Will it be a repeat of seasons past for the Lions in the URC, with not much having changed in the team, or will they take a step forward this season?
The saying goes: The more things change, the more they stay the same. But for the Lions they only seem interested in the second part, as they stare down the barrel of another season of possible mediocrity.
The fifth season of the United Rugby Championship (URC) kicks off this weekend and it’s hard to see the Lions improving on what has come before, with them having never made the competition knockouts.
That is likely largely down to them doing the same thing every season.
They still have mostly the same coaching group they started with when the URC launched in 2021, led by Ivan van Rooyen, while Ricardo Loubscher, Jaque Fourie, Julian Redelinghuys and Barend Pieterse have been around for a few years.
On the players’ front every season the Lions grow exciting young talents, while seeing some senior players bloom, but by the end of the season they lose a few of their best, and have to start all over again.
In their four years in the URC competition the Lions have finished 12th, ninth twice, and 11th, with arguably their best season being their 2023-24 campaign when they finished level on points with eighth placed Ospreys, but missed out on the playoffs on number of games won.
Unmitigated disaster
That effort gave hope that the team had turned the corner, only for last season to be an unmitigated disaster as they took a huge step back.
Before the season started, Van Rooyen declared that they were targeting a top four finish in the competition, and after winning their first four games it seemed like they might have a crack at it, only to then lose 10 of their next 14 games, to finish 11th, well off the knockout places.
Losing this year’s Currie Cup final could also have a big negative effect on the team as they start their season with a tough overseas tour.
The Lions backed a strong team full of URC regulars for the competition, and should have won it for the second year running, but they instead messed up again like in 2024 when they didn’t kick the ball out with time up, allowing the Sharks to sneak in and steal the trophy.
This year was even worse, as they came up against the Griquas, a team they had beaten in their final pool game two weeks before 37-7, with both teams naming almost the same teams for the final, only for them to lose 27-25, again after the fulltime hooter, thanks to a late penalty.
So, will this season be any different for the Lions, or are we set for a repeat of everything that has come before?
