about having a beer-bonding sesh before the Engerland game, how come no one had a hangover so bad that they punched anybody?
jus de couchon
Guest
Lions lightweights. Memories I have on tour are of waking up with alcohol poisoning and running out against 15 psycopaths.
Gavin Melville
Roar Pro
That's "World Cup-winning coach 'Sir' Clive Woodward" to you. Sir Clive and the rest of the chaps all have valid points. However, 90% humidity and 30 degree heat aren't unexpected conditions in HK this time of year. So there's no point in bitching about it now. And Sir Clive had a chance to do "the Lions" his way back in 2005, when he disregarded every bit of advice from prior Lions tours to produce the biggest calamity in their history. And he was there in 98 overseeing the England "Tour of Hell", too. Ticket sales? HK's loss if they don't go to attend such a landmark event. Yup, it's a warm-up, it's worth a few bob off the sponsors, conditions aren't ideal, it may or may not be an underdone Barbarians outfit. Get on with it. It's a first outing for the Lions in as unthreatening an outing as they can get. Chance to have a trot. Be down in Oz soon.
jus de couchon
Guest
Perhaps the ultra hard gounds of S.A or the drowning muds of South N.Z are also innapropriate venues. Rugby players tolerance to bad conditions seems to be an Inverse equation to fitness.
Nick
Guest
You'd think Clive would have learned to keep his mouth shut about all things concerning the lions. His was undoubtably the worst tour of the modern lions era and he was fully to blame for it.
Billy Bob
Guest
On the contrary, Hong Kong will make Brisbane feel like home in summer.