Dobson drops some handy tips for Springboks
REACTION: Stormers head coach John Dobson has pin-pointed the British and Irish Lions’ vulnerable areas following their match on Saturday.
The British and Irish Lions recorded a whitewash over three South African franchises – Lions, Sharks and Stormers.
The Johannesburg Lions suffered 14-56 defeat to the B&I Lions, while Sharks were beaten 7-54 and 31-71.
The Stormers were not spared as they suffered a 3-49 loss to the tourists at the Cape Town Stadium on Saturday.
Despite the scoreline, Dobson’s troops put in a good fight in the opening 30 minutes of the match.
Speaking after the defeat, Dobson revealed some B&I Lions’ weaknesses that can be exploited by the Springboks during the Test series.
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“Even we as the Stormers – fielding a provincial B team against an international selection – I think we got some maul return, certainly an area which the Springboks can target,” Dobson said.
“I think we did really well at scrum time and got a scrum penalty or two.
“That’s probably the areas your want to focus on. I think we didn’t execute all our contestables as we would have liked but I think there’s an opportunity there.”
He added: “As we got more tired, we slowed down our line speed and we kicked poorly and against the B&I Lions back three it’s really difficult to defend. So the springboks will have to plug on with their contestable plan.
“I do think the Springboks are on the right track, but you have to be accurate against these chaps.”
Commenting on their performance, Dobson said: “No one can fault the effort of the team and the guts they showed.
“Prior to the match we were in need of a loosehead, who hasn’t had Covid in the last 30 days, and luckily that came in the shape of Leon Lyons and Dian Bleuler
“It was an amazing opportunity for guys like Dian Bleuler, Thomas Bursey, Cornel Smit, Lee-Marvin Mazibuko and many more to gain some experience.
“They showed a lot of character and effort which is a positive for us.”
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