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Force cull toothless Lions

Sat, 01 May 2010 19:10

Try scorer: Western Force flyer Scott Staniforth

Dick Muir's Lions earned themselves an unwanted Super Rugby record - the most consecutive defeats in one season - when the Western Force dismissed them with ease, winning 33-12 in Johannesburg on Saturday.

It was the hapless Lions' 11th straight defeat this season - a record they now share with the Bulls team of 2002. And on the evidence of Saturday, Muir's men will soon be the 'proud' sole owners of that record - as they are unlikely to win any games with the quality of rugby they are dishing up for the ever-dwindling crowds in the metropolis of Johannesburg.

While Force captain Nathan Sharpe was obviously happy to have started his team's three-match South African tour on a winning note, he also admitted that in large parts they were very sloppy - especially in the first half.

A more structured second half and a strong defensive effort saw them race clear in the final quarter, but it was not as convincing as the scoreline suggests.

A sorry-looking Lions captain Cobus Grobbelaar barely managed to drag out his weekly set of cliches - "we can't give up" and "back to the drawing board".

In reality, they do not belong in Super Rugby on current form.

At a sparsely populated stadium in Johannesburg, with rain creating slippery underfoot conditions, the Lions plodded from one messy mistake to the other.

Time has surely come for Lions coach Dick Muir to stop using the well-worn excuse of 'progress', as this team is performing far worse and with much less skill or intensity than in recent years. Their predecessors of 2009 won four games and the year before boasted two victories.

The Lions' options and execution were shocking and they still played with no structure - at least not any that is visible to an impartial observer. Their tactics of using slow trundling one-off runners again made them easy targets for the Force defence, who turned the ball over almost at will.

You simply have to wonder if the Lions are coached to employ the stupidly naive approach of throwing the ball around willy-nilly under pressure and trying to run from their own tryline.

The home team was saved a far bigger embarrassment by a Force team that was well below the standards - both in terms of skill and energy - they set in beating the Crusaders last week.

David Hill opened the Force's account with a penalty in the opening minutes, after prop JC Janse van Rensburg was penalised for not rolling away at the tackle. That became 6-0 when Derrick Minnie was penalised at the breakdown a minute later.

The Lions pulled three points back in the 10th minute, when Herkie slotted it from just outside the Force 22.

However, the Lions were made to pay for their indiscipline when Hill slotted the second of two penalties that were awarded in quick succession for foul play.

Referee Craig Joubert soon lost his patience with the infringing Lions and issued an official warning to the home team for repeated breakdown infringements, as Hill slotted his forth penalty for a 12-3 lead.

The game plodded along till the  34th minute, when Kruger slotted his second penalty after Force hooker Ben Whittaker played the ball from an offside position. Kruger made that 9-12 with another penalty in the 29th minute, after Force captain Nathan Sharks went offside at a line-out.

And the Force were reduced to 14 men in the 30th minute when flank Matt Hodgson was yellow carded for a professional foul, slapping the ball out of the scrumhalf's hand.

That penalty was turned into a line-out and a maul that went all wrong, but Kruger levelled the scores at 12-all in the 33rd minute when the Force were again penalised at the breakdown.

The Lions' poor discipline also cost them dearly in the 36th minute, when flank Wikus van Heerden was sent to the sin bin for exactly the same reason as Hodgson.

The Force regained the lead right on the half-time break, with wing Scott Staniforth scoring as the visitors exploited their numerical advantage - with Hodgson having returned from the bin. Hill's conversion made it 19-12 at the break.

It was much the same after the break, as both teams fumbled their way from one set piece to another, interspersed only by a string of penalties whistled by the referee.

The first points after the break came from some really sloppy defence by the Lions, who allowed the visitors to counter from deep within their own half, take the ball through numerous phases and slip half-a-dozen tackles, before flyhalf David Hill strolled over next to the uprights. He added the conversion for a 14-point lead - 26-12.

Replacement Mark Bartholomeusz added insult to injury with the Force's third try in the 74th minute - again a score coming after the Lions has turned the ball over with sloppy ball skills and then even less energetic work on defence. Hill's conversion made it 33-12.

Despite another seven minutes of error-filled efforts, neither team troubled the scoreboard and the Force could celebrate another big win.

Man of the match: Despite the occasional flash of effort, no Lions player even deserves a mention. The Force, as said, were well below last week's quality and intensity and we are going for Force flyhalf David Hill - who scored 23 of his team's points through a try, three conversions and four penalties. At least he will look impressive in the stats column.

The scorers:

For the Lions:
Pens: Kruger 4

For the Western Force:
Tries: Staniforth, Hill, Bartholomeusz
Cons: Hill 3
Pens: Hill 4

Yellow cards: Matt Hodgson (Force, 30 - professional foul, slapping the ball down), Wikus van Heerden (Lions, 36 - professional foul, slapping the ball down)

Teams:

Lions: 15 Carlos Spencer, 14 Michael Killian, 13 Deon van Rensburg, 12 Walter Venter, 11 Tonderai Chavhanga, 10 Herkie Kruger, 9 Jano Vermaak, 8 Derick Minnie, 7 Wikus van Heerden, 6 Cobus Grobbelaar (captain), 5 George Earle, 4 Nico Luus, 3 Ross Geldenhuys, 2 Charles Emslie/Hannes Franklin, 1 JC Janse van Rensburg.
Replacements: 16 Hannes Franklin, 17 Heinke van der Merwe, 18 Jacques Lombaard, 19 Justin Wheeler/Jonathan Mokuena, 20 Jacques Coetzee, 21 Jaco Taute, 22 Bernardo Botha.

Western Force: 15 Cameron Shepherd, 14 Scott Staniforth, 13 Mitch Inman, 12 Ryan Cross, 11 Nick Cummins, 10 David Hill, 9 Brett Sheehan, 8 Richard Brown, 7 David Pocock, 6 Matt Hodgson, 5 Nathan Sharpe (captain), 4 Sam Wykes, 3 Matt Dunning, 2 Ben Whittaker, 1 Pek Cowan.
Replacement: 16 Nathan Charles, 17 Kieran Longbottom, 18 Tom Hockings, 19 Ben McCalman, 20 Justin Turner, 21 Sam Harris, 22 Mark Bartholomeusz.

Referee: Craig Joubert (South Africa)
Assistant referees: Stuart Berry (South Africa), Stefan Breytenbach (South Africa)
TMO: Gerrie Coetzee (South Africa)

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