The last time the British & Irish Lions won a series in South Africa, in 1997, it was the Scottish coaching duo of Ian McGeechan and Jim Telfer that masterminded the Springboks’ downfall.
In 2021 New Zealander Warren Gatland will lead the Lions for a third time, but the Scotland national team coaching duo of Gregor Townsend and Steve Tandy will play a key role.
Gatland, the former Wales coach, has never lost a series as Lions head coach – guiding them to a 2-1 win in Australia in 2013 and 1-1 drawn series in New Zealand in 2017.
Townsend and Tandy have quickly rebuilt Scotland into a formidable team after they failed to make the quarterfinals at Rugby World Cup 2019. Their work resulted in the Scots’ first win at Twickenham over England in 38 years when they won 11-6 in February. They also beat a resurgent France.