2021 British & Irish Lions tour to South Africa

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2021 British & Irish Lions tour to South Africa
Date3 July – 7 August
Coach(es) Warren Gatland
Tour captain(s)Wales Alun Wyn Jones
Ireland Conor Murray (temporary)[a]
Test series winners South Africa (2–1)
Lions' top point scorer(s)Wales Dan Biggar (47)
Lions' top try scorer(s)Wales Josh Adams (8)

The 2021 British & Irish Lions tour to South Africa was an international rugby union tour that took place in South Africa in July and August 2021. The British & Irish Lions, a team selected from players eligible to represent England, Ireland, Scotland or Wales, played a three-match test series against South Africa, and tour matches against three of South Africa's four United Rugby Championship teams and South Africa A.

The COVID-19 pandemic significantly disrupted the tour, leading to numerous schedule changes and the matches in South Africa taking place without fans present. Before leaving for South Africa, the Lions beat Japan in a warm-up match at Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh. They won all of their matches against the South African franchises, but lost to South Africa A.

South Africa won the test series by two matches to one. The Lions won the first test 22–17 on 24 July, but South Africa won the second test 27–9 a week later before winning the third test 19–16 with a late penalty on 7 August.

Warren Gatland was the Lions' head coach, making him only the second coach to lead the team on three consecutive tours.[b] Alun Wyn Jones of Wales was the Lions' tour captain, but was injured in the home match against Japan on 26 June; he initially withdrew from the squad before returning three weeks later. Ireland's Conor Murray took over as captain during Jones' absence.

Schedule[]

The eight-match schedule was announced on 4 December 2019,[1] and confirmed on 14 May 2021. The Lions also scheduled a home match against Japan for 26 June, the first time the teams had met, and the first game to be hosted by the Lions since they played Argentina at the Millennium Stadium in 2005.[2] Unlike recent tours, when the Lions played seven games against non-national teams, in 2021 there are only five.[3][4]

Due to the uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic, it was reported in early 2021 that the tour could be held in Britain and Ireland instead of South Africa, postponed to 2022 or cancelled altogether.[5] With the Lions traditionally being a touring side, thousands of fans signed a petition to put pressure on the Lions board to keep the tour in South Africa and postpone until 2022. In January 2021, Rugby Australia offered to host the tournament in Australia if it could not be held in South Africa,[6] but this was rejected.[7] In March 2021, it was confirmed that the tour would go ahead as planned.[8]

Originally, the eight matches were to be played in the home stadiums of the Lions' opponents. Due to COVID, the schedule was changed so that all eight matches will be played in only four venues, all in Gauteng or Cape Town, to reduce the teams' travel requirements.[9] A match against an SA Invitational team was replaced by one against the South African Lions franchise to reduce the risks associated with drawing a squad from around the country.[10] The match against the Bulls was cancelled due to several positive COVID tests in the Bulls' camp, and a second match against the Sharks was added instead.[11][12] On 20 July, it was announced that the second and third tests would be moved from Johannesburg to Cape Town.[13]

Date Home team Score Away team Venue Details
26 June British & Irish Lions 28–10 Japan Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh Match details
3 July Lions 14–56 British & Irish Lions Ellis Park Stadium, Johannesburg Match details
7 July Sharks 7–54 British & Irish Lions Ellis Park Stadium, Johannesburg Match details
10 July Sharks 31–71 British & Irish Lions Loftus Versfeld Stadium, Pretoria Match details
14 July South Africa A 17–13 British & Irish Lions Cape Town Stadium, Cape Town Match details
17 July Stormers 3–49 British & Irish Lions Cape Town Stadium, Cape Town Match details
24 July South Africa 17–22 British & Irish Lions Cape Town Stadium, Cape Town Match details
31 July South Africa 27–9 British & Irish Lions Cape Town Stadium, Cape Town Match details
7 August South Africa 19–16 British & Irish Lions Cape Town Stadium, Cape Town Match details

Squads[]

Lions[]

Lions chairman Jason Leonard announced an initial squad of 37 on 6 May 2021, made up of 11 players from England, 10 from Wales, 8 from Ireland and 8 from Scotland.[14]

Prop Andrew Porter withdrew from the squad on 5 June because of a toe injury; he was replaced by Kyle Sinckler.[15]

Rónan Kelleher joined the pre-tour training camp in Jersey to cover for hookers Jamie George and Luke Cowan-Dickie, who had club commitments. Kelleher was not added to the touring squad at the time,[16][17] but was called up to the squad on 14 July.[18]

On 26 June, tour captain Alun Wyn Jones and Justin Tipuric withdrew from the tour after being injured against Japan; Adam Beard and Josh Navidi were called up as their replacements.[19] On 14 July, Jones returned to the squad, having overcome his shoulder injury.[20]

On 10 July, Marcus Smith was called up as Finn Russell was injured, with Russell remaining on the tour.[21]

Notes: Ages listed are as of the first tour match on 26 June. Player positions are per the Lions' website.[22] Bold denotes that the player was selected for a previous Lions squad. Italic denotes a player that withdrew from the squad following selection.

Player Position Date of birth (age) National team Club/­province National caps
(Lions caps) 		Notes
Luke Cowan-Dickie Hooker (1993-06-20)20 June 1993 (aged 28) England England Exeter Chiefs 31
Jamie George Hooker (1990-10-20)20 October 1990 (aged 30) England England Saracens 59 (3)
Rónan Kelleher Hooker (1998-01-24)24 January 1998 (aged 23) Ireland Ireland Leinster 11 Called up as additional cover
Ken Owens Hooker (1987-01-03)3 January 1987 (aged 34) Wales Wales Scarlets 82 (2)
Zander Fagerson Prop (1996-01-19)19 January 1996 (aged 25) Scotland Scotland Glasgow Warriors 38
Tadhg Furlong Prop (1992-11-14)14 November 1992 (aged 28) Ireland Ireland Leinster 49 (3)
Wyn Jones Prop (1992-02-26)26 February 1992 (aged 29) Wales Wales Scarlets 35
Andrew Porter Prop (1996-01-16)16 January 1996 (aged 25) Ireland Ireland Leinster 37 Withdrew due to injury sustained before tour
Kyle Sinckler Prop (1993-03-30)30 March 1993 (aged 28) England England Bristol Bears 47 (3) Replaced Andrew Porter
Rory Sutherland Prop (1992-08-24)24 August 1992 (aged 28) Scotland Scotland Edinburgh 16
Mako Vunipola Prop (1991-01-14)14 January 1991 (aged 30) England England Saracens 67 (6)
Adam Beard Second row (1996-01-07)7 January 1996 (aged 25) Wales Wales Ospreys 25 Replaced Alun Wyn Jones
Tadhg Beirne Second row (1992-01-08)8 January 1992 (aged 29) Ireland Ireland Munster 22
Iain Henderson Second row (1992-02-21)21 February 1992 (aged 29) Ireland Ireland Ulster 63
Jonny Hill Second row (1994-06-08)8 June 1994 (aged 27) England England Exeter Chiefs 9
Maro Itoje Second row (1994-10-28)28 October 1994 (aged 26) England England Saracens 48 (3)
Alun Wyn Jones (c) Second row (1985-09-19)19 September 1985 (aged 35) Wales Wales Ospreys 148 (9) Missed three weeks of the tour due to injury
Courtney Lawes Second row (1989-02-23)23 February 1989 (aged 32) England England Northampton Saints 87 (2)
Jack Conan Back row (1992-07-29)29 July 1992 (aged 28) Ireland Ireland Leinster 20
Tom Curry Back row (1998-06-15)15 June 1998 (aged 23) England England Sale Sharks 33
Taulupe Faletau Back row (1990-11-12)12 November 1990 (aged 30) Wales Wales Bath 86 (4)
Josh Navidi Back row (1990-12-30)30 December 1990 (aged 30) Wales Wales Cardiff Blues 28 Replaced Justin Tipuric
Sam Simmonds Back row (1994-11-10)10 November 1994 (aged 26) England England Exeter Chiefs 7
Justin Tipuric Back row (1989-08-06)6 August 1989 (aged 31) Wales Wales Ospreys 85 (1) Withdrew due to injury sustained during tour
Hamish Watson Back row (1991-10-15)15 October 1991 (aged 29) Scotland Scotland Edinburgh 41
Gareth Davies Scrum-half (1990-08-18)18 August 1990 (aged 30) Wales Wales Scarlets 62
Conor Murray (c) Scrum-half (1989-04-20)20 April 1989 (aged 32) Ireland Ireland Munster 89 (5) Replaced Alun Wyn Jones as tour captain[23]
Ali Price Scrum-half (1993-05-12)12 May 1993 (aged 28) Scotland Scotland Glasgow Warriors 42
Dan Biggar Fly-half (1989-10-16)16 October 1989 (aged 31) Wales Wales Northampton Saints 92
Owen Farrell Fly-half (1991-09-24)24 September 1991 (aged 29) England England Saracens 93 (4)
Finn Russell Fly-half (1992-09-23)23 September 1992 (aged 28) Scotland Scotland Racing 92 55
Marcus Smith Fly-half (1999-02-14)14 February 1999 (aged 22) England England Harlequins 2 Called up as injury cover for Finn Russell
Bundee Aki Centre (1990-04-07)7 April 1990 (aged 31) Ireland Ireland Connacht 31
Elliot Daly Centre (1992-10-08)8 October 1992 (aged 28) England England Saracens 52 (3)
Chris Harris Centre (1990-12-28)28 December 1990 (aged 30) Scotland Scotland Gloucester 28
Robbie Henshaw Centre (1993-06-12)12 June 1993 (aged 28) Ireland Ireland Leinster 52
Josh Adams Wing (1995-04-21)21 April 1995 (aged 26) Wales Wales Cardiff Blues 32
Louis Rees-Zammit Wing (2001-02-02)2 February 2001 (aged 20) Wales Wales Gloucester 9
Duhan van der Merwe Wing (1995-06-04)4 June 1995 (aged 26) Scotland Scotland Edinburgh 10
Anthony Watson Wing (1994-02-26)26 February 1994 (aged 27) England England Bath 51 (3)
Stuart Hogg Full back (1992-06-24)24 June 1992 (aged 29) Scotland Scotland Exeter Chiefs 85
Liam Williams Full back (1991-04-09)9 April 1991 (aged 30) Wales Wales Scarlets 71 (3)

Management and staff[]

Reported candidates to coach the 2021 Lions included Warren Gatland, Eddie Jones, Gregor Townsend, Joe Schmidt, Dai Young and Mark McCall.[24] Gatland was announced as the head coach on 12 June 2019.[25]

On 13 April 2021, Gatland announced his coaching team, including Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend as attack coach, Scotland defence coach Steve Tandy, Leinster forwards coach Robin McBryde and Wales kicking coach Neil Jenkins. This was the sixth tour for Jenkins (two as a player, four as a coach), for Townsend, Tandy and McBryde this is their first Lions tour as coaches.[26]

Role Name
Management
Chief executive Steve Brown
Managing director Ben Calveley
Chairman/Team manager Jason Leonard
Coaches
Role Name Union/Club
Head coach New Zealand Warren Gatland New Zealand Chiefs
Assistant coach (attack) Scotland Gregor Townsend  Scotland
Assistant coach (forwards) Wales Robin McBryde Ireland Leinster
Assistant coach (defence) Wales Steve Tandy  Scotland
Assistant coach (kicking) Wales Neil Jenkins  Wales
Performance staff
Head of medical Prabhat Mathema  Wales
Doctor Dr Geoff Davies  Wales
Doctor Dr Ciaran Cosgrove  Ireland
Physiotherapist Bob Stewart  England
Physiotherapist John Miles  Wales
Soft tissue therapist Ann-Marie Birmingham  England
Soft tissue therapist Hanlie Fouche  Wales
Head of strength & conditioning Paul Stridgeon  Wales
Strength & conditioning coach Jon Clarke  England
Strength & conditioning coach Huw Bennett  Wales
Sports scientist Brian Cunniffe English Institute of Sport
Head of analysis Rhodri Bown  Wales
Analyst Vinny Hammond  Ireland
Analyst Marc Kinnaird  Wales
Analyst Gavin Vaughan  Scotland

South Africa[]

On 5 June, South Africa named a 46-man squad for their two-test series against Georgia and the three tests against the British & Irish Lions.[27]

On 10 July, Lizo Gqoboka and Fez Mbatha were added to the squad as COVID-19 cover.[28]

Coaching team:[29]

Note: Ages, caps and clubs as of first test match on 24 July 2021.

Player Position Date of birth (age) Caps Club/province
Joseph Dweba Hooker (1995-10-25)25 October 1995 (aged 25) 0 France Bordeaux Bègles
Malcolm Marx Hooker (1994-07-13)13 July 1994 (aged 27) 34 Japan Kubota Spears
Fez Mbatha Hooker (1999-08-02)2 August 1999 (aged 21) 0 South Africa Sharks
Bongi Mbonambi Hooker (1991-01-07)7 January 1991 (aged 30) 37 South Africa Stormers
Scarra Ntubeni Hooker (1991-02-18)18 February 1991 (aged 30) 1 South Africa Stormers
Thomas du Toit Prop (1995-05-05)5 May 1995 (aged 26) 12 South Africa Sharks
Lizo Gqoboka Prop (1990-03-24)24 March 1990 (aged 31) 2 South Africa Bulls
Steven Kitshoff Prop (1992-02-10)10 February 1992 (aged 29) 48 South Africa Stormers
Vincent Koch Prop (1990-03-13)13 March 1990 (aged 31) 21 England Saracens
Frans Malherbe Prop (1991-03-14)14 March 1991 (aged 30) 39 South Africa Stormers
Ox Nché Prop (1995-07-23)23 July 1995 (aged 26) 2 South Africa Sharks
Trevor Nyakane Prop (1989-05-04)4 May 1989 (aged 32) 43 South Africa Bulls
Coenie Oosthuizen Prop (1989-03-22)22 March 1989 (aged 32) 30 England Sale Sharks
Lood de Jager Lock (1992-12-17)17 December 1992 (aged 28) 45 England Sale Sharks
Eben Etzebeth Lock (1991-10-29)29 October 1991 (aged 29) 86 France Toulon
Nico Janse van Rensburg Lock (1994-05-06)6 May 1994 (aged 27) 0 France Montpellier
Franco Mostert Lock (1990-11-27)27 November 1990 (aged 30) 40 Japan Honda Heat
Marvin Orie Lock (1993-06-02)2 June 1993 (aged 27) 4 South Africa Stormers
RG Snyman Lock (1995-01-29)29 January 1995 (aged 26) 23 Ireland Munster
Dan du Preez Loose forward (1995-08-05)5 August 1995 (aged 26) 4 England Sale Sharks
Jean-Luc du Preez Loose forward (1995-08-05)5 August 1995 (aged 25) 13 England Sale Sharks
Pieter-Steph du Toit Loose forward (1992-08-20)20 August 1992 (aged 28) 56 South Africa Stormers
Rynhardt Elstadt Loose forward (1989-12-20)20 December 1989 (aged 31) 2 France Toulouse
Siya Kolisi (c) Loose forward (1991-06-16)16 June 1991 (aged 30) 51 South Africa Sharks
Kwagga Smith Loose forward (1996-06-11)11 June 1996 (aged 25) 7 Japan Yamaha Júbilo
Marco van Staden Loose forward (1995-08-25)25 August 1995 (aged 25) 3 South Africa Bulls
Duane Vermeulen Loose forward (1986-07-03)3 July 1986 (aged 35) 54 South Africa Bulls
Jasper Wiese Loose forward (1995-10-21)21 October 1995 (aged 25) 1 England Leicester Tigers
Faf de Klerk Scrum-half (1991-10-19)19 October 1991 (aged 29) 30 England Sale Sharks
Herschel Jantjies Scrum-half (1996-04-22)22 April 1996 (aged 25) 11 South Africa Stormers
Sanele Nohamba Scrum-half (1999-01-19)19 January 1999 (aged 22) 0 South Africa Sharks
Cobus Reinach Scrum-half (1990-02-07)7 February 1990 (aged 31) 15 France Montpellier
Elton Jantjies Fly-half (1990-08-01)1 August 1990 (aged 30) 38 France Pau
Handré Pollard Fly-half (1994-03-11)11 March 1994 (aged 27) 49 France Montpellier
Morné Steyn Fly-half (1984-07-11)11 July 1984 (aged 37) 66 South Africa Bulls
Lukhanyo Am Centre (1993-11-28)28 November 1993 (aged 27) 15 South Africa Sharks
Damian de Allende Centre (1991-11-25)25 November 1991 (aged 29) 47 Ireland Munster
Jesse Kriel Centre (1994-02-15)15 February 1994 (aged 27) 47 Japan Canon Eagles
Wandisile Simelane Centre (1998-03-21)21 March 1998 (aged 23) 0 South Africa Lions
François Steyn Centre (1987-05-14)14 May 1987 (aged 34) 68 South Africa Cheetahs
Cheslin Kolbe Wing (1993-10-28)28 October 1993 (aged 27) 14 France Toulouse
Makazole Mapimpi Wing (1990-07-26)26 July 1990 (aged 30) 14 South Africa Sharks
Sbu Nkosi Wing (1996-01-21)21 January 1996 (aged 25) 11 South Africa Sharks
Yaw Penxe Wing (1997-04-03)3 April 1997 (aged 24) 0 South Africa Sharks
Rosko Specman Wing (1989-04-28)28 April 1989 (aged 32) 1 South Africa Cheetahs
Aphelele Fassi Fullback (1998-01-23)23 January 1998 (aged 23) 1 South Africa Sharks
Willie le Roux Fullback (1989-08-18)18 August 1989 (aged 31) 62 Japan Toyota Verblitz
Damian Willemse Fullback (1998-05-07)7 May 1998 (aged 23) 7 South Africa Stormers

Matches[]

British & Irish Lions v Japan[]

The Lions began their 2021 tour with their first ever match in Scotland. Lions captain Alun Wyn Jones was substituted in the 7th minute after suffering a dislocated shoulder that seemed to rule him out of the tour. The Lions went 21–0 up in the first 23 minutes, through tries from Josh Adams, Duhan van der Merwe and Robbie Henshaw, all converted by Dan Biggar, but also lost flanker Justin Tipuric to a shoulder injury in the 21st minute. Tadhg Beirne added a fourth try after half-time, again converted by Biggar to make it 28–0. Japan responded with a try by Kazuki Himeno after 58 minutes, converted by Yu Tamura, who also kicked a penalty with 12 minutes to go to make the final score 28–10.[30]

26 June 2021
15:00 BST (UTC+01)
British & Irish Lions 28–10  Japan
Try: Adams 11' c
Van der Merwe 17' c
Henshaw 22' c
Beirne 48' c
Con: Biggar (4/4) 13', 18', 23', 48'
 Report Try: Himeno 58' c
Con: Tamura (1/1) 60'
Pen: Tamura (1/2) 68'
Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh
Attendance: 16,500
Referee: Pascal Gaüzère (France)

Lions v British & Irish Lions[]

3 July 2021
18:00 SAST (UTC+02)
Lions 14–56 British & Irish Lions
Try: V. Tshituka 34' c
Maxwane 43' c
Con: Hendrikse (2/2) 35', 44'
 Report Try: Rees-Zammit 3' c
H. Watson 6' c
Price 32' c
Adams (4) 41' c, 53' c, 67' c, 71' c
Davies 65' c
Con: Farrell (8/8) 4', 7', 33', 41', 55', 66', 68', 72'
Ellis Park Stadium, Johannesburg
Attendance: 0
Referee: AJ Jacobs (South Africa)

Sharks v British & Irish Lions[]

7 July 2021
20:00 SAST (UTC+02)
Sharks 7–54 British & Irish Lions
Try: Venter 50' c
Con: Bosch (1/1) 50'
 Report Try: Adams (3) 2' c, 56' c, 77' c
Van der Merwe (3) 6' c, 25' m, 73' c
Aki 38' c
Rees-Zammit 60' c
Con: Farrell (3/4) 3', 6', 40'
Russell (4/4) 57', 61', 74', 79'
Ellis Park Stadium, Johannesburg
Attendance: 0
Referee: Jaco Peyper (South Africa)

Sharks v British & Irish Lions[]

10 July 2021
18:00 SAST (UTC+02)
Sharks 31–71 British & Irish Lions
Try: Volmink (2) 10' c, 35' c
Abrahams 14' m
Hendrikse 23' c
Kok 52' m
Con: Cronjé (3/5) 11', 24', 36'
 Report Try: Harris 4' c
George (2) 20' m, 54' c
Van der Merwe 25' c
Beirne (2) 38' c, 63' c
Conan 47' m
Daly 50' c
A. Watson (2) 58' c, 79' m
Curry 66' c
Con: Biggar (8/10) 5', 26', 39', 51', 55', 58', 64', 66'
Loftus Versfeld Stadium, Pretoria
Attendance: 0
Referee: Wayne Barnes (England)

South Africa A v British & Irish Lions[]

14 July 2021
20:00 SAST (UTC+02)
South Africa A  17–13 British & Irish Lions
Try: Nkosi 12' c
Am 31' c
Con: Steyn (2/2) 13', 33'
Pen: Steyn (1/2) 5'
 Report Try: Jones 43' c
Con: Farrell (1/1) 44'
Pen: Farrell (2/2) 27', 50'
Cape Town Stadium, Cape Town
Attendance: 0
Referee: Jaco Peyper (South Africa)

Stormers v British & Irish Lions[]

17 July 2021
18:00 SAST (UTC+02)
Stormers 3–49 British & Irish Lions
Pen: Swiel (1/1) 19'
 Report Try: Beard 27' c
Cowan-Dickie 33' c
Hill 40' c
Conan 49' c
Fagerson 67' c
Rees-Zammit 73' c
Simmonds 77' c
Con: Smith (7/7) 28', 34', 40', 50', 68', 75', 78'
Cape Town Stadium, Cape Town
Attendance: 0
Referee: Wayne Barnes (England)

South Africa v British & Irish Lions (first test)[]

24 July 2021
18:00 SAST (UTC+02)
South Africa  17–22 British & Irish Lions
Try: De Klerk 49' m
Pen: Pollard (4/5) 13', 17', 26', 30'
 Report Try: Cowan-Dickie 43' c
Con: Biggar (1/1) 44'
Pen: Biggar (4/5) 19', 52', 55', 62'
Farrell (1/1) 78'
Cape Town Stadium, Cape Town
Attendance: 0
Referee: Nic Berry (Australia)
FB 15 Willie le Roux Substituted off 66'
RW 14 Cheslin Kolbe
OC 13 Lukhanyo Am
IC 12 Damian de Allende
LW 11 Makazole Mapimpi
FH 10 Handré Pollard Substituted off 70'
SH 9 Faf de Klerk Substituted off 73'
N8 8 Kwagga Smith Substituted off 63'
BF 7 Pieter-Steph du Toit
OF 6 Siya Kolisi (c)
RL 5 Franco Mostert Substituted off 62'
LL 4 Eben Etzebeth
TP 3 Trevor Nyakane Substituted off 40'
HK 2 Bongi Mbonambi Substituted off 40'
LP 1 Ox Nché Substituted off 40'
Replacements:
HK 16 Malcolm Marx Substituted in 40'
PR 17 Steven Kitshoff Substituted in 40'
PR 18 Frans Malherbe Substituted in 40'
LK 19 Lood de Jager Substituted in 62'
FL 20 Rynhardt Elstadt Substituted in 63'
SH 21 Herschel Jantjies Substituted in 73'
FH 22 Elton Jantjies Substituted in 70'
FB 23 Damian Willemse Substituted in 66'
Coach:
South Africa Jacques Nienaber
South Africa vs British & Irish Lions 2021-07-24.svg
FB 15 Scotland Stuart Hogg
RW 14 England Anthony Watson
OC 13 England Elliot Daly Substituted off 64' Substituted in 66'
IC 12 Ireland Robbie Henshaw
LW 11 Scotland Duhan van der Merwe Substituted off 70'
FH 10 Wales Dan Biggar Substituted off 66'
SH 9 Scotland Ali Price Substituted off 63'
N8 8 Ireland Jack Conan
OF 7 England Tom Curry Substituted off 56'
BF 6 England Courtney Lawes Substituted off 72'
RL 5 Wales Alun Wyn Jones (c)
LL 4 England Maro Itoje
TP 3 Ireland Tadhg Furlong Substituted off 66'
HK 2 England Luke Cowan-Dickie Substituted off 56'
LP 1 Scotland Rory Sutherland Substituted off 56'
Replacements:
HK 16 Wales Ken Owens Substituted in 56'
PR 17 England Mako Vunipola Substituted in 56'
PR 18 England Kyle Sinckler Substituted in 66'
LK 19 Ireland Tadhg Beirne Substituted in 72'
FL 20 Scotland Hamish Watson Substituted in 56'
SH 21 Ireland Conor Murray Substituted in 63'
FH 22 England Owen Farrell Substituted in 64'
FB 23 Wales Liam Williams Substituted in 70'
Coach:
New Zealand Warren Gatland

Player of the Match:
Maro Itoje (British & Irish Lions)[38]

Assistant referees:
Ben O'Keeffe (New Zealand)
Mathieu Raynal (France)
Television match official:
Marius Jonker (South Africa) [d]

Notes:

  • Wyn Jones (British & Irish Lions) was originally named in the starting XV, but withdrew ahead of the game due to injury. He was replaced by Rory Sutherland, who was replaced by Mako Vunipola on the bench.[40]
  • Tadhg Beirne, Dan Biggar, Tom Curry, Jack Conan, Luke Cowan-Dickie, Robbie Henshaw, Stuart Hogg, Ali Price, Rory Sutherland, Duhan van der Merwe and Hamish Watson all made their Lions test debuts.
  • Handré Pollard (South Africa) earned his 50th test cap.

South Africa v British & Irish Lions (second test)[]

31 July 2021
18:00 SAST (UTC+02)
South Africa  27–9 British & Irish Lions
Try: Mapimpi 44' m
Am 60' c
Con: Pollard (1/2) 61'
Pen: Pollard (5/6) 3', 31', 70', 75', 80'
 Report Pen: Biggar (3/4) 9', 16', 36'
Cape Town Stadium, Cape Town
Attendance: 0
Referee: Ben O'Keeffe (New Zealand)
FB 15 Willie le Roux
RW 14 Cheslin Kolbe Temporarily suspended from 24' to 34' 24' to 34'
OC 13 Lukhanyo Am
IC 12 Damian de Allende
LW 11 Makazole Mapimpi Substituted off 67'
FH 10 Handré Pollard
SH 9 Faf de Klerk Substituted off 63'
N8 8 Jasper Wiese Substituted off 55'
BF 7 Pieter-Steph du Toit Substituted off 21'
OF 6 Siya Kolisi (c) Substituted off 72'
RL 5 Franco Mostert
LL 4 Eben Etzebeth
TP 3 Frans Malherbe Substituted off 55'
HK 2 Bongi Mbonambi Substituted off 55'
LP 1 Steven Kitshoff Substituted off 59'
Replacements:
HK 16 Malcolm Marx Substituted in 55'
PR 17 Trevor Nyakane Substituted in 59'
PR 18 Vincent Koch Substituted in 55'
LK 19 Lood de Jager Substituted in 55'
FL 20 Marco van Staden Substituted in 72'
FL 21 Kwagga Smith Substituted in 21'
SH 22 Herschel Jantjies Substituted in 63'
FB 23 Damian Willemse Substituted in 67'
Coach:
South Africa Jacques Nienaber
South Africa vs British & Irish Lions 2021-07-31.svg
FB 15 Scotland Stuart Hogg
RW 14 England Anthony Watson
OC 13 Scotland Chris Harris Substituted off 61'
IC 12 Ireland Robbie Henshaw
LW 11 Scotland Duhan van der Merwe Temporarily suspended from 22' to 32' 22' to 32'
FH 10 Wales Dan Biggar Substituted off 57'
SH 9 Ireland Conor Murray Substituted off 57'
N8 8 Ireland Jack Conan Substituted off 59'
OF 7 England Tom Curry
BF 6 England Courtney Lawes Substituted off 70'
RL 5 Wales Alun Wyn Jones (c)
LL 4 England Maro Itoje
TP 3 Ireland Tadhg Furlong Substituted off 55'
HK 2 England Luke Cowan-Dickie Substituted off 55'
LP 1 England Mako Vunipola Substituted off 55'
Replacements:
HK 16 Wales Ken Owens Substituted in 55'
PR 17 Scotland Rory Sutherland Substituted in 55'
PR 18 England Kyle Sinckler Substituted in 55'
LK 19 Ireland Tadhg Beirne Substituted in 70'
N8 20 Wales Taulupe Faletau Substituted in 59'
SH 21 Scotland Ali Price Substituted in 57'
FH 22 England Owen Farrell Substituted in 57'
CE 23 England Elliot Daly Substituted in 61'
Coach:
New Zealand Warren Gatland

Player of the Match:
Makazole Mapimpi (South Africa)[41]

Assistant referees:
Nic Berry (Australia)
Mathieu Raynal (France)
Television match official:
Marius Jonker (South Africa)

Notes:

South Africa v British & Irish Lions (third test)[]

7 August 2021
18:00 SAST (UTC+02)
South Africa  19–16 British & Irish Lions
Try: Kolbe 55' c
Con: Pollard (1/1) 56'
Pen: Pollard (2/4) 11', 35'
Steyn (2/2) 66', 78'
 Report Try: Owens 18' c
Con: Russell (1/1) 20'
Pen: Russell (3/3) 16', 62', 74'
Cape Town Stadium, Cape Town
Attendance: 0
Referee: Mathieu Raynal (France)
FB 15 Willie le Roux Substituted off 68'
RW 14 Cheslin Kolbe
OC 13 Lukhanyo Am
IC 12 Damian de Allende
LW 11 Makazole Mapimpi
FH 10 Handré Pollard Substituted off 64'
SH 9 Cobus Reinach Substituted off 63'
N8 8 Jasper Wiese Substituted off 62'
BF 7 Franco Mostert Sent to blood bin 12' to 20'
OF 6 Siya Kolisi (c) Substituted off 55' Substituted in 62'
RL 5 Lood de Jager Substituted off 52'
LL 4 Eben Etzebeth
TP 3 Frans Malherbe Substituted off 55'
HK 2 Bongi Mbonambi Substituted off 55'
LP 1 Steven Kitshoff Substituted off 60'
Replacements:
HK 16 Malcolm Marx Substituted in 55'
PR 17 Trevor Nyakane Substituted in 60'
PR 18 Vincent Koch Substituted in 55'
FL 19 Marco van Staden Substituted in 55'
FL 20 Kwagga Smith Substituted in 12' Substituted off 20' Substituted in 52'
SH 21 Herschel Jantjies Substituted in 63'
FH 22 Morné Steyn Substituted in 64'
FB 23 Damian Willemse Substituted in 68'
Coach:
South Africa Jacques Nienaber
South Africa vs British & Irish Lions 2021-08-07.svg
FB 15 Wales Liam Williams
RW 14 Wales Josh Adams
OC 13 Ireland Robbie Henshaw
IC 12 Ireland Bundee Aki
LW 11 Scotland Duhan van der Merwe
FH 10 Wales Dan Biggar Substituted off 10'
SH 9 Scotland Ali Price Substituted off 58'
N8 8 Ireland Jack Conan Substituted off 60'
OF 7 England Tom Curry
BF 6 England Courtney Lawes
RL 5 Wales Alun Wyn Jones (c) Substituted off 60'
LL 4 England Maro Itoje
TP 3 Ireland Tadhg Furlong Substituted off 58'
HK 2 Wales Ken Owens Substituted off 53'
LP 1 Wales Wyn Jones Substituted off 43'
Replacements:
HK 16 England Luke Cowan-Dickie Substituted in 53'
PR 17 England Mako Vunipola Substituted in 43'
PR 18 England Kyle Sinckler Substituted in 58'
LK 19 Wales Adam Beard Substituted in 60'
N8 20 England Sam Simmonds Substituted in 60'
SH 21 Ireland Conor Murray Substituted in 58'
FH 22 Scotland Finn Russell Substituted in 10'
CE 23 England Elliot Daly
Coach:
New Zealand Warren Gatland

Player of the Match:
Cheslin Kolbe (South Africa)[citation needed]

Assistant referees:
Ben O'Keeffe (New Zealand)
Nic Berry (Australia)
Television match official:
Marius Jonker (South Africa)

Notes:

Notes[]

  1. ^ Murray replaced Jones as tour captain after Jones was injured.
  2. ^ Gatland was also an assistant coach in 2009, making this his fourth tour.
  3. ^ South Africa's director of rugby, Rassie Erasmus, coached the South Africa A side in the absence of head coach Jacques Nienaber, who was in isolation after contracting COVID-19.[36]
  4. ^ Replaced New Zealand's Brendon Pickerill for the full test series after Pickerill was unable to travel due to COVID restrictions.[39]

References[]

  1. ^ Jones, Chris (4 December 2019). "British and Irish Lions: Fixtures announced for 2021 tour of South Africa". BBC Sport. Retrieved 14 May 2021.
  2. ^ Jones, Chris (30 May 2020). "British and Irish Lions: Murrayfield favourite to host home Test before South Africa tour". BBC Sport. Retrieved 18 July 2021.
  3. ^ Rees, Paul (25 September 2017). "British & Irish Lions to reduce fixtures for 2021 South Africa tour". The Guardian. Retrieved 25 May 2019.
  4. ^ Rees, Paul (25 September 2017). "Lions to play fewer matches in 2021 South Africa tour". The Irish Times. Retrieved 25 May 2019.
  5. ^ "British & Irish Lions have a 'lucrative' idea to save 2021 tour". Ruck. 3 January 2021. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
  6. ^ "Rugby Australia offers to host Lions tour". BBC Sport. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
  7. ^ "Australia bid to host Lions tour turned down". BBC Sport. Retrieved 6 March 2021.
  8. ^ "Lions plan for 2021 tour in South Africa". BBC Sport. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
  9. ^ "British and Irish Lions 2021: Schedule for South Africa tour changed to reduce travel". BBC Sport. 14 May 2021. Retrieved 14 May 2021.
  10. ^ "LIONS TOUR SCHEDULE CONFIRMED". British & Irish Lions. 14 May 2021. Retrieved 9 June 2021.
  11. ^ "Lions v Bulls off as Covid hits hosts". BBC Sport. Retrieved 6 July 2021.
  12. ^ "Lions plan Sharks rematch on Saturday". BBC Sport. Retrieved 8 July 2021.
  13. ^ Godwin, Hugh (20 July 2021). "Lions vs South Africa fixtures 2021: Why all three Tests will now take place in Cape Town". inews.co.uk..
  14. ^ "British and Irish Lions 2021: Sam Simmonds in 37-man squad but Billy Vunipola misses out". BBC Sport. 6 May 2021. Retrieved 6 May 2021.
  15. ^ "Sinckler replaces injured Porter in Lions squad". British & Irish Lions. 6 June 2021. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
  16. ^ "Ronan Kelleher called in to train with Lions - but hasn't been added to touring party". Irish Independent. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
  17. ^ "Ronan Kelleher joins British and Irish Lions training camp in Jersey as hooker cover". Sky Sports. Retrieved 14 June 2021.
  18. ^ "Kelleher to join up with Lions in South Africa". British & Irish Lions. 14 July 2021. Retrieved 14 July 2021.
  19. ^ "Alun Wyn Jones and Justin Tipuric ruled out of Lions tour". British & Irish Lions. 26 June 2021. Retrieved 27 June 2021.
  20. ^ "Alun Wyn Jones returns to Lions tour". British & Irish Lions. 14 July 2021. Retrieved 14 July 2021.
  21. ^ "Marcus Smith called up to Lions as injury cover". British & Irish Lions. 10 July 2021. Retrieved 14 July 2021.
  22. ^ "2021 British & Irish Lions squad". British & Irish Lions. 2021. Retrieved 6 May 2021.
  23. ^ "Murray vows to make the most of Lions captaincy experience". lionsrugby.com. British & Irish Lions. 27 June 2021. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
  24. ^ "Six contenders to coach the 2021 British and Irish Lions tour to South Africa". Sky Sports. 10 July 2017. Retrieved 25 May 2019.
  25. ^ "Gatland 'honoured' after becoming only second man to lead Lions for third time". The Guardian. 12 June 2019.
  26. ^ "British and Irish Lions 2021: Townsend, Tandy, McBryde and Jenkins named as coaches". BBC Sport. 13 April 2021. Retrieved 7 May 2021.
  27. ^ "Springboks Squad for Castle Lager Lions Series". SA Rugby.
  28. ^ "Springboks resume training on Sunday". SA Rugby. 10 July 2021. Retrieved 11 July 2021.
  29. ^ "Bok squad for Lions showdown: live on SuperSport". supersport.com. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  30. ^ English, Tom (26 June 2021). "British & Irish Lions 28-10 Japan: Alun Wyn Jones injury mars routine warm-up win". BBC Sport. Retrieved 27 June 2021.
  31. ^ "Lions v Japan: Tipuric to replace Watson in starting XV". lionsrugby.com. British & Irish Lions. 23 June 2021. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
  32. ^ "Lions v Japan: Fagerson ruled out of 1888 Cup". lionsrugby.com. British & Irish Lions. 24 June 2021. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
  33. ^ "The British & Irish Lions v Japan - Preview". lionsrugby.com. British & Irish Lions. Retrieved 1 July 2021.
  34. ^ The Lions have not yet announced if they regard the match as a test.
  35. ^ "Lions Rugby changes ahead of Sharks fixture". British & Irish Lions. Retrieved 7 July 2021.
  36. ^ "Erasmus hopeful for another SA 'A' fixture". springboks.rugby. SA Rugby. 13 July 2021. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
  37. ^ Jump up to: a b "Farrell & Williams drafted in to starting XV". lionsrugby.com. British & Irish Lions. 14 July 2021. Retrieved 17 July 2021.
  38. ^ "British and Irish Lions player ratings: Maro Itoje, Courtney Lawes, Tadhg Furlong stand out in 22-17 win over Springboks". Sky Sports. 24 July 2021. Retrieved 8 August 2021.
  39. ^ Meagher, Gerard (23 July 2021). "Gatland fury after South African Marius Jonker appointed Lions Test series TMO". The Guardian. Guardian News and Media. Retrieved 23 July 2021.
  40. ^ "British & Irish Lions rally in second half to win first Test against South Africa". Guardian. 24 July 2021. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
  41. ^ "Springboks level Lions Test series". BBC Sport. 31 July 2021. Retrieved 8 August 2021.
  42. ^ "Lukhanyo Am seals South Africa victory on painful night for British & Irish Lions". Guardian. 31 July 2021. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
  43. ^ "South Africa 19-16 British and Irish Lions: Morne Steyn's late penalty wins series". BBC Sport. 7 August 2021. Retrieved 9 August 2021.
  44. ^ "Steyn shatters Lions with late kick to edge South Africa to series win". Guardian. 7 August 2021. Retrieved 9 August 2021.
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