Lions looking to build URC foundation as Currie Cup nears end

The Lions are looking to build a foundation for next season over their final two Currie Cup games of the campaign, starting against Western Province at Ellis Park on Saturday afternoon (kick-off 5pm).

The Lions’ United Rugby Championship campaign came to a close over the past weekend with a win against the Dragons in Wales, and they now have just two more Currie Cup matches before they head into a long pre-season.

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“Our plan is just to lay a foundation for next season and that’s why you see a few new combinations in the team, which is exciting to see,” said Lions attack coach Ricardo Loubscher.

“We are looking to take a step forward, have alignment, build on our systems and get clarity around our game model on how we want to play going forward.”

The Lions have yet to pick up a win in this seasons Currie Cup and have had three very close results in their last three outings, so they will be desperate to get a first win.

They will hope to carry the momentum from their win over the Dragons into their match against Western Province and finally break their duck.

“Looking at the Dragons game we just want to build on that momentum. We felt against the Dragons that we had a number of missed opportunities that we want to fix, and our kick-off receipts is a part of the game we really want to take a step forward,” said Loubscher.

“The aim is always to score tries and it’s exciting to see some of the players put their hands up and just our intent on attack which was a positive coming out of that (Dragons) game.”

Tough opposition

Western Province will be looking for a win of their own that could sensationally bring them back into play-off contention after they had looked down and out a couple of weeks ago.

With the two teams above them, the Pumas and Griquas up against the top two on the log this weekend, a win over the Lions would bring Province straight into the mix.

“If you look at their team they have experienced players. Juan de Jongh is one of the names that pops out. They also have some of their URC players playing and they have dangerous backs with x-factor game breakers,” said Loubscher.

“So you don’t want to give them opportunities in terms of our kicking game and making mistakes. So from our point of view it is all about making sure we are accurate in what we are doing and to use our opportunities.”