The Cat is out of the bag

The Lions are coming is now yesterday’s news. As of now the British and Irish Lions have arrived on the shores of New Zealand for what is being tagged as the mother of all rugby tours.

The schedule for the tourists includes visits to all five New Zealand Super Rugby teams and matches against the New Zealand Maori and New Zealand Provincial Barbarians. Add to that the three test matches in four weeks against the All Blacks – a team that has just won back to back Rugby World Cups and that the Lions have beaten only 6 times in 38 attempts.

It looks like a tall order for the team in red but there is hope.

Sir Ian McGeechan is a Scottish rugby oracle who was a player with the 1974 and 1977 Lions, and then head coach for the four Lions tours prior to 1989. He believes that the six games played before the first test are vital for collective understanding. “I know there is talk at the moment of shortening a Lions tour, but that’s from people who’ve never done it”, he states matter of factly as he puts rugby administrators in their place. When McGeechan toured South Africa with the Lions in 1974 they were away for four months and played 22 matches, winning 21 and drawing the last. Only 17 players were used in the four tests but the success was put down to the collective understanding of the squad.

Therefore the arduous schedule is seen as a blessing by the canny Scot and must be seen as such. It is such a great attitude to take on tour: that the hard work is to be embraced for the team to be successful. This optimistic attitude has legs because of the current English rugby renaissance and the Irish victory over the All Blacks in Chicago last year. They have a brutish forward pack who it is hoped will beat the All Blacks set piece into submission, although I am sure the coaches would take parity at scrum and line out time if it could be guaranteed.

They have a leader in Welshman Sam Warburton who lead the successful tour of Australia four years ago and he will be a player looking to make amends for the way he left the field last time he played on Eden Park. If you remember he was given a red card in the 22nd minute of the Rugby World Cup semi-final against France. He was in great form at that tournament and although he is a little short of a gallop at present his experience will be invaluable during this tour. His coach of that day, Warren Gatland, is also returning but for him it is a return to his homeland. Motivation will be high for Gatland who has had great success in the Northern hemisphere winning two Grand Slam trophies to go with his series win as the Lions’ coach in 2013.

The Irish players who have tasted victory against the All Blacks are a rare breed indeed but in Connor Murray and Johnny Sexton the Lions have two players who are capable of engineering a test victory against the men in black. Add to this the metronomic accuracy of Owen Farrell’s kicking from the tee and the wave of optimism begins to build. I subscribe to the Sir Ian McGeechan school of thought that says for the Lions team to win the series they must learn how to beat New Zealand teams in New Zealand during the six games before the first test. Easier said than done though as the All Blacks have not lost at Eden Park, the venue for the first and third tests, since 1994 and have won 44 test matches in a row. As for the Super Rugby franchises the New Zealand teams are enjoying a stellar season. No team has lost to an overseas team at home this season and the Stormers of South Africa are the only team to have tasted victory over a New Zealand franchise.

As intimidating as these statistics are we all know that the game is not played on paper and that on the day any team can win any game of rugby. Just ask the Japanese players who played South Africa at the last Rugby World Cup and tasted victory. New Zealanders understand the significance of a Lions tour with the chance to test yourself against the best from the home nations. Make sure you keep an eye on the rugby that comes out of the shaky isles in the next six weeks because although we do not know the result yet, we know the rugby will be emotionally charged with none of the players wanting to take a backward step.