THIS SHOULDN’T BE ALLOWED, IT DOESN’T SIT WELL WITH ME

Flanker Curry can’t wait to get stuck into the Boks on his Lions Test debut

RASSIE ERASMUS shouldn’t be allowed to play the role of water carrier on Saturday. That is my opinion. The regulations state that head coaches are not allowed in the technical zone. The loophole here is that Erasmus does not carry the title of head coach. He is head coach in everything but name. He is at all the press conferences, all the training sessions and does all the sparring with Warren Gatland in the media. The Springboks have found a loophole here and it doesn’t sit comfortably with me. If Steve Hansen was the director of rugby for the All Blacks, nobody would expect to see him running on the water. Also, most of the time Erasmus is not even carrying water on to the field. I’ve got no doubt that it’s been raised this week and will get looked at by World Rugby.

It may be very difficult to stop because technically South Africa are not breaking the protocol. If South Africa are able to prove that he’s not the head coach, there may not be an awful lot of action that can be taken in such a short period of time. It’s hard to change these things on the hoof. There’s normally a protocol to change a protocol. Even if they want to do something about it, they may have to wait until November!

TOm CurrY has no fear of the Springboks ahead of his Lions Test debut on Saturday. The flanker, only 23 but already an established figure on the international stage, will start at openside against South africa in Cape Town four years after his england bow as a teenager.

Curry’s second, third and fourth caps came against the Boks in 2018 and, after playing with many South africans at Sale, he is not worried in the slightest about the challenge that awaits him.

‘i wouldn’t say there are too many secrets to how they want to play,’ Curry tells Sportsmail. ‘They love physicality. They want to use their kicking game and physicality in their carries.

‘They’re physical people in every scenario — it’s not just the first 20, it’s the full 80 minutes.

‘it’s how much you can be on it in every single play and every single contact of the game. That’s massively important. it sounds obvious but it’s true.’

Over his 33 caps for england, Curry has found his groove in big build-ups like this.

early in Test week, he watches footage of set-plays, understanding trigger moves, analysing subtle differences like where the opposing scrum-half stands around set-pieces, and then spends time on power exercises in the gym.

This Tuesday was the Lions’ big rugby session — full of niggle and bite — which allowed Curry to open his lungs and feel ready for battle.

Yesterday was a day off, and now preparations ramp up for Saturday’s first Test. From today only one thing will be on his mind.

‘Your body only does what your brain tells it to,’ he explains. ‘i simplify it a lot. i don’t need to think about the game the night before, as i’ll end up overthinking.

‘i know my tackling, my hands, are going to be good as i’ve practised that earlier in the week. all that matters is how quickly i get off the ground.

‘if you isolate that sole movement, what is there to be nervous about? it’s just getting up off the ground.’ Curry has loved his first Lions tour. From being taught to DJ by Josh Navidi alongside prop Tadhg Furlong, in a duo named Scrum and Bass, to his chaotic first match against the Sharks.

‘it was the whole day,’ said Curry, a Land rover ambassador. ‘Covid hit us. Was the game on or off? The team was announced on the bus. it was a bit of a circus but, for some reason, i thought it was really special. The adversity allowed us to come together as one. Whatever happens, happens, just throw yourselves at it.’

in that spirit, he cannot wait to resume battle with friend Faf de Klerk, the Springboks’ World Cup-winning scrum-half and his Sale team-mate. ‘it is always competitive, isn’t it?’ he smiles, thinking of their first skirmish when South africa a beat the Lions last Wednesday.

‘Hopefully i can reduce the amount of chat i get when i get back to Sale, and i get some ammunition to go back at him!

‘There was some rubbish chat he gave me before the tour when we beat Harlequins, saying it would be the last game i would win this season! Very cringey!’

De Klerk was in the South africa team who beat england 32-12 in the 2019 World Cup final — and he let Curry know about it back in Cheshire. Curry’s biggest lesson from that night in Yokohama? ‘You’ve got to perform in big games,’ he says. ‘There’s no performing one week and then not the other.

‘if you play well one week, it doesn’t mean you have any right the next week.’

On that note, strikingly, Curry feels no jitters ahead of the next biggest match of his life so far.

‘i wouldn’t say i’m nervous,’ he concludes. ‘if you have no more to give, what’s to be nervous about? i want to get as excited as possible for the game. This is extremely fun and i love it.’ Tom Curry is a Land Rover ambassador. Follow the Land Rover Lions Adventure @LandRoverRugby on Twitter #LionsAdventure