VIDEO: Lions' take on four-week URC tours
SPOTLIGHT: The long overseas tours for the South African teams in the United Rugby Championship have recently come under scrutiny.
In the wake of the Bulls’ 23-31 defeat to Edinburgh in Round Five in Scotland, Director of Rugby Jake White addressed URC’s scheduling format.
White conceded that the four-week tour that South African teams have to undergo to Europe needs to be reviewed.
In stark contrast, the European URC sides only have to deal with two-week voyages to the Republic.
Just like the Pretoria side, the Lions returned from their month-long tour this week.
While the Bulls recorded two wins during the four weeks, the Johannesburg side returned with one win.
They managed to bag losing bonus points courtesy of some close encounters with the hosts.
Last season the Gauteng side recorded wins over Ospreys, Cardiff and Edinburgh away from home.
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When asked for his thoughts on the long four-week tour that might add extra strain to the team’s performance, Lions assistant coach Ricardo Loubscher said it is quite the opposite.
He said the tour brought the team closer together and improved their performance.
“From our point of view we love touring,” Loubscher told reporters.
“If we look at our results in the past, it shows that we are almost better away from home.
“And it again was proven in the last four weeks. Obviously, we did not get the results we wanted but it was also an opportunity to bond as a team.
“You could see the way the boys fought in every game to the last minute it is good for us.
“Then again four weeks is not ideal, but we just roll with the punches.”
Having joined the Lions from Zebre, for Richard Kriel, it was his first tour with a South African team.
The 23-year-old spent last season at the Italian side after he left the Bulls.
“This was my first four-week tour,” Kriel said.
“When I was at Zebre we used to go on a Friday, play the Saturday and come back, so I quite enjoyed it [the tour].
“We got closer as a team and had a couple of dinners together. For me, it was a surreal experience.”
The Lions, who are currently 13th on the overall URC log, will take on Zebre at Ellis Park on Saturday.
