Lions will be giving it full blast against big dogs, says Horn

The Lions will give it a full blast when they bid to seal a historic first United Rugby Championship (URC) playoff berth over the next two weeks in Ireland, skipper Francke Horn says.

Thanks to a vital win over Connacht two weeks ago, the resurgent Lions have put their future firmly in their own hands as they prepare for tough matches on the road against Irish powerhouses Leinster on Saturday and Munster on May 16.

Leinster staved off a late charge from Toulon to secure a nail-biting 29-25 victory on Saturday that sees the Irish side through to the European Champions Cup final in Bilbao on May 23.

Playing on home turf in Dublin and roared on by a partisan crowd, Leinster showed flashes ‌of brilliance to hold on for the win after Toulon mounted a late comeback.

The in-form Lions stretched their winning run in the URC to an impressive six matches thanks to a clinical display against Connacht at Ellis Park.

The winning streak has pushed the Lions into third place on the URC log as the business end of the competition approaches.

“We will be going full blast for it in Ireland,” Horn said. “It’s a great challenge to be part of, and we want to see if we can play with the big dogs.

“It’s going to be a massive two weeks for us in terms of where we want to end up on the log.

“Mathematically we still haven’t qualified. You will go mad if you try to figure out where you will end up. You can only control what you can control, and those are the two games that are left.

“However, I would be very disappointed if we don’t make it, especially with where we are at the moment. We have worked hard enough and we have played some really good rugby.”

Lions coach Ivan van Rooyen said his team had shown significant growth during an exciting season.

“We’re keeping ourselves alive, which is the nice part,” he said. “Connacht are such a tough team to play against. They don’t go away. They’re physical. They’re fit.

“Now we’re touring. It’s a tough tour — Leinster, then Munster — but as we’ve been saying, at least it’s still up to us.

I think we’ve grown a lot. The past two or three years it was just not good enough, and hopefully this year it will be different
— Ivan van Rooyen. Lions coach

“In the past three seasons, we hoped for one or two results from other teams. Currently it’s up to us to decide where we are, and the feeling is different than the past two or three years.

“I think we’ve grown a lot. The past two or three years it was just not good enough, and hopefully this year it will be different.

“Two seasons ago, when we thought we had secured a top-eight spot, we slipped up in crucial games at home. We lost the last few matches and didn’t make it.

“However, I feel there has been plenty of growth since then. This time around, the feeling is a bit different, looking at where we are in our campaign and where we are heading.

“There is a sense of relief, yes, but we are not in the playoffs just yet.”