'Build on it': Lions set tone for strong second half of the season

Although its early days it seems like the Lions seem to have roared back into form on Saturday with a 49-31 victory over Ulster at Ellis Park, giving coach Ivan van Rooyen plenty to smile about.

After a tough start to the season that saw them suffer three defeats, the Lions have now bounced back with wins over the Scarlets and Ulster.

The result against Ulster is particularly significant given that the Irish side entered the contest unbeaten, having recorded a comfortable win over the Bulls in Belfast and a victory over a Springbok-laden Sharks team in Durban.

“We knew we had to lift our game because Ulster had beaten two good South African teams in the Bulls and Sharks, home and away – they showed their class there,” said Van Rooyen.

“So for us to manage to get five points, obviously we’re happy with that. I’m even more proud of the work and how we did it. I think we can really build on that.”

The Lions found themselves trailing by two points at half-time but produced a powerful second-half performance, eventually outscoring Ulster seven tries to five.

“We were creating the right pictures in that first half. We had unbelievable sets on both defence and attack,” Van Rooyen explained.

“If you look at the work we did in that final defensive set before half-time – it was inches in the corner – otherwise, we could have prevented that try. That shows how hard we are working.

“At half-time, we were quite technical in our talk. We knew we could put them under pressure if we were a little more accurate.”

The Lions now take a month-long break before returning to face the Bulls in a South African derby at Loftus Versfeld at the end of November.