‘Your morale is down so the win was important’: Lions stick to simple script

Lions captain Jaco Visagie lauded his team's discipline after their 26-7 United Rugby Championship win over Connacht at Ellis Park on Saturday.

The win snapped a five-match losing sequence but their failure to earn a bonus point almost certainly leaves them out of contention for a top eight spot.

The Lions, however, came off a low base and they opted to slip into different mode to eke out a win.

The hosts went for a safety-first approach and drifted from the high-tempo game to which they usually expose touring teams.

“The plan was not to play inside their own half,” Visagie explained. “We managed that well.

“We went for contestables and got the 50/50s back,” said the hooker who lamented that the Lions weren't more clinical when scoring opportunities presented itself.

Visagie said the Lions were forced into a more conservative approach to keep their error rate down. He admitted they had been under the cosh and felt their efforts had gone unrewarded.

“We make mistakes and we work harder but sometimes it feels like we're in quick sand. We were more conservative to eliminate errors.

“The win was important after that losing sequence. Your morale is down so that's why the win was important also to show that we have what it takes to win matches.”

Coach Ivan van Rooyen was pleased his team stuck to the plan.

“There were fewer errors. We were more disciplined in the way we wanted to play in certain areas. We were more accurate,” he said.

“We were desperate for the win. There was discipline to what we planned in particular the zonal and defensive discipline.

“We lost three loosies in the week. We were challenged in terms of selection. It was the first time six, seven and eight played together and Bronson's [Mills] first game.”

Though the Lions' approach and lack of quality from an injury-ridden Connacht did little to elevate the game to the realm of spectacle, there were some notable individual performances.

Props Asenathi Ntlabakanye and Morgan Naude were industrious, while young flank Renzo du Plessis made his presence felt in a man of the match performance.

Scrumhalf Morne van den Berg kept Connacht under pressure around the fringes and through his testing contestable kicks, while wing Edwill van der Merwe delivered familiar menace.

Debutant centre Mills also caught the coach's eye. “I thought he was good. What's nice about him is he's got a good boot and has good skills.

“For a first game, being thrown into the deep end, he was very good.”