Strong defensive effort helped Lions roar, says Van Rooyen

It was a strong defensive effort that laid the platform for the Lions to chalk up a runaway 54-17 win over Edinburgh in Johannesburg on Saturday, coach Ivan van Rooyen says.

The rampant Lions ran in eight scintillating tries in a memorable triumph over the visitors from Scotland in a United Rugby Championship clash at Ellis Park.

“We are very proud of a big defensive effort,” Van Rooyen said.

“I think our work at the collisions was decent as well. We knew that if we were good in that department they might give us one or two counterattack options, and from there I thought we were exceptional.

“I popped into the LIV golf and saw what an event like that could do for the city. It got me thinking about what the Lions could do.

“We would love to do something similar for Johannesburg. The energy and the professionalism of the event were incredible. We would love to mirror that,” Van Rooyen said.

“When you are at that level, you get the people back, you can change the economy in the area and you can make a difference. I am up for that.”

Lions captain Francke Horn said he was proud of the effort his team put in, and it was down to hard work that they were able to lift the SA Shield in front of their home crowd.

“We scored some unbelievable tries, and that comes from hard work,” he said.

“It’s not just about scoring; it’s about being there and playing off each other.

“You could see today that we are still a team with a lot of hunger. We said we need to back up our performances in the SA derbies because the race to the top eight is so tight.

“We have to keep building and building, and I think it was a solid performance to celebrate winning the SA Shield.”

Lions forward Ruan Venter, who was named man of the match, said he was grateful to have an opportunity to shine.

You can see in the way that we are playing for each other, and we have a collective goal that we are working towards

—  Lions forward Ruan Venter

“It was a pleasant surprise to receive the award,” he said.

“I was looking forward to having a go at No 4, so I am just very grateful for this opportunity.

“We knew we had to be more consistent this season. The Lions set a goal for these last four home games to get four wins out of four and 20 points, so this is the first step towards that.

“You can see in the way that we are playing for each other, and we have a collective goal that we are working towards.”

Weekend URC fixtures

Friday: Sharks v Cardiff (7pm)

Saturday: Bulls v Munster (2pm), Lions v Dragons (4.30pm), Stormers v Edinburgh (7pm)

The Herald