WHILE LIONS players and management were understandably delighted at the team's performance, they were furious over an incident that has put Scottish second row Doddie Weir out of the tour.
Weir sustained severe medial ligament damage as a result of a deliberate kick by Mpumalanga second row Marius Bosman in the 56th minute of the match.
Weir, who will become the second Lion to fly home injured after out-half Paul Grayson, will be sidelined for at least six weeks.
The Lions have a large problem now in relation to a replacement for Weir. "Several of the players we had as back-up are injured," said manger Fran Cotton. "Paddy Johns is ruled out by a knee injury, Craig Quinnell and Garath Archer are also injured and limits our options severely."
Johns withdrew from the Ireland tour to New Zealand because of his knee trouble and Archer pulled out of the England tour to Argentina.
"We must now look at who is available. It is tragic for Doddie, and while injuries will be sustained in a match the fact that this was so totally unnecessary adds to one's sense of annoyance," added Cotton.
Lions coach Ian McGeechan, after initially suggesting in a television interview that the Lions would cite Bosman later, said they would be unable to do so.
Bosman's only punishment from referee Carel Spannenberg was the awarding of a penalty and a wagging finger in admonishment.
McGeechan said: "We are extremely annoyed over the incident, but while I did say initially we would cite Bosnian, he was penalised by the referee and I now know that under the IB regulations and the tour agreement we are unable to do so. Mpunialanga are responsible for their players and I sincerely hope they take action."
Well there must be some question marks over that. Mpumalanga manager Gert Grobler, having initially said he believed the incident was an accident, when pressed, did say that they would look at the video and "see what that reveals. We will take action against the player if we are satisfied that it is warranted."
Cotton said: "We all share a responsibility to the game to take action against such acts."
On the Lions' performance McGeechan said: "I am delighted with the performance in every respect. All the hard work on Monday paid off. They had a big reputation, but we overwhelmed them in every area."
Lions captain for the day Tim Rodber said: "The pack played very well, but so did the backs."
