Lions won’t take Oz teams lightly

A YEAR ago the Lions surprised friend and foe with their march to the Super Rugby final.

They were the best South African team and knocked over highly-rated New Zealand opposition in the Highlanders, Crusaders, Blues and Chiefs. But in 2017 they face an altogether different challenge –Australian opposition.

And judging by what the Australian teams did in the competition last year, this really should be a walk-in-the-park for Johan Ackermann’s men.

Only the Brumbies, with 10 wins from 15 matches, performed up to scratch, but the Waratahs (eight wins), Rebels (seven), Reds (three) and Force (two) were all fairly easy pickings for the teams they came up against.

So, the feeling is that the Lions have a much easier fixture schedule in 2017 than was the case last year, when they beat the Chiefs, Blues, Crusaders and Highlanders and lost twice to the Hurricanes – once in round robin play and then in the final.

This time Ackermann’s men don’t play any New Zealand team (except if they meet them in the play-offs), but rather the Australians – the Waratahs and Reds (both at home) and the Force, Rebels and Brumbies (all away).

Ackermann, though, doesn’t want to hear a thing about his team having it more comfortable in 2017.

“The players know they have to again earn the respect they gained last year and that means they have to respect every team they come up against,” said the Lions boss.

“I’d be very disappointed if they took the teams we’re up against this year lightly.”

Ackermann has warned his players the Reds, Brumbies and Waratahs will especially be dangerous after their disappointing 2016 season.

“Those teams have a rich history and there is no doubt they wouldn’t have been very satisfied with their performances last year.

“No one in Australia will accept what happened last season and they’re all going to come back hard this year. “On top of that a team like the Reds have recruited (111-Test veteran flank) George Smith, Scott Higginbotham is back and so, too, Kane Douglas and Stephen Moore is now there as well.

“If you look at the number of players they’ve recruited, the Reds will be tough to beat.”

Ackermann, though, says it matters little who they’re going to be up against this year, as everyone will target them after their exploits in 2016 and that, in the end, their showing in the competition this year will depend largely on how well they perform as a unit.

“We have our standards and we want to perform at the level we expect to be at,” said Ackermann.

“Also, we’re going to have to show the same intensity in every match, no matter the opposition, and play with an attitude … the things that helped us enjoy a good 2016 campaign.”

The Lions, meanwhile, are hard at work preparing for the start of the competition; a date with the Cheetahs in Bloemfontein next Saturday.

Ackermann will have a near full-strength squad to pick from, including promising loosehead Dylan Smith (shoulder) and centre Lionel Mapoe (thigh) who are said to be on the road to recovery after missing much of the pre-season.

The only squad members not in the mix right now are Julian Redelinghuys (neck) and Ruan Combrinck (shoulder), the former being ruled out for the year and the latter expected back in April.

Ackermann’s final Super Rugby squad is set to be named in the coming days.