Lions in SA

toomevara

Fixture list just released for Lions tour next year. Have to start knocking out that crack to get the cash. Interesting schedule clashes already presenting themselves. 1st game on the same day as Guinness premiership final,so fair few 1st choice players may not be available for first two fixtures...Manager to be announced next month...Geech the favourite

30 May: Highveld XV; Royal Bafokeng, Rustenburg
3 June: Golden Lions; Ellis Park, Johannesburg
6 June: Cheetahs; Vodacom Park, Bloemfontein
10 June: Sharks; ABSA Park, Durban
13 June: Western Province; Newlands, Cape Town
16/17 June: Coastal XV; Port Elizabeth (Venue to be confirmed)
20 June: South Africa(first Test); ABSA Park, Durban
23 June: Emerging Springboks; Newlands, Cape Town
27 June: South Africa (second Test); Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
4 July: South Africa (third Test); Ellis Park, Johannesburg

Stev_o

toomevara wrote: »

Fixture list just released for Lions tour next year. Have to start knocking out that crack to get the cash. Interesting schedule clashes already presenting themselves. 1st game on the same day as Guinness premiership final,so fair few 1st choice players may not be available for first two fixtures...Manager to be announced next month...Geech the favourite

30 May: Highveld XV; Royal Bafokeng, Rustenburg
3 June: Golden Lions; Ellis Park, Johannesburg
6 June: Cheetahs; Vodacom Park, Bloemfontein
10 June: Sharks; ABSA Park, Durban
13 June: Western Province; Newlands, Cape Town
16/17 June: Coastal XV; Port Elizabeth (Venue to be confirmed)
20 June: South Africa(first Test); ABSA Park, Durban
23 June: Emerging Springboks; Newlands, Cape Town
27 June: South Africa (second Test); Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
4 July: South Africa (third Test); Ellis Park, Johannesburg

Could also mean that Ian and Shaun could possibly be gone for the first match

toomevara

Stev_o wrote: »

Could also mean that Ian and Shaun could possibly be gone for the first match

Indeed, so you reckon the Wasps terrible twosome are shoe-ins for the management team? Who else should go (if any, obviously we don't want a repeat of Sir Clive's barmy-army sized contingent in NZ)

Who'd you pick for Captain..alot of support behind Ryan Jones....

Diamondmaker

Sweet...I had planned to stop off in SA on my way down under. This dove tails nicely and I will be booking my flights from here to take 2 or 3 weeks there to coincide. Looks like Cape Town could be a good base also to get 2 games and enjoy the place.

sweet..........

zAbbo

Diamondmaker wrote: »

Sweet...I had planned to stop off in SA on my way down under. This dove tails nicely and I will be booking my flights from here to take 2 or 3 weeks there to coincide. Looks like Cape Town could be a good base also to get 2 games and enjoy the place.

sweet..........

No test match in cape town unfortunately, I think they have a soccer tournament on around that time?

Stev_o

toomevara wrote: »

Indeed, so you reckon the Wasps terrible twosome are shoe-ins for the management team? Who else should go (if any, obviously we don't want a repeat of Sir Clive's barmy-army sized contingent in NZ)

Who'd you pick for Captain..alot of support behind Ryan Jones....

Ryan Jones seems to be the only candidate and it seems like it's pretty much going to be him unless of injury. Tbh there isnt alot of captain material on show im more worried about the line out more then captain. They say Mattfield will be back which means we will get zero ball =(

toomevara

Stev_o wrote: »

im more worried about the line out more then captain. They say Mattfield will be back which means we will get zero ball =(

Not if Bob Casey and Nick Kennedy get on the case...best lineout operators in the game...would love to see Casey get a lions spot...

Stev_o

toomevara wrote: »

Not if Bob Casey and Nick Kennedy get on the case...best lineout operators in the game...would love to see Casey get a lions spot...

Yeah but what are the chances of that happening? Slime to none sadly =(

toomevara

Stev_o wrote: »

Yeah but what are the chances of that happening? Slime to none sadly =(

'Snowball' and 'Hell' come to mind....

omb0wyn5ehpij9

I would give anything to go on this tour. I went on tour with my school in 2002 to South Africa and I always said that i would like to go back, and have said for the last 2 years that I would try to go on this Lions tour. Looking very unlikely at the moment due to college, moving house etc :(:(

toomevara

BrynW wrote: »

I would give anything to go on this tour.

Looks like we may have to 'give anything/everything' to get there...gonna be expensive..unless I start walking now...hmmmm...

The WRU have said today that they categorically do not want Gatland involved even though he himself has expressed an interest...cue bit of friction in the valleys methinks...

colman1212

Any one know when the tickets will be made available for these games and how hard they will be to pick up?

Pinetree Boy

Is this right? Seems ridiculous.

http://www.lions-tour.com/news/viewarticle.asp?id=12090

toomevara

Is indeed true (see OP), how they get round it is another matter..cant see the powers that be in the GP being willing to move their showpiece fixture to accomodate the lions....

mc23

This was the tour that turned me from someone who never watched rugby to a regular viewer of the oval ball. Hopefully the management(the Geech) of this SA tour can bring life back to the lions after the disaster in NZ.

Pinetree Boy

zAbbo wrote: »

No test match in cape town unfortunately, I think they have a soccer tournament on around that time?

Apparently, Newlands wouldn't agree to allocating 11,000 tickets to Lions fans. Seems a bit bizarre to me as the presence of Lions fans is one of the things that make the tours so special.

http://www.lions-tour.com/news/viewarticle.asp?id=12169

toomevara

Apparently, Newlands wouldn't agree to allocating 11,000 tickets to Lions fans. Seems a bit bizarre to me as the presence of Lions fans is one of the things that make the tours so special.

Seems like WP were put in a pretty difficult position by what appears to me, some fairly greedy tactics on the part of the Lions. Simply couldn't expect them to give seats to Lions supporters over some of their most dedicated followers...

Just another sign that the commercial circus surrounding the Lions is getting ever more out of hand.

sheepshagger

Am pre regisrted with Gullivers, there provisional info is saying packages are priced from £3-5.5k :eek: (to be expected I guess)

Have manged to soure accomodation in the 3 test cities (tbooked months ago)and tickets to at least 1 of the Tests.. .think I'm going to do it independently.