How the Durban loss showed all of the Lions’ glaring weaknesses

The Lions’ untidy and untimely defeat at the hands of the Sharks at the weekend is threatening to sour what is realistically their last chance of claiming Super Rugby glory for the next few years.

The 24-31 loss at King’s Park was Swys de Bruin’s side’s seventh in 2018, more than they suffered in 2016 and 2017 combined.

While the Lions are still top of the South African conference, they are now in danger of losing that position this weekend due to them having a bye and the red-hot Jaguares taking on the increasingly fragile Bulls on Saturday.

But why has it come to this and what has gone wrong?

The weekend’s match was actually a good illustration.

Tactical inflexibility

The Lions turned down numerous kicks at goal in favour of the touchline, which isn’t really a surprise given how they want to score tries.

“Even though it didn’t work out for us, we won’t stop looking to score tries,” was captain Warren Whiteley’s justification.

Yet while it’s unsurprising, it’s not always very smart.

This was an important game for the Lions – a must-win in many ways if they wanted to keep the Jaguares at bay.

And that means points matter, every single one on offer.

The Lions haven’t done well in that regard.

Handling errors

The Lions have still scored the most points in this year’s tournament as well as tries and yet they’re leaving a lot of points un-scored.

For a side that’s forged a reputation as being the one local side that can match New Zealand’s skill levels, 2018 has been disappointing in terms of how often the men from Ellis Park cough up possession.

The Lions made 14 handling errors again at the weekend, pushing up their season’s total to 277, the fourth most in the tournament.

No side with high ambitions can afford such waywardness.

The Whiteley void

Yes, the inspirational skipper was back from injury and was a steadying presence for 69 minutes.

But the 11 minutes he was off the field after being substituted again illustrated how the Lions have missed his leadership this year.

It’s no coincidence that they slumped.

Without Jaco Kriel to back him up, the Lions have struggled for an assertive leader to guide them during difficult games this season.

Franco Mostert is a doer but he seems to lack some finesse and general management.

It’s an area that needs addressing.

Defence

To be fair, the Lions’ tackling in Durban was decent.

Yet they still missed 12 of their 115 tackles.

It means they’ve now missed 311 all season, the third most in the competition.

That’s simply unacceptable for a top side and, weirdly, it doesn’t always seem to be a system-based issue but rather one of attitude.