It required a stern halftime team talk to fire the Lions up for a second-half fightback, which resulted in them edging Leinster 27-26 in a hard-fought showdown at Ellis Park on Saturday, coach Ivan van Rooyen said.
The Lions trailed 19-17 at halftime in an opening round United Rugby Championship showdown which kept fans on the edge of their seats until the final whistle in Johannesburg.
Van Rooyen will be keen for his team to take their winning momentum into Saturday’s second-round clash against Welsh Outfit the Ospreys at Ellis Park.
“We were in two minds defensively in the first half,” Van Rooyen said.
“Part of that was us not being effective, but some of it was also decent attack from Leinster.
“We didn’t stop momentum, and when they get momentum against you, they are world-class.
“There were some harsh words at half-time, and the guys responded well.
“In the second half, we stopped momentum a lot earlier and that allowed us to apply pressure a little bit differently.”
Van Rooyen said the Lions’ bench and flanker Siba Qoma had provided the much-needed spark for a Lions comeback.
“You will never beat Leinster with 15 guys [you need the bench] because they are too good an outfit,” he said.
“Everyone made a difference, but especially the front row, SJ Kotze, Morné Brandon and RF Schoeman, and Siba managed to help swing the momentum.
“Siba was exceptional in physicality and in collision.
“JC Pretorius brought a bit of a spark.
“The forwards made a big difference when they came on.”
Van Rooyen was pleased with what he saw from the Lions debutants.
“It’s nice for Hyron Andrews to get on; he strengthens our lineout immensely,” he said.
“Boeta Chamberlain covers 10 and 15 and is deceptively quick.
“Boan Venter strengthens your set-piece a lot, and we are excited about what he can do.
“I was especially excited for the two young ones, Ethan Adams being 20 and Zian Cilliers being 21.
“It was awesome for them to get their first cap.
“I hope it’s the start of something special.
“It was definitely a physical game, so there are sore bodies.
“It sounds very romantic playing at 1.30pm, but the reality of the conditions hits you from kick-off.
“The boys showed great character throughout to get the job done.”
Lions captain Francke Horn praised his team for sticking to the task against the Irish visitors.
“We are relieved,” he said.
“There were moments that we were really good and moments that weren’t good enough.
“We wanted to put up a better performance but rather win and work on it than lose.
“I am proud of the guys sticking it out and making sure we got the win.
“Behind the posts you get a message [from the coaches] and the boys executed well,” he said.
“The soft moments weren’t great and the second half was quite an arm wrestle. I’m very glad we found a way.”
This week’s URC fixtures:
Friday: Edinburgh v Stormers. Saturday: Lions v Ospreys, Sharks v Leinster, Munster v Bulls.
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