Baa Baas V Lions to Feature Two Water Breaks

Baa Baas V Lions to Feature Two Water Breaks


Despite the Lions insisting on Wednesday that no special requests would be made to the IRB about requesting water breaks during tomorrow’s game at the Hong Kong stadium, Telegraph Sport can reveal that the game will be stopped twice to allow players from both sides to rehydrate in what are expected to be severely hot and physically draining conditions.

Mike Tipton, a top sports scientist, warned on Thursday that it was a mistake to have chosen to stop off in Hong Kong on the way to Australia.

The Portsmouth University professor, who is chair of UK Sport’s Research Advisory Group and advised Team GB on climate before the 2004 and 2008 Olympics, said: “From a safety point of view I would not have chosen Hong Kong in the first place.”

The conditions for Saturday’s game against the Barbarians also fall outside the IRB’s guidelines for match conditions, which say that games should ideally not be staged where the temperature is more than 30C or humidity above 60 per cent.

Heavy rain in Hong Kong over the past two weeks has caused humidity levels to rise to more than 80 per cent this week, with temperatures also soaring above 30C.

The temperature is expected to reach 35C on Saturday and be around 29C at kick-off time. Humidity is expected to rise from 90 per cent to 96 per cent by 11pm.

The IRB’s own heat guideline for player welfare states that in order to minimise the risk of heat illness or stress, if practical, training and playing should be scheduled when humidity is below 60 per cent and temperatures below 30C.

Previous research has proved that players can lose up to three litres of sweat while playing in hot, humid conditions for 80 minutes.

Former Lions coach Dick Best last night also questioned the wisdom of playing the game in Hong Kong.

“I am sure it is going to take something out of the players,” said Best, who was part of the coaching team for the tour to New Zealand in 1993. “It is something different and a new experience and you could find all the excuses you want to play the game there, but at the end of the day, the Test series is in Australia.”

The extreme conditions have raised questions about the wisdom of the decision to play the opening game here.

A Lions spokesman insisted on Thursday night however that every measure had been put in place to protect the welfare of their players and that the decision to play the opening game in Hong Kong had been one based on logistic and strategic reasons rather than commercial ones.

The special measures that have been put in place include wrapping players in special ‘ice jackets’ after the game, while they will also be given specialised hydration products before kick-off.

Each player has also been weighed before and after training this week to ensure any lost fluids are replaced while 12 giant water fans have been installed to help minimise the impact of the heat and humidity.

“Our doctor, James Robson, will not put any player in jeopardy,” the spokesman said.

“They have had weeks of rain here and all of a sudden the sun has come out and the humidity has gone up. All we can do is prepare for it and the medical team has been phenomenal in regard to the rehydration process.

“HSBC [principal sponsor of the Lions] have not given us a single penny towards this game. Three years ago the Lions board looked at the tour of Australia and they could only offer nine games — three Tests, the five Super provinces and [Queensland] Country, which is going to be by far the weakest game.

After the last tour Sir Ian McGeechan put down in stone that for a short tour you need at least six matches.

“The sixth match was either going to come from Argentina, USA, Japan or Hong Kong, where there is a strong tradition of sevens, a lot of expats, the Bledisloe Cup has been played here and it breaks up the trip to Australia.

“We probably didn’t realise quite what it meant in terms of conditions and heat and that is a lesson learnt. But from a professional athlete preparing, it is going to give them an amazing advantage as opposed to going to altitude.

"We had an amazing monitoring programme in place for hydration and the boys are already feeling the benefits of that three days into the tour. When we then go to a slightly cooler climate, it is going to be a huge benefit for them.”

Scott Hogg, the Scotland full-back who will be making his Lions debut on Saturday, was among those who voiced his concerns at the energy-sapping conditions.

“I’m finding it pretty tough.,” he said. “It’s massively important to take on water out here. Every stoppage we’ve got the strength and conditioners and the nutritionists on with the water.”

Wales prop Adam Jones said he expected the conditions to be even more demanding that playing at the high altitude of the South African highveld four years ago.

“It was tough in 2009,” he said, “but this is something else. I haven’t trained anywhere hotter than this.”

Lawrence Dallaglio, the former England and Lions flanker who is in Hong Kong as an ambassador for Land Rover, said the conditions were not ideal.

“An evening kick-off will help but the forecast for Saturday night is hot and the humidity is going to be higher than normal. The key will be to take on lots of fluid all week and make sure that throughout the game the players keep themselves hydrated.”