Van Rooyen is a frustrated Lions coach

CURRIE CUP REACTION: Ivan van Rooyen is a frustrated Lions coach after his side missed a golden opportunity to secure a home seminal in this season’s Currie Cup campaign.

After it was announced that the final-round fixture between Western Province and the Sharks was cancelled due to CIVID-19 protocols, the Lions needed a win against an understrength Bulls side to finish in the top two.

Despite starting the game well, the Lions went on to lose 15-22 at Loftus Versfeld on Wednesday in a match which they failed to score a try in.

Instead of playing at Ellis Park for the semifinals, the Lions will now head back to Pretoria next week to face the Bulls.

“We had some good opportunities and we didn’t take them,” Van Rooyen told reporters after the game.

“We made crucial errors at crucial times, so I’m obviously disappointed with the result. But we got 10 days to go and fix it and come back to Loftus and be ready.”

The Lions coach added. “I think we created a lot of opportunities and part of the frustration is that we didn’t capitalise on it.

“The momentum went for us and against us. In terms of set-pieces, it was ok to know that there were enough positives to build on. The defence was good, and the attack wasn’t that good.

“There is a lot of stuff to work on and a lot of stuff to improve on, but enough to get us excited.”

Van Rooyen said that they did not talk about the WP v Sharks cancellation.

“It’s not in our control. What was in our control was the way we played and we feel we could have been better,” Van Rooyen added

“We were not clinical enough and as I said before, there are enough positives to look forward to next week and there are more than enough things to work on.”