They may be seen as an easy fixture for teams, but the Emirates Lions are not taking Italian side Zebre lightly.
The Lions saw that while the Italians haven’t got the best record in the competition, they did cause a massive upset a few weeks ago by beating Munster and therefore need to be taken seriously.
It would be easy for the Lions to look a week ahead to the massive challenge of facing unbeaten Leinster at the Aviva Stadium next week, rather than concentrating on the task at hand.
“If we go in with a mindset it’s going to be a walk in the park it will be a big mistake,” Lions defence coach Jaque Fourie said when facing the media this week.
“Zebre are a tough team, and they play for 80 minutes. It’s a big challenge for us ahead of next week’s match against Leinster, which will potentially be a top of the table clash, between two of only three unbeaten teams right now. So, it’s a big motivator to win this weekend.”
Fourie said while the team had ground out a victory at the Dragons, they weren’t at all pleased with their form, and the team needed to “create excitement this week” for the team to be in top form when they take the field.
“We've got a few guys that's coming back from injuries now. So I think for us is to create the excitement again for this weekend for the team that's going to play. You know, it is an unbelievable opportunity for all the players to play again this weekend against Zebre.
“And then next weekend, you're playing the team that's top of the log. You know, what an awesome opportunity as well. I think as rugby players and as coaches, those are the teams that you want to play to measure yourself against in a competition like this.
“We're relishing the opportunity to play them (Zebre). If or when we win this weekend then probably next weekend is a top of the table clash against Leinster.”
DEFENCE STRUCTURE WILL BE KEY
“But we first need to do the job this weekend. Zebre are not an easy team, and if we are going in with that mindset – that it’s just going to be a walk in the park – we will be making a big mistake.”
The way Zebre have played has forced Fourie and the Lions coaches into rethinking the way they want to attack them, and in particular how their defence needs to be structured.
“We do put a lot of emphasis on attack and in a few instances you are going to have unstructured defence also,” Fourie said.
“So, our challenge is to get into the defence structure as quickly as possible to put the team and their skill-sets under pressure. A team like Zebre, they like unstructured attack.
“So, we’ll have to force them into structured attack and get the ball back again. It is going to rain a lot, so the conditions are not going to allow us to play an expansive game.”
The Lions will name their side for the clash on Friday.