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Lions coach Ivan van Rooyen was happy with the improvements on defence that the Lions have made over recent games, including against the Sharks who they only let in for two late tries. Picture: Lefty Shivambu/Gallo Images
The impressive improvement made by the Lions in defence was a particular highlight of their superb 38-14 hammering of the Sharks in their United Rugby Championship (URC) derby over the past weekend.
In contrast to previous seasons, the Lions have been pretty leaky on defence in the URC over the current campaign, conceding 34 tries over 11 games so far, to let in slightly more than three tries a match on average.
Heading into their second derby of the season against the Stormers at Ellis Park in mid-February, the Lions stepped it up in defence and having conceded five tries against the Cape side in Cape Town in December, managed to only shift two at home in securing a good win.
They, however, slipped up in their next game against the Bulls at Loftus, allowing the hosts to run in five tries, so they were desperate to improve in that department going into the Sharks match.
It was then almost a faultless display from the Lions as they impressively thwarted the usually free scoring visitors, and it looked like it might just be the second match of the season (after their 10-9 win over Zebre in Italy), that they would keep a team from crossing the whitewash.
However, with a monster 38-0 lead heading into the closing stages, the home team went to sleep and allowed the Sharks in for two converted tries in the final two minutes.
Despite that slight lapse after a top performance throughout, Lions coach Ivan van Rooyen said he was happy with the defensive effort, something his side had been working hard on recently.
“It has been a big work-on (defence). It wasn’t the fact that we didn’t work on it hard enough. We just didn’t work well and smart enough in the system. I think we’ve been pretty clear on the expectation in the system,” explained Van Rooyen.
“The guys have responded very well and the decision-making has really improved there. That obviously complements the defence then.”
Lions captain Francke Horn said that the players were thrilled to have made a big response after a disappointing result against the Bulls, and that they had been targeting a fast start to the match, as well as an improvement in the set pieces.
“The whole week we spoke about a good start. Last weekend (against the Bulls) we were down 17-0 in the first 10 minutes, so to see the intensity and physicality that we brought in the first 10 minutes today (Saturday) was really rewarding. The tries we scored rewarded our hard work and effort,” said Horn.
“The playmakers, especially the backs, put us in the right areas of the field and we got away almost every time with points. So I am really proud of that effort and there was a real feeling of hunger and focus, so credit to the guys.
“The set piece in these conditions is always important. Last week (against the Bulls) we felt as a forward unit that we let the backs down. I think we fixed that really well this week. Not just scrums and lineouts but the work rate around the ruck or getting around to carry and be physical.”
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