Leonard: Boks will be brutal in warm-ups

BRITISH & Irish Lions chairman Jason Leonard is expecting the Springboks to prepare for this summer’s Test series with some X-rated warm-up matches to make up for their lack of game time.

The three-times Lions prop has been at the centre of trying to get the trip on the road with Covid at high levels throughout South Africa but plans on actual venues are still up in the air.

The South Africans have not played an international since beating England 32-12 in the World Cup final in Yokohama in 2019 and will be going into the series cold.

But Leonard, who went on the 1993, 1997 and 2001 tours as a player, says the Springboks will be warming up in the only way they know how.

He said: “They are planning to play some warm-up games as well and once the bio environment has been created, knowing the South African mentality they will have some internal matches which will be pretty tasty I would imagine.

“I can imagine a Possibles v Probables game and I would pay money to watch that – that would be a right tear-up. We know there are going to be a couple of warm-up games for them, the same as us.”

The tourists are deter

to keep to a scheduled trip to South Africa even if it means playing matches in a limited number of venues to maintain bio-security.

Leonard insists he has had no negative feedback from players about traveltour ling to a country where Covid is rampant.

He added: “We spoke to the captains at the beginning of the year and their first instinct was they just wanted to play. And they said it is the Lions, they would play in Timbuktu!

“We said it might be behind closed doors and they said that is what we have been doing. You are playing against the world champions, you don’t need motivation for that.”

■ Warren Gatland has visited Guernsey as the Lions consider using the Channel Islands for a premined training camp in June. The Lions are also exploring the option of staying on Jersey.

Head coach Gatland was given permission to visit the island “alone and under tight restrictions” in light of Guernsey’s Covid restrictions.

Gatland was not required to isolate, with director of public health Dr Nicola Brink saying it was “a short visit over two days that was tightly controlled”.

The Lions play their first game in South Africa against the Stormers on July 3.