Golden Lions ‘can improve’ on win against Griquas
The Golden Lions may have got their Currie Cup campaign off to a bright start against the Griquas on Friday but their coach‚ Ivan “Cash” van Rooyen‚ said they had room to improve.
The Golden Lions‚ who were the better side on a cold Friday night at Ellis Park‚ overturned a 20-19 half-time deficit into a 62-41 win.
In a single-round tournament‚ a loss could be crucial in the long run and the Griquas are already behind the eight-ball having lost two matches already.
Van Rooyen attributed his team’s nervous start to the excitement they harboured before the game started.
With an experienced campaigner like Ross Cronje at the helm‚ it was only a matter of time before they found their stride.
“It was our first 40 minutes together as a team and the players understood exactly what we wanted from them in the second half and they applied it well‚” Van Rooyen said.
“We managed to apply pressure and we were rewarded with the card and when you get a card‚ it can be costly and we capitalised on it.”
There were 103 points and 14 tries in the game‚ which spoke volumes about the porous defence on both sides.
While the Lions had the better attacking intent and execution‚ some of the five tries they conceded were soft.
However‚ they could look back on Courtnall Skosan’s hattrick‚ while up-and-coming loose-forward Hacjivah Dayimani scored a superb brace.
Young centre Wandisile Simelane also scored an exciting try but Van Rooyen said they need to exhibit more patience going forward in the tournament.
“There was a lot of excitement‚ which was expected because it was our first game and we made mistakes.
“We need to work on our patience in attack and defence but with the young team that we have‚ we’re satisfied with the result. I wouldn’t call the defence an issue but this week‚ we’ll work hard on patience‚” Van Rooyen said.