British and Irish Lions tour a brave call

THE joint decision to forge ahead with plans to stage the British and Irish Lions tour as scheduled in South Africa is a brave call which will hopefully turn out to be a big boost for the game and for the economy of our country.

A Lions series against our world champion Springboks in the UK, or Australia for that matter (as had been mooted), would just not have felt right.

The four Home Unions – England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales – touring together as a team, taking on the Springboks, All Blacks or Wallabies, is one of the most cherished sporting events across all codes.

The Lions only tour every four years, which makes it an even more celebrated occasion.

As Jason Leonard, former England prop and current chairperson of the Lions, put it: “Every British and Irish player dreams of wearing the famous red jersey and players from the southern hemisphere aspire to be part of a Lions series.

“We owe it to the current players vying for a place in both squads to ensure they can become part of Lions history.”

Whether there will be fans in the stadiums is of course another matter altogether.

The reality is that we just don’t know what the Covid-19 situation will be in South Africa during July and August, when the Lions are scheduled to tour.

Although infections are currently low, there are concerns that a “third wave” may hit the country during the winter months.

SA Rugby president Mark Alexander said this week that his organisation was in constant contact with the South African government, and that they had appealed to Sports Minister Nathi Mthethwa to allow 50% spectator entry at the stadiums.

Of course, the safety and health of all concerned should be the main priority.

It is true that sport without fans is a pretty soulless experience. We have had plenty of evidence of that all across the globe since the emergence of Covid-19.

But a Lions tour without any fans is certainly better than no Lions tour at all.