Pressure mounts in Johannesburg as Lions coach faces tough questions
REACTION: Lions head coach Ivan van Rooyen dispelled suggestions that there is a “disconnect” between players and coaches in Johannesburg.
The Lions suffered their eighth defeat of the current United Rugby Championship season when they went down 7-29 to the Sharks at Ellis Park on Saturday.
The first half was a tight affair as both teams threw a lot at one another but were only able to come away with a try apiece for their efforts to see them enter the break tied at 7-7.
However, like on several occasions this season, the Lions seemed to crumble under pressure in the second half with the Sharks scoring three tries to secure a vital bonus point win.
Even more worrying for the Lions is that they failed to add to their tally in the second 40.
During the post-match press conference, Van Rooyen was asked if there was a loss of confidence in the overall system and the relationship between coaches and players.
“No, definitely not,” was Van Rooyen’s answer.
“I don’t think you will see a performance like that in the first 40 if there is a disconnect.”
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#REACTION: @SharksRugby Director of Rugby Niel Powell opens up about Curwin Bosch’s latest career revival
🗣️”It is great to have him.”https://t.co/jpameFRboF— rugby365.com (@rugby365com) February 19, 2023
The Bosch factor
Van Rooyen believes the difference between his side and the Sharks on Saturday was flyhalf Curwin Bosch.
Bosch was a hive of activity as he orchestrated the Sharks’ victory.
His kicking game was outstanding and he was a constant threat on attack. His try in the 27th minute was pure class and it was his grubber that set up halfback partner Grant Williams for the score that secured the bonus point.
“I think Curwin just showed his class in the second half in terms of territory,” said Van Rooyen.
“There was a 20-minute period where tactically they just bossed us around and to recover from that you need your No.9, No.10 and No.15 to get you out of there and I think our kicking game wasn’t good enough to compete with that.”
Van Rooyen admitted that his team is still struggling to do the simple things under pressure.
“The challenge for us is to fall back to the basics and to keep it simple when the pressure is on,” the coach explained.
“When the front ball is on, we want to force it to the back and almost try and force the solution instead of playing the obvious option.
“They [Sharks] didn’t take chances in their half, they just kicked it 60 or 70 metres back and then you got to fight out of there again.”
On the missed opportunities, which included Gianni Lombard’s three poor penalty attempts at goal in the first half, Van Rooyen added: “If we managed to take that nine points and score the two obvious [try-scoring] opportunities then that is 23 points and I think you start the second half differently.
“Unfortunately, we didn’t manage to take those points.
“When you take that chance in the last 15 minutes and it doesn’t come off then it’s probably going to be seven or three points against you.”
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