Johannesburg - “IF you compare individual to individual, I reckon the four South African teams (Bulls, Lions, Sharks and Stormers), have probably got more raw talent than all those teams. The difference is, their (the European teams) consistency and their attention to detail and the execution of that.”
That was Ivan “Cash” van Rooyen’s frank assessment after his team returned from Europe after the opening four rounds of the United Rugby Championship (URC) earlier this month. During the tour, the Emirates Lions beat Zebre, fell flat against Scarlets, came desperately close to beating Glasgow, and were punished against Ulster.
It was by no means the perfect tour – not even close – and the Joburgers were often guilty of losing control of their game plan and faculties with silly errors in attack and defence. Van Rooyen would be the first to admit that but nonetheless, the Lions mentor also revealed his belief, in an interview with Independent Media last week, that there were also brief moments when the team clicked, and cohesion resulted in some exciting play.
Said the Lions coach: “There have been glimpses – I don’t want to call it excellence – of the kind of stuff that can make you contenders, and the stuff that, if you can repeat it, you can compete for championships.
“The trick for us,” the coach continued, “is to get the difference between that and when we are not at that level, smaller. Currently, when we do get something wrong, it is quite expensive. We tend to concede points, whether it is three, five or seven. We tend to force it a little bit in the opposition 22 and concede ball.
“If you look broadly, our kicking game is a lot more consistent – it was evident against Glasgow and Ulster. Our defensive pressure and physicality were, at stages, unbelievable. It is just to replicate that and keep it consistent and for everyone to understand it and do that for 80 minutes.
“The biggest challenge is the different pictures with subtle changes every week. You could get away with it in the Currie Cup, or against local competition. Whereas when you play against the Scarlets, where I felt we were just not good enough – everyone in our squad will tell you that – and where we played against four or five British & Irish Lions, when you make a bad read or error on defence, they capitalise …
“They don’t do magical stuff; they just do good things over and over.”
It is no secret that the Lions have had a tough season, punctuated by a woeful display in the Currie Cup, where they finished last. After the tournament, there was speculation that Van Rooyen’s job was on the line, and that he would be replaced. Instead, the union kept faith in the 39-year-old coach and co-opted a new team to back him up.
Albert van den Berg (forwards and line-outs coach); Ricardo Laubscher (backline, attack and skills coach); former Lions favourite - the man beloved as Mossie - Jaque Fourie (defence coach); along with scrum coach Julian Redelinghuys and Van Rooyen at the helm, are the men that have been entrusted to perform the “trick” the head coach mentioned.
This new think-tank only had limited time before the URC to impose their philosophy on the team, but with a month of training coming up in Doornfontein, the incremental gains might be more noticeable the next time the Lions take the field.
“I think it has been great,” Van Rooyen enthused, when asked about his new colleagues. “We basically had two weeks to prepare as a new team, so we kind of saw it as a six week development phase.
“Unfortunately, Jaque missed those first few weeks due to Covid restrictions, so his first session was on tour. It is evident to see while we were playing – in the team movement, in the changeroom, the difference between where we were and where we are currently. There has been great growth in the structures, great growth in players taking responsibility and understanding how we want to play and what they need to do.
“I am not saying anything negative about the previous coaching structure but these guys do have international experience. They have coached all over the world, they’ve coached at an extremely high level. I think you can see and feel it.”
Van Rooyen also unabashedly revealed what he thinks each coach brings to the team.
“Ricardo, obviously, brings a wealth of experience – he has coached locally, he has coached in France, he has coached at the Boks. He is a typical attacking coach, which is good. There are some definite similarities to (former Lions head coach) Swys (de Bruin) there.
“Then, Albert … he has played for South Africa, he played 51 Tests or something ... He brings good basic structure, and his organisational side is very good.
“Then Jaque Fourie, is Jaque Fourie. “I had the privilege to play Lions Under-19 rugby with him and I think the biggest compliment from me is that he is still the same guy; with all the experience and being a legend himself; that is what he brings to the team – being himself. He brings a great energy to the team.”
The Lions will restart their URC campaign at the end of November with two matches at Emirates Airline Park, first against Welsh franchise Cardiff Rugby and then the mighty Munster of Ireland and will resume their preparations in earnest from early next week. Much has been made of the various conditions that the SA sides will and have faced, including synthetic pitches abroad, and Van Rooyen agrees that it will be in play again for those two encounters, but this time in a reversal of expectation.
“Altitude is definitely going to play a factor,” said Van Rooyen of facing European opposition at Ellis Park on November 28 and the again on December 4.
“I reckon, they (Cardiff and Munster) will probably kick more, because the ball flies a bit further. They will increase their kicking game to put us under pressure and that forces you to slow the game down from set-piece to set-piece.
“One of the other realities, however,” Van Rooyen admitted, “is that every single (European) team is really well conditioned. They are athletes, they’re fit, they’re ready, so a team like Munster will probably back their fitness and try and play their normal game as well.”
The upcoming games will then offer an important measuring stick as to how far the team has come in recent months, and what they need to do to play a full 80 minutes of winning rugby.