Lions head coach Ian McGeechan revealed his pride after his side recorded their sixth successive tour win against Southern Kings.
Head coach proud of discipline following Kings workout
British and Irish Lions head coach Ian McGeechan revealed his pride at the way his side kept their composure during their hard-fought win over Southern Kings.
The bruising 20-8 victory did however come at a cost - both prop Euan Murray and fly-half James Hook leaving the game in the first half with injuries.
In a physical encounter which saw the hosts have two players yellow-carded, tempers threatened to boil over after the game when rival fly-halves Ronan O'Gara and Jaco van der Westhuyzen were involved in a shoving match.
Following his clash with van der Westhuyzen O'Gara remained angered by the Kings' aggressive tactics.
"They were more interested in kicking lumps out of us than scoring or keeping the score down," he said. "The other teams we've faced have been passionate and proud, but these guys fancied themselves to take a scalp."
Damage
Lions centre Gordon D'Arcy, meanwhile, appeared to refuse to shake hands with his opposite number De Wet Barry.
D'Arcy said afterwards: "There were some questionable tackles, but that's the way it is.
"De Wet Barry is a good, physical, strong player. He's one of those guys who likes to get in amongst it. I shook his hand, but I didn't want to have a chat with him."
Van der Westhuyzen and O'Gara exchanged penalties as a tight and tense first half ended with the scores locked at 3-3.
The Lions improved after the break and eventually claimed their sixth successive tour win courtesy of an Ugo Monye try, a penalty try and seven further points from substitute fly-half O'Gara.
Scotland prop Murray has undergone an ankle x-ray, which has revealed no fracture, while Ospreys' Hook suffered a knock to the head and will undergo further assessment.
"They (Southern Kings) wanted to make a game of it," admitted McGeechan.
"It was pretty full on, and we had to keep enough composure to win the game, which was the very pleasing aspect of it.
"A penalty try proved technically that we kept our heads. We kept doing damage where it hurt them most.
"The players have swapped jerseys, and we move on. We've come out with a win - our composure was very important.
"I am really proud of the discipline we showed - it showed the players' focus - and they got their just reward."
Physical game
McGeechan's focus now turns to the opening Test in Durban on Saturday and he is scheduled to announce his line-up on Thursday.
"We might have an initial chat tonight, but tomorrow we will go through every position and have a discussion," he added. "There are close calls in a number of areas.
"I thought we were very professional, which is what I was proud of. The players responded very well to each other.
"They wanted to produce a tough game for us, and they did that. They were keen to do well against us, and that's fine."
Stand-in Lions skipper Donncha O'Callaghan added: "We were disappointed with the try we conceded at the end, to be honest.
"It was a hugely physical game, but there was no ill-feeling. Things go on in a game, and straight away after a game it's harder to forget about a few slaps in the face.
"At times, we gave away a few silly penalties, but the guys were very composed with an awful lot of stuff going on off the ball."
