British and Irish Lions coaches taking inspiration from 1997 documentary in bid to win first series in 12 years
03/30/2025 08:59 AM
It’s been 12 years since the British and Irish Lions won their last series – and a 1997 documentary is being used as the inspiration to end their wait this summer.
The Lions face Australia in a three-Test series later this year, who they edged out 2-1 in 2013.
And having since lost to New Zealand and South Africa, Lions boss Andy Farrell and his coaching staff have turned to the 1997 Living with Lions documentary for motivation.
The groundbreaking film gave fans the inside story of the Lions’ 2-1 series victory over South Africa.
Sitting down with talkSPORT at a pre-tour announcement on Wednesday, Farrell and his Lions assistants chose the fly on the wall production as the reason they fell in love with the greatest touring team in rugby.
And the coaches want to replicate the camaraderie around the '97 squad that played such a vital role in triumphing over the Springboks.
Only Farrell has coached twice on previous Lions tours, while Simon Easterby, one of the assistant coaches, was a Lions player appearing in two Tests on the controversial 2005 series loss to New Zealand in which captain Brian O'Driscoll was injured by an illegal clear out in the first Test, consequently sidelining the star for the rest of the series.
Head coach Farrell told talkSPORT: "I would probably think, like most people my age, my first memory of the Lions is the South Africa tour in 1997 when the video came out for the first time.
“John Bentley was the star of that show and he was a rugby league boy that I played against.
“Obviously, he was more senior than me, but seeing how he flourished in that type of environment.
"That’s the first fly on the wall documentary that everyone has copied, vastly throughout the world. What a tour, what drama right the way through.
“Obviously things have changed, I don’t know if it is for the better actually, dynamics have changed, professionalism has changed.
"The high performance team behind the team is vast and certainly more experienced now.
“But being able to get into the changing rooms and seeing the nervousness, the determination, the emotion of the players, and the way that they excelled in South Africa is the clear and obvious one for me."
For Easterby, the 1997 documentary provided a crucial insight into what makes up a successful tour, as he said: "The successful tour to South Africa and the fly on the wall documentary brought the Lions Tour, and the way it was run, to life.
“That is another memory which sticks in everyone's mind, particularly mine."
Easterby also has fond memories of the 1989 Lions Tour to Australia which produced a nail biting 2-1 series win, adding: “In 1989, I would have been 14 watching that Australia tour.
“I remember Rob Jones having a scrap with Nick Farr-Jones at a scrum put in, and Ieuan Evans, who scored the winning try in the deciding game.
“So that would be my earliest memory of a Lions tour as well as 1997."
For England attack coach Richard Wigglesworth, the chance to be part of a Lions tour is a dream opportunity, and he also has very vivid memories of sitting down at home to watch the 1997 documentary.
He remarked: "That is my earliest memory is the 1997 Tour, I would have been a teenager and I am not sure if I remember the tour, I just remember the documentary, as we all did.
“They did an awesome job – the personalities that came out of that, and the big moments.
“I suppose rugby wise, I probably would remember Neil Jenkins' goal kicking, Jeremy Guscott's drop goal, Scott Gibbs' carry – those are the ones that stick out.
"I signed professionally for Sale straight out of school, which was the summer Jason Robinson was doing what he did for the Lions in 2001.
“I was obviously unbelievably excited by that, and then Jason came to the club and looked after me for the next couple of years, took me under his wing – it doesn't get much better than that.
“It's gone full circle, I think Jason will be on the tour as an ambassador and it will be awesome to catch up with him and reconnect."
Creating the right atmosphere off the field to supplement the work being done on it is something assistant coach John Fogarty believes the 2025 Lions can learn from that famous South African tour.
He stated: "It's the '97 tour, Living with Lions – when you watch it back then, it was such a window into what touring was all about.
“The group were having the time of their lives, there was plenty of fun, plenty of craic.
"They were incredibly tight off the pitch, and Scotty Gibbs, I’ll never forget what he did, he ran into Os du Randt and knocked him over.
“For me, the front row – Tom Smith and Paul Wallace, with Keith Wood in the middle of them – they weren't huge props, but had enormous fight and were part of a pack taking on a huge South African pack.
“They didn't stop coming at South Africa, it's a brilliant memory that I have in my mind about the fight, drive, and togetherness that's needed to be in a Lions team."
Those sentiments are backed up by John Dalziel who was inspired by the 1997 Lions fly half Gregor Townsend, who he now works with in the Scotland coaching box.
He said: "Gregor Townsend, who I now coach with, was from the same little borders town called Galashiels, and he was representing the Lions on the biggest stage.
“Growing up at school watching him play and win the Test match with other borders players Doddie Weir and Alan Tait – they were real inspirations of mine growing up."
The final member of the 2025 coaching team has a different memory of Lions rugby because he was born in New Zealand and first saw the red jerseys in live action in 1993 when the All Blacks won the series 2-1.
Ireland backs coach, Andrew Goodman revealed: "The 1993, the tour of New Zealand is my first memory and I will have been about 11-years-old, it was my first taste of Northern Hemisphere rugby.
“I remember Gavin Hastings planting the ball on the ground and hoofing it over from miles back on a few occasions. Guys like Jerry Guscott and Will Carling.
"The All Blacks players back then that I would have admired would be Michael Jones, who was a hero of mine growing up.
“We took the decider in that one, I think it was 1-1 after two Tests. I remember watching that with my old man and my brothers at home."
talkSPORT is the official audio partner of the 2025 British and Irish Lions tour to Australia, and we will be bringing listeners 200 hours of exclusive coverage this summer
