Can McGeechan mastermind a repeat of 1997?

All true rugby fans will be looking forward with great anticipation to the month of June. The British and Irish Lions will tour South Africa playing ten matches including 3 tests against the World Champions, the Springboks.

In doesn't matter what far flung corner of the rugby world you may hail from, the very name "the Lions” conjures up images of the all-star team from the British Isles taking on the very best from the Southern hemisphere in concussive and very physical confrontations once every four years.

This is when, for a short month you will hear passionate Scots shouting support for an Irish player and even catch the odd Welshman willing the Englishman wearing the red shirt of the Lions over the line. Differences may not be forgotten but will certainly be put on hold as the Lions come together as one, in an attempt to overcome the World Champions in their own back yard. It is likely that their rugby cousins from New Zealand and Australia will side with the Boks, but all that evokes the great atmosphere surrounding rugby which we all love.

Can the Lions repeat the unexpected success of the 1997 tour where they emerged victorious, winning the series 2-1? Well, they are off to a decent start with the appointment of Ian McGeechan, the most long-standing Lion of them all as the head coach. This will be his seventh tour with the Lions. In 1974 and 1977 he started in all eight tests and as a coach he has toured in 1989, 1993, 1997 and 2005.

He may not be the Messiah but he's the nearest thing available to it. He understands the time honoured traditions of touring with a sporting phenomenon such as the Lions and in 1997 when Jeremy Guscott's drop goal sailed between the posts to win the second test and the series he cemented a place not only in Lions folklore but in the hearts of all British supporters. On that tour Geech had appointed a big uncompromising lock forward, who was not a national captain as his leader in the form of Martin Johnson- he commented after the tour that he wanted someone the Springbok captain would have to look up to during the coin toss. It proved to be an inspired decision; Johnson in his quiet, no nonsense way whilst all the time exuding an air of menace led his charges to the victory that not even the most ardent Lions fans really expected.

McGeechan has followed the same pattern this time round in selecting Irish power-house Paul O'Connell as his on field general ahead of his national captain Brian O'Driscoll. O'Connell has served his time with the Lions; in 2005 barring a ten minute sojourn in the bin he was on the field for every minute of all three tests. There is no place in the 37 man squad for the other three home union captains and that is a measure of McGeechan as a Lions coach. He has no time for sentiment at all;as proud a Scotsman as he is there is only room for two of his countrymen in the entire touring party. As always there will be much conjecture and discussions as to the make-up of the squad however whatever your viewpoint the head coach and captain combination is hard to fault.

After the disastrous 2005 Lions tour to New Zealand under the stewardship of Sir Clive Woodward, McGeechan and Team Manager Gerald Davies have cut the touring party from 44 to 37 and reduced the back room staff by over half. The coaching team includes such luminaries as Warren Gatland, Sean Edwards and Robert Howley, all who have been so successful in recent seasons with the Welsh national team. It is worthy of note that whilst the 2005 Lions team were stumbling from one defeat to the next the mid-week team under McGeechan went unbeaten.

Barring injury, history will be made on this tour when New Zealand born, Riki Flutey will become the first player to play for and against the Lions. In 2005 he lined up for Wellington in their game in their game against the tourists.

The South African coach Peter de Villiers expressed some surprise that O'Connell had got the nod over O'Driscoll, "I am surprised that Paul O'Connell got the captaincy ahead of Brian O' Driscoll, who was the most successful captain in the Six Nations in 2009 and captained the Lions to New Zealand four years ago. Having said that, O'Connell is the captain of Munster and has also captained Ireland at test level and we will not underestimate his leadership capabilities. This is a huge accolade for Paul O'Connell and it will come with great responsibility”.

De Villiers went on to say that he saw no major surprises in the Lions touring party and that it was more important that they know who exactly their opposition will be as opposed to who made it and who did not.

He went on to say, "I am looking forward to the test series. Now that we know the make-up of the Lions squad we will be able to advance our preparations in terms of our analysis of their strengths and weaknesses, how we expect them to play and how we must prepare for the three tests. A Lions tour is always a momentous occasion and 2009 will be no different. Our guys know the magnitude of the task that lies ahead and they know the expectation that there is, especially in view of the disappointments of 1997.”

South Africa presently have a few injury concerns however all leading contenders are expected when the squad assemble in June. One worry which will be foremost in the mind of de Villiers is the possibility of a South African team making the final of the Super 14 and having to travel to Australasia.

South Africa will play a final practice match against a Namibian Invitation XV on May 29th in Windhoek.

The Springboks, as in 1997 will rightly start the series as favourites with the bookmakers, however one only has to read the words of captain John Smit to see how seriously they take the tourists, "We always expected them to pick strong and aggressive forwards which indicate that they see the scrum and lineout as key elements of the contest. There is depth in every position, which is what they will need on a long and tough tour. We expect that there will be strong competition for places in all positions, which will make things interesting for us. The captain Paul O'Connell is a team man who is well respected internationally and it is obvious they are trying to replicate the vibe and momentum that they had with the same coach in 1997.Overall, it is a very strong team and one that will certainly provide a big challenge for us on our home ground, which we are really looking forward to.”

Now if that hasn't whetted your appetite at the prospect of watching some quality rugby and socialising with friends old and new then you are on the wrong site!

The tour kicks off on May 30th with a game against a Highveld XV. The full fixture list is shown below.

2009 British & Irish Lions tour to South Africa

Date	Time	Home	Score	Away	Venue
Sat 30 May	15:00	Highveld XV	v	British & Irish Lions	Royal Bafokeng Sports Palace
Wed 3 Jun	19:10	Golden Lions	v	British & Irish Lions	Coca-Cola Park
Sat 6 Jun	15:00	Cheetahs	v	British & Irish Lions	Vodacom Park
Wed 10 Jun	19:10	Sharks	v	British & Irish Lions	The ABSA Stadium
Sat 13 Jun	15:00	Western Province	v	British & Irish Lions	Newlands
Tue 16 Jun	15:00	Coastal XV	v	British & Irish Lions	Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium
Sat 20 Jun	15:00	South Africa	v	British & Irish Lions	The ABSA Stadium
Tue 23 Jun	19:10	Emerging Springboks	v	British & Irish Lions	Newlands
Sat 27 Jun	15:00	South Africa	v	British & Irish Lions	Loftus Versfeld
Sat 4 Jul	15:00	South Africa	v	British & Irish Lions	Coca-Cola Park

Please note all fixtures are local time.

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