Local press write off ‘ordinary’ Lions

THE BRITISH and Irish Lions received mixed reviews from the South African press following Saturday’s scrappy 26-23 win over Western Province in Cape Town, one outlet preaching that while the Lions have good fans, they’ve “pretty ordinary” players.

Some have also completely misread Ian McGeechan’s selection policy, which is a very simple one: every British and Irish Lion gets a fair chance to prove himself before Test selection, though some of the SA press seem to think that the canny Scot has already divided his squad into midweek ‘Dirt trackers’ and Saturday ‘Test’ sides.

Liam del Carme of the South African Sunday Times wrote that it must be disconcerting to the tourists that “their Saturday side continue to resemble dirt trackers”. Clearly he is taking poetic license in this statement as McGeechan has reiterated that each player will be given a fair crack of the whip on one of the shortest Lions tours in history, a 10-match odyssey.