RUGBY LIONS: Southern Kings 8, Lions 20:THIS GAME did little for rugby, a contest with a nasty undercurrent where the home side periodically overstepped the boundaries of legitimate aggression. It was a pity because when they kept it on the edge, the Southern Kings, a team thrown together less than two weeks ago, gave the Lions their most serious physical test before a crowd of 35,800 at the beautifully appointed Nelson Mandela Bay stadium.
They hit rucks and tackles with a ferocity that knocked the visitors out of their stride. Derick Kuun inspired his pack by deed and it was a challenge picked up by every one of their players and that extended to the backline. The Kings complained about Nigel Owens but the Lions wouldn’t have been too enamoured with the officiating for different reasons.
Lions coach Ian McGeechan will have been pleased with the sixth straight tour victory but concerned at losing players like Euan Murray and James Hook to injury, the latter not seriously. Ronan O’Gara played virtually the entire match at the epicentre of the verbal exchanges that pockmarked the mini-flare-ups.
He kicked his goals, made one try-saving tackle and it was from his cross-kick that Ugo Monye scored his try. Keith Earls made some wonderful breaks, while Luke Fitzgerald ran some good lines, but once again the forwards dominated the patterns.
Donncha O’Callaghan was part of a pack that increased its intensity and physicality after the break and while Joe Worsley struggled on the deck at the breakdown he put in a huge display, with and without the ball; so too Andrew Sheridan, Simon Shaw and Nathan Hines.
The Lions had a decision to make virtually from the first whistle; they could either be bullied physically or refuse to take the cheap shots and dispense some justice of their own. The match officials seemed oblivious to the late and high hits.
Southern Kings centre Frikkie Welsh was on a one-man mission, in three of his early tackles guilty of not using the arms, including a gratuitous late hit on Gordon D’Arcy that left the Irish centre requiring treatment. He was not alone as the tourists lost prop Euan Murray (sprained ankle) after seven minutes and outhalf James Hook after 12; the latter was taken off as a precaution after suffering a knock to the head.
The home side were looking to soften up the tourists at every opportunity, most of it legitimate and successful, especially at ruck time where the Southern Kings physicality and the absence of a genuine number seven in a red shirt, rendered Lions scrumhalf Mike Blair’s life a misery. It affected his game hugely.
The lineout was another unproductive area, Ross Ford’s accuracy letting him down although the Scottish hooker’s performance around the pitch was impressively robust. Southern Kings outhalf Jaco van der Westhuyzen gave his side the lead after just a minute with a beautifully struck penalty, an advantage they’d enjoy through the first quarter.
The home side were the more inventive, the Lions sticking to a pretty one-dimensional script of sending Andy Powell and Andrew Sheridan trundling into contact; it suited the Southern Kings perfectly as they mustered numbers for some gang-tackling that was aggressively effective.
However van der Westhuyzen stepped across the boundary of legitimately hard tackling with a late hit on Riki Flutey that earned a trip to the sin bin on 19 minutes. During his absence the Lions might have scored two tries, the first following a wonderful counter-attack from Earls that saw him weave past several tacklers but his pass to Fitzgerald drifted forward.
Minutes later the same pair were involved but this time the young Munster fullback’s flicked overhead pass – he took a thumping hit from Wylie Human for his troubles – went forward. The Lions finally achieved parity on the scoreboard when O’Gara, a replacement for Hook, posted a penalty from 20 metres.
The Irishman then saved his team after a wonderful Kings’ counter-attack, O’Gara pulling off a wonderful tackle from behind on Human with the line beckoning. Still the Lions looked pretty inept in terms of their patterns and van der Westhuyzen was given a chance to regain the lead but missed for the second time in three attempts.
The Lions began the second half with more aggression, cohesion and patience. They recycled ball, protecting it more effectively to reduce turnovers at the breakdown. The mutual antipathy between the teams never really diminished despite referee Owens’ warnings. The Welsh official allowed players in from the sides at rucks, rarely picked up obstruction, didn’t consistently demand that players be on their feet playing the ball: it was a real mishmash of interpretations that frustrated both teams.
O’Gara kicked a penalty and then on 50 minutes his cross-kick gave Monye the chance to secure the touchdown for the try. The outhalf added the touchline conversion, before hitting the post with a long-range penalty. The Lions managed a second try, when Owens finally lost patience with the home side’s frequent transgressions and walked between the posts on 69 minutes.
O’Gara converted to establish a 20-3 lead but the home side enjoyed the final word in this contest with their flanker Mpho Mbiyozo, part of an outstanding backrow, crossing close to the corner for a deserved try.
The niggle between the teams continued after the final whistle with a number of Lions reluctant to shake hands with their rivals.
SCORING SEQUENCE:1 min: van der Westhuyzen penalty, 3-0; 25: O'Gara penalty, 3-3. Half-time: 3-3. 44: O'Gara penalty, 3-6; 50: Monye try, O'Gara conversion, 3-13; 69: penalty try, O'Gara conversion, 3-20; 72: Mbiyozo try, 8-20;
SOUTHERN KINGS:T Mangweni; W Human, F Welsh, De Wet Barry, M Turner; J van der Westhuyzen, F Hougaard; J Engels, D Kuun (capt), R Vermeulen; M Wentzel, R Skeate; M Mbiyozo, S Tyibilika, D Nell. Replacements:B Fortuin for Welsh (7-14 mins); D Greyling for Vermeulen (10 mins); D du Preez for Engels (41-51 mins); J Fowles for Hougaard (41 mins); M Stick for Human (54 mins).
LIONS:K Earls (Ireland); U Monye (England), R Flutey (England), G D'Arcy (Ireland), L Fitzgerald (Ireland); J Hook (Wales), M Blair (Scotland); A Sheridan (England), R Ford (Scotland), E Murray (Scotland); S Shaw (England), D O'Callaghan (Ireland, capt); N Hines (Scotland), J Worsley (Scotland), A Powell (Wales). Replacements:A Jones (Wales) for Murray (7 mins), R O'Gara (Ireland) for Hook (12 mins), M Rees (Wales) for Ford (64 mins), S Williams (Wales) for Monye (64 mins). Sin bin: J van der Westhuyzen (19 mins); R Skeate ( 64 mins).
Referee:N Owens (Wales).
