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Bulls Duane Vermeulen (C) caught the referee’s attention during the Super Rugby Unlocked match between the Emirates Lions and the Vodacom Bulls at the Emirates Airlines Park stadium in Johannesburg on November 7, 2020 (Photo by Christiaan Kotze / AFP).
- The Lions have potentially established an important marker in terms of rediscovering their scrum mojo after a good performance against the Bulls.
- Despite its reputation as one of the strongest scrum units in the last five years, 2020 has been tough in that game.
- But skipper Elton Jantjies hopes the performance will convince his pack that they can compete with the best.
Despite never lowering his emphasis on that, there have been some suggestions in 2020 that the Lions have lost their mojo scrum.
They were the statistically worst performing scrum in this year’s truncated Super Rugby campaign and there have been some setbacks since the home rugby resumed again.
However, the Lions’ scrum against the Bulls at Ellis Park on Saturday night was so compelling that it is easily the kind of spectacle that could get them racing again, just like in Johan Ackermann’s heyday.
“It’s definitely a performance that can give us a lot of boost,” said the skipper. Elton jantjies after a narrow 25-30 loss.
“The pack really held up very well in this game. In fact, it’s one of our strengths. Much of the talk has revolved around set pieces and hitting and how we perform in those areas, but we’ve been excellent, it’s just soft moments that we have to address. “
The Lions put the pedigree Bulls scrum that included Jacques van Rooyen, Trevor Nyakane and Jason Jenkins in reverse three times, even causing the front row to go out.
He really was a borderline feather for a pack whose most experienced member is 28-year-old hooker (and former Bull) Jaco Visagie.
“It’s good that we had this game. I’ve said it before,” Jantjies said.
“There was going to be a lot of learnings. The biggest lesson I hope I have learned is that we really are good enough and that we continue to believe. Of course, there are still some areas where we can improve.”
While a youthful Lions combination can still work to play percentages better, there’s little doubt that a good effort up front adds a lot of value to an attack that’s already shooting.
“At the end of the day, there is real pressure on that field and you have to put a platform first,” said Ivan van Rooyen, head coach.
“We have already scored some blinders in Super Rugby Unlocked and we have also scored some good attempts in this game. That was because of the pressure we created and we can continue to do so, with or without the ball in hand.”
That was no more apparent than in preparation for the Burger Odendaal center’s first try, where patient phase play and a brilliant comeback from No. 8 Len Massyn saw fullback Gianni Lombard make a fine-angle run and fired a goal pass. sparkly.
There was also an impressive score from talented midfielder Wandisile Simelane, who stepped up and essentially crawled over the line after a lightning counterattack from wing Courtnall Skosan.
“We turned things around after we got together under the posts when the Bulls scored points. It was good to see that plan come together. It showed that we are adaptable,” Jantjies said.
“Hats off to the guys in preparation for that attempt.”
