Batho warns Lions against wastefulness in All Blacks match

The Lions have been warned to make their opportunities count when they face the All Blacks at Ellis Park on Tuesday night, after the visitors beat the Springboks 33-16 at the same venue. South Africa entered the All Blacks’ 22 on 11 occasions in Saturday’s Test but scored only one try.

Flank Batho Hlekani says the Lions cannot repeat that failure to turn attacking positions into points. The 21-year-old believes the home side will need to match the All Blacks’ physicality, tempo and intensity while maintaining accuracy inside the opposition 22-metre area.

Hlekani has been part of Springbok alignment camps and watched the Test from the stands. The result affected him deeply, with the young loose forward saying he struggled to sleep after seeing South Africa lose despite controlling territory and possession for long periods.

The Lions remain in pre-season, but they have named their strongest available team for the encounter. Fullback Quan Horn and prop Boan Venter have been released from the Springbok squad to feature, with Venter set to make his Lions debut.

Hlekani said the level of training in the Springbok environment had helped prepare him for the speed of an international-quality match. He is also relishing the chance to face the All Blacks, an opportunity he had not expected to receive at this stage of his career.

The Lions will therefore enter Tuesday’s match with a clear lesson from the weekend Test: possession and territory will have limited value unless they are converted into tries and points. Their ability to finish attacks will be tested against the same All Blacks side that punished South Africa’s missed chances at Ellis Park.