Lions chasing first home URC win of the season against Dragons

The Lions are chasing their first home win of the season when they take on the Dragons in their United Rugby Championship (URC) match at Ellis Park on Sunday afternoon (kick-off 4pm).

It has been a mixed start to the season for the Lions, winning all three of their games on the road, but losing their three home encounters, and they now have a big chance to fix that this weekend.

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The team has enjoyed a good few weeks of preparation over the international break and the team is fired up to get back down to business.

“This has been our third week of training and it’s been going really well. It has given us an opportunity to take stock of where we are, what we needed to polish and what we needed to revisit. From that point of view it’s been very good and the guys have responded well,” said Lions assistant coach Ricardo Loubscher.

“There is a great vibe in the camp. The guys are so keen to get out there on Sunday and put in a full 80 minute performance against the Dragons in front of our home fans.”

Disappointing defeat

The Lions head into the game off the back of a disappointing home defeat against the Stormers, who they were ahead of at halftime before falling away in the second half, while the Dragons come into the match off two good wins against Ospreys and Zebre.

“We have spoken about the Stormers match. In the first half we did really well, playing like we want to play and taking our chances. But we then let it slip in the second half and that’s something we want to address this weekend by putting in a complete performance,” explained Loubscher.

“We aren’t underestimating the Dragons at all. They have won three games this season, including their last two in a row, with their last a big win over Zebre. So we know the challenge they pose and we are ready for it.”

This is also the first of three games against the Dragons over the next two months, with the next two games coming in the Challenge Cup, and the Lions will be eager to lay down an early marker with a big win.

“It is important for us to get a good result over them this weekend, especially since we are playing them two more times in December and January,” admitted Loubscher.

“If we can produce a good result, they might come with something different next time. So we want to make a good impact in this first game and hopefully set a standard for the rest.”