Brian O'Driscoll spoke to Off The Ball about the British and Irish Lions tour that is in danger of becoming a byword for COVID chaos.

While the Lions' match with the Cell C Sharks went ahead on Wednesday, it was touch-and-go due to COVID positives in the Lions camp, as a player and coach tested positive.

Brian O'Driscoll on 'farcical' Lions tour

Sydney Seshibedi/Sportsfile

As captain Conor Murray and Tadhg Beirne were among nine Lions players to self-isolate, O'Driscoll believes the situation is 'farcical' and endangers the Lions' brand.

"We were looking forward to a Test series against the South Africans, it looks like we're getting a Test series against the Sharks," O'Driscoll said.

"I know that we're having to do this because of COVID and there's talk about adaptability and reacting to new circumstances, but at times it is becoming farcical.

"Just hearing a bit of intel from inside the camp, you have to really feel for the players and the management. This isn't normal. This isn't a Lions tour as we know it, even the watered-down version we're seeing on the field.

"It can't be any fun. It simply can't be. That is how you tie groups together and give them a sense of purpose, because they've integrated themselves and become Lions, not these individuals from four different countries."

'Money-making machine'

O'Driscoll believes that the particulars of a COVID-hit tour mean that the financial aspect of the tour is laid bare, and does not make for good viewing.

"The reality is that it has turned into a money-making machine, but that is usually wrapped in the supporter base, the sea of red, the community experiences and the players having a great time and playing and training with people they have huge respect for," O'Driscoll said.

"The money-making component gets lost in that and makes it more palatable; whereas it is less palatable at the moment because the Lions, more than any other team in rugby, is dependent on the crowds. It is dependent on the supporter base and those four countries coming together.

"They are having none of that, they are not able to feed on any energy coming from the crowd whatsoever. You are getting a completely diluted sense of what it is to be a Lion. All of these factors coming together are coming together to cause - in my opinion - damage to the overall brand.

"That said, I understand the need for them to go and see out the rest of this tour because it's potentially financial ruin and bankruptcy if they don't manage to get through this Test series."

Move to the UK?

If things continue along a rocky road, O'Driscoll believes that conversations about moving the Test series to the UK cannot be ruled out, even if it is logistically nightmarish.

"It has got to be taken as a possible viable option on the basis that if the Test series isn't finished, it could bankrupt the Lions or the Springboks. When you are looking at the severity of those outcomes, you have to take on every option available.

"They couldn't manage to get the series played in the UK when that was touted three or four months ago, there was talk that no-one would underwrite it.

"If they could guarantee the two teams to travel back to the UK, do their ten-day quarantine, do their Test series and guarantee full stadia [...] but you have to remember that these things are years in the making. They can't just be flipped and turned around in no time whatsoever.

"As much as it's easy for us to shout options, the reality is that I'm not sure if they can be achieved. But at the moment, there is real scepticism as to whether you are going to see three Test series with South Africa in South Africa in the circumstances of what has happened in the last week.

"I would imagine that conversation is happening even just to test the water."

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