Fiery Lions forwards roar to pave way for win over Sharks — Van Rooyen

An improved display at scrum time coupled with an accurate lineout display provided a solid platform for the Lions when they beat the Sharks 34-22 in Johannesburg on Saturday, coach Ivan van Rooyen said. After back-to-back wins over the Stormers in their previous two United Rugby Championship (URC) outings, the Sharks were brought back to earth by a determined Lions outfit at Ellis Park. Van Rooyen said he was proud of his team, who bounced back in fine style after being thrashed 52-17 by the Bulls in their previous URC outing at Ellis Park.

“It was not the perfect performance, but we were clearly bitterly disappointed after the last performance against the Bulls, so to walk away with five points makes us really proud, really happy,” he said. “I think we were a lot better and a lot more effective there [in the scrums]. “We had the ability to put them under a bit of pressure.

I felt there were some really good solutions today [Saturday], so I’m really proud of the players. “It’s obviously good for us to have this opportunity [to win the SA Shield], but a 110% focus will be on our process.” Van Rooyen said his team must remain fully focused for their next match against the Stormers. “The Stormers, after playing the Sharks twice, didn’t get the wins.

[paywall]

“We know how proud the Stormers are and the quality they have. “If you’re not going to be 110% ready for the Stormers, then they can absolutely tear you apart.” Lions captain Francke Horn said he was delighted his team had restored standards against the Sharks.

[/paywall]