Sloppy Lions put through ringer
COMMITTED BLUES WIN AT ALTITUDE Umaga’s men put on a late show at deathly silent Ellis Park.
The Blues had refused to be intimidated by the high-altitude conditions, coach Tana Umaga revealed at the weekend, after they earned a 38-35 victory over the Lions at Ellis Park.
The Lions led 21-10 at the break, and they were 35-24 ahead with less than 10 minutes to play, but the visitors stunned the 14 032 crowd by scoring the winning try after the hooter had gone.
“We talked a bit about the altitude coming over here and the travel was a bit interrupted, but this group don’t make excuses,” said Umaga.
“For some guys it was a first run at Ellis Park at altitude, but they said they can’t change it, so they just went out and worked for it.”
In terms of their performance, Umaga admitted it was error-ridden, but he felt the heart and character they had showed rated it among their best during his time with the team.
“We certainly didn’t make it easy for ourselves. The Lions didn’t make it easy for us either,” he said.
“Our plan was that we wanted to stay in touch, the players wanted it ... they showed the hunger and one could see it in the second half.”
Dominating possession in the second half, the Blues kept pushing forward, and the Lions’ solid defence eventually wilted under the unceasing wave of attacks.
“We kept pushing them and from a coach’s point of view we shouldn’t have played as much as we did, but they really wanted it that badly,” Umaga said.
“The Lions have meant a lot to South African rugby with the way they have performed and are enjoying the way they are playing, and that is something we are also trying to do because that’s what the game is all about.”