Big decisions for Ackermann
The Johannesburg side beat the Sharks 37-10 at Ellis Park on Saturday to secure a home quarterfinal and leap to the top of the combined standings after 15 rounds.
The Lions play the Southern Kings in Johannesburg next weekend before ending the league phase with a match against the Jaguares in Argentina. Maximum points from both of those games will see them end the league phase of the competition as log leaders, which will also secure them a potential home semifinal and home Final if they should get that far.
However, Ackermann said that he might be leaving some players at home when they travel to Buenos Aires, which might hamper their chances of finishing at the top of the table.
"There is still some tough decisions to make," said Ackermann. "We still have to play overseas a week before the play-offs, so we will have to assess it after the next game [against the Southern Kings] to see where we are and how important that game [against the Jaguares] will be.
"Maybe we don't send some players because the travelling is quite demanding or maybe we go and give it a shot.
"At this stage we are just happy with the victory [against the Sharks]."
Ackermann praised his team for putting in a fantastic all-round performance to thump the Sharks.
"Defensively the guys were really good and then we finished off the opportunities that we got. We also missed a few, but you will always take 27-0 [lead at half-time] to put a lot of pressure on the opposition.
"They [Sharks] suddenly had to take more risks. We knew that if we could start well in the second half that would probably be the game and luckily we did," he added.
Despite the victory, Lions captain Jaco Kriel said they let themselves down a bit in the latter stages of the second half.
"The guys really played well together and we created a lot of opportunities and we actually finished them so that was good," said Kriel.
"We told ourselves at half-time that the game was not over. As you know, the Sharks are a quality side and they can bounce back every time.
"We had a good 50-60 minutes and then we took our foot off the peddle and let the Sharks back in and you can't let that happen in a Super Rugby game."
Kriel said that some of his teammates were unaware that they secured a spot in the play-offs after the game.
"Most of the players in the changeroom did not even know that we secured a play-off spot because we just take it week by week.
"We are grateful for the win and to get five points was a bonus, especially against the Sharks," Kriel added.
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