Why Jacques Nienaber believes Lions are ‘force to be reckoned with’ and ‘one of the big off-field goals’ for Leinster in South Africa

Former Springboks boss Jacques Nienaber has described the Lions as a force to be reckoned with ahead of the new United Rugby Championship (URC) season.

The 2023 Rugby World Cup-winning head coach is back on South African soil this week with defending champions Leinster set to open their title defence against the Lions at Ellis Park, a round one fixture that will be followed by an October 3 assignment at the Sharks in Durban.

South Africa hasn’t been a happy hunting ground for the reigning back-to-back champions from Ireland. They have played 11 matches there since the league became the URC