Steyn believes Fidelity SecureDrive Lions are hungry for a play-off upset

Underdogs. Written off. Not given a chance. For Morné Steyn, that’s exactly where any South African rugby team thrives and it’s this mindset which he believes the Fidelity SecureDrive Lions will carry with them into their Vodacom United Rugby Championship quarter-final against Leinster this weekend (9pm on Saturday – SAST).

Playing Leinster in Dublin is never an easy task. But Steyn has enough experience of pulling off the impossible in this competition.

He was part of the Vodacom Bulls team that knocked Leinster out of the semi-finals in Dublin in the inaugural season of this competition. Now, as an assistant coach with the Lions, he believes a similar opportunity awaits this team. Especially on the back of Leinster’s heavy defeat in the Investec Champions Cup final against Bordeaux this past weekend.

“I won’t be easy to beat Leinster at home and we’ll have to be at our best to win. But we saw it in the Investec Champions Cup final that there is an opportunity now. I also saw it with the Vodacom Bulls a few seasons ago when we beat Leinster in Dublin in the semis. It’s possible. I think the nice part of it is that nobody is giving us a chance. And a South African can never be written off,” says Steyn.

This marks the first season in their history that the Lions have made it to the play-offs. As a player, Steyn always thrived on these big moments. And he says his advice to this team has been to do exactly what he did, whether it was playing in a final for the Bulls or kicking a last-minute penalty for the Springboks to beat the British & Irish Lions.

“It is a big occasion, but sometimes players make it too big in their minds. In my career I always focused on treating each game as just another game, whether it was a league game or a final. So I would tell this team not to make it bigger than it is. To be in the play-offs is already an achievement. That was our goal at the start of the season. Now they just need to go out there, live their talent, and play.”

Steyn also believes their Round 17 game against Leinster early in May was also crucial preparation for this quarter-final, even though they lost that match 31-7.

“I saw it in that game. A player like Sibabalwe Mahashe is 22 years old. It was the first time he and some of the other young players in the squad were playing in Ireland in front of a full Dublin crowd all against them. That was a big thing for them. Now with the quarter-final, I can see these youngsters are excited. It’s the first time they’re part of this senior team and it’s more of a challenge for them. I think they’re looking forward to it.”

The odds will favour even a hurting Leinster.

But Steyn has been here before in his career and knows that odds don’t win play-off matches.

“We all know it. This ball isn’t round – it can bounce any way. You just never know.”

QF2: (2) Leinster v (7) Fidelity SecureDrive Lions @ Aviva Stadium, Dublin (8pm UK/9pm SA)

Live on TG4, Premier Sports, SuperSport, URC.tv, FloRugby