Former Springbok flyhalf Morne Steyn - now the kicking coach for the Fidelity Securedrive Lions - believes that Lions’ flyhalf Chris Smith is a key man for his team in Saturday’s Vodacom United Rugby Championship quarterfinal against defending champions Leinster.
Steyn then went a step further, praising the calmness that Smith has brought to the Lions backline and ranking him as a key reason why the team have done so well this year in making their first-ever playoffs.
Steyn feels that Smith should have done enough to catch the eye of Springbok coach Rassie Erasmus, and that his “main character energy” - as coach Ivan van Rooyen has put it - is a massive asset for the Lions going into this game.
Smith won the URC’s golden boot in 2023/4 with the Bulls, then headed to France to play for Oyannax before joining the Lions and has been exceptional for them this season. He currently sits second on the URC points-scoring list with 154 points, locked in a battle with Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu for top spot.
Steyn believes a lot of the Lions’ success comes down to Smith’s calm head under pressure.
“It was great to have my son back with me. I played with him at the Bulls and we had a great time there. I think since Chris being here with the Lions, he has made a big difference in our team,” Steyn said.
“It's sad for me he's not in the alignment camp. For me, he's probably the best flyhalf in the country at the moment and probably one of the top in the URC as well. So for me, it's sad he's not in the alignment camp yet.
“But yeah, it's great working with him. I played with him. I know what he can do, his abilities. So now I'm looking forward to the last couple of games coming up and the next couple of years I'm going to be with him.
“It's great to have him here. He made a big difference in our team and he's one of the senior guys now, taking control and he's in charge.”
The Lions will need more than just Smith to overcome Leinster this weekend, but they will give themselves a chance.
Attack coach Ricardo Loubscher added that the team need to be a lot better in the way they attack against Leinster, especially after the way the home team shut them down a fortnight ago.
We talked about our execution, our launches were not good enough to put them under pressure,” Loubscher said.
“Their linespeed put us under massive pressure, just catching us behind the gainline. So we need to come up with solutions. We need to come up with plans. How are we going to exploit that linespeed?
“But it is also just to be in the moment. The last time we faced them, we created so many opportunities. In review, looking at the pictures, we had so many opportunities. It's about being in the moment and also making the right decisions in that moment.
“The big focus is on our finishing, and a big focus on just being in the moment and taking the right options.”
The Lions will name their team for the clash on Friday.