Lions have to be better, says scrum coach Redelinghuys

The Lions have a lot to improve on if they are to become more consistent, was the sobering assessment of scrum coach Julian Redelinghuys on Tuesday.

“There was a lot of work ons [against Leinster]. Scrums, penalties for and against us. In the line-out there were a few work-ons for us. It was a good score but if you dive into our performance we would say there is still a lot of small things we must do better to perform consistently.”

One might have thought after their runaway 44-12 victory over log leaders Leinster they would bask in the glory of that achievement but Redelinghuys understands the need to be on red alert this weekend.

Defending champions Munster, who are unbeaten in their past eight matches against South African opposition, are in town on Saturday and Redelinghuys needs no reminding this weekend's visitors to Ellis Park's team selection will reflect their best more accurately.

Tactically, the more pragmatic Munster will also pose different questions than their countrymen who fell short last weekend.

“Leinster play more with the ball,” observed Redelinghuys. “Munster, with their nine and 10, kick a lot more contestables, while Leinster will still look to run. Going back to field kicks and set for counter attacks or sending those kicks back will be a little different this weekend.”

The Lions, though, showed claws and kept them extended against Leinster. In the past they might have passed up the opportunity to go for the kill but they were decisive in the final act last Saturday.

Their effort on Saturday will have to be similarly enduring.

“There is a reason they won the URC last year,” said the former tighthead prop of Munster. “They played their quarterfinal, semifinal and final away last year. They found a way to win. It speaks to the way they play, the attitude and the fight they have. They are a tough team.

“They have the Irish captain, the Irish nine [and] 10 combo, but for us to have success we have to focus on ourselves.”

The Lions also have a few things going for them. They loaded their bench last week and they now have the mild makings of a “bomb squad” among their substitutes. Even after they made changes against Leinster they maintained their intensity in the scrums.

“The strength of the pack is the competition between the guys,” said Redelinghuys.

“If you look at our tightheads, we've got Ruan [Dreyer], Ase [Ntlabakanye], Ruan Smith, Beertjie [Conraad van Vuuren] and among the looseheads we've got Morgan [Naude] and JP Smith.

“These guys scrum against each other every week and make each other better. Their hardest scrumming comes in the week. In the week they push each other hard.”

The line-out, however, was one platform that came up short. Redelinghuys believes they have the personnel.

“We've got four guys who can run the system. Ruan Delport, Reinhard Nothnagel, Darrien Landsberg and Ruben Schoeman can also help out at five. Ruan hasn't had a lot of game time but it was good to see him out there against a team such as Leinster. He got a knock against the head early in the game but he fought on until, I think, the 60th minute. Willem [Alberts] had to stay on for the 80 minutes which is something for a 39-year-old,” he said about the Bok in the No 4 jersey.