Lions plan to beat jet lag and Waratahs

Aeroplanes do different things to different people, and mindful of this, the Lions have put much thought into their trip to Sydney where they meet the Waratahs on Friday.

The Lions’ concerns are not conceding too much to the effects of jet lag. So they hatched a plan rooted in deception. After arriving in Sydney they will try to dupe their bodies into believing they are still operating in a South African time zone.

“Jet lag doesn’t set in if you travel one time zone per day‚” team doctor Rob Collins said.

“We are doing things to try and stop that changing. We will try and stay within the South African time zone.

“Our meal times will be [at] different times of the day and our sleeping will be at different times. It has been scientifically worked out very carefully‚” Collins said.

By the time the Lions kick off at 7.45pm Sydney time (11.45am South African time), their bodies would somehow have avoided shutdown mode.

Coach Swys de Bruin believes it is worth investing in the trickery.

“It is a Friday night game and we thought we could stay in our time zone for as long as possible. We will then adapt after the game before we go to Brisbane.”

The Lions won all three matches on Australasian soil in 2017. Crucially‚ however‚ they avoided New Zealand teams on that trip, but in 2018 they have the Hurricanes and the Highlanders to contend with after playing the Tahs and the Reds.

While the New Zealand leg is undoubtedly more daunting‚ De Bruin is not taking anything for granted against the Australians.

“They are very good‚” he said of the Waratahs.