Rugby

Boks, Lions set to finally clash after year of Covid-19 chaos

July 23, 2021 3:44 pm

British and Irish Lions' head coach, Warren Gatland, leads the players as they walk into the field for their warm up. [Source: Associated Press]

After months of uncertainty and misgivings, the business end of the British and Irish Lions tour of South Africa gets underway with the opening test against the Springboks on Sunday morning.

Covid-19 has blanketed the tour for more than a year, casting grave doubts as to whether the tour will go ahead, and even whether it should. The merit of landing in a South Africa suffering through a third wave of the coronavirus, and just when a former president was jailed and sparked the worst violence since the end of apartheid, is worth arguing.

But the teams have navigated through both – not without scars – and look to take a significant step to series success in the first of three tests at Cape Town Stadium.

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The venue was confirmed this week as the stage for the entire series due to the risk of returning to Johannesburg, the epicenter of South Africa’s current wave, although no fans will be at any of the tests for the first time in the Lions’ 133-year history.