Lions look forward to home comforts after limping back from tour

THE limping Lions make their way home from their European tour, with their EPCR Challenge Cup hopes in tatters after the 24-12 mauling by Edinburgh Rugby, and their United Rugby Championship (URC) campaign perilously close to disaster.

- ROWAN CALLAGHAN

Coach Ivan Rooyen spoke of the open wounds, cuts and grazes from the three consecutive games on the artificial pitches. However, it has often been the self-inflicted wounds that have done the most damage in a season that has threatened to roar into life, but is likely now to end with a whimper.

While the Johannesburg outfit were certainly better than in their 42-0 drubbing against Glasgow last week – a low bar – their defence let them down again against Edinburgh.

They lost the breakdown battle and dipped on tackles in an error-strewn display, not for the first time in recent matches. More worrying were the long stretches of the game where they looked disorganised at attack and in defence.