Lethargic Lions show a worrying lack of cohesion

LIONS TOUR REPORT: Royal XV 25 The Lions 37: LIONS COACH Ian McGeechan asked his players to step up but unfortunately at the Royal Bafokeng Sports Palace in the outskirts of Rustenburg on Saturday afternoon it didn't elicit the desired response: instead several took a step back in what was a hugely flawed display from the tourists.

It would be wrong to suggest rescuing a victory was incidental in the greater scheme of performance goals – it did show some character – but the post-match disappointment far outweighed any scintilla of satisfaction gleaned from the win.

The Lions management and players tried to view the glass as half-full but the words rang a little hollow when scrutinised against the 80 minutes of fare.

The tourists’ error-rate, many of the basic variety, undermined their ambition, seeping into every facet of play and leaving their patterns in tatters. Gelling is always an issue for any scratch side in their first outing but it doesn’t legislate for the lack of cohesion the Lions displayed.

Possession was carelessly spilled time and again, the visitors racking up 14 turnovers in the first half alone.

That won’t nearly suffice – with due respect to a gallant and at times impressive Royal XV – against better quality opposition who’ll really fancy their chances of bearding these Lions.

“The errors took away any momentum,” admitted captain Paul O’Connell. “Every time we turned over ball they sent us back up the pitch. Every turnover gave them belief. They got bigger and stronger with every mistake.”

The Lions discomfort wasn’t limited purely to handling errors. They lost a couple of lineouts and even though they were dominant in the scrum, they periodically lacked control. The clearing out at the breakdown wasn’t nearly as accurate or physical as it might have been and the fringe defensive was too porous, a fact that didn’t please Shaun Edwards: especially when added to the concession of three tries.

A large chunk of the back-line play was lateral; only the outstanding Lee Byrne and Jamie Roberts showing the wit and muscularity to punch through the defensive line. Tommy Bowe acquitted himself very capably taking his try well and also coming in to make an important try-saving tackle late-on when the match was still a contest.

Shane Williams managed the same feat on the other wing in the same passage of play but the Welshman was a little off colour.

Roberts carried ball powerfully enjoying an excellent debut, giving his pack a target. The only cavil would be that the support never materialised quickly enough for him to offload.

It was impossible not to feel for Keith Earls, who endured a cringe-inducing opening 20 minutes that would have broken a young man of lesser character. How much his injury was a factor in snatching at passes only he’ll know: that opening quarter was summed up when on dropping a high ball, he belted it straight into the stands in frustration. Referee Marius Jonker didn’t call a knock-on and from the ensuing lineout the Royals scored a try. To his credit he didn’t hide and for pretty much the remainder of the match he offered a better representation of his talent, especially in defence.

Ronan O’Gara produced a typically blemish-free kicking performance (seven from as many attempts) and also tagged on the final try for good measure. It was a pretty decent effort considering that his halfback partner, Mike Blair, was another to suffer a tough day.

Up front there are a number of issues for McGeechan to ponder, namely Matthew Rees’ lineout throwing, the fact that Simon Shaw and Joe Worsley were largely anonymous, and the experiment of playing David Wallace, a late replacement for the injured Andy Powell, at number eight didn’t work. O’Connell was typically industrious and easily the stand-out forward.

There were one or two chinks of light. The bench made an impact when introduced and there were glimpses of what the Lions might be able to achieve in terms of their attacking capacity if they can hang onto the ball for long enough: at this point it’s a big “if”.

The Lions trailed 18-3 after 26 minutes, the home side grabbing tries through captain Wilhelm Koch – brilliant offload from centre Hanno Coetzee – and Rayno Barnes. Outhalf Naas Olivier kicked two penalties and a conversion.

O’Gara had kicked a penalty and then tagged on a conversion when his neat inside pass allowed Bowe to score the first Lions’ try of the tour. The Irish outhalf posted a penalty just after half-time to narrow the deficit to 18-13 but on 65 minutes the Royals showed the Lions how to take a chance when prop Bees Roux trundled over.

Riaan Viljoen kicked a great touchline conversion but the red-shirted cavalry were summoned from the bench. Byrne grabbed a superb individual try, Alun Wyn-Jones was next to cross, while O’Gara completed the try-scoring heroics in the final quarter after O’Connell’s surge: the outhalf posting all three conversions.

The final scoreline flattered the Lions but they don’t have time for too much introspection. The Golden Lions await at Ellis Park on Wednesday. The key for McGeechan and his squad is absorbing the lessons of Rustenburg rather than repeating them.

Scoring sequence: 6 mins: O'Gara penalty, 0-3; 10: Olivier penalty, 3-3; 17: Koch try, Olivier conversion, 10-3; 22: Olivier penalty, 13-3; 26: Barnes try, 18-3; 39: Bowe try, O'Gara conversion, 18-10. Half-time: 18-10. 42: O'Gara penalty, 18-13; 65: B Roux try, Viljoen conversion, 25-13; 66: Byrne try, O'Gara conversion, 25-20; 72: O'Gara penalty, 25-23; 75: Alun Wyn-Jones, O'Gara conversion, 25-30; 79: O'Gara try, O'Gara conversion, 25-37.

ROYAL XV:R Jeacocks; E Seconds, D van Rensburg, H Coetzee, B Basson; N Olivier, S Pretorius; A Buckle, R Barnes, B Roux; R Mathee J Lombard; W Koch (capt), D Raubenheimer, J Mokuena. Replacements: S Roberts for Buckle 54 mins; R Landman for Lombard 55 mins; R Viljoen for Olivier 55 mins; P van der Westhuizen for Barnes 68 mins; J Coetzee for Pretorius 68 mins; R Kember for Raubenheimer 71 mins.

LIONS: L Byrne (Wales); T Bowe (Ireland), K Earls (Ireland), J Roberts (Wales), S Williams (Wales); R O'Gara (Ireland), M Blair (Scotland); A Sheridan (England), M Rees (Wales), A Jones (Wales); P O'Connell (Ireland, capt), S Shaw (England); J Worsley (England), M Williams (Wales), D Wallace (Ireland). Replacements: P Vickery (England) for Jones 66 mins; A Wyn Jones (Wales) for Shaw 66 mins; J Heaslip (Ireland) for Wallace 66 mins; M Phillips (Wales) for Blair 66 mins; R Flutey (England) for Earls 66 mins; L Mears (England) for Rees 68 mins.

Referee: M Jonker(South Africa).