05 October 2026
Head coach Ivan "Cash" van Rooyen issued a stern reality check to his flying Lions squad immediately after their 35-19 bonus-point victory over the Ospreys at Ellis Park on Saturday. Despite launching a devastating five-try second-half blitz to overturn a 12-10 halftime deficit, the Lions boss made it clear that their opening-half inaccuracy will not cut it in the upcoming United Rugby Championship (URC) local derbies.
“Today’s performance won’t be enough against the Bulls next week,” van Rooyen said. “It’s a typical derby, so it’s going to be massive set-piece, huge physicality. The Bulls have shown that they want to play a little bit more, which makes them dangerous, but there’s also opportunity. We’ll take the five points, but we’ve got to get better because next week is going to demand it.”
The cross-town Jukskei Derby at Loftus Versfeld already looms large, casting a massive shadow over the Lions’ 35-19 bonus-point victory over the Ospreys at Ellis Park on Saturday. Despite launching a devastating five-try second-half blitz to overturn a 12-10 halftime deficit, the Lions boss made it clear that their opening-half inaccuracy will not cut it in Pretoria. Van Rooyen dismissed their previous encounter at Loftus as a realistic baseline, adding: “Last year, when we played them there, it was part of their transition period. I think it will be very different this year. They’ve got some real speed out wide, they’ve got some good pack of forwards and grunt upfront."
The Lions struggled for traction during a frustrating first forty minutes on Saturday, undone by unforced errors and a resilient Welsh defence. "The Ospreys are tough, they’re nuggety, they’ve got great character, and they will keep on coming back and keep on going if you’re inaccurate," Van Rooyen noted. "We weren’t accurate enough. We lost some early lineouts, then you can’t build momentum, and you can’t apply what we wanted to do in terms of plans."
The tactical turnaround began with a blunt assessment in the changing rooms at the interval. Lions fullback Quan Horn revealed that the team intentionally shifted to an old-school, tight game plan to break the deadlock. “We came in at half-time and said, ‘Listen, it’s not working out wide for us today,’ and sometimes that does happen,” Horn said. “The forwards said we need to roll up our sleeves and make sure we get some maul tries. If we have to go scrum, penalty, kick out, maul, penalty, kick out again and then score from a maul, that’s what we’re going to do. And that’s how we started the second half.”
Van Rooyen backed this up, acknowledging that the coaching staff stripped away the complexity to kickstart their sluggish engines. “At half-time we really simplified and just said, ‘Find a way.’ We believe there’s a little bit of a crack; let’s go there and see if we can exploit it," the coach explained. "It was a lot better in the second half, and I’m really proud of the guys for just finding a way.”
The resurgence was heavily spearheaded by playmaker Boeta Chamberlain and scrumhalf Nico Steyn, both of whom have ignited a fierce battle for the starting jerseys. “I think Boeta has been a breath of fresh air for us; I think he’s been exceptional in the two games, and he can play multiple positions for us,” Van Rooyen said. “Nico is also probably playing the rugby of his life, so it’s good, healthy competition for us.”
Reinforcements are also arriving at the perfect time, with Springboks Morné van den Berg and Quan Horn successfully returning to action via the impact bench on Saturday. Van Rooyen indicated that both international stars are firmly in line to reclaim their spots in the starting lineup next weekend. "They will probably start next week," the coach confirmed, signalling a heavily armed matchday squad for the looming trip to Pretoria.