Lions need a dose of cold reality
Of all the things said in the wake of the Lions’ umpteenth Vodacom Super Rugby loss, this one against the Chiefs, coach John Mitchell’s remark about a “culture of losing” was the most telling.
We can talk all day about the lack of respect for the ball, the failure to protect possession and the almost criminal neglect of basic skills, but when you’re in the dwang as much as the Lions are, this culture counts for more than anything. The psychosis of defeat has become part of the Lions’ DNA – they don’t know how to win because they have forgotten how to.
That’s how far things have fallen. The other issue, again alluded to by Mitchell, is the failure of some players to stand up and be counted. The coach has given every half-decent journeyman in Joburg a crack, but the reality is that the playing resources are scant. Some journeyman-type players are performing admirably, but they remain journeymen.
For all the derring-do of Doppies La Grange, Lionel Mapoe and Jano Vermaak, the Lions lack a single player with the X-factor. Other teams have four of five.
Mitchell isn’t to blame for this. He inherited both this squad and the “losing culture”, although he is unlikely to have known how severe these failings were until this year’s tournament. The results may not be pretty, but the Lions are unquestionably a better side than a year ago. They play with more structure, their set-piece play is solid and they have tightened up what used to be the most porous defence in Super Rugby. But this is not enough.
Of course it is time to go shopping. The famous Lions chequebook hasn’t done much more than sign Mapoe and Butch James – who can’t get to Joburg fast enough – and it’s now time for the promises of money men Ivor Ichikowitz and Robert Gumede to translate into action.
The reality is that the Lions hit the road in a fortnight with the probability of returning home empty-handed. Hopes of a mid-table placing are misplaced and need to be replaced with a dose of cold reality.
It’s not minor repairs that are required, but a full-blown overhaul. – Clinton van der Berg, SuperSport communications manager (reposted with kind permission).
Original post: http://blog.player23.co.za/blog/lions-need-dose-cold-reality